Flash and Flare and Fireworks

(and ice cream that makes me skinny)

Lamentations 3:24-26
²⁴“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
    “therefore I will hope in him.”

²⁵ The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
    to the soul who seeks him.
²⁶ It is good that one should wait quietly
    for the salvation of the Lord.

Sometimes I think I just want God to make a big spectacle of things. I want there to be flash and flare and fireworks. I want to wake up and suddenly everything is better and different… and that ice cream would make me skinny. I want to be like one of those families on the home makeover shows who take off their blindfolds to reveal a perfect renovation… one where I can go away for a few days while someone else does all the work but I reap all the benefits. But instead, I open my eyes, and it's just Tuesday. It’s a Tuesday in March in Fort Wayne, IN. There are no leaves on the trees. The ground is at once muddy and frozen from the ever-present wintry mix of this time of year. The sun is so infrequent that it catches me off guard when I see it for more than a few hours. Yep. It’s just a Tuesday in Fort Wayne.

That said, in the doldrum of this midwestern morning I remain keenly aware of God’s presence with me. I spent time with a friend this morning who speaks life into my soul. My life (and the world I live in) isn’t a quick, made-for-tv renovation project. No, it’s a slow and steady… breath by breath reality I live in each day. Maybe that’s what the writer describes as, “waiting quietly on the salvation of the Lord.” 

Following Jesus is a “rest-of-my-life” pursuit. But I can only live life at the moment in which I find myself. And sometimes these moments are more laborious than others. But I’m here for it all. So I’ll just keep working it out as I go… learning to trust that God is enough (my portion). This is where I rest my hope.