I was given the opportunity to have an hour completely to myself.  I ambled through Barnes and Noble, leisurely, for the first time in years.  I couldn’t find my old familiar favorite sections of books.  The covers staring at me were all different, the section titles located in spots that didn’t come intuitively to me (although, humorously, the parenting section immediately abutted the “repair manuals” section.)

I had to ask where the poetry section was.  I was given the gift of an hour, I would fill my soul with as much goodness and beauty as I could, by gum.

I eventually found it, creviced in between bawdy romances and teen vampire novels.

And I made a new friend out of a poem.  Because it’s still new-ish, I can’t copy and paste the entire thing here, but go take a read.  Here are a couple lines to give you a sneak peek.

I love people who harness themselves, an ox to a heavy cart,
who pull like water buffalo, with massive patience,
who strain in the mud and the muck to move things forward,
who do what has to be done, again and again.

As I mentioned recently, the topic of work and faithfulness in the mundane has been crashing in around me repeatedly in the last month.  Wave after wave over me. Everywhere I turn, I read or hear words about being faithful in the small things, intentionally building faithfulness into my character, doing things that are worthwhile over and over again, sowing with a view to righteousness.
But work doesn’t come naturally, does it?  Work that is self-abasing, repeated surrender of wants and needs, choosing what’s right “even if it’s not what I want” (as I repeatedly tell my kids every single day.)  Again and again.  Obedience.  Faithfulness.  Again and again and again.  Parenting is that.  Teaching and discipling kids is that.  Over and over.   It’s work.  And it’s also humbling.  On days when we have to be “on display” as a family, my soul especially is weary.  And yet, God has drawn our family to ministry.  And He has called me to be my husband’s helper.  I can choose to help him with a good attitude and be a blessing to him.  Or I can choose to grumble.
This song by Lauren Daigle has been my prayer for many days in the past several months.

 

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