Sometimes my world takes a different turn than I would have expected. Life is definitely unscripted and does not always go according to plan, my plans anyway.
Yesterday I walked into the living room with my head filled with learning. I spent some time studying Cold Fusion and then worked with Joomla. Since the Joomla site is still developing – how is it to be laid out? What is the organization? What do we want it to do? Sometimes it is hard to decipher which direction to go.
And then I saw my daughter at the back patio door. Here in southern California most back doors are very large sliding glass doors. The cats seemed very interested in the door. My daughter seemed very intent on something also. So I calmly asked what was happening. She said, “They are chasing a lizard. It is in the door.”
Oh, ok. That can be easily solved. My main concern is that the cats won’t grab the lizard and he will detach his tail. From previous experience I know that lizards can do that without doing harm to them but it is bloody. The tail grows back. I just don’t want blood in my house and on my carpet.
I move the doors around and the lizard “escapes” to the space between the glass doors. That’s fine, I think to myself. I can just shut the door. As I close the door the lizard steps onto my carpet. My daughter sighs and says; “Now he is in the house!”
“Ok, let’s let the cats get him”, I say. “No!” She cries. “They will hurt him!”
Great. My daughter doesn’t like animals to be hunted. I have a grey lizard in my house behind a bookcase and 2 unhappy cats. I just wanted to get back to work on my project!
When I checked behind the bookcase I realized that I did have more legal size security envelopes. There they were on the floor next to the lizard. I reached down to grab the envelopes forgetting my main purpose was to be grabbing the lizard and removing it.
By the time I killed the spider and removed the spider webs from the envelope box the lizard was nowhere to be seen. How hard is it to find a grey lizard on dingy blue carpet? Uh, it is apparently very hard. I checked all of the likely places for the lizard. I checked all the wires for internet and cable that are next to the bookcase. (Some of them are grey) And I searched under desks and everywhere for another ten minutes. No lizard. Anywhere.
My point? Sometimes life just doesn’t go the way we planned. Sometimes we have to take care of the urgent. Eventually we must get back to the important things and the routine things. Even when we aren’t sure what the important things are and our routine has changed, we still need to reassess and move forward.
I am still looking for work. I am learning new skills to be more marketable. I have this time to grow closer to my family. I have this time to re-evaluate my relationship with God. How I approach him. How I live. How I pray.
These things are all important and my routine is very different. But how I live my life has not changed. I still read my bible. I still pray and trust God to help us through this time. And I still need to move forward.
Some days it takes a little longer because I have to assess where I am, where I need to go and check if I’m taking care of important or routine things. I still have to pay bills even if I’m not sure where I will get the money to pay them. I still have to do the dishes and pick up the house. I still need to move forward even if I’m not sure what direction that is.
And eventually, I do need to find that lizard. Hopefully he made it back outside.
Ephesians 6:10-18 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
