Monster In Me

I have the privilege of volunteering with the Art Resores Kids program at my local Family Justice Center. Now, I am not very artistic myself, and fortunately, this is not a requirement. One of the workshops we do with the children, called "Monster in Me" involves coloring with cray-pas, spraying the paper with water, and then painting over it with water colors. I liked the effect this had and decided to try it at home and just have fun with it instead of creating a monster as one would do during a "Monster in Me" workshop. This is one of the pictures I worked on this Lent:

 

As I was painting it, I realized that it is, in a way, representative of a monster in me.  A monster named sin.  A monster that seeks to steal, kill, and destroy, all the while deceiving me into thinking that it is making me happy.  A monster that put the one and only, blameless Son of God through an unjust trial, beat Him, mocked Him, and crucified Him.  Yes, the bloodstained cross reveals to me that there is a monster in me.

Yet at the same time, the empty cross reveals a bigger, brighter picture to me.  That cross was the battlefield on which Christ took on that monster- and WON!  As beaten up as that monster left Christ, it was the monster who was defeated.  The monster was left nailed to a cross, while Christ rose from the dead, ascended to Heaven, and sent His Spirit to live in me.  No longer monster in me, but Christ in me!

This Lent, I have felt the battle between Christ and that monster more than I ever have before as that battle plays out in my heart.  That monster won’t die without a fight.  Fortunately, Christ already won and this Easter weekend I get to celebrate Christ’s victory over the monster that sought to kill me and take part in the life which Christ has to offer.  This Easter, I get to remember that because of the cross and the resurrection, it is no longer monster in me, but Christ in me!  And THAT is a reason to celebrate!