Traffic Jams in This Thing Called Life... Who Ya Gonna Call? The Ghost-Buster!!!

Traffic Jam in this thing called life? How 'bout using your GPS? (God Please Simplify)
*Photos by the talented Freelance Photographer, D. Kiely

It's Saturday, the house is quiet. The Kidlets are with their father and grandparents - its my first time in a month being totally on my own. And I need this, I need to clear out the clutter in my head. Take thoughts out "one by one" and shake the dust of them. Unwind the balls of confusion/discord over certain areas of my life and all the "what-has-happened" yarn like balls for the things that have occurred over the past year. Bring them before the Lord like a kid in Show-n-Tell and ask Him to help me sort each one out.  For I'm not strong enough or wise enough to do it myself and I haven't allowed myself the time to get quiet before Him because my life has been like a huge traffic jam and I've lost direction.

Have you ever felt like that in your own life? Like every which way you turn to go - there is a traffic jam keeping you from moving forward?  You think to yourself - "Okay - if it was just in ONE area, I could go "around it" or take a "right" but the jams are every which way. Boxing you in.  What do you do about it?  Well, I'll tell you what I'm doing right now... I'm getting out of my car, climbing onto the roof of it and Yelling at the top of my lungs... "HEEEELLLLLLLLPPPPP!!!!"

My Bible (the one that I've not been able to focus on, concentrate on - or even in my own spiritual discord pick up and read...) tells me "My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of Heaven and Earth." (Psalms 121:2)  So often we think "I can do this - I can figure it ALL out myself.  I got this Lord!" Especially if you have been a Christian for a number of years. You feel like you should be "mature enough" to be able to "figure it out" on your own.  I've found this to be in my own life - a BIG MISTAKE.  There is no shame in admitting that you don't have all the answers.  That you need help. That you can't figure it out on your own.  Sometimes when we try - our mess gets bigger and bigger... Kind of like a snowball that starts out small.  But builds up as it rolls until the teeny tiny snow flake that became a snowball is now a HUGE boulder of snow rolling down the hill with us in front of it! Avalanching.  Ever felt like that?  And WE are the ones who took that tiny situation, opened up a door we should have kept closed and made it into a bigger problem then it ever should have become... (OUCH).

I was given the scripture yesterday by a very dear friend of mine - Hebrews 8:1 "There is NO condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."  I don't take that as a justification for sinning. But when ol'slewfoot comes around and tries to tie me up in condemnation over things I haven't brought to the Lord for help but tried to figure out on my own when I can't. When my wisdom isn't enough, when my strength isn't enough, when my vision to see farther than the problem itself is weighing me down. When in trying to make the problem go away - I make it bigger!  There are certain things, certain "strongholds" that we  in and of ourself were NOT made to handle.  I'm realizing more and more that God wants us dependent upon HIM. No matter the situation. If we don't go to our "Parent" for help, we can remain in the traffic jam we are in.

Why is it so easy to do other things we do in life - except go before the Father? Why do we find "quiet time to be a burden? Why do we ignore the only solution that can give us what we ALL want most in our lives? A peace of mind.  It should be so easy, shouldn't it?

I don't know about you - but I know that sometimes when I try to get before the Lord and have my quiet time - is when my mind is all of a sudden ALL OVER the PAGE.  Thinking about the things I need to do, thinking about my kids, thinking about my faults, thinking about what I'm thinking about... Laughing... Like a restless child it is hard to still my mind and LISTEN to what the Holy Spirit is trying to minister to me. Who would have thought that "getting quiet" would be one of the hardest things to do???  But Jesus is to be our example, and time and time again in my Bible I see that He went out from among them - for Quiet time.  If HE did it, how much more should we???

This morning - this "quiet morning" I think I have begun to have more "clarity" than I have in a very long time.... I'm far from "resolving" all the little traffic jams in my life right now... But you know - I'm starting to see a "tiny clearing" and I'm thinking I can "squeeze on by" and make some headway.  My direction - wherever the Lord will lead me... Isn't He suppose to be our GPS?  I've got the directional book - but its been in my "glove compartment" for the last 7 months.. Think its time I "dusted it off" and found my way back home...  What do you say? How about you? Are you driving in the car "behind me?"  I'm moving my car - should give you sufficient enough room to move yours...

Smooth Sailing... errrr Driving I mean... ;)