Making a Masterpiece
Decorations
We used a clip art picture of a woman artist painting a picture. We put a clip art of the Mona Lisa on the canvas. We used this picture in various sizes for fliers and wall art. We also drew a large palette and dabbed paint colors on it and added the theme for the wall. You can use famous masterpieces from a calendar or Masterpiece game. You can also make small palettes to use as nametags.
Games
Personal Masterpieces
Trace over pictures of famous drawings to give simple line drawings which represents these works. Leave the faces blank. Allow people to finish the drawings by drawing their own faces and coloring them as desired. Some masterpieces which work well for this are the Mona Lisa, American Gothic, and the Sphinx.
Pictionary
Divide into teams. Give each team a whiteboard and marker. Have individuals or mother-daughter pairs take turns drawing an activity that mothers and daughters do together. Other team members must guess the activity.
Songs
“Molding a Masterpiece” by Ron Hamilton (in Praises III)
“He’s Still Workin’ on Me” by Joel Hemphill
Devotions
Here’s a basic outline of what I did:
God gives moms a little person who can’t do anything, plus 18 years.
She has to mold that little person into a beautiful person who is capable, dependable, pleasing to God, nice.
Moms aren’t alone in the work. God is working. Other people have influence over our kids. The child is responsible.
Moms aren’t just changing diapers, washing dishes, tidying rooms, and modifying behavior. We’re making masterpieces.
Special number by some moms: “Molding a Masterpiece.”
In the making your work of art may not seem like much of a masterpiece, but it is a work in progress.
Special number by some daughters: “He’s Still Workin’ on Me.”
[Give each person a bit of clay that she can make into something while you talk.]
Phil. 1:6
God is working on us. We’re seeing part of the process, not the end result.
God uses moms and daughters as part of the process in making us beautiful.
I can work hard and do good things, but I can’t make a masterpiece in my mom-daughter relationship, or any other without love.
God is love. We are most like Him when we love.
The most important commandment is to love God and others.
The most noble sacrifice without love is nothing.
Love is not mustering up warm fuzzy feelings. Love is defined in 1 Cor. 13 by loving acts. How can we use this powerful tool to make our relationships beautiful?
1 Cor. 13:4-8
Reading by Lisa Bolton (see below)
1. When you are wronged or hurt, how does love respond?
patient, not easily angered, not resentful, not glad about evil, bears all things, endures all things
2. Love focuses on others, not self.
kind, not envious, not selfish
3. Love shows respect for others and their opinions and ideas.
not boastful and arrogant, not rude
4. Love builds trust into a relationship.
rejoices in truth, believes all things, hopes all things.
God’s love is unconditional. He offers us salvation, wants a relationship with us. That relationship will help us love others.
God doesn’t expect us to be perfect. “Please be patient. God is not finished with me yet.
God expects us to learn and grow.
Love helps us forgive each other and go on to build a beautiful relationship.
Reading
by Lisa Brammer Bolton
(From a daughter’s point of view, based on 1 Cor. 13)
I’ve noticed and heard that a mom’s love for a child is strong…stronger than just about anything else. She wants her children to feel cared for, to have good memories, to be happy, and successful. And to that end, she constructs elaborate birthday cakes and dollhouses, plans meaningful holidays and trips for her family, and a thousand other little things that are, at times, overlooked.
I’m glad to have a mother who decided to make my life special. Thanks for loving me. Thanks for trying to be the best mom you could be.
I’m sure you found out at some point that no matter how hard you tried, sometimes kids teased me, or the costume for the school drama didn’t turn out right, or I had to change schools in the middle of the year, or whatever.
No worries, though. I don’t need the picture-perfect mom. I’m unorganized, “unperfect” enough that such a mom would make me feel hopelessly clumsy. Instead, please just be:
Patient. Good mothering takes lots of patience for all the shoe-tying lessons, and the lessons on manners, and all my quirks.
Kind. Despite some spiteful words at times, or my thoughtless disagreement with how you see things, be kind. If my choices in hairstyle or makeup aren’t the prettiest—please don’t call them ugly.
Don’t envy me. Yes, childhood can seem carefree, and is in many ways. But for a child-sized heart, child-sized problems are big enough.
Don’t boast in me, thinking that your entire existence or worth is expressed in how well I behave, or how well I am able to do some skill. I am only part of who you are. It is hard enough to fail, harder still if I feel it will make you lose perspective on life.
Don’t be rude—even when you can be. Remember, I’m often watching you, and want to be like you in the deepest part of my heart. I might learn your rudeness and be a burden to you for years to come.
Don’t seek yourself through me. The highest honor I can be to you will be in my character, not in my marks at school, my abilities in sports or music.
Don’t get angry easily at me—even though you have a thousand chances to do so. Of course, as with the other things, you’ll only be able to love me as you look to God to teach you how.
Don’t keep a record of my wrongs. I remember enough of them as it is. Forgiveness is a gift that we often don’t appreciate until it is not given.
Don’t delight in evil—and laugh at my selfishness or sins. Instead, work with me to overcome them and rejoice as we make progress together.
Protect me. You know how sensitive I am. But also, look to God for help in teaching me to seek His protection.
Trust me. I know you do and I am honored. You always said that trust is a very precious thing and something hard to gain back if lost. That was a good lesson.
Hope the best for me. It really will come right.
Persevere. I will really grow up sometime, and by the grace of God, be someone to smile over. (I’m sure there have been times when smiling wasn’t easy.
And once you have begun to love, don’t fail or quit. I don’t need you to be perfect, but I’ll always need your love.