Jen’s Gem: Find comfort in the consistency of God’s character.

Recently as I was transferring the laundry to the dryer, a sock fell from my hands and landed behind the washer drum. I attempted to retrieve it, yet this was a ridiculous idea. I am not Gumby. I stood for a moment and contemplated my next steps.

Dare I attempt to do another load? What if this sock got caught in the motor and blows up the whole machine? What if… what if… I decided to press on and finish the weekly chore. With each load, my heart raced.

I contacted the appliance store and discovered that my warranty was still intact. They arranged the service appointment and a day or two later, “Kenny” was at my door. I explained the dilemma. He took a putty knife out of his toolbox, popped open the front cover and voila! There on the bottom of the washing machine was my little gray sock.

Kenny explained to me that machines these days are designed not to eat socks. No harm would come should another item of clothing decide to seek greener pastures.

Cost of this quick rescue mission: $0.

At nearly the same time, both of my toilets decided to act up. Outdated parts were the culprit. The plumber replaced the rusty pieces and others that looked sketchy. As I awaited the invoice, I secretly wished I would’ve adhered to my high school aptitude test that indicated I should be a plumber.

Cost of this waste removal mission: $329.

Life is full of surprises, isn’t it? Some good. Some…well… There will always be something or someone who wants to ‘eat our socks.’ We live in a broken world. Expecting it to ever be anything else is a recipe for frustration, overwhelm, and any other fill in the blank negative emotion.

Earth is not heaven.

My first reactions to each of these disturbances was fear-based. Imploding washing machines and toilets flooding my building. Not being savvy about the inner workings of these items put me in a place of ignorance and fearing the worst.

Ignorance is not bliss, my friend.

Years ago, my ignorance of who God is resulted in a life filled with fear, judgement, and condemnation. I learned that God was someone who’d strike me down in a moment’s notice if I ever fell short of His expectations. This lack of knowledge of His true character pushed me away from Him. 

This can happen with people too. When we don’t know someone very well, we make assumptions and judgements about them. It is only when we spend time with them in a variety of situations that we get to know them. When we witness their response to the good, bad, and the ugly, we see their true character.

The Bible contains tons of examples of how Jesus handled life’s challenges. Betrayals, slander, abandonment, persecution. Verbal, mental, and physical abuse. In all of these, Jesus responded consistently. Over and over, the same way. You might say – BOOORRRING!

Yet, this “boring” response was why Jesus never lost his peace or his joy. He never walked in fear or responded from His emotions. “I do what I see My Father do. I say what My Father has said” is what John 5:19 tells us.

Want to know the character of God? Get to know Jesus. Read about his many trials and

 tribulations and how He handled them. It’s the same way God would act and it is the same way He wants us to act.

This is the confident assurance we have as children of God, believers in Jesus when life gives us lemons.

“No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, And their righteousness is from Me,” Says the Lord.” (Isaiah 54:17 NKJV)

Does this mean we will never have weapons formed against us? No! Does this say that we will never have tongues coming against us? No! It says that when these things occur, God will have our backs. He will not let socks and toilet parts harm us. Yet, we have a part in this promise.

If we walk in fear and declare negative outcomes or complain and grumble, then we are in essence tying God’s hands. We cannot walk in faith and fear simultaneously. We either take God for His Word, or we don’t. We either trust Him, or we don’t. We either believe He is who He says He is, or we don’t.

It’s easy to believe in God and all of His promises when life is going smoothly. But that’s not true faith. Faith is believing in God when socks go astray and toilets make weird noises in the night, and when “weapons” are formed against us.

When we know who God really is, when we develop a relationship with Him through His Son, then our faith and trust in His character deepens. We will know what to do when the trials of this world come our way.

Here’s the scoop:

God is bigger than a sock or a toilet plunger. He’s bigger than anything that comes our way. He already has the solution. He’s already sent the Answer to help us with all of the challenges this world will throw at us.

Cost of this rescue mission: the life of His Son.