Reigning in the abundance!

I was at my Bible study last night and the worship leader praised God at one point in between songs, for the fact that we would be with Him in heaven some day.

And I was right with her thinking, "Yes, God, that will be so amazing!"

Then she continued on with, "The Bible says, we will reign with you!"

And although I knew the Bible said that, I immediately thought, "The reigning part sounds like too much work right now. I'd so love to be with you God but I really don't need to reign with you!"

If that doesn't illustrate how tired I am then I don't know what does.

Recently a friend who also has three young kids saw me at elementary school pick-up with our new puppy and shook her head smiling, like, "You are so crazy, I can't believe you got a new puppy!" This friend also lost a beloved elderly dog last summer, one she'd had since way before having kids, but they sanely decided not to get another dog.

I thought her reaction was funny, but I started thinking, "Why do we always seem to have crazy things going on? Why do my husband and I make decisions that add work and the potential for chaos to our lives over and over again?"

And then I remembered the verse John 10:10, "The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and have it abundantly."

Because along with the work, the added crazy, is life! A whole bunch of it! Abundant life!

And the blessings make all the hard so worth it!

Would our lives be easier if we hadn't had a 3rd child? decided to adopt a 4th child? started an adoption ministry at our church? volunteered to help children in CPS custody? gotten a new puppy?

Yes!!! Without a doubt! But would our lives be better? No! In fact, life would be so far from better that it's depressing to think about!

Am I saying that any of those things make us better Christians than anyone else? No way! But, for us this is it. Life abundantly!


Find more Thankful Thursday here.