If you are like me, you sometimes find yourselves praying that God will help you change a habit in your life. I remember praying for patience once and not long after that my child drops a half gallon of red Koolaid all over the floor. Are you kidding me? Then I go to the store in a hurry to pick up a last minute item and run up to the check out only to discover the woman in front of me is having to put away ten items. Patience is nowhere in sight. After repeatedly going through this process, I realize God's idea of how to achieve patience and mine are two different things. My idea was more like the magicians "poof wala" I am patient and I go on my merry way. God's idea is, how many incidents in her life will she need to face before she depends on my strength to be patient through her. So after years of going through His way, patience begins to become a part of my life.
Recently, I realized I wanted to change another habit in my life. I, now don't freak out, don't normally do my dishes at night. However, I decided I wanted to change that and start doing them at night instead of in the morning. I did entitle this blog "Keeping it Real" so I figure I need to put my money where my mouth is, though it is not easy. Well, off I start "trying" to change my entrenched ways only to fail again and again. Truth is, I don't like doing dishes at night. Wait who likes to doing them at all. I guess that is beside the point. I enjoy resting after dinner and being with my family and watching tv. I have been doing it that way for years. Either God is going to work out this change in me or it isn't going to happen. How do I know that? This is not my first rodeo. Been there, done that. I know that He works in me His way and no amount of my great ideas will get it done. I surrender and choose to trust Him and wait. Question is how is He going to accomplish this change. Same way He worked patience in me; trials. Yay!
I wake up one morning and what do I see but millions of tiny ants staring back at me. Are you kidding? They are everywhere. Coming out from underneath the cabinets on the floor and all over the dishes I refused to do the night before. They have even found their way to the counters on the other side of the kitchen. Well I know how to fix them. I am not using chemicals these days in order to prevent anything from provoking cancer, so I get out my trusty cinnamon container. I discovered in the past they hate cinnamon and so I am certain this is the cure. It may take a few days dog gone it, but it will work. NOT. A week later I am still dealing with ants. These ants appear to be smarter than the last ants. They go around all the cinnamon and continue on with their assigned task. Who do you suppose sent these ants on their task? That's right God. No one could convince me otherwise. The only way to get rid of the ants is to keep the kitchen not just clean, but spotless. However, even when it looks like they are all gone and I can take a break from night time dishes, within two hours a scout has informed them, "meats back on the menu boys." (got that from the urakai on Lord of the Rings) In an instant, or so it seems, the army has invaded once again. So people wander if God has a sense of humor. I know He does. Here I am being too lazy to clean my kitchen at night and He sends me ants to change me. There is a scripture that literally says in Proverbs 6:6 Go to the ant you sluggard and consider it ways! Ok ok, I get it! I am being lazy and I am to pay attention to these teeny tiny creatures, because if I am not being to be diligent with my kitchen they will be.
Final note: I have been keeping up with the dishes and I only see an occasional scout. Last night my back hurt. I hadn't seen an ant on the counter all day, so I thought ah ha I can skip tonight and do them in the morning. Wrong again. The ants go marching hundreds by hundreds Hoorah! Hoorah!
