Messy Me

I hate messes.
donning the cape with
P for perfection
on a mission for beauty
kicking curled up rugs to flattened perfection
squeak-squeaking the glass to pristine
erasing spills with the swish of a cloth
file folders neatly alphabetical
and the calender speckled with plans
checkmarks in line like an army salute
scrubbing stains with white knuckles
and the only kind of grease I allow . . . elbow
the sparkle twinges on the teeth as I grin
but if You wait long enough
look close enough
and love deep enough
You see the biggest mess of all.
If I was You, I'd give up on me
write me off
and screen Your calls.
Lucky for me,
You just keep loving messy me
right into Your open arms.


"His works are perfect, and the way he works is fair and just; A God you can depend upon, no exceptions, a straight-arrow God. His messed-up, mixed-up children, his non-children, throw mud at him but none of it sticks." Deuteronomy 32:1

"I'm not surprised there's only one way; I'm surprised there's any way at all."
Dr. R Mark Beeson, "Nothin's Gonna Change my World" sermon Dec. 1-2, 2007

"Spirituality is anything but a straight line; it is a mixed-up, topsy-turvy, helter-skelter godliness that turns our lives into an upside-down toboggan ride full of unexpected turns, surprise bumps, and bone-shattering crashes. In other words, messy spirituality is the delirious consequence of a life ruined by a Jesus who will love us right into his arms. Jesus is not repelled by us, no matter how messy we are. " Michael Yaconelli, Messy Spirituality