Gold nuggets in Isaiah, and being enough

 Isaiah is intimidating to almost everyone, myself included.  My mother-in-law shared a few of her favorite scriptures from Isaiah over the last few weeks and it helped shift my whole attitude. I realized that instead of just feeling overwhelmed and confused by all that I don't know, I can search for the beautiful nuggets of truth.  The reality of life is that it's kind of like Isaiah--it can be really overwhelming, I don't always see or understand all that is going on, and not everything that is happening is relevant to me at all times, but there are moments of clarity and truth and goodness that stand out and help me.  So I set out to find some beautiful truths, things that spoke to my soul amidst the confusion and all his prophecy and imagery.  Think of it as panning for gold.  And I found a few gold nuggets this week.

In my heart and mind, I have been concerned a lot with the feelings that lie hidden underneath the surface in many people and sometimes end up overwhelming us, especially the feelings where someone feels broken, worthless, or inferior.  A coworker of mine recently committed suicide, it truly shook up so many people, because he seemed like everything was fine.  Besides that, a loss like that is always hard.  I did not know him very well, so I don't know if he had deeper issues with mental health or what was going on in his home life.  But I know that those feelings can lurk under the surface, and sometimes they pull us under.  

With my mind a little more focused in that direction, on what I can do to help those I know and love to realize how special they are so they don't fall victim to their own doubts and struggles, I stumbled across the following scripture and it was a nugget that spoke to my soul. Isaiah 45:9 "Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! ....Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou?..."  When we doubt ourselves, when we question our worth, we are questioning that we were fashioned by master creator who designed so many beautiful and amazing things. As I searched for an additional nugget to back this one up, I found a new favorite, and it's also in Isaiah.  Isaiah 64:8 "But thou, O Lord, art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand."  Isn't that beautiful?  He created us. We are his work, and we are all amazing in our own way.  He knows what He is doing and He didn't make garbage.

I thought about the saying "You are enough" and what it means.  It doesn't mean that what you are right now in this moment is actually enough.  It is also about your past, present, and future.  My granddaughter is enough. She's not even 1 year old yet, not walking, not talking, but she is a delight.  Her ready enthusiasm for music and for fun and for life is contagious.  It does not mean she has arrived at all she will do or become or is capable of.  However, she learns and grows every day.  Her "being enough" is about who she has been and who she is and about who she will be.  Sometimes we get so caught up in where we are in the present that we forget that we still have so much to learn and grow and do, and it's OK if we haven't finished reaching our potential yet.  There is more to life than what we can see, there is far more to understand than what we see on the surface, even about ourselves.  

See these flower arrangments?

They're all different.  They're all beautiful.  They all have deficiencies and they all have strengths.  I created them all with different flowers from my garden. (I LOVE arranging my flowers this time of year.)  And I truly love each creation.  What if my flowers each sat and focused on their deficiencies? What if all they focused on was the bad things about themselves, so much that they stopped feeling good about themselves? My tulips and crocuses (which are now dormant in the ground and not a part of these arrangements at all) would focus on the fact that they only come out in early spring, and for the rest of the year, they sleep under the ground hidden and unknown and unnoticed.  My roses would focus on the fact that they have thorns and so they tangle in hair and clothing and hurt people.  My petunias would lament that they only get to live for one year, and then they die and have to be planted again and start all over.  My dahlias would be frustrated that they either have to die each year or someone has to go to the effort to dig their tuberous roots out and save them for another year's planting. My stems are too short.  My stems are too long.  My color is too boring.  My flowers drop too many seeds.  My flowers don't drop any seeds.  I'm too sensitive.  I'm too sticky. None of them would focus on their colors, their scent, their ability to attract bees and hummingbirds, and definitely none of them would focus on their ability to bring someone else joy.  All of my flowers bring me joy and satisfaction. All these arrangements have different shades, colors, and flowers and many are imperfect but they are part of a creation and they are part of a team of flowers, working together. They won't live forever, but while they live, this creation can bring so much good, so much happiness, some color, life, and vibrancy to the world they are able to be a part of.

Well, you are ALSO part of a team working together.  Whether it is a family team, a coworkers team, a team of people in a church or a class or a crowd, you ARE part of a team.  And yes, you have problems and struggles and things that make you imperfect.  So do all of us, but don't forget that you bring good, happiness, color, life, and vibrancy to the world that YOU are able to be a part of.  Stop worrying about whether you are good enough right now.  You probably aren't.  But being enough isn't just about right now.  It's about your past, your present, and your future.  Plus the entire plan of God is hinged upon the fact that we aren't really good enough and that's why we have a Savior.  So it's OK to not be good enough.  You just remember that there is more to you than what you are right now.  Remember that you are the clay and He is the potter, and He does not create junk.  He created you. YOU ARE ENOUGH because of Him, because of who you are not just now, but in the past and in the future.  And while you do have struggles, you are part of a team and you add value to that team and make it more beautiful, even if you doubt yourself and wonder how.  There is more to you than what you can see right now, and you are enough.