When you have perfect plans and life hands you anything but perfect.
Do you ever have those weekends when you are so excited to be with your loved ones but then it seems no one else got the memo and family unity is nowhere to be seen? And everyone, including yourself wants their own way?
Me Too.
We had a busy weekend, and the good kind of busy, full of friends and parties, and family. But I had this small dream that we would all decorate the Christmas trees (yes trees bc christmas is my love language) and just enjoy being together. And everyone was on board! Until they weren't. The screens were more exciting, the energy was building and the kids weren't seeing eye to eye, at all. I was so disappointed! This was my one plan for the day, and it was going to go exactly how i envisioned it, and all the kids would look back on this yearly tradition with fondness and smiles and think how intentional their mom was. I mean isn't that reality? haha!
The moment did not play out like that at all, and instead of forcing it I sadly let it go and everyone did their own thing! But I thought about it the rest of the day.
I remembered, the verse in James that says,
"What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel." James 4:1,2
What does that mean? We fight because we aren't getting our own way!! And oh how this applies from the smallest child to the oldest adult. But what a humbling and needed reminder! Even though what I wanted was a good thing, I was upset it wasn't going my way and had a bad, bad attitude because I wasn't getting my perfectly imagined family time in.
THE TRUTH IS
"We are all a bunch of sinners, living under one roof"
Problems are going to make our house feel real small somedays. It's gonna be messy and imperfect and that's normal!! But what an incredible gift to recognize this in ourselves so that we can stop throwing stones, show mercy when it's undeserved, and love when it's the opposite of what we feel. To live out what we believe and grow into who we want to be, like - Jesus. We get to be an example of Jesus to our kids! What a gift we can give them. BUT it's HARD! I get it. I live it everyday. And being consistent is the toughest.
But Be Encouraged...
It's not always easy to choose God's ways, because we long for our own satisfaction in what we think is best, but His ways are always the road that ends in peace. You want to know what I think is the most beautiful part of choosing God's ways above our own? We realize that we cannot do it in our own power, we fall short in our own strength. We need a power outside of ourselves to obey Him... we need His help to put others before ourselves. And wasn't he the ultimate example of selfless living? So we continue to look to God - the author and perfecter of our faith, and as we do, our trust grows in Him as we see him faithfully provide wisdom and strength, our faith is built and our love deepens ten fold for Him because he is soo good!
The more we walk with Him and are in His word the more that we know Him and fall in love with Him! Can you imagine a more incredible place to be than connecting with your creator and letting Him work in and through you?
You guys! WE don't just have to survive these days, we can survive WELL WITHIN our imperfect lives. because it's not about us, we are sinners who are not stuck in our sin, but sinners who (if you are in Christ) are a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come and we are being renewed and transformed into the image of Christ - which as you may have realized, isn't easy but it's an incredibly beautiful and worthwhile outcome.
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