Almost Done

August 6, 2019

“Do you like doing that?” Linda was asking about the trees I finished cutting up today. When I replied in the affirmative, she inquired further. “Why?”

“That’s easy. Because I can tell when it’s done.” My entire adult life has been invested in people, and until they’re buried, the job is never done. Tonight, those two trees are blocked up, waiting to be split. If it doesn’t rain tomorrow afternoon, I’ll get most of it split and stacked, at which point, except for burning it, the job is done. It took a bit longer today, with a rain break and a work stoppage to watch a family of turkeys strut through the yard. Added to breakfast with my wife and lunch with friends, it’s been a good day. 

God has great patience. The day will come when he looks at me and sees I’m finally done, and I’ll be ready for his greater purposes. There’s been a few interruptions along the way, and it’s taken a lot longer than the couple days I spent on these logs. These particular logs are pretty straight-grained, with almost no knots, so they should split pretty easily. My soul isn’t quite as compliant, and sometimes when God is working to get me to the point where he can use me for his purposes, I resist like a knotty, gnarled block of wood. And fortunately for me, there are times when God graciously takes a break from his work on me so the turkeys can wander through or the rain give its gentle refreshing. Then, it’s back to work until I’m stacked and waiting his ultimate purposes. I’m grateful tonight to be able to see the progress in my woodpile, for the breaks along the way, and for the opportunity to reflect on the job in light o the Gospel. It’s been a good day.