Broken...But More Than Useful!

Wednesday...it was a rainy morning in Maine...a time for indoor projects...

"cleaning out" kinds of projects.

I had been waiting for a day to cull out some of our "learning" supplies. In our home we "school" all year round. So...I decided this was a perfect morning to see which supplies we were finished with in order that I might give them away to other "homeschoolers", when I stumbled upon a container full of broken crayons...and I remembered an idea that I had read about some time ago.

So...after sorting through what needed to be sorted...We made "new crayons" out of the broken ones. It was so fun...and so easy!

First, collect your supplies...
~broken, unwrapped crayon pieces
~cupcake liners
~muffin tin

Next, line your tin with the cupcake liners.

Then, (this was the fun part!), place 7 or 8 crayons pieces in each cupcake liner. Place different colors in each so that your new crayons will be multi-colored!

Set you oven at 250 degrees. Place your tin in the oven for about 5 minutes or so...just until the crayons melt!

Take out and let cool completely. Peel off liner...and enjoy your new multi-colored crayon!


While working on our first batch, I was reminded of my "Heart for Jesus" pins (another post, another time) which are based on the "Wordless Book" idea, and my son and I decided to make some crayons with the "Gospel" colors. We are planning to create a simple tract that we can attach to a bag of these crayons and have them available (like my "Heart for Jesus" pins) when we are in stores, or at the doctor's office, or the library, and we encounter little ones who might enjoy some crayons.

So, you see, these "broken" pieces turned out to be more than useful...they will be a tool to help spread the Gospel. I just finished reading a little book by Watchman Nee entitled, "The Release of the Spirit". The theme of his book is that in order for the Holy Spirit to truly use us for God's glory...we must first be "broken".

Some "points to ponder" from Nee's book...

~Let us look to God for His grace to enable us to place ourselves under His light and to be so enlightened as to bow before Him, acknowledging: "Lord, how foolish and blind I have been all these years in mistaking what flows from me as coming from Thee. Lord, be merciful to me!"

~Rather than stressing teaching, let us place more emphasis on what it is that comes forth from us. God is not watching to see if our teaching becomes deeper; He wants to lay hold of us as individuals. If our nature is not properly dealt with, we may give forth so called spiritual teaching, but there is no spiritual impartation.

~In that hour of unveiling (when we realize what it is to be "broken" before God) even noble deeds, performed in His name and in love to Him, will somehow lose their luster. In every highest purpose you will detect the meanest inclination. What you considered as wholly for God now appears to be riddled with self. Alas! self seems to permeate every vestige of your being, robbing God of glory.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Psalm 51:17