Rotten
Uncut, the watermelon sat on my counter for awhile. I would finally cut it, slice it into cubes, and eat on its deliciousness for days to come.
Except when I put the blade it, the cut let out a poof! Strange. I peeked delicately inside the watermelon instead of slashing in further.
It was rotten.
I put the whole thing in a plastic grocery bag. I placed it back on the kitchen counter. I’d take it to the outside trash later.
Except I forgot.
The next thing I know?
All my floors are mopped, the bar stools are showered down, even my bedroom dresser is cleaned and the bathtub is spotless.
How did this happen?
I only know this:
One thing always leads to another.
Sticky Begets Sticky
Hours after I’d cut into the rotten watermelon, we left the house for a dinner. When we returned, we discovered it had leaked out of the bag.
Watermelon juice was everywhere.
Graciously, Jeff offered to clean it up. I went to bed.
But the next morning, I walked into the kitchen. My foot stuck to the floor. The mess was larger than we knew.
Sticky begets sticky.
When we have a mess in our lives, we often attempt a quick cleanup. And sometimes that works. It’s no big deal.
Other times, a quick cover-up job is inadequate. We think the swift wipe-down is enough for now, to keep us from noticing the sticky spots. The urgency disappears. We can live with it. We settle.
Until we step in it again.
Problems can go deeper than we want to face. They can paralyze us. The cleanup required seems overwhelming.
Please, God?
We need more than ourselves.
Don’t Settle
The first step?
Ask for his help. Don’t go it alone.
Seeking God in our messes is always the right thing. Our messes can push us into new levels of faith, deeper levels of dependency on him.
Then let one thing lead to another.
Throw out the rotten watermelon. Get it out of your house. Grab a mop. Clean the counters. Wipe down the chairs.
Once we get rolling, God longs for us to keep the momentum going. He doesn’t want us to stop pursuing him just because one mess is cleaned up.
“Wherever there is true grace . . . there is a desire for more grace.”
– Matthew Henry
He wants us to continue walking with him. This step. Then the next one. Then the next one after that.
Clean Soul
Once I mopped away the watermelon juice from my kitchen floor, I decided I might as well mop the bathrooms, too. Then I noticed the tub was dirty, so I cleaned it, too. Next, the piles on my bedroom dresser were more noticeable, so I cleared the stuff away.
Before I realized it, the whole house had been cleaned.
One thing leads to another, if we let it.
And why should we let one thing lead to another?
“To have found God and still to pursue Him is the soul’s paradox of love.”
– A.W. Tozer
Because God always has more for us.
- More love.
- More goodness.
- More grace.
When momentum is rolling in the right direction, don’t stop it.
Just as sticky begets sticky, so grace begets grace.
Don’t settle for less.
Do the next thing.
Receive the next grace.
The next thing you know, your whole soul will feel clean.
“Christ’s love is greater than anyone can ever know, but I pray that you will be able to know that love. Then you can be filled with everything God has for you.”
Ephesians 3:19 (ERV)
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The next watermelon was delicious!
