I’ve been spending a lot of time lately in my recliner, since I was told to rest following my surgery. My recliner happens to be adjacent to the laundry room so I have had the “privilege” of listening to all of the cycles of the washing machine in the last couple of weeks. Fill with water, wash, spin, rinse, spin, spin harder, cut off. That brought to mind the fact that I think that life is a lot like a washing machine. We go through different periods in our lives, sometimes blessings and sometimes troubles, but no matter what, we keep going. Just like a washing machine, we keep chugging along until our job is done. I thought when I went into surgery that my job might be all done, but God said otherwise and kept me safe through the surgery. That means He isn’t done yet incorporating me into His big plan.

Sometimes, things are going really well for us; we have hope that all will continue to go well so we rejoice. Then…boom! There is an interruption in our cycle. A sock gets stuck or something equally devastating that stops our performing well. Now we have more difficulty moving, speaking, reading our Bible and praying even. But we have to be patient. We are still chugging along, waiting until this heavy load part of the cycle is over. Whatever is going on in our lives, we are called to always pray. It’s our connection to our source. If the washer is disconnected from the electrical outlet, it won’t work at all. If we are disconnected from our Source, we don’t function too well. Since I have decided that life is like a washing machine, I wonder if I’m in a spin cycle sometimes, spinning in circles and not really going anywhere. But I realize that I am not always supposed to be going somewhere. Sometimes, God wants me right where I am until He tells me to move on. I’ve been reading the Old Testament lately and I’m reading a lot about the Israelites in the wilderness. They spent forty years there! The route to the Promised Land wasn’t really that far; I had a pastor tell me once that they kept circling Mount Sinai because God would not allow them to enter the Promised Land due to their disobedience and unbelief. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be in the spin cycle of my life for forty years. I want to finish the work He has prepared for me. Thus, I am trying to rejoice when things are going right, wait patiently for things to change when things are going badly and pray no matter what is happening to me. This is the lesson that God is teaching me. What is He teaching you? Again, I refer to a pastor we had, in South Carolina, I think. He said that you are either moving forward with God or you are going backward because life with God isn’t static.

Which are you doing? Which cycle are you in? Blessings that you complete this wash cycle that you’re in and that you’re all prayed up and ready for your next “load of wash”. One final reminder, the load that God gives you is never meant to be too heavy for you.

Photo from Inspire21.com