Charted

What is Charted?

Like a master surveyor, Jesus gives us clear directions to find a fulfilling, purpose-filled relationship with Himself - a map to the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Charted is a daily devotional written by the junior class at Fountainview Academy (Class of 2019). Based on the book Steps to Christ, this book explores the path to the Originator and Provider of Genuine Joy. We don't have to be confused about the way. The certainty is in the journey: divinely Charted.

Jesus loves to have us come to Him just as we are, sinful, helpless,
dependent. We may come with all our weakness, our folly, our
sinfulness, and fall at His feet in penitence. It is His glory to encircle
us in the arms of His love and to bind up our wounds, to cleanse us
from all impurity. – Steps to Christ, pg. 52
Cateura, Paraguay can’t really be considered a town; it is
a slum built on a massive landfill. Every day, about three million
pounds of solid waste is dumped in Cateura. Many families survive
by scavenging through the landfill, collecting pieces of trash to resell.
When it rains, the landfill overflows, and the residents have to wade
through the filthy, contaminated water. Drugs and alcohol are an
escape for many from the appalling living conditions.
In 2006, Nicolas Gomez, a trash collector and recycler
working in Cateura, noticed a piece of scrap metal that resembled a
violin, and had a bright idea. He brought the piece of metal to Favio
Chevez, who was working as an environmental engineer, but taught
the children of Cateura music in his free time. Together, they built their
first instrument out of recycled trash, and the Recycled Orchestra was
born. Instruments were made of cans, wooden spoons, bent forks,
drainpipes, bottle caps, and even the heel of a worn-out lady’s shoe.
Cateura was transformed. Money the orchestra earned from
its international touring went to help build safer, cleaner homes for
several families in the slum. Through determination and perseverance,
the children in the orchestra have been able to create something
beautiful out of some of the most abysmal circumstances.
Sometimes, we are like those pieces of trash: broken,
unwanted, apparently useless cast-offs. But Jesus is like the men who
turned those pieces of trash into something useful and valuable. To the
world, we may look like useless rejects, but Jesus sees our potential.
He rescues us out of the dump and transforms us into something
beautiful that can be used to bless others.