Blessings in the Mess

My Dad died last week.

I wish I could say that I had a close, supportive relationship with him, but that was not the case. In fact, there was a time when I was so angry that I could not have cared less about him.

However, in the midst of my anger I kept having to teach passages that said things like, “You must rid yourself of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice and slander… and clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience… forgive as the Lord forgave you!” (Colossians 3:8-13). Faith does not just apply on Sunday morning, so I knew I had to change my attitude.

Over time I have come to believe that my Dad probably did the best that he could with the tools he was given. I even think that we could have patched things up. Unfortunately, neither one of us knew how to build that bridge.

Maybe you are in a similar situation. Maybe you wish that certain details of your life were different. Maybe you have spent a lot of time thinking about the way things should have been.

If so, it is good to remember that life comes to us as more of a storybook and less like an instruction book.

Instruction books are neat and tidy. Step two follows step one. At every point, you know exactly what to do. There is no guessing. Everything is crystal clear.

Stories, on the other hand, are messy. Information comes in bits and pieces. Often, things do not make sense until after the fact. Stories twist and turn and almost never go in a straight line or on a predictable path. Fortunately, most stories have good parts and good people. Sometimes, you just have to look really hard to see them.

If you are confused about your story and it seems like your fairy tale happy ending is nowhere in sight, it helps to remember that you are also part of a bigger story. This story says, “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

That story can have a happy ending for anyone.

Comments

The Art of Noticing.... Seeing what we need to see and what we miss when we don't

What we focus on in life matters. Here are some scriptural reminders that will help us see correctly. https://youtu.be/Rn76tV0ZH8s

Consider This: Twenty-three Descriptions of God (Psalm 145)

Let’s play a quick game. Take 10 seconds and list 5 or 6 words to describe God. Got your words? Good! Here comes the game part. I will list twenty-three ways that David describes God in Psalm 145, and we will see how many of his words match yours. David says that God is, the king, great, majestic, wonderful, powerful, awesome, abundant in goodness, righteous, gracious, compassionate, slow to anger, rich in love, good to all, glorious, mighty, trustworthy, faithful, supporting, generous, providing, near, saving and watching. How did you do? This is not a useless exercise. The words we use to describe God not only indicate something about how we see him, but they also influence how we interact with him. For example, if I know that God is “Gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love” (verse 8), I will not fear him, and I will not assume that he is against me. When I remember that...

Consider This: What is so Great About Grace?

If you were to drive by our house, you would see that Sara loves plants. Our yard is full of flowers, and Sara lovingly tends every one of them. Which is why I was so afraid when she left town and put me in charge of keeping things alive. She must have been a little concerned, too, because she sent me two videos with specific instructions on how to water, when to water, and what to do. Honestly, those first two videos helped, but the third one she sent was the one I liked most. In that one, she said, “Please do your best. I want the yard to look good for the family reunion in two weeks. However, if something dies, we will dig it out and pretend that it never existed!” That is what grace looks like! Try your best, do what you can, but if it goes wrong, it will be ok. Sometimes we talk as though grace and effort are opposites. That is not true. They are partners. In one place, scripture asks, “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone c...

Consider this

Subscribe

Get new posts by email:

Search This Blog