Carrying Out Your Mission: Why making your bed is important

Have confidence in the Lord with all thy heart, and lean not upon thy own prudence. In all thy ways think on him, and he will direct thy steps.

—Proverbs 3:5-6

“Do you always make your bed?” my niece remarked as she peeked through my open bedroom door.

Taken aback by her unexpected question, I wanted to say, “Why, of course!” Instead, I answered, “Honestly there are days I don’t, especially if I’m in a hurry. But if I’m having company, most definitely. It does make me feel better when I do.”

Since our exchange, I have pondered that question—and my response. Why do I feel better when I make my bed?

                                                       

Stuck: How do we make the switch?

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

—2 Corinthians 5:17

It was 1:35—for years. The hands of that old clock were stuck. It was time for a change. And Easter was the perfect season to make the switch.

I removed the clock from my living room wall and replaced it with a beautiful handcrafted cross. I received the cross in exchange for a donation to Teen Challenge, a program which “provides successful recovery for women, children, young men and families with destructive, abusive and addictive lifestyles through mentoring, education, training and spiritual direction.”

The wood for these crosses is handpicked from old, discarded horse fencing from the Teen Challenge Northern Virginia farm. Cut and stained by the students, the crosses are a reflection of what happens in their lives. They come into the program broken, but as a result of Christ’s work in their lives, they become new.

Is it time for a change in your life? Have you found yourself in a cycle of destructive behavior? Have you been repeating the same mistakes, going ‘round and ‘round again like the hands of a clock?

Valentines for the Soul: Call Me

My dove in the clefts of the rock,

    in the hiding places on the mountainside,

show me your face,

    let me hear your voice;

for your voice is sweet,

    and your face is lovely.

—Song of Songs 2:14

Have you ever been so in love that your breath catches in your throat when your sweetheart calls? Seeing their name light up your cell phone screen sets off butterflies in your stomach, and the bonus of seeing their face through video chat sends you over the moon.