DEVOTION: June 9

It takes a minute. With that client or that job, it takes a minute to find the groove, find the rhythm. At first it feels chaotic and overwhelming, like there’s too many personalities to navigate and too many wrenches thrown in for good measure and too many rules to learn that it feels impossible.

The same goes for motherhood too. It’s just all so much at first. The lack of sleep and the insane hormones and the new baby who just won’t commit to a routine already. And just when you get used to one rhythm, they change it all up on you and you feel like you’ve regressed back to square one. It’s turbulent and staggering and it feels impossible, too.

It takes a minute in marriage and family relationships and work relationships and friendships and all the other ’ships. In arguments and frustrations and pain and hurt and betrayal and bitter, bitter disappointment—the disorder and pandemonium is overwhelming and even paralyzing.

We ride the waves of the chaos and are tossed and thrown. But what we don’t see is the spirit of God hovering over it all and calling forth good. He sees what’s possible, He sees what’s to come. He did at the very genesis and continues to today—sticking close, knowing what lies beyond the chaos and calling that good. Calling it out and calling it forth even when it seems nonexistent and unattainable.

The fruit of goodness is “an uprightness of heart and life.” There’s an idea of generosity associated with it. And for us to fully display this fruit, I think we have to go back to the beginning and generously call out goodness in the chaos of people’s lives. Point out the places of possibility and call it forth and call it good. When we’ve been the recipients of such goodness in our own lives, it’s only natural for us to want to be generous with goodness to those around us.

Or at least, it should be.

“The harvest you reap reveals the seed that you planted. If you plant the corrupt seeds of self-life into this natural realm, you can expect a harvest of corruption. If you plant the good seeds of Spirit-life you will reap beautiful fruits that grow from the everlasting life of the Spirit.” (Galatians 6:8, The Passion Translation)