Messy Lives=Abundant Harvests?

During church this past Sunday, this verse hit me. Not for the reason you might expect, though.

Our lives have been very messy. Not the messy most people deal with. I mean MESSY! The last month has been a rollercoaster of overwhelming circumstances–most of it not good. But do you see what this proverb shows us? Keeping things clean and neat and quiet does NOT lead to abundance. No! The manger, if used, is a smelly place that constantly needs attention to keep it from getting out of hand. But if you leave it empty, you have no oxen. If you have no oxen, you have no one to pull the plow. If the plow can’t work in the fields, you have no harvest.

I’m not saying I’m going to jump for joy at the mess of our lives, but at least I can step back and say this mess can lead to something good.

Grand-parenting: When Plans Change

I’m a planner. I create schedules. I make lists. I prioritize.

This is how I’ve been for most of my adult life. I’m wired that way. Running a home and a business requires these skills.  Still, surprises happen. I learned a long time ago to readjust when necessary. It happened a lot during my twelve years as a single mother. That experience left me exhausted. One of those causes for my exhaustion reared its head yesterday–one of the grands was sick.

As a single mother, I held my breath each time one of my kids coughed, sneezed, or complained of not feeling well. I needed to work to support our family and couldn’t afford to miss a lot of work due to a child’s illness. The threat of a sick child created heavy stress for me. Their needs left me stuck between trying to keep my job and trying to nurture and care for my children. It was never easy.

One of our daughters, the one who’s in recovery now, got sick ALL. THE. TIME.

During the years I spent fighting to cancel my ex-husband’s visitation rights (trying to prove child abuse isn’t easy), I gathered data that proved she got sick primarily after visitation weekends with her dad. Unfortunately, I lost a job due to her constant illnesses even though I explained the situation to my manager before taking the job. He told me, “No problem. You can work from home on those days.”  I guess he didn’t believe the frequency or had a poor memory. Either way, I lost my job.

So it’s no surprise that I rejoiced when my children reached their high school years. Finally, they could stay home without me. Then the children grew up and left. I could work without these concerns. I could actually use a sick day for me.

And now I’m back in the first boat. It’s not as bad because my husband can, and will, step up if I have something crucial scheduled. Also, the workplace has softened in this area. People are more understanding than they were thirty years ago. Still, I have plans for each day. Items on my To Do list need to get done. With my granddaughter home yesterday, I struggled to regroup. I didn’t get as much done as I’d like, but I did get a few things done.

Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring. Proverbs 27:1

Proverbs 27:1 spoke to me yesterday; God’s plan will always override my own. Some people don’t plan. They cite this verse, or they claim it’s useless because something always changes I don’t agree with that, and I don’t think that’s God’s plan either. He wants us to plan, but he wants us to listen for His will and be open to readjusting if needed. In fact, one item I needed to do yesterday got rescheduled anyway. The person I was to see got sick, too. Ok, yes God. I got the message. What a relief.

In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps. Proverbs 16:9

I find so much wisdom in Proverbs these days. I can plan, but I need to let God correct the plan when necessary.  Exactly what I did yesterday. I rescheduled a few items for the next day and put off others until next week. And some of those that could be done from home, I tackled in between caring for my grandchild and making a trip to the doctor.

It’s not wrong to plan–thank goodness!–but we do need to be open to shifts, if not dramatic overhauls, to our plans.

Finding Rest and Peace?

I keep thinking things will slow down.

Don’t laugh. We all need peace and quiet. God told us so in Genesis, and during his time on earth, Jesus demonstrated this need.

Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place. Mark 6:32-33

Unfortunately, it’s hard. Even in this passage from Mark, the crowds followed them. Their reprieve was short-lived. Yet, we have his example here and in other parts of the gospels.

We live in, and participate in, a world that craves activity. People run back and forth taking care of things. They’re so busy they can’t put their phones down during the times they should rest. No, this is not a diatribe about overusing cell phones. I’m only acknowledging how we live.

When you add raising grandchildren to this busy mix, it gets really messy. I was busy before the grands moved in. I’ve let things go to have more time for them. I’m still busier than I was before. My body is complaining, too. I celebrated a birthday this week, and I’m beginning to feel the pains of growing old.

Somehow in the next few weeks, I have to fit Thanksgiving and Christmas into my schedule. All I really want to do is stop. Unfortunately, the world doesn’t stop. Children have needs. We must work to pay the bills. Others count on us. My body is reacting to the constant go, go, go of our lives. It isn’t happy.

Jesus knew slowing down and resting would be hard.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

As we enter the season of joy, I’m determined to find time for that joy. I’m not in control of my schedule as much as I’d like to be, but how many of us really are? I’ve made choices. Choices to raise two more children who need the love of family. That led to choices about work. I accept contracts I might not have taken five years ago. Choices about activities. I’ve committed to the children’s extracurricular activity schedules (although I’ve tried to keep these minimal). I’ve said no to a lot of opportunities that really don’t matter.

As I move forward, I try to weigh each choice with what it does for us and what it does for our family. I should be asking if it interferes with our need to be present before God. I’ll admit that is not always forefront in my mind. I guess that’s a great reason to enter this season of joy. We need to remember our true purpose on this earth: to glorify God.

I don’t know about you, but I’m not fulfilling that purpose as well as I could.

Thank goodness for grace!