Appreciating Structure (Renamed later: A Place to Shine)

Oh, even the title sounds boring! By nature I am carefree, spontaneous and creative. I feel squelched at the thought of writing my life's plans down on a calendar, and clocks and I -- well, you could say we really tick each other off! God has, these past couple of years, however, introduced me to both the need for structure in my life and the desirability of structure.

I have many examples He has provided me along the way, but here's the most recent: I was watching a jewelry channel in the middle of the night (volume down, just watching the pretty jewels go by to get myself back to sleep), when the seller began to display just the settings of jewelry. One after another, some not-so-pretty items were pictured, rings with settings but no stones, the framework but none of the glorious beauty of gems.

"That is structure," I said! The setting itself is not magnificent, but it provides a platform on which to secure the jewel so that it may rest there, that it may be safe in that place and that it may shine forth its beauty. And that's what structure can do for me: Grant me rest, provide me safety and give my creativity a place to shine.

This is a long, difficult road, the learning to better structure myself -- my time, my money, my belongings. Gradually, though, God is bringing about changes in me. With gentleness and creativity (thank You, God), He is making what I once ran from something I am beginning to desire.

And only He could do that!