Thursday, March 1, 2007

The glitter saga January 11, 2007

Okay, so we do crafts, lots of crafts. I decided that for both the Kid’s Club and ladies’ ministry I would like to do a Christmas craft with glitter. The only problem was I couldn’t find any glitter. Now I will admit, neither of these projects was pivotal; I could have picked something else, but I didn’t want to. Thus began the search.
First, I looked in the craft supplies we have, but no glitter. Anna said she had never seen glitter in any store but promised she would keep her eyes peeled whenever she was out. I asked Oksana, who told me to ask Inna, who thought she had seen some in the department store, but she wasn’t sure in which shop. So, I searched there but did not find any.
One day Sasha and I went shopping with a list of other things, but our main goal was glitter. A big problem was that Sasha doesn’t really know what glitter is. In a Christmas store I found some little pieces of glitter on a shelf that had fallen off of a Christmas ornament. So, Sasha was able to ask the clerk if they sold just the glitter. Though she answered no, she suggested that we shop at a store that sells nail things or make up. So, always the good sport, Sasha took me to two ladies’ stores looking for glitter, but still we couldn’t find any. While shopping, Anna found some glitter lip gloss and glitter body lotion, which were great, but they wouldn’t work for the craft.
I know it is ridiculous, but I was getting really frustrated because all I wanted was glitter and it shouldn’t be that much to ask. I didn’t want to change my crafts. I was really being pretty stubborn and silly about the whole thing. Finally, I prayed about the silly glitter. I wasn’t asking for glitter but more for help with my attitude about the whole situation. Then, I was able to step back and see I could change crafts. Again, my plans are not that important; I could look at doing something else. So, I sat down one evening and started sorting through some Sunday School materials that a church from the States sent. I originally planned to use them to work on ideas for VBS-type programs this summer and for programs for the orphanage, but I was looking also for a Christmas craft idea. Guess what I found in one of the boxes—glitter!
When Anna saw it she said, “God really loves you,” and again I was reminded how much I am loved. How silly that little things can become a point of disobedience. I can become angry and stubborn and really just consumed with a little negative or I can trust God, roll with the punches, let go of the things that don’t go according to my plans, and just cling to Jesus. I am so thankful for the glitter but more thankful for the lesson and the love.
As an added note, Anna did find more glitter for me at the same department store I looked in, Oksana bought me some for Christmas, and both the Christmas ornaments and the decorated cards were great fun to make.

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