Author: Kathleen

Over the weekend we decided to tackle the project of switching the nursery, which the kids had been sharing but is very small with only room for a crib, with the craft room, which is the largest bedroom other than the master. I don’t need all that space for crafts, but the kids could use a bigger playroom and this way Meredith can have a “big girl bed” that hopefully she’ll be sleeping in soon (fingers crossed).

I have known that something like this was going to have to happen at some point. Whenever I got frustrated with the family bed situation I would think about all that needed to happen to get the kids into their own beds and I’d feel so overwhelmed that I’d just go into denial. But I have two long weekends in a row and things are slow at work, so there really was no better time.

I’d been dreading the project because for one, I hate moving things – I love to feel settled and at home, with everything in its place. I’m not someone who rearranges furniture for fun. I knew this wasn’t going to be a day-long project either; it’s going to take a couple of weeks to really be finished, most likely. I dislike the thought of my stuff being spread around the house for that long.

And two, I hate painting – I knew I’d want to go ahead and repaint the kids’ new room because I never liked the wall color with the new carpet we had put in and this was the best time to just go ahead and knock that out. Even the ceiling needed to be painted, ugh.

On Saturday we spent all day painting. With the help of two generous friends and my mom to watch the kids, it still took way longer than I expected. By the end, we had finished, but there was time for very little else that day.

On Sunday  morning I managed to wake up early and do my Bible study before the kids awoke. That day I read the story of Moses and the burning bush. Do you know it? Moses has been a shepherd in the desert for 40 years when one day he notices a bush on fire that is not being burned up. So he decides to investigate the strange phenomenon. Then this verse happens:

When the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ –Exodus 3:4 (emphasis mine)

I was completely struck by the fact that God didn’t reveal himself until Moses turned aside from his ordinary routine. The burning bush was an interruption, and Moses paid attention.

Obviously this little changing of rooms ordeal is minor in comparison to many other possible life interruptions, but after reading this I still decided to see what I could learn from it – what God was maybe trying to reveal to me about himself through it. I was surprised at how much I came up with:

• My friends Lauren and Gerardo, along with my mom, gave selflessly of their time and effort all day to help us, and that showed me an awesome example of servanthood and Christian love.
• We moved out all the stuff from this room and painted it white. It’s a clean slate, just like God gives us despite our sin.
• For the moment, all of my craft stuff, and a lot of junk I was holding onto, is scattered throughout the house and exposed. I will be forced to confront it and my intention is to get rid of whatever isn’t necessary. This exercise would be good for my soul as well.
• All of this stuff being out of place and unsettled provides me with a good reminder that this house – this world – is not my final home, and my life is not my stuff. I am traveling through.
• I couldn’t do this project on my own, so it makes me appreciate the people in my life and emphasizes that relationships are ultimately most important.

After that exercise I felt a lot better about the whole process. I really want to remember this for next time my normal life gets interrupted.

How about you? How do you react when ordinary life gets interrupted? In what kinds of situations do you think God tends to reveal himself to you?