Used Potential

Most people are familiar with the former NBA player Michael Jordan. What an amazing talent he had. Michael not only had the skill to play the game well, but entertain the crowd too. Jordan was even on a cartoon show with Bo Jackson and Wayne Gretzky; I used to watch it on Saturday mornings.

People had mixed emotions when Jordan tried to do baseball and basketball. Jordan’s major talent was basketball and baseball was not. People only watched the games he played in because they were already White Sox fans or because of Jordan’s popularity as a basketball player. Many enjoyed seeing Jordan play basketball at his full ability.

Would we enjoy seeing a person wasting their abilities, skills, and not living up to their potential? What if Jordan never went back to basketball back then and only played baseball? What if George Washington did not want to lead? What if Joe Montana liked basketball more then football? What if a mother does not care for her child?

On 7-14-2006 I talked about gifts my Grandma had made for me, and left the statement that the only thing I would value more then the quilt and needle point is a quilt or something like it from my mom. My mom is a very talented seamstress, she made shorts for me when I was little, ran a craft business, hemmed dresses, made bridesmaid dresses, sewed flags for drill teams, taught my third grade class how to hand sew a basic quilt, made Cabbage Patch Dolls for many kids including my brothers and myself, a king size quilt for her and my dads bed, and much more.

All that talent and skill that she has makes for an amazing potential to make something that would be a work of art. How would I feel if my mom did not use those abilities and skill, and when making a quilt for her son that lives eight hours away, only put together a quick and easy quilt, for a person of her talent? What if she only used a few basic fabrics that required minimal effort to cut and place together? Any quilt would be appreciated, but one would be a quilt my mom made and the other would be a work of art to be enjoyed and shared with others.

Not only did my mom make a quilt using her abilities, but did some quilt work she had never tried before, had my dad help her with part of it, and another lady she knows to put the final touches on it. She put so many different fabrics in the quilt I cannot count them all, and they all go together very well. At least five different patch designs including; the bear paw and log cabin, and she did a new kind of quilting so she could use fabric to create a patch that was to scale, thanks to dad, of the house I lived in from 1988-2003, and my parents still live there today.

This is such an example of how she has lived her life, so far. Sure we have our days that frustrate us, but everyday she loves people. She spent most of my childhood working on something that affected either my brothers’ lives or mine, in a good manor. She does the same for people that let her, but some people are so self centered they do not want to let anyone help them. But what if my mom did not care for others and only for herself? I don’t want to even think of how that would affect my life and especially childhood.

Are you that kind of person that would let someone like my mom helps you out? Are you the kind of person that would verbally attack a person, like my mom, who just wants to help out? Are we humble enough to realize that there is no way we can do everything on our own?

Would this Proverb be true for your perspective of God, “When they cry for help, I will not answer? Though they anxiously search for me, they will not find me. For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the Lord. They rejected my advice and paid no attention when I corrected them.”(Proverbs 1:28-30)? Would this Proverb be more true, “Cry out for insight, and ask for understanding. Search for them as you would for silver; seek them like hidden treasures.”(Proverbs 2”3-4)? Also Proverbs 3, 4, 5, 6… the wise listen to correction, rely on others when they need help, the wise are humble.

Like mom’s quilt she made me, God made something to show His love for us. God created the stars, sun, sky, water, land, light, darkness, seasons, rain, animals, and much more with such creativity and beauty. Also God created us, His last touch in His creation; He was not finished creating until man and woman were created. Just as my mom loves me, I would never notice it until I take the time to get my focus off myself and focus on how she shows that to me.

God showed His love for us from the beginning. God was with Adam & Eve in the garden, told Noah how to build an ark, told Moses how to deliver the Israelites out of Egypt, separated the waters for the Israelites to cross a river/sea not once but twice, fought with the Israelites in their battles, provided a avenue for Ester to be in a position to save the Jews, most importantly the cross. God did not have to send Christ to the cross but He did as an example of His love. Just like the quilt, creation is just another “neat” thing if you don’t take the time to appreciate and see what God did.