Mr "Good Wrench" and "Good Advice"

Sorry all that this is just a quick glimpse into what the Spirit said to me Tuesday, August 15. Driving to work I heard Lysa Terkeurst and Amanda Carroll on KLOVE radio, Lisa talking about her new book Unglued and about ratcheting our anger when we're repeatedly offended. 

Oh, Eureka! Exactly what my beloved did over 34 years and more of our life together: put his arm to the wrench and ratchet down on the nuts of anger, bitterness, contempt, offense, unforgiveness, wounding, and self-preserving seeking on the tires of his life, so tightly that he can't let go of his wounded emotions and cultural-norm "look out for yourself" choices. No wonder he's stuck!

A very able engineer, he always warned me and our sons not to let a tire dealer use the pneumatic wrench to snug down the bolts on the nuts of our wheels too tightly, or we'd never be able to break them loose if we had to change a flat on the road. Ah, but beloved, you did just that, and I almost did until I saw the lies I was believing about your motivation in the things you said and did, and started believing that you DID love me in the ways you could. 

Oh, the PNEUMA of the Holy Spirit to break free the lock-down on our "lug nuts" and fix our flats, give us re-treads or just plain new tires to keep us moving in God's direction and purposes! This may be a copyrighted phrase, BUT I praise " Mr. Good Wrench" Jesus and the Holy Spirit to do the releasing for us what we can't do ourselves if we let him!

And the "good advice"? Disclaimer: I am no one's Savior, I'm heartily glad Jesus took that role upon himself, and I surrender that right and role to him. I was wondering, though,  how Jesus would have responded in the Garden of Gethsemane to, and how our lives now and forever would play out if Jesus took the advice of, some solid psychologists and counselors who ought to have been there in his agony instead of the snoozing Peter, James and John. Can you hear their advice to him, like the advice given to me?

"It's time to look out for yourself."
"Do what's best for you."
"Take care of yourself."
"You can't change them. They have their own free will."
"You need to establish healthy boundaries for yourself."

And the best one, the one I hear caregivers say at the preschool every day : "Just walk away."

How would YOU have counseled Jesus to respond in his situation?   What if he had? Aren't you glad he didn't?

I AM!

So flying in the face of what sounds "right" is our fully functional, not dysfunctional, Lord and lover of our souls Jesus.


Here's the world's best ". . . But . . ." to pray:  I was lost in my selfishness and self-seeking frantic attempts to validate myself and find love, and I've wounded other people in the search, BUT JESUS YOU DIDN'T WALK AWAY! You thought of me and gave yourself, and in YOUR GIFT I have validation and amazing love now and foreverJesus, Mr. Good Wrench, put the arm of your love on the lug nuts of my anger and bitterness over ____________________________ and break me free, change my heart, fill me with the penuma - air- breath - of the Holy Spirit so my heart is free to love ________________________________.