“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to hm, and he will make your paths straight”
Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV
I don’t like messes, and for many years I will admit, I was a bit OCD. I had to have things a certain way, and if something got dirty I would immediately have to clean it or I couldn’t think.
This was an easy but not necessarily healthy way for me to feel like I had some sort of control over my life, until I had kids, and then it all got thrown out the window. There are times when, like our homes, life gets messy.
Even for Christians life can get pretty messy when we’re faced with things like divorce, death, conflicts, family drama and so on. Then there are also times when we create our own messes.
We are human and make mistakes, bad judgements, wrong decisions and it can be scary to ask God for forgiveness and for help in cleaning the mess we have created.
But God wants us to pray those bold prayers. He wants nothing more than for us to open our battered broken, forgiveness seeking hearts and pour everything out to Him.
He wants to help us always, though the messy and not so pretty times, to be our solid rock and fortress through it all.
I know it can also be difficult not to stress about you mess, but learned from experience, it will just make things worse, cause sleepless nights and tight knots in stomachs.
After you’ve prayed about it and asked God for help, trust in His timing. At times I have tried to handle things and put out fires myself instead of trusting God after I’ve prayed for help.
Related: Daily Prayers for Strength During Difficult Times
I would take it upon myself to fix things when I was not in the right mindset or heart-set. Remember the story of Abraham, Sarah and Hagar in the bible? That’s just one Biblical example I like to keep in mind to remind me.
Crisis and hard times bring people together, it deepens relationships. These relationships are real, raw and oftentimes grow into more; helping each other, loving each other, supporting each other, and praying for each other. Allow hard times to bring you closer God as well.
I know it can be difficult inviting others in to see the mess. Just like when your home is messy and not fit for company you don’t want to open you doors and invite others in to messy parts of your life, but trust me, they don’t care.
Those who really love you and care about you are there for you, and the new people God brings into your life who can be potential friends are only going to grow closer to you if you let them in.
Be vulnerable, be messy, be open. Some things are better faced together, and always better faced with God walking beside you.
“The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”
Psalm 18:2 NIV
Reflection:
- What’s one way your life feels “messy” right now?
- How would your life improve if you could trust someone else to help you with those messes?
