Sing for the Beauty

I LOVE to listen to Sara Groves! Her lyrics are so rich with deep deep truth. One of her more light-hearted songs is on her recent album "Fireflies and Songs." The name of the song is "Setting up the Pins." She notes on the album cover that she wrote this little ditty while washing dishes one day. That, my friends, is no accident. You'll see why....

Here are some of the lyrics:

man in a silk tie heads downtown
setting up the pins for knocking em down
people in cars all rushing around
setting up the pins

everyone everywhere some way some how
are setting up the pins for knocking em down

The basic idea is that we all have daily tasks/jobs that we do, knowing that they will just be undone again. I have experienced a lot of frustration and even guilt over this fact. I get so discouraged by the results of my work that I want to give up. I was in that sort of mood when I wrote this post.

But, I love the message that the rest of the song holds. She says that this endless cycle is not a waste...

you can find joy in the fertile ground
setting up the pins and knocking em down
you can try to fight it till you're anger drowned
setting up the pins

everyone everywhere some way some how
are setting up the pins for knocking em down
it can feel simple but it's really profound
setting up the pins

I forget this all the time, but my life is to be about the PROCESS not the PRODUCT. What type of a mother am I AS I am doing the dishes, laundry, budget, cooking, etc. Am I patient and peaceful? THAT is what my goal should be, not to have the work finished. When my family sees me joyfully doing whatever work needs to be done, they experience the effect of Christ in my life.

I want to be a picture, to my family in particular, of a woman who is full of God's Spirit, to the point that it spills out of me. And, Sara's lyrics go on to describe such a woman.

my grandmother had a working song
hummed it low all day long
sing for the beauty that's to be found
in setting up the pins for knocking em down

Can't you just picture this grandmother? I think there is something the women of former generations know that we have missed. They know how to take what comes at them and deal with it, in a strong and graceful kind of way. My grandmother is this way. She isn't the sweet little grandmother type, but she knows how to take life as it comes. She doesn't fight it. Maybe it's something life taught that generation in particular. Or, maybe it is the wisdom that comes with life in general. I guess only time will tell, but I hope to be that way.

Part of my problem is that I fight it. And I become "anger drowned." I forget that this life is not lasting, so why do I expect my work to be? And, I forget that the endless cycle of work is fruitful - it is designed to refine me. My faith is to be tested and purified in small daily matters as well as life changing trials. Like gold is refined - it's about the process.

Lastly, I get stuck in guilt. When I see that my work is undone, I feel like a failure and sit in a heap of guilt - that I am such a terrible wife and mother. There's no joy in that! This sends me into a cycle of its own, and this cycle is most definitely NOT fruitful! It feels like I am a rock in a washing machine cycle - just being tossed around, but to no end. I just need to get out of there. (If that makes any sense.)

As I said in my last post, when I have spent time in communion with God and have my priorities and expectations set accordingly, I carry on peacefully. I enjoy the feeling of serving my husband and kids, without resenting all that I have to do for them. I find a way to include my boys in these simple tasks, making them experiences we can share. (Zach can watch a washing machine cycle for hours, little scientist that he is.) I am able to appreciate the rhythm of the mundane instead of dreading it.

I am not really the homemaker type, but I know that God has called women to be keepers of the home. I don't mean that in the sense that there is "women's work" versus "men's work" or that women should not work outside the home. I simply mean that women are responsible for setting the tone in the home and are expected to "look well to the ways of her household." Proverbs 31:27. Simply put - "If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!" Can I get an amen??

THAT is my goal. I want more than anything to give my family the gift of a happy wife and mom. I want them to know that I love serving them. As I once heard a very wise Bible teacher say, "Who wouldn't want a Mama like that?" This type of women represents Christ well in her home and commends the Gospel of Christ to her family.

Sometimes, I literally put my ipod in my ears and listen to this song over and over again as I work, to remind me of this. Whatever it takes.....I will "sing for the beauty that's to be found in setting up the pins for knocking them down!"

P.S. I just burned the cookies I was baking for after school snack while writing this post!! Ha ha! How's that for timing! ; )