Give up the whitewash paint job

There’s a truth that I’m beginning to learn in my life. Just when I think I have it all together, painting my nice little white church on the outside to make it look good for Jesus, I fall backwards off the ladder into the bushes.

What I fail to realize is that my whitewashed exterior may have fooled the world, but God is not mocked. He comes right up to the back door and pokes his head inside. “Lauren,” he calls. “We need to do something about the smell in here. I think it might be the moldy tradition sitting in the back pew. And I don’t think the pride you keep in the storage closet is helping either. Let me give you a hand, and we’ll drag this stuff out and get rid of it. I promise I won’t say a word. No ‘I told you so.’ This place is going to look brand new when we’re done.”

This is similar to what happens when my mom comes to town. No matter what I have done to clean up the den and the kitchen, she sees the dust on the mantle and the hastily created piles of papers that I should have thrown out. I might kick and scream and mope and drag, but if I just get with it and we take care of everything, I feel 100% better when she leaves. The great thing about Jesus is he doesn’t leave. So while things might get back to their previous state after mom heads back to Mobile, Jesus is back the next day, poking his head in the back door, always offering a cleansing like no other.

Get by with a little help from my friends

I've never been one for the bliss of domestic trappings like cleaning, but darn it, I like Heloise. If you've ever read Good Housekeeping, then you know who I'm talking about. There's this super chick named Heloise who gives advice on how to get stains out of clothes and get crayon off the walls. Heloise is a friend to every klutzy girl who ever left a candle unattended next to beige carpet!!! Check out her page here. Thanks to the wonder of modern science, I avoided losing a chunk of the security deposit on my rental house by getting candle wax off my carpet ASAP. Sweet! Who knew what you could do with an iron and some paper towels? Makes me rethink my strong dislike for cleaning...almost.

Anyway, that aside, I've noticed something lately. I have watched more of my friends go into despair, or sin, or some other pit just waiting to swallow them whole in recent months than I ever have. And for some reason I feel like I could have done something. Namely pray for them. There is a spiritual battle going on in our world today for the souls of the saints. God has a special calling on each of our lives, but each life must be bathed in prayer to be effective in the kingdom. God is calling out those who are willing to follow. The question is simple: Are God's chosen people, his warriors, ready to raise up and fight? The answer may not be easy for some; nevertheless, it is there. Take a moment to protect a friend with prayer today. Don't just say you are going to pray for them. Stop right where you are and call down fire from heaven. We have no idea the effect our prayers can take when we have the boldness to step out in faith.

Crossroads...

Crossroads are converging in my life, and decisions are starting to cement themselves in my brain like Quick-crete. There are decisions to be made about where I am going to spend the next year, and I am praying that God will show me what is right...a mistake would cut me to the quick. I don't know if I could stand anymore if I made the wrong move.

Okay, enough poetic interpretation of a real-life issue. Poetry, schmoetry! I'm praying to decide whether or not I should go to Dicipleship Training School with YWAM in England. There are two very distinct paths I could take here. Either this is for me, or it isn't.

Waiter, there's a fly in my soup

There's a fly buzzing around my head as I write, which is a sure sign that spring is here, and it brought bugs with it. Just part of the joy of seasons changing, I guess. There are seasons in all of our lives, some more joyous than others. I just thought about it today because I'm coming out of a season of my life where life was hectic and hurried. Now the sense of urgency is gone, and I have my weekends back, but quite frankly I'm not quite sure what to do with them yet. Fear not for me though...I'm sure I'll come up with something quick.