The Biggest Mess

Sometimes in this Great Big Blessed Mess, the messes surround us -- leaking sippy cups, potty training accidents, dishes that start to become science experiments. Being a Mommy is a dirty job filled with messes that others leave behind for the magical, invisible cleaning fairy (aka MOM) to deal with.

Sometimes, however, the biggest mess of all isn't surrounding me...it is in me.

We all have weaknesses -- internal hot spots that are prone to clutter.  And just like a clutter prone counter or room in our home, once we allow that first piece of junk to sit there it will breed exponentially, until we have no idea how the chaos got there or how to get rid of it.

For me, that weakness is insecurity.  One little feeling of rejection, one little comment I take too personally, and if I let it sit for too long it will start to reproduce all kinds of spiritual clutter.  Soon that insecurity has turned to self-loathing, and self-loathing to confusion, and confusion to indignation, and indignation to entitlement, and -- finally -- entitlement to pride.  Pride.  Don't we always end up there, no matter where we start?  For any separation from the Spirit must be rooted in pride.  Somewhere along the way we decided we could do it without Him, we knew better than He did, or we deserve more than He has promised us. 

So then what?  When the mess within us has gotten out of control, where do we even start?  We could get caught in the trap of "working" our way back, but hopefully we have grown in Christ enough (through all of our many past failings!) to realize that we can't work our way to anything.  If we can't DO anything, then what DO we DO?

Searching Scripture, I have found that just like all it took was a little doubt to start the snowball of spiritual clutter, PRAISE GOD!, the reverse is true, also!  If we can muster up the tiniest bit of faith, and let it sit there long enough, God will breed that faith exponentially within us through Christ!  Listen to what He tells us in 2 Peter:

"His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins." (2 Peter 1:3-9, NIV)

Thank you, Christ, for my eternal salvation!  Thank you for the security of knowing that salvation has nothing to do with what I've done, but with who YOU are!  Thank you for taking my tiniest seed of faith and doing the work to grow that in me, reversing in moments all of the pride I had let fester in my soul for so many weeks!  I am undeserving, and your grace is overwhelming.

Not because of who I am, but because of what you've done.  Not because of what I've done, but because of who you are!

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." (Ephesians 2:8-10)