I love the fall…not sure exactly why since I hate piles of leaves! I love the smell of fall, the new crisp to the air, the fun events, the anticipation of the holidays, the colors of red, brown & orange….but Oh, the leaves!
I suppose anyone that knows me, knows I get a little freaked out with anything in masses.
A worm - fine, but a can of worms…
An ant – fine, but an ant hill…
A dog - yes, fine, but the pound or the dog sale at Canton, please no!…
A leaf – fine, but Oh, the leaves!
Yesterday, as I stepped outside to dump the mop water, the mailman was walking up to our house. Noticing that our porch was a heaping pile of leaves, we smiled at each other, and he handed me the mail. Since the floors were wet inside, I decided I would take time to clean things up a bit. The kids excitedly volunteered to help me. Once that was done, we moved to the back to clear the deck. Once the deck was clear, we moved to the walk….and on and on we went…Oh, the leaves!
One cannot successfully pile leaves with a 5 & 7 year old without expecting there to be the desire to jump and play in the leaves. I knew this going into the task, but I was still having a hard time not imagining fleas, ticks, roaches and other such things crawling all over my two precious bug free little ones….Oh, the leaves!
Anyone that has ever tried to clear a yard of leaves knows exactly how frustrating the task can be. Once you get a section cleared, just watch the wind blow and cover it again. Then, when you think you are done, wait 15 minutes and the neighbors leaves will have migrated over….Oh, the leaves!
Many that know me know that I am control driven and task-oriented; so, you can imagine how frustrated I get when trying to do a job that one can never gain control over or truly ever complete. Well, at some point yesterday, (pretty close to the beginning of the task PTL!) I began to feel the Lord trying to speak to me. In my “diligence” to “get the job done”, I was not wanting to take the time to be sensitive to His still small voice, but after one short comment to my “helpful” children, I realized I needed to sit and check myself. As I sat looking at the mounds of leaves and my children smiling wide, God whispered to my heart…"Rest in Me.”
Oh…just leaves…
Just like the leaves that go where they will, God is in complete control. He knows the number of leaves in the yard, and he knows the small bug under the pile. Resting in the Father allows me to enjoy the day that He has made. It allows me to positively train and verbally reward my children for hard work, diligence and joyful spirits. When I recognize that He has power over of all things, I can have peace in any circumstance. Oh…those silly leaves.
Just like cleaning up fallen leaves seems unending, God's love is unconditional and ever plentiful. Resting in Him, frees me to soak in the wealth of that continuous love. It allows me to be filled with a joy that sustains in any situation. Oh…the piles of abundant leaves!
The kids and I finished the task, with the help of grandpa, and congratulated each other on a job well done. We went inside feeling good about hard work, lessons learned, relationships unharmed and knowing that resting in Him is the perfect place to be.
Today, I chose to simply smile as we walked outside and saw the porch, the yard, the walk and the deck…covered again!
Oh…the leaves!
AT
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I confess that more times than I would like to admit, I lack both patience & wisdom...and it would be a true assessment to say that in those times, I often end up with a stinky mess!