When God Fills the Empty Spaces {Messy Monday}

I have a strict "whatever" policy about matching socks. Maybe I'll match them. Maybe I won't. Whatever.

As I rummaged through the single sock laundry basket the other day, I snatched up the No Nonsense pair I'd folded earlier, and thought of Angie. The giver of the socks. And appropriately enough "no nonsense" is a phrase she clothes her personality in quite often.

She showed up at my door with two packages of white, sturdy, No Nonsense brand socks. 

"You want these?"

Someone had given them to her, but they weren't a style she liked. Too long.

My response? "Free socks? Uh.. YEAH!"

And just like that, I was the proud owner of about a dozen pairs of brand-spanking-new socks.

That was years ago and I still wear them. Sometimes I get to feeling domestic and even darn them. These things are quality.

I didn't get it. Free socks? Who would turn down free socks?

I don't know. Who would turn down free salvation?

Socks take up serious real estate in our drawers. Honestly, I've turned down tons of free stuff because it just takes up space. Things that would be nice to have, but that I don't really need. 

I guess even free stuff can be too expensive when we're talking about the space of our lives.

I see it with the Gospel all the time. America is one of the hardest mission fields simply because we have so much stuff to drown out our need for Jesus. Even the kids that sit in our church once a week struggle with this. The church says I need Jesus. But my mom and dad seem to be doing just fine without Him. Who is right?

I'm not talking just about unchurched families either. I'm including myself in this one. 

There is a daily struggle with pride, with the desire to get things done. And what kills me is that even though I get burned over and over again, I still play with the fires of spiritual multitasking.

Jesus offers me this: Time. Time to sit with Him. Time to remember my redemption in Him. Time to ponder who He is. And what is the one thing I always feel like I'm lacking? Time. The Giver of time is giving me the thing I need- Time. And I'm too busy to just stop and take it.

I could blame motherhood, or even church. But the truth is the blame rests in this distracted and hungry heart.

This heart that realizes its void and reaches for what is convenient, instead of what is right. Like my toddler recognizing the empty space in the 3/4 full milk jug and filling it with tortillas, refried beans, and a Nutri-grain bar wrapper, I shove things into the empty spaces that have no business being there.

So when my neighbors obviously need Jesus, but instead consume alcohol and possessions and all manners of worldly trinkets, maybe I shouldn't be so perplexed. Maybe I should try on some compassion.

Because I have been there too. And while I am free from death and sin, that devil will try anything to direct my heart to everything except God.

There is hope. Hope for me. Hope for them. Hope for you. Hope for all of us. Compassion and hope are the truths that clothe believers, because believers need them too. 

More important that getting the socks matched, or the supper made, is showing my kids and neighbors that this empty jar can only really be filled by God alone.

But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God 

and not to us. 

2 Corinthians 4:7

Afflicted, perplexed, persecuted. All of the above. But God has power that surpasses them all. And that is what we carry, Christ's death and resurrection. Filled to the brim with His grace because we so desperately need it. May He take up more and more space in us, until people cannot look into our lives without seeing an emptiness filled by God Himself.  

Messy Monday: Waiting in the Weeds

"When?" And I see the answer in his eyes.

 

They narrow as if to say, "Don't ask."

 

I know he can't answer my question, but it's like a reflex. You hear something good is going to happen and you think when?

 

How long must I wait?

 

It's been the story of my life for as long as I can remember...

 

Christmas. Birthdays. Vacation. Summer. School. Graduation. Wedding. Birth days.

 

Landscaping.

 

We live in a parsonage with the most understanding and at-the-ready congregation anyone could ever pray for, so I am absolutely positive this situation would play out very similarly even if we owned our own home.

 

The weeds have taken over the front yard rocks and it looks like a bit of a mess. Still, I shouldn't bother with the weeding because it will all be dug up sooner or later to prepare for new landscaping. Overcome by habit, I say,

 

When?

 

And just as it was when we lived in a house we owned, some things have to happen before we can get around to other things. First things first.

 

So we wait.

 

And on the day of my "when," I look down at the toddler monkey jumping and hollering at my feet, gesturing the sign for "eat" wildly as I cut up her grapes, and I sympathetically tell her to "chill."

 

It's coming. Just wait.

 

I hear ya loud and clear, Lord.

 

Waiting is fine. Worrying, not so much.

 

"Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?... Therefore do not be anxious, saying, "What shall we eat?" or "what shall we drink?" or "What shall we wear?" For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:25; 31-33

 

When we spend much time looking toward the not-yet's instead of the right-here's, waiting slips into worry and blessings are missed.

 

Seek the kingdom of God first.

 

Your heavenly Father knows your needs.

 

And He is meeting them right here. Right now.

 

Open our eyes to your mercies new every morning, Father.

 

When wait for the Lord. We will never be disappointed.

 

 

A prayer for this blogger and all her readers today:

 

"Lead me in your truth and teach me,

for you are the God of my salvation;

for you I wait all the day long."

Psalm 25:5

Destiny and Motherhood: Why I Choose to Keep a Messy House

Sometimes I really relate to the donkey the disciples fetched for the Lord Jesus.

Because I become completely untied, and it is not until I ask why that I hear their response: Because the Lord has need of it. (Luke 19:31)

I just absolutely love my coffee mornings. A few friends come over and we drink our beverages and chat about what's happening in our lives and town and world. We solve some problems. Sometimes.

Just yesterday I led those dear friends around the parsonage that may or may not be getting a facelift. I explained the vision, salting my speech with excitement over what could be.

And peppering it with apologies. Not one room of my house is clean. Not one. Passable maybe, but not clean.

Did my friends demand excuses and apologies? Absolutely not. Did they offer judgment and condemnation for the clutter? No way. If they had, would it have depleted the worth of my personal stock? Nope.

But the apologizing- it just gets exhausting. My mind and heart and soul are squished into a sorry little box as if that is all there is by which to measure my worth, and I become enslaved.

Enslaved to a house. I piece of real estate.

I become a victim.

Yesterday I changed that. You know what, I'm not a victim. And for any mothers or fathers out there who are enslaved to the image of being "put together," neither are you.

As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God! Psalm 40:17

The Lord of the universe thinks and takes action to benefit us poor, needy souls. We are victors!

 

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Cor 15:57

 

You know what else? This unshowered, sweatpant wearing, tired mom has a destiny. Really- even me. And if I have a destiny, you can bet every single person out there has one too.

 

No doubt the cleanliness of my house may play a role in the fulfillment of God's destiny for me, but as a means- not an end. I will choose to see it that way. I will look to the end goal.

 

So if you happen to stumble into my house mind your step, and know that instead of devoting my blood, sweat and tears to wiping up every muddy shoeprint, fishing out every bobby pin from the carpet, and putting every doll in its age appropriate bin (assuming I could find said bin), I have chosen instead to tend to the following responsibilities:

 

* Kissing scraped knees

* Making waffles

* Sorting clothes along with the kids

* Reading

* Running in the sunshine

* Playing soccer with the kids

* Going to the park

* Thawing meat for supper

* Changing diapers

* Tying shoes

* Brushing hair

* Wiping tears

* Brushing teeth

* Coloring

* Wrestling on the floor

* Dating my husband

* Dating my children

* Doing puzzles

* Writing

* Teaching

* Visiting

* Volunteering

* Praying, praying, praying

* Encouraging

* Loving

* Laughing

* Spending time, not wasting it.

 

* Various and Sundry other tasks that demand an inordinate amount of time and energy, and are supremely more important.

 

Because, as a good friend assured me: One day the kids will be gone, the house will be clean and quiet, and you'll miss the mess.

 

Happy Early Mother's Day.

 

Luke 10: ³⁸ Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. ³⁹ And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. ⁴⁰ But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” ⁴¹ But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, ⁴² but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

Messy Monday: A Rescue in the Meantime

To just sit and wait. It seems... wrong.

 

Especially when you have a carload of kids and you feel like you are "on the clock" in a way.

 

So, the other day I made the most of our time. Scotty had a shut-in woman to visit in a town 30 miles away, but hey, that town had several stores we don't have so most of the family tagged along. As Scott administered pastoral care I focused more on the temporal care- like dog food and produce.

 

After completing the bulk of my errands, the kiddos and I headed back to the assisted living home to wait for Daddy to come out.

 

In the meantime I had to find something to do. Right? I mean, I couldn't just sit there. But what to do?

 

I looked down and had my answer...

 

 

How my purse got so full of junk, I'll never know- especially since I never use two bags two days in a row. No idea why. I just have a bunch of bags, and I change them like clothes- making organization and finding that tube of lipstick for church a bit difficult.

 

So I sat and I rifled through the outdated and obsolete, and just plain odd. I cleared it out. Most of it. And how many times did I just ask, Why?

 

Why do I hold on to this stuff?

 

Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me. ~Psalm 69:1-2

 

If I dove into my conscience, my soul, like this overstuffed purse, when would I reach the bottom?

 

My purse was created to hold necessities- not junk.

 

Same with my heart.

 

So, what is necessary?

 

But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:41-42

 

 

 And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

Luke 24:25-27

 

And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women.

Acts 17:2-4

 

 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.  In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,  so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 1:3-7

 

The Lord sits with me in the quiet meantimes, and together we rifle through the recesses and pockets of my heart.

 

And He is merciful and gracious as He reveals those things I keep that are not necessary.

 

A wrong word from my mouth spoken to a friend.

 

And vice versa.

 

Those hurts and aches that I keep a receipt of, and why? To remember?

 

To have proof?

 

To log in my spiritual register? A debt I owe. A debt I've paid.

 

...and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

 

And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.

~Matthew 18:27

 

 

To hold or be held?

 

To be captive or set free from the muck and mire to which we cling?

 

To sink or swim?

 

Praise be to the Lord alone, who sits beside us and removes what should not remain, time and time again, so that in the end all that remains is Himself - a wallet full of grace and forgiveness, and a means to call on Him any time day or night- with minutes unlimited.



“Tense Time(s)”

Hello Blogosphere! As way of a brief introduction I am not Lauren... I'm the other contributor to this delightful blog. My name is Jennette & I'm currently completing my last 9 weeks of graduate school. I'm engaged to a wonderful man of God & am continually reminded of what a blessing Brian is in my life! To sum me up in a short amount of words - I'm an 85 year old stuck in a young person's body. My "old soul" can be seen in my love of organ playing, conversing with people of all ages, baking bread (& sharing it), knitting or sewing when I find the time to do so, etc. But those activities don't really matter. The thing I want you to remember is that I love Jesus & I pray that His love is shown to you through His power working in me.


Do you ever sit and ponder about time? How much time it takes you to run errands? What about how much time it takes to learn to master a new passion or hobby? Or how long it takes to complete homework or a big work project? Frankly, I don’t have much time to just sit and think about time. I usually find myself having inner thoughts and ponderings about topics I’d love to further study and learn to digest at a higher knowledge than what I currently have. And recently my thoughts have been driving me to hash out the topic of time in correlation to a few passages of God’s Word.

As humans, we are bound by time. In one week, there are 168 hours for us to fill. 24 hours to one single day. Do you necessarily fill all 24 hours in a day exactly how you imagine it to go at the beginning of the day? I know I don’t. Wish I did. But many factors enter into the changes—whether planned or unplanned—that affect how a person’s schedule plays out day to day.

I’m coming off a two week Spring break that was SO glorious to enjoy. Seemed like I had all the free time in the world. Because, for two short weeks, every day was a Saturday. Beautiful thought, right? Well, kind of. While I enjoyed the enormous amounts of “free time” I had, towards the end of break, I did begin to long for structure to my day. To help guide me in knowing how to spend the time God has given me to balance my vocations as fiancée, daughter, student, friend, and living out my life as a baptized, redeemed child of God.

I’m thankful that God is not bound by time. He is Alpha AND Omega. He is first and last. He is constantly present in my life in many and various ways. And the same is true for you. For everyone. God is present and knows the inner most trials and joys we each experience in our lives. God is forever. He is eternal. How do we know this? God’s Word tells us all of these (and many others) aforementioned truths about him. I’m especially comforted by these words from Hebrews 13:8, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."

Along with the beauty of knowing that God is forever, never changes, and is always there, we learn from the prophet Isaiah (40: 6b-8), “All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” Nothing else matters. Yep, that’s easier said than understood, but it is true. God’s Word survives amidst all the changes we deal with in this life. Just as God is beyond time, so also His Word is timeless.

And so we press on during this Lenten journey. We press on in living out our vocations. In spending time preparing for & living out our responsibilities which God has given to us. Being present as moms and dads in our children’s lives. Working. Studying. Forgiving. Loving. We press closer and closer to hearing and learning more about the journey to the cross our Savior took in order to save all (who believe in Him) from sin, death, and the power of the devil.

I’ll close with the beginning words of Psalm 78. Praise God for giving us His Word. May we never tire of inwardly digesting and sharing His living and active Word with those we meet in this world.
 

"O my people, hear my teaching;
listen to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter hidden things, things from of old—
what we have heard and known,
what our fathers have told us.
We will not hide them from their children;
we will tell the next generation
the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD,
his power, and the wonders he has done."
[Psalm 78: 1-4]