God Enough in the Mundane or Crisis!
When I was writing “God Enough” my husband, Brad gave me a week away at my parents house to write without any disruptions. When I arrived back home, I was greeted by very happy boys to see their momma. They were all glad I got to spend a week writing but were also glad for me to be home.
I was also greeted by a dose of reality.
It slapped me in the face right when I walked through the doors. The laundry was in piles in the middle of the kitchen. The baskets in their rooms were overflowing with dirty clothes. I can not even write about what the boys bathroom looked like. I am still scarred from the level of yuck-i-ness of a boy’s toilet. I was shocked. I just sprayed scrubbing bubbles all over the bathroom and walked out and shut the door, praying it would have the desired effect. I would enter later with gloves and a face mask.
Why was I so surprised? I have no earthly idea.
I knew there would be repercussions from a week away from home. I just wasn’t ready for them. I should have been. It might have had a little something to do with the fact I had been at my parents for a week. I spent a week being spoiled. Coffee and breakfast ready after I had slept in till eight o’clock. My favorite hamburger place, Mooyah’s for lunch each day. No laundry. No fixing food for someone else. No messes. No messy toilets.
Quiet.
Peace.
I had a very productive week and I spent the ride home singing and praising (I sound just like Carrie Underwood in the privacy of my car) the Lord. 🙂
Now reality. Today’s reality.
It is great to look back and remember what God has done, to relive the awesomeness of where we have been and where we have come. But we must focus on what He is doing now, expecting it to be just a powerful an act as He previously worked.
Yes, my life looks different now – I no longer have to count the minutes since we lost Jake. I live in a different kind of challenge, one that seems so petty in light of past experiences but are real just the same.
How I long to clean Jake’s clothes one more time, yet I curse when my present company fills the laundry bag. How wretched I am? I know better, yet I still cringe at the dirty toilets and whiny faces. Oswald Chambers says “the true test of persons spiritual life and character is not what he does in the extraordinary moments of life, but what he does during the ordinary times when there is nothing tremendous or exciting happening.” Yesterday, I failed in dealing with the ordinary. It is easy to wait for the big extraordinary tests in our lives and we might even pass them. But make no mistake, the everyday mundane events are just important and can be just as costly.
Today, you might be counting the minutes of how long it has been since your world has shattered or you might just be counting the loads of laundry that has to be done. But we both have a choice in those moments, will we obey? Will we choose to trust him when He can’t be seen? Will we choose to serve those He has blessed us with?
“Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God!”
Have you chosen to trust when you can’t see Him? Do you ever struggle to obey? How do we find rest in obeying and resting in the Him who has called us to serve! How can we serve those He has blessed us with? How do you struggle or do you ever struggle with this service? Meet us in the Forums and the Devotionals and let’s talk!
Talk with you soon! Kasey
Thank you for the reminder to not take the mundane for granted. We never know what challenges or sorrows may come next in life. Maybe I will remember to rejoice more when doing those things around the house now!
LOL! Such a test to a mother…a dirty house!!! I am like a woman gone mad at times when it comes to keeping the house clean. I will have thoughts like “Do they not know that the dishwasher is empty waiting to gobble their dirty dishes!” “Is there a reason they could not take two more steps toward the trash to throw away those gummy wrappers!!!!”REALLY!!!! Then I remember to calm down and breath. LOL!
Sometimes you wonder if it’s worth the effort to go away!LOL! But the spiritual remewal is worth it. Thanks for the reminder that God is in the mundane.
“..everyday mundane events are just important and can be just as costly.” Sometimes I forget the cost that can be incurred in mundane moments that are spent unwisely. When I see the value of the little things that gradually make a difference in people’s lives, I often forget that those little things can be building people up, or tearing people down. What a scary thing, but what an awesome privilege. Someone told me recently that God doesn’t waste his servant’s time (maybe from Corrie Ten Boom, but I’m not sure). What a reminder that everyday mundane things are still being used for good or for bad. Thank you!
Yes we are in needful reminders of the daily blessings we take for granted. One thing I gleaned was not only to not take husbands and children in the home for granted, but adult’s parents. I think we forget that our own parents need that time with us just as much as we sometimes need them. I am a mother of two grown girls. One who just recently became a mother herself. She lives 8 hours away and spending time with her and her family is limited due to the distance. I long for spending time with her to feel a part of her busy life. I think God is that way with us. How he longs for close fellowship with us, to be included in EVERY part of our lives, not just the times when we need something. He loves us and we should never grow away from the desire to be in his presence and fellowship with him
We lost our second son Nathan 6 years ago. I knew the promise from God’s Word that “all things work together for good.” Yet I had a hard time SEEing any good in the loss of a child. I decided to remind God I was feeling this way 🙂 and asked Him to allow me to SEE the good in my lifetime. He graciously answered that prayer and has opened my eyes to the good that comes routinely in the mundane. I have found that God’s grace and goodness is often found in the small things.
Thanks for this post, what a great reminder. I have been thinking a lot lately about how I tend to handle the big/difficult stuff with grace, but the everyday frustrations with not so much grace.
This was just what i needed to read this morning! I’ve been getting super aggrivated with the little things that aren’t just so. I am refreshed and thankful for my life and family.