Junkyard wrecks and showroom models share equal space in God's garage.
- Max Lucado
I came across the above quote this morning, and I love it. The idea Lucado wanted to convey about the great and unrepentant love of God for us is awesome, and I needed it this morning. I need it every morning...and every afternoon, and every night and any time that might somehow slip through the cracks of those. It's been one of those mornings for me. I am nearly two hours behind where I normally am when I get into the first paragraph of the day's Moment, and I don't even know if I'll have it done before noon.
That's frustrating to me, and frustration doesn't help me let go, get out of self and connect with Daddy's Spirit to see what is on His heart for me and you, Dear Reader. Frustration is hard for me to deal with at times. It makes sense to just breathe slowly, think it through, figure out what's bothering me and let it go, I guess, but sometimes I can't do that because it forms a conflict. I had a chore that had to be done this morning before anything else. I should have just done it last night right before bed when I realized it, or I should have gotten up a couple of hours early so that i could do my reading, chilling with my Creator, writing, meditations, etc. and still have time to do the chore before the deadline. But coulda, woulda, shouldas only make things worse as well.
The conflict is that I am already behind and can't get it done, because rushing and ministry do not work together. I can't tell the Spirit to inspire me or tell me what to say or write right now and be quick about it. And stopping to analyze my emotions slows me down even more, and, for that matter, looking at myself is not always the most efficient way of getting out of self. So I try not to do that when I feel this way. I try to just turn it off, and step out in faith that God's grace is sufficient for me to ignore my emotions and do what needs to be done.
Sometimes it works better than others. And sometimes, more often than I even realize most likely I am completely wrong. Sometimes the only way to get out of self is to put our eyes on Jesus, true, but also let the Spirit minister, comfort and correct our self that is getting out of hand. It's not focusing on self as much as turning self into The Teacher for instruction and correction. I read that quote about the cars, and I realized I felt like that junkyard wreck. I needed that reminder that God will not let me go, and the pure unearned love Daddy has for us.
It is as amazing as it is true that God loves us as we are, not as we should be, a saying I took from Brennan Manning. Lucado is right that God loves us as we are and has called us His. He will not turn us away or cast us out because we're messed up. In fact, it is because we are messed up that Jesus came to make it possible for us to become Daddy's. So, if like me, you feel at times a lot more like the junkyard wreck than the showroom model, than it's good to know, and I hope that you do know, that you are not going to lose your place in God's garage. In fact, it's more than simply sharing the garage with all the other junkyard wrecks and the showroom models that belong to God.
And that's just it, that's the point of today's Moment. I'm not trying to restate what Lucado said. I agree He's right and provided a link for those of you who want to read it for yourselves. I want to go further. God's garage isn't filled with junk, and it doesn't look like a junkyard. I imagine it more like the above picture, only much, much larger. Pristine and gorgeous, and each car is set up in such a way as to emphasize and show off its wonder and uniqueness and the care and love that has gone into it. Not for the car, but for the glory and pleasure of the owner. You may have been a junkyard wreck when God found you, or when you found Him. I know I was. And you may have gone off the road and had a few wrecks more than once since then. I have. And God loves us as we are, not as we should be, so Jesus purchased us.
But we are not worthless, junkyard wrecks. The reason we're in His garage is so that the work can be done. While He loves us as we are, He also loves us enough not to leave us the wrecks He found us. He has the understanding and knowledge of what we can be, and He has the power, resources and time to make it happen. In fact, He has promised not to quit until He does. You, me, all of us in the garage, are going to be beyond pristine. We're going to perfect when He's done. We are not heaps thrown in the back corners out of the light while the showroom models are displayed. We are put where we can best display His glory and show off the cost, love, care and ability that went into making us His treasures.
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