Everyday Encounter with God

EVERYDAY ENCOUNTER WITH GOD

Pastor Sylvia's Enconters with God in the Midst of Everyday Life

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A weekly column that is short, pithy and relevant. It deals with Pastor Sylvia's encounters with God in the midst of everyday life.

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Making New Lists

Husband will easily tell you that I love making lists. Christmas. Grocery. Cleaning tasks. Places to visit before I die. It doesn’t matter what the topic. There is something satisfying about the completion of a task and drawing a decisive line through it on the paper.

There is, however, one potential risk. What about the days when everything goes terribly wrong and nothing on the list is accomplished? It’s time to crawl into bed and the six or eight items look even bigger and more urgent than they did when I rolled out of the same bed. Or in my case, the project date is one day closer and the research still isn’t coming together in a meaningful way, and we’re having a houseguest this weekend who will expect a clean guest room debunked of all cat dander.

Suddenly the task lists that made me feel secure a few days ago, make me feel like an utter failure caught in the vice-grip of time. So instead of doubling down and making even more detailed lists (color-coded with estimated dates of completion and encouraging scripture references), I did the opposite.

Instead of listing the things I need to do, I listed the things I’ve already done.

With my favorite lined note cards and pens, I wrote down all the things I’ve overcome in my life. Not the little things I have achieved, but minor and major challenges I have faced and defeated. I started with the personal shortcomings and weaknesses that may have vexed me for a while, but no longer stand in my way. Crummy stuff that is no longer crummy; frustrating stuff that is no longer a source of my frustration. Since this was for my eyes only, I could be absolutely honest.

If you are thinking of trying this exercise, I’ll get you started with a few of my own shortcomings—ones I’m not too embarrassed to share. For instance, (1) I was born with badly constructed knees. (2) I am a hopeless romantic. (3) I’ve been afraid of going down in an escalator for most of my life.

You probably get the idea. These aren’t severe handicaps in life, but each one caused me problems that I had to resolve to overcome. My knees were a source of pain and instability until I finally had them both replaced. Bam! Frustration gone.

My quest for romance propelled me into several early relationships with men who really weren’t all that romantic after the first few months of dating. Then I had to wiggle my way out. This was solved when I married Husband. Now I can be romantic whenever I want. Bam! Frustration gone.

And I discovered that my escalator phobia was cured when I lost weight. As soon as I could look down and see the steps in relation to my feet, I wasn’t afraid of falling anymore. Bam! Frustration gone.

It’s easy to look at yesterday’s list and see all the things I didn’t get done. But those items are nothing compared to a lifetime of overcoming challenges, growing through pain, tracking down the source of a frustration and eliminating it once and for all, and learning to trust God through it all.

You and I are miracles. Yes, I know we need to press on. We should not loiter long in the vestibule of our successes, yet it is sometimes good to pause and look back. Paul reminded us in Ephesians 5 that we should never forget how far we’ve come.

“You groped your way through that murk once, but no longer. You’re out in the open now. The bright light of Christ makes your way plain. So no more stumbling around. Get on with it! The good, the right, the true—these are the actions appropriate for daylight hours. Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it.” (Eph 5:8-10)

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