Yes, I'm actually publishing this picture of my own closet... mess and all.
It's the exact picture I need to explain something God has been showing me
For years, I have put off for days/weeks/years doing things whether it be daily items,
BIG things God is calling me to do, or somewhere in the middle because
I JUST DIDN'T KNOW WHERE TO START?
When I look at my closet, I get overwhelmed at all the mess.
1. There are clothes I need to get rid of because I haven't worn them in years,
2. the dirty ones that need to be washed, and
3. the ones that need to be put in the right place.
I'll walk in and out of it daily being upset at how messy it is and yet have not done one thing about it. I've told myself for days, shoot it could be weeks now, that I need to clean my closet.
One thing I've learned a lot lately is I can say anything.
Anybody can say anything, but DOING it another thing.
My closet is a picture of life. It can be a mess at times.
We can look back and think, "how in the world did it get this messy?" I'm sure Jonah thought the same thing as he was sitting in the belly of a whale. It's dark, slimy, and probably stinks pretty bad. I've been there...obviously not actually in a whale's belly
(or welly of a bale as many people have heard me mix up),
but in life when it was dark and just stinks.
But I now know the answer of how I got there... I ran!
As God tried to help me by directing me, I thought I could do it better. Not intentionally. I don't know many people that think they can do better than God at anything. After all, He's GOD!
But as He gently nudged, I had my own plans.
1. I didn't want to get rid of the things in my life even though they had been of no use for a while now.
2. It's hard cleaning up the dirty parts of my life, and
3. I was going to need to rearrange priorities to put them in the right place.
I think this exact spot is the hold up for a lot of people.
We don't like where we are at, but we don't know where to start.
In my closet, I cleaned up the dirty clothes first.
In life, it's the same. Clean up! 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."
Next, I went through and pulled out anything that I hadn't used/worn in a year.
This is hard. We like to hold onto stuff!
In life, it's the same. Let go!! Hebrews 12:1 "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
You know when you come to the end of a show/movie and it says
...to be continued.
It always frustrated me before, but I've come to the place in writing this that I need to allow the Holy Spirit more time to direct before I can finish. Deciding what is needed to stay in my life and in what order they have priority is not easy. I want to try to help everyone and please everyone. I am involved in a lot of good things. Just like my closet has a lot of good clothes and things in it. But even though they are good, I want to be focused on pleasing God and not man (Galatians 1:10). I'm finding some of these good things are keeping me busy, busy and tend to distract me.
So I challenge you to join me...
Clean up!
Let go!
And once it is clear to me how the Holy Spirit leads, I'll be back to complete this closet make over.
He is faithful, and I'm begging for His direction.
I cannot do this alone! I am weak, but no worries,
"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is make perfect in weakness." (2 Cor 12:9)
So I'm not afraid for anyone to see my messy closet or messy life because I know
without a doubt, I'm not the only one! If just one person can identify and be refocused to Jesus, it's more than worth letting everyone see my mess.
I look forward to sharing more messes as the only way to overcome an obstacle is
1. By the blood of the lamb.. JESUS!!
2. Word of our testimony
(I didn't make that up...check it out...Revelation 12:11...it's Truth and Truth trumps everything!)
