Messy Days

I have this great little book called "Jesus Calling" that I come back to again and again. It's written as if Jesus is speaking to you about life struggles and reminding you how to handle them His way. I have found this book to be a great way for me to start my time with Him in the morning, because it gets my heart and mind ready for deeper conversation with Him. In fact, it was this book that I received for my birthday from my mother that inspired this blog over two years ago. I highly recommend it! Here is an excerpt that spoke to me today:


Trust Me in the midst of a messy day. Your inner calm - your Peace in My Presence - need not be shaken by what is going on around you. Though you live in this temporal world, your innermost being is rooted and grounded in eternity. When you start to feel stressed, detach yourself from the disturbances around you. Instead of desperately striving to maintain order and control in your little world, relax and remember that circumstances cannot touch my Peace.

Seek My Face, and I will share My mind with you, opening your eyes to see things from My perspective. Do not let your heart be troubled, and do not be afraid. The Peace I give is sufficient for you.

Things get crazy around our house quite frequently. Moms feel the demands of everyone at all times. Anyone who thinks a mother that doesn't have a job outside the home doesn't "work" should spend 24 hours with one! I am one that likes order. I don't like my world in chaos, but yet that seems to be the thing this fast paced world keeps serving up. Because of this, I end up putting more on myself than I should. I do things that should be delegated. I say yes, when I should say no. I like to please - I should say, I like people to be pleased with me - I don't necessarily always like doing the pleasing! I have to continually make a conscious decision to seek the Lord for His direction, and the moment I do, it's as if a weight has lifted. My circumstances didn't change, but my perspective did. That's what His Peace is all about. The only way to find it in this frantic world we live in is to Seek His Face.

And stop getting lost in the endless list of things still yet undone. That list will always be long and growing, but that doesn't mean everything on it is mine to do. I once read (I think it was in Purpose Driven Life) that we have enough time to fulfill our purpose, so if we don't have enough time, we're doing too many things that are not our purpose. Sometimes it's hard separating the urgent demands from the legitimate responsibilities.

Sometimes days are messy. I know my house is pretty messy right now. But, yet, even in the midst of all that I am dealing with at the moment, I have Peace. I have come to a wonderful place where I really do believe God. I trust Him. Therefore, there's no reason to stress. If He grants me another day, I will thank Him and give it all I've got. He's got me covered.