Hot Mess Club

I am so blessed to have the greatest group of close knit-friends. We are an encouragement to each other and take seriously the responsibility of interceding for each other in prayer. What I find so amazing is the tremendous diversity of giftings we possess. God has anointed our relationships for grace to be extended, wisdom to be revealed, love to be expressed, exhortation to be spoken, confidentiality to be strictly guarded, and grief to be shared. Spiritual growth is looked for in our hearts. We were affectionately dubbed the "hot mess" girls. We acknowledge that we are each struggling and striving to glorify Christ in our lives, our jobs, our marriages, and to our children. At times this is an overwhelming task. As I study and try to seek out the depths of what God wants my life to look like I realize that His will is not for me to settle for being a "hot mess."

I strongly feel that to pretend our lives are perfect is often a stumbling block and a discouragement for many who have a hard time keeping things from spiraling out of control. Sometimes Satan takes dead aim and sucker punches us and we are left on our backs in a heap of an ugly mess that we cannot fix, full of pain, shame, and heartbreak. There are periods of our lives that can most certainly be described as a great big, sticky, hot, mess. But as children of God, that is not how we are to be defined. When we begin to accept that label for our lives we are settling for less than what God has in store for us. Picture Christ standing over our life, which is in turmoil and chaos, and gently speaking to us and saying, "Yes, my child this is the way I designed your life to be." He desires great things for us and we are not defeated by the onslaught of the enemy. It may feel like we are, but we are not. "For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith." 1 John 5:4.

Our group is a safe place to fall, when one of us has been maligned and knocked senseless by the enemy. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-5. But what kind of support are we if we settle in for the long haul on the ash heap of despair? Our lives are to be beautiful landscapes of the supernatural ability to overcome adversity for the glory of Christ! Satan is thrilled when sit in our hot mess and invite others in with us, under the pretense of being members of the hot mess sorority. Because then he has managed to cripple the power of the almighties warriors by convincing us we have been defeated. And on top of that the countless witnesses who are watching our warriors, wondering to themselves, "Why do I need God? He doesn't seem very helpful."

Please, dear friend, do not mistake this for a "name it and claim it" type philosophy you hear so often from the prosperity speakers. There is more to acquiring the supernatural ability to overcome than just deciding to. The main key is growing closer to Christ. When we see our lives through His eyes, and have a clear picture of His love for us, we understand more effectively the power that dwells within us. "Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4. That is a promise! We just fall short on the "delight[ing] in the Lord" part. When we delight in the Lord we are focused on Him and want what He wants. When we eliminate our own selfish desires and are passionate about accomplishing Christ's divine purpose for our lives, it makes us realize that cleaning up our hot mess is not only possible but necessary for the great work for which we are designed. "Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us." Romans 8:37.

This life is messy and Satan knows just how to inflict the most pain possible into our soul. We are blessed to have people in our lives to hold us when we are broken. And how much more are we blessed than to have those same people love us too much to allow us to tarry there too long. Above all that, we have Christ who will sometimes even let us be knocked down so HE may be magnified by raising us out of the ashes, more confident of His power, and stronger than we were before. "Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; When I fall, I will arise; When I sit in darkness [or in the hot mess], The Lord will be a light to me." Micah 7:8. All this just so those around us can say, "Wow, only Christ could do that."