Go See the Woodcarver
“Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.” Psalm 34:5
I love Max Lucado’s children’s book You Are Special. In the story, small wooden Wemmicks spend their days judging one another. Those who are beautiful, are funny, or have a special talent receive gold stars. Those whose paint is chipped, who are clumsy or ugly, receive gray dots. A Wemmick named Punchinello only receives gray dots. Punchinello is made fun of and left out often, and he has come to believe that what other people think is the truth about him.
But one day Punchinello meets Lucia. Lucia is different from any other Wemmick he knows. She has no dots or stars. She radiates love and confidence like no one he’s ever seen. Other Wemmicks try to stick both stars and dots on her, but they never stick. Punchinello is amazed by this, and when he asks her how she’s able to keep the stars and dots from sticking, she says she goes to see Eli the Woodcarver.
When Punchinello goes to meet him, he’s afraid Eli won’t like him because he makes mistakes and his paint is chipping, but Eli lovingly looks at Punchinello and says, “You are special because I made you. And I don’t make mistakes… The stickers only stick if you care about them. The more you trust in my love, the less you will care about their stickers.”
Just like Punchinello, the world will praise us for the things we do well and tear us down for our imperfections, but we have a Loving Father who has something better for us than gold stars and gray dots. He made each of us unique and special, and He doesn’t make mistakes. And the more time we spend listening to His voice instead of the voices of others, the more we find those “stickers” don’t matter.
As you start your day today, take the time to “Go see the Woodcarver”. Spend time in God’s word, pray, and listen to His voice of Love reminding you that you, just as you are today, are special to Him.