Stuck in the blinds

Look at this perplexed cat.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve often found myself in this same predicament emotionally …repeatedly… I may not be physically stuck in the blinds, but I have been every bit as confused by life as this feline here. Glamour. Sophistication. Maturity. Being Together. Nope, not happening, if you have your head stuck in clacky white slats. The view ain’t the greatest from this vantage point. It’s noisy; it’s obscured. And your placement within the structure makes you look like an idiot. Hello. We’d like to introduce you to a thing called life. Please keep your arms, legs and head within the vehicle at all times. Thank you. Did we honestly think we could figure it all out perfectly? Well, apparently some of us have, at different points in our lives, hence the frightened number of craniums, all trying to get out of this mess, while still trying to be in control. Ah, yes, control. We’re back here, aren’t we? We want to control life- at least our lives. We want to know everything, to be secure of absolutely every single situation which could ever happen to us. C’mon, I’m the only guilty, stuck cat head here. Indeed, back when I was in college, entrenched in eating disorder chaos, I desperately stuck my head in between a few desperate slats, trying to see what would become of my life. Enter the psychic hotline. Oh, goody, Sheryle. Let’s get a reading. The thing was, it couldn’t just be one reading for me. Oh, no! It was a few months of ‘em, all to the tune of hundreds of dollars in phone bills. What was I trying to see? Hope. What did I wind up seeing? More confusion and fear. Wonderful. God tells us, no matter how hard we try to figure it all out, at best, we see things fuzzy… “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.” 1 Corinthians 13:12 That doesn’t mean God’s a sadist. “For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace...” 1 Corinthians 14:33 It means, rather, we’re imperfect and- gasp- human, oh lodged headed friend of mine. It means we cannot control and know everything, no matter what device or vice choose and determine to be our secure “answer.” Logically, we know this. But emotionally? Eh, needs works. Indeed, our drive for safety, security and control can all lead us to get stuck in a predicament called our lives. We may start out, completely focused, informed, but, before we know it, boom! We’re not seeing anything, life included, in any clear or accurate way any longer. Our heads are caught in the blinds. And now, our focal point is panic, which, of course, creates wonderful decision making ability. So, are we hopeless? Are we destined to only be idiotic screw ups and failures? No. God tells us if we lack wisdom, to ask Him for it. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men liberally, and reproaches not; and it shall be given him.” James 1:5 But notice, God never tells us He’ll give us every comfy, stable security blanket or binky to soothe our lives. We won’t get all of the answers; let alone, all of our life situations perfectly accomplished and accounted for. No. We need faith. Faith: uneasy, challenging, questioning, imperfect faith. But that faith in a perfect and capable God can keep us out of some nasty situations. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 It’s cliché, but for a reason. When we try to figure anything out on our own, we tend to get in a jam. We can’t see our way out of it if we are struggling IN it. What is the thing now which tempts us into thinking we can put our head, life and efforts into something that looks just as ridiculous as this cat here? It’s worth taking a moment to stop. Think. Pray. Each time we see a new, obscured window, with its matching blinds, let’s remember it’s God, not our bright ideas apart from Him, which gives us the best view and life. “…Apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 Anything apart from that, you’re looking at some frustrating “stuck time.” Let’s let God navigate our lives ands perspective- and choose to get and stay- unstuck! Copyright © 2012 by Sheryle Cruse