Choose the Better Thing

Lately I have been reflecting on how hard it is to be present, fully and completely in the moments God has for you. While pregnant and toting my babe around, I heard a lot of people say: "enjoy this, it goes by fast" more than any other phrase. My brother in law recently told me to enjoy even the hard moments, the moments where you are so tired all you want is for your kids to be in bed and time to yourself because before you know it they will be in bed and the day is over and your time with them is over. Those little moments make up each day that make up their life that make up the years of your lives. Man, how true that is. That really sunk in. So how do we choose to be present, how can we choose to be "enjoying" each season?

God recently put a phrase on my heart: "choose the better thing". Most of my days currently are made up of diapers and bottles and rocking and my part time work with younglife and my online class and internship for counseling. Sometimes in those few and far between moments where I have a quiet moment for "myself" I think how do I want to spend this time? I find myself often on Facebook or Instagram or Pinterest looking at others lives sometimes wishing things were different about mine. Or sometimes I plan my future life, like how I want some big amazing beautiful house to be when we could someday afford it. 

I love to dream but sometimes I find myself thinking that the future or life of someone else I am pining over is better, that somehow if I had what they had I would be happier, more fulfilled, complete. 

What a sad way to live. As I reflect on this, it becomes clear that if I live like this, I will spend most of my life thinking that some time in the future or thing or different situation will be the best part of my life. What if we lived as if the best part of our life was right now, each day, each second, minute, hour, day, year? I am realizing that each day is a gift of time, straight from the hand of God and no day is guaranteed. 

I want to live a life where I believe each day is the best it can be, that there is no "better" that will make me happier. I want to choose the better things which are the eternal things. I know the truth that no different circumstance or house or job or material thing will complete me. Only Christ can do that. I want to spend my time dwelling on the eternal things: how to parent my kids towards Christ, how to get into God's Word, how to serve and love others around me. I don't want my thoughts to be about things I don't have or material things I want or how my life could be different. The truth is that God has given me an abundance of blessing if I have the eyes to see it. I don't need the next newest thing at target or someone to come and do the show fixer upper at my house or my kids or I to have brand name clothes. What I need is to allow Christ to clean up and around my heart. My soul is eternal but the circumstances and material things of this life are not. I want to "choose the better thing": Time spent learning how to love and parent my kids well, time in scripture, time with my husband and thinking of how to love him well versus time spent staring at pictures of others on social media or dwelling on homes or things I wish I had. 

I know from reading the Old Testament that one of the biggest lessons that God wanted the Israelites to learn was to remember, remember what He has done. God said hey write it on your doorpost, write it on your forehead if you need to, but just stop forgetting what I have done. (My rephrasing). 

^"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates." Deuteronomy 6: 4-9

 

But the Israelites didn't. They constantly forgot what God did and didn't trust him. At this point, I could go on a tangent about how important it is to trust God and remember how He has gotten you through hard times in the past and will in the future. But mostly I bring up this verse because I think sometimes the lessons I learn need to be visualized, put in a place where I can be reminded of God and His goodness. My husband and I heard once about an "ebenezer" where up on the mantel or a visual place in the house, a family put things up that would help remind them of what God had done in their life. For example, they once had both cars broken and someone let them borrow a car for a long time until they could afford to fix theirs. Or maybe a child was sick and the hospital bracelet is up on the mantel to remind them of God seeing them through. Maybe you aren't sure how God is working through pain in your life but you know He is good. 

Anyway, I love this idea. I don't know what this looks like in my life but I do know that I want to remember that God is good, that each day is a gift, and that I want to choose the eternal things, which are the better things to reflect on each day. Maybe I need to freaking tattoo it on my forehead. Maybe I just need to silently choose it. Maybe I need to paint a big sign for my house with that message. But mostly I want to choose, to actively choose the better things and to truly believe and know that they are the better things. Thank you Lord for the better things. And thank you for your grace when I forget that that they are indeed better.

“Come, all you who are thirsty,
    come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
    come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
    without money and without cost.

Why spend money on what is not bread,
    and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
    and you will delight in the richest of fare.

Give ear and come to me;
    listen, that you may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
    my faithful love promised to David.

See, I have made him a witness to the peoples,
    a ruler and commander of the peoples.

Surely you will summon nations you know not,
    and nations you do not know will come running to you,
because of the Lord your God,
    the Holy One of Israel,
    for he has endowed you with splendor.” 

Isaiah 55:1-5 

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