May has been a busy month in our house - birthdays, end of school events, parties, etc... Last weekend was Mother's Day and my husband has been working nonstop all month. I brought the kids to church alone and left feeling terrible. The little one has a way of loosing it towards the middle of mass that spins me up. This a lesson that I must learn and find peace with before I die! Anyway, we decided to take this weekend off from church and go fishing. It was a Mother's Day 'do-over'. We went to the local lake and cast hooks into the water to see what we would catch.The boys had a good time. We didn't catch much, but it was beautiful to sit in the sun and listen to them dream. Something extraordinary happened - a Koi flipped out of the water about 7 feet from us. It was at least 20lbs! The kids got so excited and decided that is what they were going to catch! The next cast brought in a little sunfish instead. They were excited, though, and had even more resolve to catch the big fish!
We had nothing with us to accommodate catching the big fish. The poles weren't right and the thought of unhooking it gave me the shivers. Sure, we could handle the little one. It fit in our hand, we had the pliers to take out the hook and it was just big enough for our reel and rod. But, what if we did catch a line on that Koi? Would our rods and reels be able to handle that weight? How about us - were we ready to pull a hook out of the mouth of something that big? It was a lesson for me. God, the Holy Spirit, will give you exactly what you want/need and are ready to receive. We were ready to receive the small fish. Although the kids would tell you they were ready to receive the big one - I can tell you, I was not.
Preparation is required to go after a fish that big. The mechanisms must be in place to catch it. Think of this for your life. How many of us dream of winning the lottery? If only I could have more? This true life parable showed me that what many of us have is exactly what we need and can handle right now. But, we are also shown the possibilities of what exists. If we want the bigger fish, we have to do the work to catch it. We also have to allow it.
So, here's the kicker - what if we did catch that fish and still were completely unprepared for it? It would have been SO COOL anyway! So what if we didn't have what we think we needed to accommodate it, we would have figured it out! That's surrender. We can do our part, put all the pieces in place and control what we can AND we can completely surrender to the Will of The Creator and TRUST that we can handle whatever comes and it will be SO COOL to experience!
Trust that what comes is for your best and highest good. Trust that you are cared for in a real and tangible way. Trust that this is pretend and the 'other side' is real.
To be happy, do not add to possessions, but subtract from desires.
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