Thursday, March 05, 2009

Ellie vs. the Blocks



So, this blog post will surely echo the words of my previous blog post, but it has been so profoundly impacting me (picture God with a hammer, slamming away on my head...but in a good way..heh), that I have to elaborate a little bit more.
What is the one thing in your life that you don't think God can ever overcome? And here's another good question...why is it that we think our problems are the only ones too big for God to handle?
Very rarely do I start my days ahead of the game. Are you like me?
I'm awake...way earlier than I ever thought I'd be, in the hopes of salvaging a little time in the house where it is completely quiet and I can have some purposeful time with God...to ready myself.
And here I am...a cup of coffee (that's the carrot that gets me out of bed, if I'm being honest) and my open Bible. Totally ready to have this perfect little time to focus myself and start my day being super mom.
Then Ellie wakes up crying, then Lincoln 40 times, then John comes down and tries to talk to me (this all happens before 6:30am....I KNOW!!!)
I get really grumpy when my day starts off contrary to the way I want it to...and thus commences what I like to call the nosedive.
I am drifting along, relatively peaceful, able to handle anything, when a glitch in my plans happen and (CRASH) there I go, plummeting.
At this point, I'm getting so grumpy that I think "God, it's not even 7:00 in the AM and already I'm DONE!" This is about the time each morning that I start believing I can't.
You know..
I can't do this...
I can't keep giving....
I can't GET A SHOWER...
I can't keep from screaming at people...
maybe you don't know...but that's just my reality.
So...tuck that in your minds, and I'll give you a little Bible story.
God sends twelves spies into what was going to be the promised land for the Israelites, they see fruit, they see a great land, they see this amazing place that God has promised to give them...and they see...giants.
They come back.
They talk about how great the land is, how wonderful it seems, they TASTE THE FRUIT. And then they doubt.
"We can't do it, there are giants there, they'll stomp us like grasshoppers."
Enter...Caleb. A man who has so inspired the currents of my faith that I would love to meet him in heaven one day.
And Caleb silences them and their doubt and says this...
"We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it." Numbers 13:30
Does something deep within the recesses of your soul resonate with this? It does in mine.
Again, the other ten spies chime in--focusing on the giants, the people that will surely stomp them to the ground, they say we can't do it...we can't.
Again, Caleb speaks--"Do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them." Numbers 14:9
How profound an example. How true the power of God is.
I read a wonderful commentary (from my BSF notes) on this subject that said "the majority measured the giants against their own strength; Caleb and Joshua measured the giants against God...the majority had great giants but a little God, Caleb had a great God but little giants." (alan redpath)
I almost typed the question how big are your giants...but the more important question is...
how big is your God?
If you are in Christ, have all the powers of the resurrection not been made available to you to do His will? (and might I add, that mothering your children and pointing them to Christ, and loving your husband, and serving others, and sharing the message and the hope of Christ...IS HIS WILL) Are you the only one in the entire universe that God cannot reach? Are your problems the only ones in the history of the world that God will choose not to help you in?
Surely not.
Yet how anemic my own faith can be.
David, when facing his own giant said this "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." 1 Samuel 17:45
Here is a final illustration and then I am done.
I was watching my baby Eloise the other day, sitting on the floor playing with blocks. And there was one block that she couldn't reach...she was stretching. She was determined, she tried over and over and over to reach it and it was at her fingertips, but she failed each time. On her own the block was simply a little bit too far.
I watched her...sit back...defeated, and give up on the block. She turned her sights to other interests, letting go of the hope of ever reaching it.
When she turned away, I moved the block a couple inches closer...perfectly within her reach.
She never again reached for the block. In her mind she had already resigned herself to the fact that she would never be able to get it on her own.
And she was right, but with my help...it was completely within her reach.
It is with tears in my eyes that I pose these final questions....
Is there a block in your life that you have completely given up hope on? that you are sure you will never be able to reach?
And then...
can you also picture a loving God....reaching his tremendous hand down...and scooting it a few inches closer?
He does...and He will.

4 comments:

Robin Egger said...

oh jenn. your precious insight made me weep. thank you for having a heart and a desire to hear God...thank you for sharing what you heard.

Rebecca said...

God's timing is amazing...I really needed to read such a post this morning. Without writing a novel...Conrad and I have both had very bad colds ALL week (fussy baby, snotty and sore baby AND Mama, I've had no energy, etc., etc.--I'm sure you've been there), and as you put it, before Aaron could walk out the door this morning, I thought "I am DONE!" Sometime soon after, while trying to get Conrad to eat some breakfast, I felt the spirit move in me...I felt clarity, the tears dried, the clouds parted, and I suddenly felt I would make it through the day. I was sure at 7:30 a.m. that "block" was so out of reach, but I had, albeit briefly, prayed and asked for help, and I received it. Your posts help me know I'm not alone, inspire me to delve into the Word, and encourage me to always look to Him. Hope you have a fantastic Friday! :)

Jenn said...

How I love you ladies! Thanks for YOUR stories of faith, they encourage ME!!!

crit said...

once again, great post.... is wish i could say more... but i honestly can't get over Ellie's picture and just how much she reminds me of Lily at that age!