Four Somethings – Muddy Spring Edition

I believe strongly in the practice of reflection, pausing, rereading, pondering where you are, where you have come from and where is God inviting you into next. Time to hear your own deep yearnings and to realize God’s presence in every moment of your life.

Four Somethings is the spiritual practice of remembering, reviewing, and savoring life’s lessons and sacred moments in our lives. So occasionally I share bits of wisdom in four categories.

• Something Wise
• Something Wonderful
• Something Whispered
• Something Whimsical

Gathering Four Somethings makes me aware of all the blessings often hidden under busyness, worries, and distractions. These “somethings” become markers in our spiritual journey. With so much pivoting and uncertainty in our lives right now, being grounded in a simple practice like this guides my way. 

Here are my spring “somethings.”  Read ahead and you will see it could also be called the Muddy Edition.  I didn’t intentionally start to have this muddy theme but it slowly emerged and I realized mud has been teaching me lessons lately.

Something Wise

“I split problems into two groups: muddy puddles and leaky ceilings. 

Some problems are like muddy puddles. The way to clear a muddy puddle is to leave it alone. The more you mess with it, the muddier it becomes. Many of the problems I dream up when I’m overthinking or worrying or ruminating fall into this category. Is life really falling apart or am I just in a sour mood? Is this as hard as I’m making it or do I just need to go workout? Drink some water. Go for a walk. Get some sleep. Go do something else and give the puddle time to turn clear. 

Other problems are like a leaky ceiling. Ignore a small leak and it will always widen. Relationship tension that goes unaddressed. Overspending that becomes a habit. One missed workout drifting into months of inactivity. Some problems multiply when left unattended. You need to intervene now. 

Are you dealing with a leak or a puddle?”

James Clear

Something Wonderful

“We are pushed to live at a very fast pace, which can leave life a blur. It’s not unlike the water in a fast-moving creek, where all the mud is stirred up. Practice stillness in the cadence of your day. The mud will settle, and you will find with increasing clarity. Be still, and you will know.” Br. Curtis Almquist

I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
    out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
    and gave me a firm place to stand.

He put a new song in my mouth,
    a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the Lord
    and put their trust in him. Psalm 40

Something Whispered

I have been pondering mud and its lessons. Mud comes with rain or floods. You can get stuck in mud and even slip and fall. Mudslides are dangerous and destructive. Mud often leaves us cold and messy. Sometimes we have just to get through a muddy time, no way around it. It may be a difficult journey.

Mud is the home for many plants and insects. Beautiful pottery can be created from mud.

Jesus used mud to heal the blind man’s eyes.

Watching a child jump and skip through mud brings delight to a parent’s heart. Does God feel the same way when I decide to embrace a muddy moment and find joy in the mess, knowing God watches over me and smiles?

Just think: God created mud.

Something Whimsical

I have been fascinated by watching on You-tube mud filled rugs being cleaned.  The process is mesmerizing and really quite revealing to discover the pattern, colors, and beauty beneath what looks like an impossible job.  Here is one example and if you are reading this on email you may have to go to blog to see the video, but it is worth it!

To be honest I also get distracted with videos about landscapers tackling overground lawns and gardens, spending hours cutting back the overgrowth and revealing space and beauty in yards.  I also have been known to get drawn into watching someone rescue a frightened stray kitten who slowly learns to trust again, becoming healthy and whole.

What dawned on me the other day was all these videos gave me hope and reminded me that God is in the business of transformation. God washes away the mud of my sin. God removes the weeds and thistles in my life. God finds me when I am lost and brings me home to wholeness.

Maybe these videos are not just a distraction after all, but God whispering his love to me.

What are you learning lately?