blowing our coat

It's that time again... Juneau has begun her bi-annual husky ritual of "blowing her coat." All Siberian Husky owners can relate to my pain. It's messy, hair is everywhere and it happens twice a year (spring & fall). She doesn't blow it all at once though. She starts in little patches on the shoulder area of her front & back legs and as the weeks go by (3-4 wks) she continues to blow in other areas. And so it's begun! Last year our new neighbors probably loved us. We'd take her in the back yard and brush her crazy for a whole hour. The hair she didn't try to eat (don't ask me why she does that, some sick game of hers I suppose, would end up blowing off the deck and floating into the neighbors yard! I'd just sigh and pray the wind would keep blowing it far so they'd not trace it back to me! haha

I was having a conversation with an awesome friend of mine recently about needing to re-evaluate boundaries in our lives. How sometimes, as women (and people pleasers) we struggle to say no and end up involved in too many things at once. This leads us to over-commit and therefore feel torn and exhausted trying to do too much at once. I wish there was this bi-annual cleansing time where we just blow our coat...

What I mean is, what if all our commitments were 'blown off' us, we can actually focus our eyes back on the Lord and re-evaluate which commitments are worthy of our time and which... well, are not. Which will store up for us eternal value... and which will when blown off, will just end up in a neighbors yard. Watching our hair clumps in someone else's yard may seem messy, but sometimes it's okay to say no when God has something greater in store for you!

May we take this time of spring cleaning to blow our coats in a way that allows God the freedom to guide and re-direct our schedules, commitments and time. He is so worthy of that role. If that seems at all scary for you, just rest assured in this wonderful promise:

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

God longs to guide us into those commitments that will prosper us, and give us a hope and a future in Him. What an awesome truth to claim in our lives when we just seem pulled in too many directions to find a center upon Him! Let's keep seeking, trusting and not be afraid to blow our coats this spring!