Art Therapy by Susan L.

  It was a small group last night. Just me. Which was wonderful. It gave me a chance to explore an image that's been on my mind for a while. It came about by doing one of those online "psychology" tests, the type that "analyze" your personality depending on how you answer the questions. I know they are mostly for entertainment but this one had the participant imagining certain elements to create a picture. Each element represented a part of the personality.
  One of the elements was a box.
  Hmmm. Mine was a massive, landscape dwarfing, shimmering black, mountain of a box. (It just dawned on me that black paint is made by mixing all the colours together. Another "Hmmm". It's something to think about.)
  Anyways, that's where the art is going. I want to know what's inside.
  It bothered me that the box was so big once I heard it represented the ego. Right away the assumption was that ego represents conceit and pride. It actually doesn't. It means the sense of self or identity. It means having an understanding of self worth.
  Leaning against the box is a ladder (another of the elements to be imagined in the scenario). For me, the ladder is needed to see what is inside the box. It's very tall in order to reach the top. Ever safety conscious, and even though this is totally imaginary, I know I need help to climb it. Someone has to hold the bottom just in case it slips. I forget what the actual analysis was but for me, the ladder is about being vulnerable and relying on help. It means trusting whoever is holding on.
  I have no idea where this art exploration is going but I am filled with excitement about the impending discoveries which may (or may not) come over the next several weeks. I place this whole process in Your hands, my Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen.
  "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before hand that we should walk in them." Eph 2:9-10