Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Bread Ties and Chewing Gum

This is a bizarre title for a post. I have to agree with you there. However, I think I will be able to make a coherent point by the end of the piece. Hang in there with me and send up a prayer(no specific reason, but hanging in there and praying never hurt anyone that I have ever heard of...). Bread ties and chewing gum are whimsical household items that I am going to use to make an observation about life. You're still with me? God is merciful...

Bread ties and chewing gum remind me of those little habits I have picked up along the way to distract myself from dealing with reality. My favorites include staring at the bulleting board at the back of the church sanctuary building, fixating on a light fixture, studying my shoes, and scanning the crowd to see who didn't make it on any given Sunday...I have also slipped into the habit of mentally writing letters and traveling with more stuff than it would take to spend a week on vacation...baggage comes in more than one form...

Chewing gum makes me think of the efforts that I use to keep my outward facade from degenerating into honesty. The gum has this nasty little habit of sticking so well sometimes that it hurts to pull it off. It also comes loose when I am sweating and squirming to arrange my bread ties at the same time I am propping the gum under my facade. If you can mentally imagine these things, it may seem ridiculous, but hold on;I am making my way slowly to the point of my post today.

These devices do not work to keep all of my pieces together. I have been using the same m.o. for years, and it is insane. They don't work, and what is worse they can further isolate me from other believers. That isolation works a subtle and yet obvious concoction of an intense nature. Juggling bread ties and chewing gum keeps my eyes on me and off of Jesus. That is where I need to be focusing my gaze. My navel
has long since lost it's appeal. I refuse to paint it or put a piercing there. I would not bring attention to my neurotic thought processes if it were not for the fact that others have them, too. It is also true that holding on to my bread ties and chewing gum in secret turns toxic. I cannot live and stay in hiding. I don't think anyone juggles that skillfully without paying a high price.

In closing my post today, I pray that the Lord reaches in to where you live and shows you if you have any bread ties and wads of chewing gum that need to be heaved. Pitch them and don't look back longingly at where they land. You do not need them. You need a hug.

Thanks for bearing with me while I made every effort at making a coherent point. I appreciate your patience and pray that you are blessed by what the Lord has put on my heart today.


Have a cup o'joy...
Lynne