Clearing Out Clutter

I’m no theologian, but here’s what I hear:

His salvation for us holds all the joy we will ever need, could ever imagine, or experience. And He will restore us to a life that is living and aware of it.

The willing spirit is mine – willing to go and grow where and how He intends. And all that, not for our purposes, but His glory and our joy.

So, just to share, I wrote that note to myself while sitting in the car yesterday. Psalm 51:12 kept running through my head and has for a few days.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

Thanks to the rain the roofers were not banging away and tho’ very grateful for the new roof, this made for a nice afternoon, pleasant breeze and nice shade. I went to walk the labyrinth, with Psalm 51 still running through my head. As I walked I noticed a few nails and scraps of metal in the pathway, so I began to keep an eye out and gather them up along the way.

Then I thought how much life is just like this. Best to keep an eye out on the path with Him and gather up those things that clutter our walk and remove them, give them to God to move out of the way of our life with Him.

 Just off the side of the center of the Labyrinth is a big clump of bamboo ( I know I go on and on about the bamboo, but when you see this in person, trust me…it’s amazingly beautiful!). One of the clumps on the ground looks like an old dead piece of bamboo. As a matter of fact, this particular place used to be under a big pile of rocks! Well, look at the side of that “dead” shoot, it’s growing!

Not unlike us, buried under stuff, the busy-ness of what we call life and yet, not living. When we hand the stuff over to God, HE breathes new life into us, gives us purpose and growth in the Spirit…and not just us! You see, this whole section of bamboo has been sitting over here for a number of years, not dying and not growing, just sitting. Now, with the stuff gone and the rain coming and the dead shoots trimmed off, this whole area is growing ~ it has purpose. We affect our “area”. We can live without living and all those around us are affected, but God will redeem our time by His joy!  

So, keep an eye out and keep looking up!!!

Create in me a pure heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

Psalm 51:10-12