Look around you right now, go ahead I’ll wait. What do you see? Are your surroundings neat, clean in order? Are they a little lived in and a few things scattered around? Or is it just a mess around you?

No matter your environment you are currently sitting in, you have the ability, if you choose, to control it. You can keep it as clean and neat as you desire or just let “things fall where they may.”

Some of us live in such “perfect” places; everything has a place and all is in order. Some of us live much simpler and more comfortable with things “put away.” Yet, others just “live.”

Ever been to someone’s home that looks “perfect?” How did you feel? Did you feel like you were visiting a friend, a family member or perhaps a museum? Or maybe it felt like a model home? Let’s go the other way, ever visit someone that was less than clean? What did that feel like? Dirty, might catch a disease? Animal fur everywhere?

I know what you are thinking -what is the point of this blog?!? Who knows – I just wanted to talk about “messy” for a moment! Hee hee hee…. Well okay I have another thought to share.

What about you? Yes, you! Do you have the appearance of having it all together? Before you answer, let me give you some examples of such a person. Pastors, teachers, police officers, doctors and lawyers. They all seem to appear great – yes? Look at their lives, generally well liked, nice homes and families, all of the average to above average things that life has to offer – they might have or can afford.  So – are you “together?” I am willing to bet that your answer might be “of course, look at me!”  Fair enough, you have it all together – at least by appearances

But what if I told you that those 5 careers, I listed above come with very high suicide rates? Yes, seriously those careers come with what I will call “high risk / high reward” types of mess. Yes, I called it a mess. I could have gone with stuff, positions, ideas, etc. – but life is messy and so are we – and so are those careers and many others like them. Each of those careers I picked were “random” in a sense. Each deal with the public / people and guess what? We are sometimes hard to deal with! I know shocking.

Back to us and being messy. People are messy! We carry around with us so much junk / baggage it’s a wonder any of get anything done! On top of our “normal” day to day lives, we seem to have our “antenna” up and always seem to be picking up on everything around us as well. Our minds are FULL! They are so full for many of us that some of us no longer are able to function at a high level to get things accomplished. We are BREAKING down, one by one.

What do I mean by our minds are full? We are carrying around hurt feelings, negative emotions, guilt, shame, loss of love, brokenness, job loss, family loss and more. AND then we somehow manage to keep adding to these things by either talking with others and carrying their burdens, creating new ones or by the input of television through movies, shows, media and more.

THEN – here is the best part of “us” – we go out into the world, put on a happy face and act as if we have it together. While behind our mask of “all is well” we are so incredibly messy! We are falling apart. Every day you and I pass someone who might be facing or going through divorce, someone that is facing down cancer, have lost a family member, been fired from a job or are in need of one and this list goes on. We see the “messy” in people at every corner if we really watch for it.  2020 was full of messy! A lot of hurting people acting out in many negative, terrible ways in dealing with pandemic, politics, race and more. You are messy – WE are messy……. The next time you see someone acting in an unkind manner – remember that we are messy, show them some grace and love. They might reply unkindly, that is okay in fact expect it.

We all want to see a better world, well that starts with you. One kind action at a time, showing love, forgiveness and remembering that you are not faultless either – you are messy, I am messy.

Thanks for stopping by the fire,

Pastor Dennis