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.

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