Chaos Reigns
June 19, 2022 by Charlotte Riegel
Filed under Daily Devotions
By Charlotte Riegel –
There is a new hole in a wall opposite my kitchen. The spare bedroom furniture occupies the living room amidst the normal living room furniture, making that room unusable for its intended purpose. Most of one wall is gone in the spare bedroom. Plastic sheeting hangs at various doorways in an attempt to contain dust. It also serves to slow normal mobility in my small house. We are now into month 15 of house renovations, first in a house being sold and now in the older house we bought. Ugh.
My stress levels often run high while hammers bang and dust seems to collect everywhere. I know ‘this too shall pass’ but sometimes find it difficult to keep my focus on the positives that await at the end of these renovation projects. I’m grateful for summer weather so I can spend significant time outside, away from the interior chaos.
It occurred to me I sometimes avoid upgrading my spiritual life because it too creates upheaval and chaos. I’d rather stay comfortably uncomfortable in a state of deteriorating walls of prayer and neglected time studying God’s Word. Yes, I know I should be more diligent in my spiritual maintenance and life improvement. I often turn a blind eye, thereby allowing the debris of life to cause more chaos and upheaval long term than if I’d taken the time and effort to be proactive and preventative.
Renovations on our houses or in our personal lives are all too easy to ignore, but I am reminded that personal life renovations are very worth the end result. Paying more attention to my food intake and being more diligent about getting onto an activity routine may help get me off the high blood pressure medications. It will mean some renovating of my schedule and changing old habits for a while, but I know the end result will be worth it. “Focus. Focus on the end result,” I tell myself over and over when I just don’t feel like complying with the messy changes any more.
And now, off to find my neglected prayer journal.
“Speak, LORD. I am your servant, and I am listening” (1 Samuel 3:9 NIV).
“The first step in renovation is to identify and correct conditions that caused the problem.” Tom Samples
Charlotte Riegel is a freelance writer recently moved from a large metropolitan city to a wee rural community in Western Canada. Some call it retirement. She calls it 're-tire' ment as she explores new avenues of written and visual expression while assisting her husband in establishing a business in the tourist industry.