Rector’s Ramblings – August 29, 2024

I like putting my tools away. Not when I use them, of course. Although that does happen, sometimes. Usually, though, I use tools in the midst of other things going on, and I don’t have time to put them away right then. I usually get them to one of a few places: the landing in the garage or the top of the toolbox, for example. Eventually, however, I have to go around and scoop them up and get them all back in their rightful place. Last week, I did that, and I reorganized the tool bag I always keep in the car. It’s just enjoyable to get things organized.

My desk is the same way. I should build in time for filing and organization, but typically, I’m on the move quite a bit. When I’m not, my to-do list always has more urgency than getting organized. Instead, I often have time to dump and run to the next thing. Some seasons are better, some are worse, in thisregard, but I am not known for having a clean desk. I never have been and probably never will be. Someone once showed me an article that described messy desks as a sign of intelligence. I’m sure the study was conducted by someone with a messy desk and something to prove, but regardless, messy desk people have made hay out of it.

For most of us, messiness and clutter are a part of life. We’re all on the spectrum somewhere in that regard. People’s homes look different at different times. For example, it will look its best when we know someone is coming. On any given day, however, it can fall on a spectrum from OCD to rummage sale. Some of us even hire people to help ensure we can stay on top of it, although doing an initial tidy-up before the housekeeper comes is part of the ritual. We don’t even want those folks to know we don’t get everything in its place!

Life is just messy. Whether it’s friendships, jobs, kids, or simply what goes on in our heads, most of us are a mess on some level. Usually, we keep our messes behind closed doors. Sometimes, we let others see the junk drawers and closets. And because we don’t show those parts off, we also tend to think others have their lives better arranged than we do. We see only what they want us to see, which is effective and can cause us to berate ourselves for the truth about ourselves that we can’t hide from ourselves. I don’t know why we’re so hard on ourselves, but I suspect we simply worry that folks won’t love us as much if they knew what was really going on. 

There are, of course, people who know us entirely: close friends, siblings, or other family. They love us despite, and sometimes because of our messiness. They don’t demand perfection or even an attempt at cleanliness. When they come over, we don’t shove everything into a laundry basket and toss it in the guest room, and when we speak with them, we don’t carefully filter our words before we speak. Those relationships are gifts.

The same dynamic plays out in our faith, but not as successfully. God knows us better than we know, or will at least admit to ourselves, and loves us unconditionally. We may try to dress up for church and say lofty prayers or hope that God isn’t sitting on high watching everything we do, but none of that makes any difference. God knows us. God gets us, thanks to Jesus’ sojourn on the earth as a human being. And God loves us anyway, and especially because we are so, well, human. Humans are messy. We were made that way, so why would God hold it against us? God doesn’t. 

When my mother and I were both much younger, and she was working a full-time job and raising two kids, she had a whimsical sign in the living room that said, “Don’t mind the dust, just don’t write in it.” We all know on some level that every single one of us is leading a cluttered and messy life – we don’t have to and shouldn’t feel the need to point it out to one another. Instead, we can just support one another and give thanks for good friends and give thanks for the God who made us and blesses our messes.  

Tom+

Direct us, O Lord, in all our doings with thy most gracious
favor, and further us with thy continual help; that in all our
works begun, continued, and ended in thee, we may glorify
thy holy Name, and finally, by thy mercy, obtain everlasting
life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Photo Credits: tools and junk drawer via dreamstime.com subscription.