Last
weekend our family went to a competition where over a hundred kids showed off
their work in the area of robotics. The
culmination of the day was an awards ceremony where the teams who succeeded in
various categories received trophies.
After
the competition part was over, the crowd was entertained by a DJ. It was dance party time, the part of the day
that our kids were most excited about, and the crowd of kids (and some adults)
wiggled, jumped, and danced along to the songs.
My husband and I sat together on the bleachers as spectators, enjoying
all the fun that was happening.
As
we watched, the group devolved from dance hall to free-for-all, as groups broke
off and did their own thing. This group joined
hands and ran in a circle. That group
played tag. A group of girls walked,
crab-like, on their hands and feet.
I
had never seen such a display of so many types of behavior in one room before.
We
saw one kid, a little ways off from the others, spin around as fast as he could
on one knee. My husband pointed him out
to me, and we smiled as we saw him spin, then lose what little balance he had
left and collapse face down on the floor.
He sat up, and we could tell his stability was still impaired as his
head kept moving to one side. We laughed
as he shook it to get rid of the dizziness.
Then he stood up and ran off, no worse for the wear.
I
spun as a child, twirling with my arms outstretched, inducing the sensation of
dizziness and the resulting silliness of stumbling around. I’d never try it now as an adult – my body can’t
handle the physical sensation of spinning anymore. But sometimes I feel as if my brain is
spinning with responsibilities and tasks.
I
hate that. I hate feeling overwhelmed, off
balance. The bathrooms need to be
cleaned again. We’re out of milk. Jeez, Andrea, get it together. You just took down your Christmas tree
YESTERDAY? Do you know it’s almost
February?
We
all admit how busy we are. Sometimes it’s
just bragging. If I list all the things
I do, then everyone will be impressed with how hard I work. I fall into this trap sometimes, listing the
things I do every day. It makes me feel
better to know that I’ve been productive, that I’ve accomplished much. In reality, I’m just spinning. I’m showing the world what my brain tells me
I need to do.
Sometimes
I stop when I begin to list the things I do that keep me so busy. I realize that I’m not doing anything courageous
by getting through the day; my tasks aren’t harder or more important than
anyone else’s. Only my pride causes me
to list all the things I do.
I
hate realizing my own pride more than the feeling of being off balance.
In
those moments I need to remember that God gives me the tasks I must do. They are not of my own construction. God gave me this family, this home, these
things to do. If I do them, I do them
for his glory; not anyone else’s, and certainly not mine. I feel at peace when I know that I am
scrubbing toilets for God’s glory rather than my own. I am less hard on myself when I’m taking down
the Christmas tree a month after Christmas is over. After all, God gave me this task to do and
this time to do it. When I remember this
my pride takes a backseat.
So
much goes into God’s plan for us. So
much more than spinning around doing tasks left and right. He is teaching us all something specific
about ourselves, about him. For me it is
realizing that my tasks are just mine.
To be humble about doing them. To
be nicer to myself when they don’t get done.
To not look for accolades from others.
And
to find my balance, my foothold in his Kingdom.
*******
After all, who is Apollos? Who
is Paul? We are only God’s servants through whom you believed the Good News.
Each of us did the work the Lord gave us. I planted the seed
in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. It’s not important
who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God
makes the seed grow. The one who plants and the one who waters work
together with the same purpose. And both
will be rewarded for their own hard work. For
we are both God’s workers. And you are
God’s field. You are God’s building.
1 Corinthians 3:5-9 (NLT)
So then, dear brothers and sisters, be firm. Do not be moved! Always be outstanding in the work of the Lord,
knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:58 (NET)
Yes, I try desperately to be more like Mary and less like Martha on a daily basis with the busy spinning. Some days I succeed...but...most days I do not.
ReplyDeleteYou are in good company here, then. :)
DeleteI love this Andrea. It is such a good reminder that all these "things" I worry about are really things I don't need to worry about at all. God will find a way.
ReplyDeleteThank you Jennifer! It's amazing how putting the things back into their places and not letting them overtake us can bring so much peace. Somehow, the important things rise to the top, and everything else is taken care of by God.
DeleteThis is exactly why I am working on my Focus for 2014. There is so much that just spins and swirls around me - around all of us - that it feels like a never-ending frenzy and there's no way to get control of it. But I'm trying to figure out how to do just that. I know, I know, gaining control seems awfully presumptuous. But if I can remove the distraction of the things that are out of control and streamline things, it would certainly help. So this month my focus is on removing distractions - piles of laundry and paperwork, unfinished projects, boxes that need to be taken to charity, etc. So far, I'm making great progress.
ReplyDeleteOne of those distractions is my Christmas tree. That needs to come down because it's so far past it's time to be put away I can't stand it any more.
Good for you on making progress! My tree came down just last week. It is amazing what doing one little thing can do for your mindset. We make the little things so much bigger in our minds, when all we have to do is one little action. I totally get what you're saying.
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