Have you ever felt afraid to slow down long enough to evaluate where you are, for fear of thinking “wow, what a mess?”. Today, I caught myself thinking, this is not where I imagined myself to be. I had dreams, I had goals and I had a vision of how I was going to get there. Something arrived on the scene and managed to put roadblocks up all over the place; something that no matter which way I turned, I found myself heading into a direction I had not planned. That something is called life. Life is not all bad, but you can always take a look around and ask yourself, “what happened”?
There is this saying I have heard that says something to the effect of, “life was not meant to end with you all neatly preserved and in one piece; but was meant to end with you all broken and falling apart, saying “wow, what a ride”. While that sounds like a great motto, whoever came up with it, was only considering the beginning and the end. Had they considered the actual struggles in between, they would not have made it sound like something so fun and exciting. The realities of life are that the ride can be painful, hard and sometimes a complete mess.
Society tells you when your life, your house, and your family is a mess; you should call a life coach, HGTV or the Super Nanny. What is her number, does anyone know? I sure don’t. Maybe the recommendation should be to “Love it, or List It.” I know which one at times I would have chosen, and it wasn’t to love it. Most of us try to deny our messes. No matter how pretty your life looks to everyone, someone always knows your mess.
One of my devotional messages this week was entitled “Greater than the Mess”. I had to stop and reflect on that. Greater than my mess, that would include what exactly? The dog who refuses to stop barking, the child who thinks they can do whatever they want, the other child who won’t get off the video games, the house that needs new appliances, a staircase remodel, the other half of the roof shingled, and a garden and lawn that need to be taken care of. There is so much more I could mention.
O.k., what could be bigger than that mess? A lot! It is true our world is also a mess. There is political intrigue, military challenges , over spent treasuries, betrayals from whole countries, and death from diseases and sickness. Wow! this can really make a person’s day, can’t it?
This week I read about David in 2 Samuel. His life was a mess too. His efforts to become king were faced with challenges all over the place. And let’s not forget, like the rest of us, he totally messed things up for himself at times. It wasn’t always someone else’s fault.
But there is a lesson to be learned from David, he never gave up! Sure, he cried out to the Lord for help and so should we. Sometimes we need to humble ourselves and admit we can’t do it on our own. When David spoke of his impending doom, he admitted, “I am in deep distress.” But his solution to that distress was, “Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy is great!” Did his solution work? It sure did. What is different about David than the way some of us respond to our messes today? Well, instead of grumbling like I just have, he praised God. He told his message of how even in a mess, God’s way is perfect and the word of God is flawless. David preached how God is the shield for all who take refuge in him. The examples that David gave were: It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. He thanked God for giving him the shield of victory; and stooping down to make him great. He wrote of how God broadened the path, beneath him, so that his ankles did not turn. He declared, “I pursued my enemies and crushed them. I did not turn back till they were destroyed.” Now that is a fight, but wow, what a victory!” Praising God all the way! David was the King of Israel because he didn’t give up!
Our messes need to become our message, like David’s. A message for others to live by. We can’t turn back on this journey called life, someone may be following in our footsteps.
I encourage you to read more about King David in the Old Testament, in the book of 2 Samuel. Learn how to turn your mess into a message. Don’t give up, you are almost there!
thomastonag 