As i drive home from church my eye wanders to a house i see almost daily, i can see over the short rock wall to their yard out back, where the grass is green and flowers growing so pretty there yard decorations almost gleam as if somebody polishes them on a daily basis....then i start to mentally beat myself up and vow to go home right this minute and tear out my whole lawn blade by blade and till the ground and buy some fancy grass seed that will make my yard a beacon of accomplishment for all to see!UMM....yeah that is till i pull into the driveway and regain my senses.
I Dont really have time to maintain my yard, for the same reasons my house is not spotless. And my van not washed on a daily basis. My time is occupied with my kids. No i mean REALLY occupied. I actually followed a thought out today to completion and when i reached the end i knew it would become the next entry on my blog.
OK here goes...so i wondered what would happen if you dropped everything and THREW yourself into something, such as the lawn, or going on a diet,or learning a new language. If it were all you eat breathed and slept. Would it not become your masterpiece, for all that energy and effort how could the results NOT show the time and work that you put into whatever it was...
For what we spend our time doing is what we spend our life doing. It occurred to me not to feel sad about my lawn. For i have spent my lawn care time in exchange for kid care time. We all of us know someone we see who has nerves of steel when it comes to watching what they eat, people who have such a green thumb they could grace the cover of better homes and gardens, some who have reached unbelievable heights with all the mountains they have climbed and others still who keep a house so clean one would never even know people live there...and what of those who spend their time caring for their children ...is not their glory then in the wonder of beautiful bright compassionate well versed kids....is that not worth more than a lawn that is green or a body that is super skinny or pictures of amazing travels...is it almost worth everything ....everything else. I think so. Not to say you cant do all i mentioned above just because you have kids because of course you can ...but i dont think its possible to be a master of it all, and if i have to choose between grooming my yard for glory or grooming my kids for greatness then i am pleased to say my lawn sucks. But my kids are amazing.
I know not everybody would agree with my analogy but i am so hard on myself sometimes expecting perfection from things that in the end will pale in comparison to the little human beings i gave life to and agreed to see that good work to completion.
In the end we will all be old, all flabby, to stiff to garden or workout, and when i look back at pictures and reflect on memories i want it to be of my children and family, and to know that i gave every last thing i could to my greatest task this life will ever offer me.
Dont get me wrong i am in no way saying i am a better parent than people who have perfect lawns and are raising kids , I'm simply drawing a line between the effort we put out and the results we see.
What i learned today is are there Bible verse notations on In and Out Burger wrappers and cups as well as Forever 21 bags..the answer is yes! I thought so when i saw 3:16 on the bottom of my milkshake once ...
There are many who make a big deal out of stuff like this and i always wonder why...if it is because of the God factor then how come having In God we trust printed on money doesn't prevent these same people from spending cash? :)
s.o.t.d.
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one's youth.
Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.
—Psalm 127:3-5
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