Unpacking

"And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you."
                                                                                                                Luke 11:19
My family recently embarked on a brand new adventure, relocating to northern Minnesota.  We have had such a great time moving in, meeting people, and getting to know our new town.  It has been great, but also busy, busy, busy and a little overwhelming.

One of the biggest blessings of our move has been our home.  I love it and could truly live here forever!  But in all the chaos that always encompasses a family with four little people, there are still boxes everywhere.  Call it laziness, call it survival, call it whatever you like-I have gotten in the habit of unpacking only what I need and leaving all the boxes around while doing so. 

I strongly dislike the mess that it leaves and it gets so cluttered and overwhelming that I cannot find things packed or unpacked.  On the humorous side, my daughter looked around the other day at dishes I hadn't gotten to, clothes being sorted all over the floor, and said, "Now it looks like our old house!"

Isn't it funny that even though I know how to remedy the situation, I haven't taken time to do it?  I know that in order to reduce the chaos and restore order, I just have to unpack all the boxes and get everything into a routine and life would be much smoother. 

Excuses and life keep happening and it just becomes mess on top of mess. 

My spiritual life, and perhaps yours, feels very similar.

So often I keep my faith in a box.  Packed in tight in a corner, waiting for when it is convenient to unpack, or worse, only when I need it. 

But pretty soon, my life just becomes mess upon mess and my faith (the answer to reducing the chaos and restoring order) gets buried underneath.

Have you found yourself there before?  Where you know that going to God in prayer, prioritizing Jesus and worship, and relying on your faith would make a giant difference in your daily life, but your excuses, your overwhelming mess, and life keep you putting off the unpacking?

If you're like me, knowing what you need and giving yourself what you need are two completely different things.

But the truth is, that our faith is too important to keep boxed up only to be looked for when we need it or it is convenient.  God wants so much more for us than to keep it bottled up where we cannot use it, cannot depend on it, and cannot be all that we have the potential to become. 

He wants a relationship so much bigger and better, and if we take the time to unpack it, we set ourselves up for a reward and blessing greater than we could ever comprehend.

So keep unpacking those boxes.  Keep seeking.  Keep asking.  Keep knocking.