Refresh

He restores my soul.  He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.  Psalm 23:3 ESV

We are doing an update of our little house.  It’s not a remodel so much as it is a “refresh.”  We started in our bathroom – new wallpaper, a pretty new shower curtain and fancy hooks, rugs, towels, storage baskets, and a couple of little pictures on the wall, and it all just feels… better.

Currently, we’re working on the hallway and bedroom.  Again, we’ve been applying new wallpaper.  (Just a side note – wallpaper is different than it used to be.  It’s not your grandma’s flowery wallpaper with lots of paste and mess.  The bathroom got the appearance of shiplap on the walls.  What I’m working with currently looks like wood planks.)  The goal is to give it the feel of a rustic lodge.  Since it’s not really feasible right now to get away to a secluded little cabin in the mountains, we thought this might be the next best thing.

Refresh.

Aside from my day job, I do a little work on the side as a transcript editor.  On the company website, there is a constantly updating list of available work.  There are certain clients that I especially like to work with, and certain types of jobs that I enjoy working on.  And there are a lot of other clients and jobs that I just find tedious and which do not interest me.  On days that I am editing, I spend a lot of time hitting the “refresh” button on the page.  This gives me an updated list of which old jobs are still available and what new work has posted.  I refresh until I find what I’m looking for, which sometimes takes a while!

Refresh, refresh, refresh.

“Refresh” is a word with a lot of connotations for me right now.  And it’s kind of a longing in my soul…

I think part of the motivation for the “refresh” of the house is that we are just feeling such a weariness in life.  I suspect you’re feeling it too.  There’s just something about life on planet earth in 2022 that is exhausting. 

So, since we can’t really travel and explore in the ways we’ve done in the past, we decided to try to bring a change of scenery home.  On one level, I suppose, it’s kind of a frivolous exercise.  At the end of the day it’s still the little travel trailer that we’re living in and not the “real house” with foundation that I still sometimes dream of having.  But on another level, we’re finding a way to build contentment in our circumstances, as Paul suggests in Philippians. 

My default setting in life, unfortunately, does not naturally land on “content.”  Worried, anxious, depressed, annoyed, frustrated, disappointed – these come pretty easily.  Content takes a bit more work.  It requires a decisive effort on my part to intentionally set aside concerns and trust the Lord. 

Which should be easy.

My God has a track record of getting things right 100% of the time.  He is not in the habit of making mistakes.  It’s not even possible that He could mess up.

I know this to be true.  I know it.

And yet, the littlest hiccups in life still can send me into a tailspin.  How silly!

And so for me, the intentional refresh is becoming a sort of faith-building exercise for me.  I can’t necessarily see what I’m looking for in the moment. 

Refresh. 

As my online job list changes from moment to moment, so do my circumstances.  It may take a few minutes, a few hours, a few days, weeks, months, years, but circumstances change.  In life, I sometimes forget this simple truth.

Obviously, time in prayer and the study of God’s Word are vital spiritual disciplines.  These certainly have the power to bring spiritual refreshing.  But, along with the spiritual disciplines, I’m realizing that the Lord is okay with my engaging in some practical, tangible activities that help redirect my focus.  It’s a different kind of faith exercise, and, in this moment it’s leaving me hopeful.

So if you’re feeling a little stuck today, find a way to refresh.  It may not be redecorating your house.  Maybe just going for a walk, picking up a new book, calling an old friend – whatever seems to offer refreshment to your weary soul today, take some time to do it. 

Take your concerns to the Lord.  Then leave those worries with Him and get busy living life. 

Refresh, refresh, refresh, refresh…

…Just a thought…