TANGLED
Sometimes things seem so TANGLED don't they? I mean, life....it just gets kind of confusing. What should I be doing at this point in my life? Am I on the right path? Do I know what this day holds? Do I know what the next week holds? Do I know what the next year holds? NOPE! No, I do not know even know what the next minute holds to be honest! But God does!
I think it's pretty "normal" for us humans to want to know what is ahead in life. It is comforting and it gives us some semblance of control to have our path laid out before us. But the truth is, sometimes the path seems to be somewhat blurry with all kinds of "what if's" and things that seem to circle back around somehow get going in a directions that we didn't expect. We find ourselves in places that we didn't think we would be, and find ourselves knotted up with worry and fear. Sometimes we keep trying to move in a certain direction but the "knots" bind us and we can't move forth. The harder we pull, the tighter things seem. Ever have that happen?
I'm working on a crochet project and I'm trying to untangle the yarn so that I can roll it into balls. I started with one end and started rolling until I came to a massive tangle. So, I started at the other end....and met the same tangle! Frustration causes me to want to abandon the project! The harder I pull to free up the tangled mess, the tighter the knots get. How can that nice skein of yarn that I bought in the store become so tangled? How can my best laid out plans for my life become so confusing?
Have you ever wanted to ask God that question? Have you ever wished He would just give you all of the details for your future RIGHT NOW?
What about the world around us? Things are changing so fast. The way things were are certainly not the way they are today. I had a friend tell me one day that the changes happen exponentially....kind of like a snowball. They start slow and as the ball keeps rolling, the changes become more drastic, more quickly. And I've also heard it said that life is like a roll of toilet paper.....the closer you get to the end of the roll, the faster it runs out! If both of these analogies are true, it's no wonder things get a little TANGLED!
Have you ever wanted to ask God why He allows so many things to be so confusing and corrupt in our world? It sometimes appears that things are so out of control and it can give us a sense of fear and frustration when we can't make sense of things or see a way out of the entangled mess.
The world is changing, but God is NOT. He is the same today as He was before creation and will be unchanging for all eternity. None of the entanglements in this world are a surprise to Him. HE IS IN CONTROL, even when we can't see it. His ways are not our ways, and often times He uses very UNLIKELY ways to STRAIGHTEN THINGS OUT.
After fighting with the yarn for awhile, I realized that if I gently loosened the knots and allowed the loops to become bigger, I was able to see where things got tangled up. My table had yarn stretched out all over it before I was done! I had to just work on it little by little. After awhile things began to straighten out so I could gradually roll the yarn into one nice ball.
Seems strange that to untangle something, you have to allow things to be kind of messy first! But isn't life sometimes like that? Sometimes we have to backtrack to see where things took a wrong turn before we can understand how to go forward. Sometimes we have to "loosen up" our stubborn ways or unforgiving hearts in order to free up those knotted areas.
Our path certainly isn't all laid out before us to see in plain sight. We have to move along little by little taking care not" to pull against or stray from God's will for us to avoid big tangles. He has given believers the gift of His Holy Spirit to guide us. He goes before us and prepares the way, and we follow obediently with trust that He has perfect plans for our lives, and He often uses UNLIKELY ways to straighten things out when we have found ourselves all tangled up!
We can trust Him with our lives and even with the TANGLED UP MESS this world seems to be in.
SO....."Be not dismayed, for I am your God" Isaiah 41:10
"My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, " declares the Lord. Isaiah 55:8
"Fear not, for I am with you; I will strengthen you, help you and uphold you with My righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6
