Last weekend my family went up to our little cabin that my husband has been hand building the past four years on his limited vacation days…a small little dream that he's trying to make a reality for his sons. This final long weekend of the summer was dedicated to trenching and laying wire so we might one day have electricity…(my hopes for solar power were sadly diminished over time due to the property being fully wooded.)
During the process of trenching, I felt a sense of sadness overcome me. Up until now, the long stretch of “driveway” has been where the children’s activity has taken place. I love the way the pine needles have fallen over the years, mixing in with the sandy dirt making a natural pathway. I have fond memories of walking the babies in the stroller up and down this path and watching them play.
As I watched the trench snake its way down the middle of this precious path, I found myself wondering if it would ever be the same again.
As we dug, we found giant rocks and even boulders that would stop us along the way. It took both of us to lift some of them out. There were so many that we joked that if we would’ve known, we could have used the stones for the cabin instead of siding.
I found myself talking to God through this process trying to find joy in the dream we were realizing together, rather than resentment that this may be the way I was spending my last few days with the family before the craziness of the new school year would fully set in.
In my prayer, I realized that deepening our relationship with Him sometimes requires disrupting the peaceful status quo. It was messy and unpredictable at times, but we had to trust that eventually we would make it. We also had to depend on each other along the way. Even the little boys had responsibilities and actually seemed to enjoy them.
We all need to take time to dig deeply, but not just dig a hole - rather a trench! We can spend a lot of time trying to know God, only to come up feeling exhausted and wondering where He is at in the face of trials. We dig deeper, sometimes becoming skeptical or scrupulous, instead of moving forward into His loving embrace.
You see... we we’re on a very specific path. God wants us to be specific in our prayer and our direction as we find our way to His most Sacred Heart with the Holy Spirit as our guide. The cabin will be nice one day I'm sure, but the most real "dream" we should all be focusing on is of course heaven.
There were so many rocks piled up at the end of our venture, I wondered how we could possibly fill it all back in without them. I couldn’t believe what existed beneath that seemingly calm, sandy layer of soil brushed sweetly with pine needles. What is hidden deep down in your heart that is weighing you down?
God is the master builder. If we take the time to gut the rocks that are weighing us down that keep us further from Him (resentment, unnecessary judgment, needless worries, anger, regret…) then He will bless us by not only by filling it all in with His love, but making the path to eternity more beautiful than it was when we started.
