Tangled

I had not been inspired to blog this past week. Lots of things going on - activities and to-do lists. But coming into the church this week, I came across an interesting sight that quickly turned my thoughts to how life goes sometimes..... Tangled

I came down from my office to find a young lady who had tangled her hair so bad that she could not get the brush out of her hair. Her mother came in looking for assistance from Carol, our church receptionist.... she can do anything. They began the long process of pulling the hair out of the brush and away from the other hair.

This seemed to be a very delicate process that took time, attention, and even involved a little pain. This particular tangle was so difficult that even "Carol the Great" could not get the tangle out. So the family packed up and off to the mall they went seeking back up. The local hair salon was ready to help. They put a half a bottle of conditioner in the young ladies hair plus cut off the tips of the bristles on the hairbrush. Finally the job was done and her hair was untangled.

Life can be like tangled hair. People start out with good intentions, (brushing your hair is a good thing!!) but out of nowhere everything gets so messed up. One bad move, a poor decision, moving too quickly and everything is tangled in a mess.

Getting untangled in life is also much like untangling hair. Sometimes the tangle comes out with just a little bit of force and effort. Other times it is a slow methodical step by step process which requires time and attention. The worst tangles in life require help. Help from ourside, beyond your capacity, above what one person can do.

The take away from tangled hair.... What area of your life has become tangled? Do you need help from someone else to get untangled? Do you know who can help? What are you waiting for?

Clutter

I cleaned out a closet at the church yesterday. I was in one of those moods. The kind of mood that screams, "no more clutter". It is a closet that is next to one of the main entrances of the church. It is amazing what a person can find in a catch all - "we might use that someday"- kind of place.

We are all so similar...we manage the things that should not be managed, hold onto things that have no worth, and make room for more. Columbus Road is no exception to the rule. In fact, churches can be the worst. Who has the authority to throw out a twenty year old donated chair with a rip in it? Ha!

Back to the closet...we kept a 1990 Chysler car radio from a van we no longer own, a broken piece of glass, a window that no longer exists at our church, parking lot sealer that had gone bad five years ago, an electric room heater that was broken, and my favorite - a vinyl church sign that was over ten years old.

It is easy to rip on clutter and closets but as I was cleaning it out this thought went through my mind - if my mind was a closet and someone started to clean it out, how much would be thrown away? I know for sure that thoughts that I have from the past would be cleared out. There is nothing good about trying to manage thoughts that cannot be managed. I bet someone would throw out my thoughts of fear and doubt. Those thoughts take up too much room - room that could be used for courage and hope. Any wrong thought that consumes my time and energy and priority would be tossed out with the 1990 Chrysler radio.

Take away... if minds were closets, we would need a big dumpster...ha!