The sweltering sun beat down on my back as I hunched over burying watermelon transplants in the cool earth. Just as I put my hand on my aching back and began to stand up, a blast of cool water hit me from behind and I spun around, startled, to see where it had come from. My impish, dimple-cheeked daughter grinned at me with the water hose cocked in my direction.
She taunted, “Whatcha gonna do now, Mama?”
I was faced with a choice. I could lighten up, live in the moment and burst into laughter with her or I could frown and reprimand her for not watering the plants as she should have been doing.
Spontaneity does not come easily for me. I prefer order, structure, planning…
In other words, I’m very boring.
A part of me wanted to admonish her for wasting the water and order her back to work. Another part of me wanted to have fun with her and enjoy this moment, a moment I would forever remember, long after she is grown and gone.
As my adorable daughter faced off with me, I decided to grab the bull by the horns, so to speak, and laughingly retaliate. I jumped over the row and snatched the hose from her before she could blink, turning the spray onto her. Peals of laughter shook her little body as she raced off down the row, shrieking for someone to save her. Her siblings jumped to the rescue and grabbed the nearest full watering cans, pouring them down my work boots.
We chased each other up and down the rows of vegetable plants, taking turns blasting each other with the long water hose. It was an afternoon we aren’t likely to forget and made our chores and the heat much more bearable.
Aren’t our lives just like this–chores and uncomfortable heat? Full of monotony? Boring, tedious routines leaving little or no time to live in the moment? Endless grownup responsibilities? Busy-ness? Rushing from one thing to another?
God didn’t intend for us to live boring, monotonous lives. He intended for us to have life abundantly. John 10:10 says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.”
Too often we are so wrapped up in the mundane, repetitive routines of our lives that we forget to actually look and enjoy the people in our lives. The joy amidst the sorrow. The laughter beyond the pain. The thief would rather steal our joy than to have us rejoice in our abundant life.
Take joy in the little things this week. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Despite the drudgery of day-to-day activities, the Holy Spirit is working within us. Look for God in the little things and take time to thank Him for everything and everyone He has placed in your life.