You keep painting white walls.

This past summer at camp with high schoolers from Hope, I heard a speaker share this story (apologize that some of the details may be a little different as I remember it!):

There was a painter who gave a man a room. The painter told the man, "You can paint the room any color you would like but I promise that you will like white best." At first the man agreed and enjoyed the white walls but after a while, he realized that he would like a new color so he begged the painter to paint his room red. The painter reminded the man of how beautiful the room was in white and how disappointed the man would be with a red room. The man changed his mind and decided to keep the white room. After much time, the man again approached the painter and begged (even more this time) to paint the room red. The painter tried to persuade the man but the man would not and could not be swayed. The room had to be red. The painter reluctantly painted his white room very red. After the walls were completed, the man realized he didn't like the red walls and really agreed with the painter that white was best for the room. The painter patiently repainted the room white. The man was at peace again but the painter had been hurt the man had asked for the room to be red. The painter knew the best color was white.

This is one of the best and most beautiful pictures I've ever had shared with me about Gods best. In the story, God is the painter and I (and you) are represented by the man. God insists that we have white walls and His likeness. We beg him to please give us what we want and, in turn, paint the walls red time and again. The amazing thing about God is He always repaints. He warns us that we wil not like the red paint and even begs us not to choose the color; yet we do. Over and over again. After the walls are red, we run back to God crying and asking why our walls are red, as if it's His fault that we chose sin for ourselves. 

I'm guilty of painting red walls with my selfish choices, sinful thoughts and unclear vision of what He wants. I paint red with my blatant disobedience to the small and big things. I paint red when I don't tell the Truth and I don't approach people with love. I choose red walls when I live in an impure mindset and beg God to let me have what I want. 

He knows best. Without question. He doesn't miss a beat. He always paints white, even when my walls are deeply stained and engrained in red. He lovingly paints white while I sit in my sin. He pursues me and does not stop. I must get to the end of myself and choose white walls. I know Gods best but I don't always choose. It's like I've looked at the white walls and enjoyed them but played the "What if?" game with the walls and questioned whether white is actually the best. It is. It always is.

Thank you Jesus that you always choose white walls for me. You paint white walls over the red I have chosen for myself. Thank you for the process and the endurance in which you pursue me. 

-Melissa