Ahh, a day off with my buddy. Plans to meet friends at a park and sip coffee in the brisk morning air while our kiddos play. I will get to push Judah on the swings and make him feel like he's flying. I'll chase him and pretend (for now) that he is just way too fast for me to catch. And we will laugh. Oh how my heart lives for that boys laugh.
But, Judah woke at 5:30am, with the kind of snotty nose you just can't share with even the best of friends. He needed to be held and my need for coffee would be placed on hold. His frustrations of feeling cruddy mixed with hunger, but for nothing in particular, quickly compounded into a disastrous kitchen and feeling totally drained by 8am. The day progressed like that, trying to get my feet in front of my body, but unable to stop the falling on my face feeling.
We went to the store for some quick sick essentials and I lost my keys. Nearing lunch time, Judah was fussy and I was about to lose my mind (aka crying in a public place). We checked every shopping cart, every aisle, asked every employee, to no avail. Finally, I purchased some cheese sticks, watermelon chunks, and goldfish for our lunch and sat outside of the store and cried.
Long story short, we had to call roadside assistance to unlock the van and my keys were neatly tucked inside the diaper bag in the car.
What a messy day I thought. But, as I reflected on it, I realized, that even in this messy day, God was inviting me to something. His invitations are not always neat and orderly. They can be messy and muddy and chaotic. They can be unwanted interruptions of my plans that God has planned all along. And, I missed it.
Thinking back, I missed the joy on Judah's face as I allowed him to stack and restack boxes of cereal in the cereal aisle (don't judge me). I missed his brave expressions and proud smirk as he climbed on top of the beer cases while I was attempting to call roadside assistance. I was impatient with the grocer as he asked me how my day was going. I missed the gift that my husband was, to drop everything at work and come to the store to calm my heart and help me. And I missed a divine appointment with my son to turn our messy day into a picnic date outside of the grocery store.
Truth is, we all miss God's messy invitations because we see them more as interruptions in our well-planned days. But, what if we took a second in the chaos to pause. To breathe out our expectations and breathe in the reality of the moment, regardless of the way it appears. What if we saw that co-worker or neighbor that seems to interrupt us so often as an invited guest being used by the hands of God to teach us something or use us in some way?
We cry out, "Jesus, use me!" But we are blinded to so many ways that He tries to. We miss it because it's messy. We miss it because the moments may not be bedazzled in typical church-like servitude. Look at these verses.
Isaiah 58 6-9 (The Message)
“This is the kind of fast day I’m after:
to break the chains of injustice,
get rid of exploitation in the workplace,
free the oppressed, cancel debts.
What I’m interested in seeing you do is:
sharing your food with the hungry,
inviting the homeless poor into your homes,
putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad,
being available to your own families.
Do this and the lights will turn on,
and your lives will turn around at once.
Your righteousness will pave your way.
The God of glory will secure your passage.
Then when you pray, God will answer.
You’ll call out for help and I’ll say, ‘Here I am.’James 1:2-4 (The Message)
Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.What kind of messy invitations have you missed recently?
Is there a recurring interruption in your life that you need to re-label as a divine appointment?
It isn't a question of whether or not God will interrupt you. It is a question of when. And will you be ready to receive His interruptions as invitations to take His hands and follow Him?
P.S. With a humble heart I want to share that Jesus is "interrupting" my blog posts for the next season. As my family of 3 prepares to become a family of 4 next month, I believe God is asking me to use this time to dive deeper into His Word, put my feet up more frequently, and be as present as possible with my family. I will be back and 'Speaking of Grace' will continue to hold this space. So, thank you for being with me, and I cannot wait to be back with you soon!
In the meantime, I ask for prayer.
That Ezekiel James "Zeke" will enter this world healthy. He is due March 19th!
That Judah will have a patient and loving heart toward his new baby brother.
That we transition to a family of 4 with grace for ourselves and for each other.
Thank you guys from the bottom of my heart!
Love,
Jessica
