Ah friends! It has been way too long! I’m not even sure where we left off… but let’s just jump back into it, okay? I want you to imagine something for me. Then we will both be in the same head space to get the point of this weeks muse. So here we go.

Ten baby chicks are in the house still. Tucked in a corner with the red heat lamp glowing even though they don’t need it. Except now they are almost fully feathered “teenagers” who are getting crowded in their little brooder cage. You feel bad, so have to let them out for some free time and to stretch their wings. Bottle baby goats have arrived. Three rambunctious little boys who are running a muck through the living room. They are treating your living room furniture like a playground (and an outhouse). Your five older hens and rabbits have just had their snacks and have been let out for the day. The dog has been fed but is vying for a bite or two of your bagel. Are you there? Okay, so this was me a few weeks ago. Still in my nightgown, sitting on the floor, coffee cup in hand surrounded by messy chicks, running goats and a big goofy lab drooling on my leg (yet unshaven for the warmer weather). As I sat there surrounded by fluffy feathers, drool, and untold messes on the floor that will need to be scraped, scrubbed and mopped for the 5th time this morning, I smiled and mused: What the heck have I done, and how will I ever survive this chaos?!

Did you imagine it? Did you smell, taste and see it? I laughed, not because I found it funny really. Oh, don’t get me wrong — I chose every bit of it. I wanted to be right there. I laughed because it was crazy. I laughed because it was slightly funny, the scene before me. It was funny because I put myself there. I was slightly overwhelmed. Yet, I was happy. And smiled because I was. Perhaps your chaos is not the same as mine. In fact, I suspect most of you do not have the same chaos that I have. Maybe you are that young mom with toys and diapers and a home that is also overwhelming, but in a different way. Maybe you are older and dealing with aches, pains, appointments and a supplement drawer overflowing with ailment aids. Your house is tidier, but your mind is cloudy. Perhaps your chaos is the in between… carpooling, school lunches, technology demands and your mini van has become the home office for calls, fast food and cat naps in the school pick up line. It smells just as nasty as my living room floor with that hockey equipment in the trunk. Oh friend, your chaos may be different than mine, but I am almost positive you can relate.

Does the word “chaos” have a bad connotation in your mind? I’m not sure. I looked it up and the definition seems to have some darkness to it. Maybe I chose the wrong word to describe the feeling I had on the floor that day. I say that because it wasn’t wrong or evil… just, well, chaotic. Perhaps it conveys a “lack of control” when things are just everywhere. Or is it just like the beginnings of earth… a void with no purpose or direction until God came in and breathed life into it? I think that’s the take we see when we think of “biblical chaos”. Or is it the dark sin taking over the world as in Noah’s day where things needed a clean slate and a “start again”? Is my chaos just busyness? A mental health strain that just needs more time? I don’t think it’s evil or sinful. Perhaps my semantics have labeled busy as chaos? Overwhelmed? Whatever — you get it.

Right now, the house is quiet. Everyone has been fed, cleaned and cared for. The sun is shining. Okay, a hen just walked through the front door… but so far, the floor is still clean. Now the dog is barking. Trust me, it was peaceful a second ago! And it will be again. I guess the point of this post is to say, be encouraged! Life stages are just that: stages. We move around all the time! Faithfulness is so very much an attribute of God I love… because as much as our world changes and life seems crazy and overwhelming and often messy… God is our consistent companion to hold our hand and carry us through to the next thing. Believe it. Trust Him. Smile, with coffee cup in hand and say, “Yup, You and I can handle this God… on to the next adventure!” And now if you’ll excuse me, I gotta go chase a chicken out of my living room…