Have you ever started something that you thought would be “easy peasy,” only to find out that it was much harder than you thought it would be? Yesterday, I decided that I’d spend the last “warm” day cleaning out the garage. I had seen a mouse in the corner, and I thought – “He’ll be coming in once the weather turns so cold.” We used to thoroughly empty out the garage and power wash it annually. But, well – we’re getting old. . . . and it’s been 3-4 years since it’s been done. I thought, “I’ll just move somethings around and sweep.” We have some cedar lumber that’s been piled up, waiting for the day that we cover the walls in Steve’s hunting closet. I was picking it up and stacking it, when, well, Friends, I wish you could have seen my reaction when I picked up a board and uncovered a “rat’s nest” with 5-6 baby mice in it. I could have won the Funniest Video contest! Needless to say, what started out as a “Let’s rearrange the stuff in the garage,” turned into a “EVERYTHING IS COMING OUT!” What I thought was going to be a few hours of easy work turned into two full days of HARD WORK!
This reminded me of how some people start their Christian walk. They are so excited when they’re baptized. They are “on fire!” This is “easy!” They talk to their friends and they attend all worship services, but then things happen. The pandemic caused all of us to alter the way we did things – and while it made things harder, it did not alter what our Christians duties are. There are times when we’d rather be in “the deer woods,” on the river, or at the “ballgame,” but the decisions that we make when it’s “hard,” show the condition of our hearts. God didn’t say that living the Christian life would be easy – what He did say was that heaven would be worth it! And only those who are “faithful unto death” (Revelation 2:10b) will enjoy the rewards. Are you putting Him first?
Our garage is soooo nice and clean! Hopefully, we’ve taken care of our mouse issue! And, we found all sort of things! Life is good. Simply blessed, Courtney