We Do Not Have it All Together

On our drive to church yesterday, I said it Zach, "Ugh!  We're going to be late!  We are always late!  Nothing screams to everyone, 'We do not have it all together,' than being late to church!"  And then I realized...wait...we DON'T have it all together.  So why would I want people to think otherwise?

I've been thinking about this lately...how people want to present to the world around them that we have got life down.  We are on-top-of-it people.  Why do we do this to each other?  Why do we frantically run around our houses before company is coming so that they can think we have a super clean house?  Why do we stress when our kids are misbehaving in public (because heaven forbid others know our kids are not perfect!)?  Now, I am not saying that I am not going to stop cleaning my house for company or not care about being late to church.  But I DO want my motives to be pure, and I do NOT want to worry about other people's opinions of me so much.  Honestly, when I go to someone's house and it is not perfectly together, I consider this a gift to me.  I then feel safe to not have MY house perfectly together when they come to me.  Honesty begets honesty.  I really believe this.  When we open up our lives to others, saying, "Hey!  I don't have it all together," I think this permissions them to say the same thing.  And isn't it freeing to expose ourselves to others like this?  Isn't it nice to have a  good, safe friend some over and not worry about dirty dishes in your sink or dust on the shelves?  I believe we need to let ourselves be more real with others around us.  And I guarantee you, they will appreciate it.

So, let me be the first to admit, I do NOT have it all together.  There are cobwebs in my ceilings and dirt in my windowsills.  There are weeds in our flowerbeds and a big hole in our backyard where my boys decided to dig a hole.  My refrigerator is in desperate need of cleaning, and the pile of paperwork on my desk is growing so large, it is starting to spill over.  We are always about five minutes late to church, and we could have a garage sale with all the stuff that is collecting in our car.  Our one-year-old screams for everything she wants, and we haven't figured out a way to tackle this yet.  And most days, I throw my hair into a ponytail, skip the make-up, and throw my flip flops on to head out the door.  

So on this sunny afternoon, just wanted to make it clear that when we show up late to church, it is definitely because we do not have it all together.

Happy Monday!