Give Me a Sign

I've been having lots of conversations with God lately regarding this upcoming move. I spent a lot of time asking how things were going to happen. He gently told me to wait. One morning I asked Him to show me if that still small voice was from Him. During my devotion that same morning, I read, "Be silent before the LORD and wait expectantly for Him," Psalm 37:7a. I was all caught up in praising and thanking Him for confirming and He said, "Now, trust." I said, "Whoa...really? I got that wait part loud and clear. Do we really need to take this a step farther?" I knew the answer. I've spent several weeks thinking about what it means to truly trust God, but I've also continued to whine about how things have gone in the past and how I really have no desire to walk that road one more time. I guess He had enough of using that still small voice and listening to me whine about the way things have happened, because this morning He gave our pastor a full blown sermon accompanied by the words on the big screen. I really wanted to ask the pastor if he had been eavesdropping on my prayers. LOL! Our pastor ended his sermon with these words, "We can have a whining party or we can walk in faith." Message received.

What Love Looks Like

In our Sunday School class, we have been talking about judging other people.  I have a strong personal sense of right and wrong, and I think everyone on the planet should live their lives according to the Gospel of Jody.  However, I am trying to get a handle on that because I easily slap on my J badge and judge the world.

We immediately make observations when we see people...man, woman, poor, well-dressed, homeless, old, young, black, white, Asian, and the list goes on and on.  We make these observations without even thinking about it.  Where the problem arises is what we do with our thoughts next.  Do we linger on what we think the person should be doing...That person should get a job. Those pants are too tight.  Is she really wearing her pajamas in public? That person could do without eating that donut and pick up some carrot sticks.

There is a fine line between making an observation or practicing discernment and crossing the line to passing judgement.  God gives us wisdom and we should use that.  I often see people near a local shopping area holding a cardboard sign that either says, "Homeless," or "Please Help."  I can't help but notice the person standing there.  It is an automatic observation.  By the person's own admission, he is homeless.  The minute I allow my mind to go to, "Why isn't he out looking for a job, instead of spending time holding that sign?" or "I don't want that riff-raff hanging out on my side of town," I've crossed the line from observing to judging.  I know we all wonder if the person is really homeless or just out to scam people.  This is where we practice discernment.  If you feel that God is telling you to give to that person, then reach in your wallet and give or grab that ready-to-go bag of goodies that is popular right now and pass it out the window.  Don't allow yourself to worry about whether or not that person is going to use the money wisely.  Your job is to be obedient to what God tells you to do.  Maybe you don't feel like God is telling you to help, so gone about your business.

But how do we keep go from making an involuntary observation and crossing the line to passing judgment?  We need to know that it is the job of the Holy Spirit to convict and God's job to judge.  Unless you fall into one of those two categories, it's not your job.  As Christians, we are called to love.  We have to train our minds to go from making an observation to thinking, "How can I love that person?" 

Wrapping Up

I spent several hours yesterday matching Christmas ornaments to boxes and labeled bags.  This is what my living room floor looks like this morning.  These ornaments don't have boxes and are stored in labeled bags.

 

These are the ornaments that have boxes and have been safely wrapped and placed in the storage box.  I layered the bottom of the box with quilted stockings to add an extra measure of protection.

 

I stood in the living room this morning staring at the yet to be packed ornaments trying to decide the best way to package them individually and then the best way to load them in the storage bin.   

This coming summer will be move number thirteen for us.  Movers will come in and box up all of our belongings, load them on a truck and move them back to our house in Georgia.  Why am I taking such care packing these ornaments if the professional movers are going to do the work for us?  If I pack this box, the movers will agree to not unpack and repack it.  In all of our moves we had never had the amount of damage we had with our last move.  There is always the occasional crack or ding regardless of how much care is put into the moving process.  However, the last move was so bad we actually filed a claim.  The movers didn't put the care or common sense into packing that we have come to expect.  For example,  my teapots were just placed in a storage bin with no extra packing, but we found plastic lids wrapped.  

I'm already telling myself these are just ornaments and if one is broken it really doesn't make a difference in the greater scheme of things.  I'm telling myself the ornaments are just material possessions.  I'm telling myself the ornaments are a secular part of a holiday meant to celebrate the birth of Christ.  I'm reminding myself of images of extreme poverty that I have seen and how the replacement value of one of these ornaments would feed a poverty stricken family in a third world country for at least a week.  I'm telling myself all the cliche things we say in such moments.  So why can't I just wrap them up and put them in the box without worry? 

I think my thoughts are going a bit beyond simply packing away the Christmas ornaments.  There will be big changes in our lives this year and I know they are coming.  Although we are moving back to a familiar house, familiar church and familiar schools, there are still unknowns.  The kids are sad about saying goodbye to their friends they have made here.  Rachel will be staying here with a friend in order to remain at the same school for her senior year.  Next year when we are ready to decorate for Christmas, she won't be there to hear the story behind every ornament.  There are ornaments on the tree from when PK and I were in college.  There are ornaments that were gifts to us the first Christmas we were married.  The kids have been given ornaments each year that reflect something of their lives from that year.  There are many ornaments that were gifts from friends from many of the different places we have lived.  Each ornament tells a story and they are all wonderful.  I don't want one of these precious memories to be damaged.  

I know before we unpack the ornaments next year our family is going to add many new memories.  I think what bothers me is that I can't bubble wrap the family.  As much as we are looking forward to seeing old friends in Georgia, there are going to be some adjustments that are difficult and our hearts are going to hurt.  There isn't enough bubble wrap to protect us from that.  By the time we bring the Christmas boxes out of storage next year, we should be through the hard part of moving, but I am not sure I am ready to wrap up this home.