Life is messy...

Anybody tuned into Christian radio the last few days is certain to have heard the discussions on stress, family, friends and the holidays... here are some thoughts on that...
There's no better time then the holidays to realize just how messy life can be. No, I'm not talking about the house or dishes, the weather or the billion things on our "to do" list. I'm talking about relationships... people we love and maybe don't like so much sometimes, people that love us and maybe don't like us so much sometimes. The clashing of values, personalities and view points on every thing under the sun, that's the messy I'm talking about. Why does life have to be so messy???????? Why is it so darned complicated to be around and care about certain folks????? When life gets messy it's truly a time to find out just how deep your willing to dig to be Christlike, just how serious you are about nailing your selfish flesh to the cross. This is where the rubber hits the road so to speak. The hardest flesh to nail to the cross are the times we feel "justified"... ya, you heard me, that "justified" feeling complicates an already complicated quagmire of fleshly feelings messy life can bring. Sometimes that feeling of "justification" makes me want to stay mad when hurt by someone who maybe has hurt me over and over. I don't want to look at the messy part of their life that makes them act like that and keep praying for them, I just want to be mad. I want a pity party, I'm justified right? Unfortunately No, I'm not. As a Christian I am called to suffer life's injustice's with a Christlike heart. How did Jesus do it, I mean seriously... How did He do it? Sometimes I think about His life as He walked the earth surrounded by broken, sinful, pitiful, hurting lives... messy people like me and possibly you. I think I read somewhere that it's recorded only three times in the Bible where Jesus wept. I don't know if that's true but sometimes I feel there is a part of me that is in constant mourning. Mourning for all the hurting and lost people. Mourning for the people who've hurt me or been unkind to me. Mourning for the people I've hurt or been unkind too... so many needs to be prayed over, so many lives to pray for... so many tears to weep. Jesus being Divine and Holy, must have had a peace that we as fallen creatures in a fallen world don't have. I know He must have been sad, how could He have not? He loves us so very much. I can't even imagine the burden He carried having a true understanding of the big picture that we cannot see. It makes me realize in my small human capacity just how really great His love for us must be... that's a seriously humbling moment that gives me and hopefully you, a glimpse of what to aim for when dealing with life's messy entanglements. May your holidays be blessed with the peace of Christ Jesus.