Fridays

Grab that cup of tea, or coffee, or even some hot chocolate. Curl up next to the fire. Brrr, it's cold outside. Look, sunshine! Is that a squirrel romping around the maple tree? I wonder what he's thinking, if he's hoping it'll be warmer soon.

Happy Friday, friends, and I'm so glad it's finally here! What do Fridays mean to you? For me, it means the end of the school week. It means hours at work Saturday before coming home to a house of sunbeams. It means a good book Sunday afternoon while my family watches All Creatures Great and Small. It means fun, family, and rest are just around the corner.

But first, it means cleaning day. 

Yes, it means that we have to vacuum and scrub and dust our lovely house. It means itchy eyes and an avalanche of sneezing if I happen to be in charge of dusting. It means a sink free of toothpaste when I finish cleaning the bathroom. It means a floor with no sand once my brother is done vacuuming. Oh, it means work, but it's teamwork. Oh, it means a mess, but it's a mess-in-progress. 

Kind of reminds me of me. 

I love the acronym WIP. It stands for work-in-progress, and writers use it when we talk about our writing projects. But I also know that many of us apply it to ourselves. That's me. A work-in-progress. 

I love the book of Ephesians. Chapter 2 verse 10 tells me that "we are His workmanship." I am God's workmanship, His WIP, and that means He will always be working on me. He will always be shaping me to be more like Him.

But my heart still protests. God, why? Why me? I'm so dirty inside. I've done things that You hate; I'm all rotten and broken. How could you possibly love this horrid mess of me? 

And that's when He whispers back, You are mine. 

But how?

I made you, and I love you.

I know, but haven't you been listening? 

Yes. 

Then why are You still here with me?

Because Jesus paid it all.

That's the only way I can have a relationship with God: my Savior has paid for my sin.

So who am I? A WIP. A MIP. Loved. Saved. Redeemed. Changed. 

And I can remind myself that on a Friday many years ago, Jesus paid the debt I never could so that my sin would be covered.

One of my favorite hymns is "And Can it Be?" by Charles Wesley. The third verse (aren't third verses lovely, folks? Why do we skip them so often?) is by far my favorite, and that's what I will close with today.

Long my imprisoned spirit lay  

Fast bound in sin and nature's night; 

Thine eye diffused a quickening ray,  

I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;  

My chains fell off, my heart was free;  

I rose, went forth and followed Thee.

Amazing love! how can it be  

That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

Let me know in the comments what Fridays mean to you!

Tally ho!

Rachael Anne