When the Floor Gives Way
Today I welcome to the back porch of Rocky Top, Amy Daniel. Amy is the wife of Joseph, mommy to Addy and Aubrey and works part-time as a registered nurse. She is also my middle-child! Most importantly, Amy is a beautiful daughter of the king. You will love her heart for Jesus and her honesty in this blog!
It was ONE of those days! The baby was sick. People seemed to be coming against me from every side. My mood reflected the circumstances of the day.
As the kids napped, I went to Jesus, praying He would revive my soul. However, instead of allowing Him to do what I knew He would do I made other choices.
I chose to be discontent. I chose to grumble and complain about unfair circumstances. I chose not to listen to Him.
Nap time was over and I chose to begrudgingly resume mom duty. I took the kids into the kitchen to feed them a snack and that’s when it happened. The floor gave way beneath me. Literally. Unbeknownst to me, the tile in my kitchen had formed a giant bubble in the middle. When I stepped on it, tile and grout flew everywhere. No injuries were sustained. Panic ensued as I frantically called experts to diagnose why my floor gave way.
The diagnosis was surprising. When the tile was originally laid, no room was left for expansion. So when humidity entered, the tile expanded and buckled in the middle. Thankfully, it was fixed by laying down new tile and leaving room for expansion.
As I thought about the floor giving way, the Lord began to speak to me. I had let discontentment, bitterness, and grumbling creep into my soul. When circumstances don’t go the way I plan or seem unfair, there is a choice to be made. I can explode with anger and throw an adult temper tantrum or I can rest in the promises of God.
“For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” I Corinthians 3:11
When He is my foundation, the floor can literally fall out from beneath me but I will stand firm because my feet are planted in His strength and not my own.
The tile had no room to expand so it exploded. So often in my life I leave no room for the Lord to work. I am so busy trying to control my circumstances that I never stop to offer them to the only One who does have control. The result is discontentment and grumbling.
II Corinthians 5:14 “The love of Christ controls us…” Honestly, most of the time I allow external factors to control me……the kitchen floor, the broken relationship, the sick child, the unpaid bills. When I choose to shift my focus off self and circumstances and onto the True foundation, then the love of Christ starts to pour out of me. Joy comes then! At that moment I realize the repairman who God brought to my home may need to experience the love of Christ. Or maybe God allowed the floor to explode just so I could share my story with you!
Stand firm on the Foundation of Christ, allow room in your life for Him to grow you, and refuse anything but His love to control you!
