Mess Happens

Reference: Proverbs 14:4 Without oxen a stable stays clean, but you need a strong ox for a large harvest.

Observation: This cryptic saying is one of the most important of all of the Proverbs. It points out the simple but profound truth that we can not expect to produce anything of importance without collateral mess. All of us would like our schedules, our plans our budgets to stay neat and tidy. Yet, what is the real point? We do not work to have neat budgets, schedules or plans, we work to accomplish something. At times, in our efforts to "clean up the stable" we allow the housekeeping to interfere with the real work of harvest.

This is as true in the church as it is in business. In the church we can end up spending all of our time making sure that everything is neat and efficient, the classes are painted and cleaned, the bulletins look good, but forget that the true work of the church is changed lives not perfect infrastructure.

The same holds for our businesses. We can work so hard making sure that policies are followed and our plans are perfectly analyzed and prepared that we end up having less time than we need to accomplish the mission of the business--making money.

And how about our families--the ultimate in "dirty stables". Sometimes it is more important to spend time with our kids or watch their soccor game than to make the house perfectly clean. What is the point of a family? A neat-as-a-pin home, life lived perfectly to the schedule or a loving, nuturing environment for our kids to thrive in?

We need to learn not to be discouraged when a mess happens. It may be that the mess is a byproduct of a very productive process. We need to make sure we don’t destroy the process in our efforts to clean up the mess.

Application/Confession: Messes in my life and in my ministry can be so frustrating to me. In the moment I forget that they are a normal part of being productive. I need to be more at peace about that.

PRAYER: Lord, thank You for the good work that You are doing. Help me to be at peace even when "messes" happen.