I recently posted my Nissan Xterra for sale (click here to see the Craigslist ad). In preparation to sell it, I connected with my friend Tom to get it cleaned up right. We spent Sunday afternoon/evening spending many hours cleaning it inside and out. Tom apologized that we didn’t have more time to spend on it but I told him repeatedly that my car had never looked so clean since I’d owned it.
I took it to Jiffy Lube today to get an oil change and the guy asked me where I got it detailed. I paused for a second to figure out why he was asking me that when he added that when he gets his vehicles detailed they never look THAT clean. He said that they always neglect the little things but that he wanted to go where I had taken my Xterra. He looked a bit disappointed when I told him that my friend and I did it (and we weren’t interested in doing his).
As we were cleaning it on Sunday, I pointed out how much I enjoyed the instant gratification of a project like this. One minute it is dirty and looks average. The next minute it is meticulously clean and looks exceptional. Tom added the fact that he loves doing this so much for the same reason and he suggested that God probably gets the same satisfaction in watching us get “cleaned up.” When God sees all the junk that sin has added to our lives He must be absolutely thrilled to see the potential He designed us for begin to emerge from the dirt.
And that is a great picture the more I think of it. God looks at us, covered in dirt and dust, and longs to see the “restored” versions. And it just so happens that when it comes to detailing people, God happens to be a pro. He can clean even the small areas that often get neglected. The question for us is whether or not we choose to submit ourselves to the One who can make us truly clean. That is the kind of life that truly shines for others to see and it’s the option we all have available to us.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” 2 Corinthians 5:17
We’ve all heard the expression, “The grass is greener on the other side.” If we are honest, this is a dominant philosophy that fuels much of the world and our human interactions with one another.
I recently taught a lesson where I offered a twist on the expression. “The grass is greener where you water it.” I’ve found this to be very true and it shows the futility of chasing green grass around. We all want green grass in our lives and the people that find it are the ones who make the effort to water it.
I happened to reseed my lawns last week and Monday was a big day of growth for all my new little seedlings. As we watch the transformation of brown summer grass into fresh new green winter grass we have been thinking about this expression once again. My wife added a profound new twist to it as well, “The grass is greener where you water it, but so are the weeds.” If you’ve ever reseeded your lawn you know all too well what I’m talking about. Some of the seeds get in the rocks and with all the extra watering there is plenty of opportunity for the weeds.
And yet this is often the unexpected part of life. We finally commit to watering the grass in an area of our life and then expect only great results. Yet we find weeds mixed in. It can happen in our marriage, our career, or even our journey with God. For many people it discourages them and sends them back to pursuing green grass somewhere else. But the real challenge, and the real reward, is to continue to water the grass while expecting and eradicating the weeds as they come.
So how does your grass look?
Last night we had guys’ night at the movies and watched the only logical choice in that scenario… The Expendables. That’s the stereotypical guy movie with all of the legendary action stars and previews that showed little storyline and a lot of things blowing up. I looked up the reviews online and found a dismal set of critiques. As such, I watched the movie expecting very little out of it other than to have a good time with some friends.
And I ended up really liking it. Sure, there were many awful parts by all definitions (including the opening scene), but I was pleasantly surprised by the existence of a storyline, and there were a handful of great tongue-in-cheek moments of humor. I expected little and walked away with much.
Had I gone into the movie expecting top notch acting and a mind twisting plot I would have been disappointed for sure. But I was in the mood to have a good laugh with friends and we certainly got that. Having low expectations when it comes to the entertainment world is usually a good idea. It can allow you to be pleasantly surprised with a book, a movie, or even a restaurant. Low expectations are almost always beneficial in these areas.
But the reverse is true when it comes to our expectations of our marriage, our kids, ourselves, or of our view of God. When we have low expectations in areas like these we tend to get very little as far as results. These areas demand something from us and when we don’t expect anything we rarely give much. And so we ironically get what we expected, and it’s rarely positive. For us to expect a lot would mean a lot of investment on our part, and the people that put this kind of effort in ironically usually get what they expect as well. The sad reality is that I think we often switch the two and have high expectations in areas that don’t matter much and low expectations in areas that are truly valuable.
So what are you expecting?
I absolutely love Disneyland. When I lived in California for three years in college, it was the only thing I truly enjoyed about the state. I even got a job there but never accepted it because of scheduling conflicts. I’m always amazed at how Disneyland can transport you into a different environment, even with all of today’s technology and fast pace. And yet, for all of the greatness and standard of excellence that we know of Disneyland today, history reveals that it didn’t start that way. Watch this video below to see a few of the realities of opening day.
It would be easy to look at many of Walt Disney’s ideas and label them crazy and doomed to failure. It would be even easier to do that after the hiccups on launch day. But you’d be wrong.
How often do we start something and it doesn’t go like we’d plan, so we end up giving up? After personal frustration and criticism from others we can quickly conclude that just about anything was a dumb idea. But remember this: nobody remembers how something starts. So push through those moments of frustration and spend your time pursuing what truly matters, despite what others may say. Spend your time pursuing those passions that stem from God’s Spirit inside you and your life will have eternal impact now. And it may take awhile till you see the results you’d hope for, but it will be worth it.
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