Hey party people,
The other day for ministry, we picked up rocks in the rugby field outside the high school. For a few hours, we slaved away picking up all kinds of rocks. From little pebbles to nasty monster rocks, the goal was to pick up all the rocks and put them into a wheel barrel to ensure the safety of the children playing on the field. Super simple. Kinda tedious. Seemingly pointless, but not, ya know? On the World Race, we have a rule to always have a positive attitude and find joy in everything we do, so I tried to make the most of the situation. Here’s what I was seeing and the lesson I learned from it.
Okay so first thing, I observed that the ground was soft and a little wet because it had rained the night before. I later learned that made it wayyyy easier, but I’ll get to that significance in a second. The little rocks were mindlessly easy to pick up because there wasn’t anything surrounding them. They just sat on top of the surface and could be easily spotted to be picked up. Then there were rocks half above ground and half below. For those, we just used our hands to dig up. That’s when I noticed how the soft ground played a huge role in digging up the rocks. If the ground wasn’t soft, this task probably would’ve been more difficult. What made it really fun though, is when we’d dig up a rock and the rock portion underneath the ground was way bigger than the amount showing on top. Honestly, those ones pretty rewarding to dig up. Then for the nasty monster rocks, we had to pull out the big guns. We needed a shovel to dig them up. The shovel had to be just the right size because we didn’t want to yank up too much dirt and leave a bigger hole than necessary. However, this job wasn’t meant for everyone. It required a special skill you only learn when you’re a kid jumping on a pogo stick. Balance and accuracy. Some have one or the other, but few have both. Once we dug up a nasty monster rock, we had to fill the nasty monster rock sized hole in the ground. If we left the rock, one of the kids could fall and scrape their knee, but if we left the hole, one could roll their ankle. Lose-lose situation. So, we continued with this process until we were told to stop.
As interesting as all these observations were, I began to question in my head what the point was. Like why was I even noticing this stuff? Then I heard God respond to me, so clearly, “What I want to do in your heart is very similar to what you are doing in this field right now.” Lowkey, I was kinda shook, but here’s the explanation I received. The ground symbolizes my heart. The rocks represent all the sin/hurt/pain/shame/basically anything God wants to uproot in my life. The little rocks above the surface are smaller things in my life I can easily see, therefore they are easy to give to God. Holy Spirit is like the rain that came to soften the ground. So, the more I allow Holy Spirit to pour into my life, the easier it is to dig up the “rocks” in my heart. The bigger rocks are things I have noticed but need Holy Spirit to help me dig them up. When I pulled a rock up from the ground, the dirt around it broke. Similarly, as God is digging up things in my life, my heart is breaking, making the process pretty painful. God never promised that following Him would be easy. He says to deny your flesh, take up your cross (giving up your own way), and follow Him (Matt. 16:24). My flesh wouldn’t normally choose to sit through the painful process of healing, BUT GOD is the ultimate physician, and I know He is taking care of me. The nasty monsters rocks are the more difficult things I really need assistance with. The shovel represents a mentor in my life that I can go to; they will walk with me through thick and thin—little rocks and nasty monster rocks. Like the shovel, my mentor(s) can’t just be any rando from the shed. I have to make sure they are going to be someone I can trust with my heart and will point me to the truth in every situation. We were created to be in community, and God never intended for us to walk through life alone. When I’m in a difficult season, it is vital that I seek God first, then ask my mentor to come alongside me in prayer and any guidance I may need. After God digs up something in my heart, it is important that I fill the hole with His truth by reading the Word. If I don’t fill the hole, other rocks can fill it which would make digging up the rock in the first place pointless. If left empty, I leave room to hurt myself or someone else like the rolling of an ankle. Moving forward, I’m filling my heart with truth and growing in a relationship with the Father. The word says to “guard your heart because everything you do flows from it” (Proverbs 4:23). Guarding my heart doesn’t mean building up walls to the world, but, simply seeking Holy Spirit’s guidance on what to allow into my heart in order to grow. I want everything I do, say, and think to come from a place of overflow from being filled with the Holy Spirit.
This past couple of months, that’s what God has been doing in my heart. He’s been refining me and breaking me down only to build me back up to look more like His Son. While it has been painful, the reward is so much greater. An awesome person I know, FRAN, taught me this. The more I allow God to go deeper into my situation, the greater the freedom, peace, and overall reward. (Fran, if you see this, THANK YOU, I LOVE YOU). The freedom that He brings is insane. There is nothing like this gift. I whole-heartedly believe He wants the absolute best for me. He is seeking me out. He is never failing me. He is faithful to the end. He is always by my side. He loves me unconditionally. He is my Father. He is my bestie. He is my redeemer. He is my healer. He is my comfort. He is my peace. He is my happy place. There is nothing He cannot do. He is all these things for me, so I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that He can be all these things for you too.
Thanks for reading! Have a super-duper cool day! (:
-Arielle
P.s. If you read my ‘“Hey I’m on the race”’ blog, this is the cool Jesus thing I was talking about in case you were wondering.
