Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life…
It’s been one of those weeks. Someone left their car in neutral at the mechanic’s where my car was having the oil changed and destroyed my passenger side door. On Tuesday, the house painters walked off the job, leaving a half-scraped house and a disheartening amount of exposed rotten wood in their wake. The next day the gutter man quit: “Lady, I don’t want to have anything to do with this job.” I closed the door and considered for a moment what my response would be. I decided to laugh. The memory of the day before was still fresh enough to convince me that laughing takes up a good deal less energy than crying. And it doesn’t make such an unsightly mess of your face, either.
The idea of ‘control’ was haunting me, however. This is the time of year that I begin to re-think my schedule, keeping what works, making changes according to what my present desires are, and invariably I find myself contending with the question of how much control I really have over my hours and my days. I feel a slight tightening in the throat as I approach the task of relegating my time, because I know that I will have to give an account for it. It is unbelievably easy to paralyze myself in the middle of a productive session of planning with the fear that in setting my goals and laying my strategies I may somehow miss out on something else that God had for me.
I believe with all my heart that my life is in God’s hands, that my very moments are watched with a loving care. I believe that He ‘makes peace in my borders’ when I remember to ask Him to. God is in control of my life, and there are certain things that I have absolutely no power over. This is not a bad thing, but a good, safe thing. I am blessed that I’m not handling the stars in their courses—He is. He is taking care of Philip and me, as He promises to do for all of His children.
But there are also certain things that He has delegated to me, and it is not wrong for me to try to be in control of them. Quite the contrary, in fact. I am accountable to Him for the tending of the desires that He has given me. I have a precious charge to love my husband and take care of my home. My vineyard is right before me—I don’t have to go in search of it, or think that God’s will is hiding elusively just out of reach. I long for the attitude that Augustine had: Love God, and do what you will.
The problems arise when all of this gets out of balance—either I relinquish control of my responsibilities and resign myself to being tempest-tossed by the craziness of this world, thinking that any resistance is a mark of rebellion to God’s will; or, I get in a wad over the things that are not my province and feel like I am being ‘confounded at every turn’ (I said that to God this morning) and forget that He has only assigned me a small part of the whole. It’s hardest when the ‘outside’ things (i.e., painters, roofers and rain) impact the ‘inside’ things (the peaceful management of my home and my attitude towards it). I am learning that I must mind my responsibilities faithfully, quietly, and take the rest in stride, knowing that His grace IS sufficient for all that He allows.
Drop down Thy dews of quietness till all our strivings cease,
And let our ordered lives confess the beauty of Thy peace
I have to keep in mind as well that all of the talk about wanting a peaceful happy environment for Philip is meaningless if I am not peaceful and happy. I AM his environment, really. I set the tone for what his home life is like. He has given me a wonderful opportunity—the very life I would have chosen, that I have always dreamed of. I wonder if there is any greater gift to our husbands than grateful contentment.
These words are on my refrigerator, a gentle reminder of the perspective of moment by moment living that leads to peace:
Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life.
This is my life, pursuing God, loving Philip, tending my home, cherishing family and friends, cultivating my dreams…Soli Deo Gloria.
Lanier – you are so wise beyond your years as a young wife. Your insight into
God’s command to “make it your ambition to lead a quiet life” is wonderful. You
know me – and I’m not a doormat. But, the Lord has been so merciful to continue to show me areas in my own life (as Frank’s wife) that have not been honoring
to Him. I am learning more every day that I was created to be my husband’s
‘help meet’…to help him meet his needs. I have been reading the most wonderful new book called “Created to be his Help Meet’ by Debi Pearl. In one
chapter she says, “When you are a help meet to your husband, you are a helper
to Christ. When you honor your husband, you honor God. When you obey your
husband, you obey God. The degree to which you reverence your husband is
the degree to which you reverence your Creator. As we serve our husbands,
we serve God.” And, this is not drudgery – as we obey these commands, we
receive the blessing! I’ve seen it and have experienced it! I know this is a bit off of the main idea you were trying to express but I do believe that everything we do
(as in your desire to create an environment for Philip of peace and contentment)
goes back to the role that God has designed for us as women. He is showing you that this IS ‘The Way – walk in it”. You will reap the precious benefits of being a servant of The Most High.
Much love, Wendy