Not too long ago, I was cutting the grass in our back yard. It is easier to cut the front yard because there are very few obstacles. It does not require you to think or even pay much attention. But the back yard requires special attention. There are hidden recesses that can get you at any time. They have been secretly dug by someone special. The grass grows over these recesses so you don’t even know they are there until – bam! – there you are. These are, of course, holes dug by Leo as he was trying to dig up a worm or catch a bug that had fallen. I am usually good at navigating my way. The holes are usually just minor and may knock me around a little. This one, though, was unexpectedly large. There was no getting out of it. My tire was spinning and there was no traction. I was “all in” this time. So I had Wendy to come get on the lawn mower so I could push and reach enough grass to gain traction. It wasn’t a huge task, just took some reconfiguring to get out.
But too often in life, I feel like I am stuck with my wheels turning and I don’t ask for help. I decide I can do it myself. I spin and spin, hoping that it will make a difference. In the end, I make the hole deeper and I am in more of a mess. My life becomes a giant hole I have dug for myself when I was just trying to move forward. And I am stuck. At some point, I realize that I am so stuck, my wheels are freely turning in the air, and I am never going to go anywhere if I don’t ask for some help. Life becomes too much and I just have to reach out and seek some assistance.
It is during these times I am so grateful for a loving wife and a wonderful family. I am gifted with my mother, my grandmother, and so many others that love and support me. We are there to help each other get out of the places we get stuck. When the task becomes too much for us, we band together. We look after each other. We pray for each other. And we just keep pushing. Sometimes all we need is one good push and we are off and running again.
It is also a gift to know that we can seek God together. We don’t always understand why things happen the way they do. We don’t get what is going on. We may not know why we are stuck. None of that really matters. It matters that we seek the Lord and his guidance. In the end, he ultimately is the one who gives the biggest encouragement. He gets us “unstuck” and moving in the direction we were created. And for that, I am most grateful.
Focus Scripture:
1 Corinthians 3:8-9
8 The one who plants and the one who waters have a common purpose, and each will receive wages according to the labor of each. 9 For we are God’s servants, working together; you are God’s field, God’s building.
Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery. Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery
SEEING THE EXTRAORDINARY 