National Custom Car Hall of Fame near Grand Lake, Ok
It was a beauty,
Sleek and shiny,
Polished to perfection,
Not a scratch or a blemish to be seen.
Yet in it’s state of perfect preservation, it never got to really be a car. It had become a museum showpiece to be admired and gawked at.
It never raced down the road
Or felt bugs smash on it’s grill
Or heard the laughter of riders as the wind breezed through their hair.
It never felt the squish of mud on it’s tread
Or rain drenched highways,
Leaving a spray as it zipped through the puddles.
So what is life if we never really experience it?
We think it would be wonderful to never have trials, and my heart yearns for that day—yet my head knows…
How empty is it if there is no bad with the good, no storms with the rain, only quiet waters and day after day of sameness and mundane tasks.
And what if we don’t fulfill our purpose?
If I only work, work, work and don’t take time for the important, over and over the important will be shoved aside in the face of the urgent.
The saying is, “The squeaky wheel gets the grease.” But sometimes we just need to ignore the “squeaky wheel.”
Though I love decorating and designing, I have to remember that my job is way down the list in matters of importance… yet it is often what gets my attention the most. There are always deadlines to meet, drawings to complete, items to locate and purchase…
I have found that the best way for me to keep my priorities straight is carving out that time in the mornings, before my day begins to read and pray and write.
I want to be a working model of God’s creation. Not a lovely polished and preserved showpiece like that car has no purpose except to be stared at.
God created me to be a light of the world.
So in easy terms, my purpose is:
To serve others, not self
To be a comfort to those who walk the dark road I have been down
To look after widows and orphans
To tell the world who my Savior is.
I may become scratched and blemished and worn and faded, but I want those marks to be the badges of a life well lived for him and for others.
In the Church circles we hide behind the triteness of, “I’m fine, how are you?” and the response is usually, “Just fine”, “Good”, or even “Great!”
If I hide my struggles and my pain, I don’t give others the chance to minister to me and I perpetuate the myth that my life is perfect. And what good does that do anyone, most of all myself?
So who are you?
The scuffed up and ever-failing but always-striving—version of Christ?
Or the perfect poser
Who hides brokenness and desperately pretends they are “Great!” as they slowly shrivel up inside.
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1 Peter 3:8-12
Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble...
“Whoever would love life
and see good days
must keep their tongue from evil
and their lips from deceitful speech.
They must turn from evil and do good;
they must seek peace and pursue it.
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their prayer,
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
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-What purpose can you fulfill for God?
-Make a list: Constantly talking to your children about God; being a supportive friend, wife; letting your light shine; teaching classes; being an encourager…