Amish flies...

Today Addy, Bren and I went out to our local Amish store, Rentown.  We visit every few weeks to buy bulk cheese, lunch meat, spices, lye soap and whatever else.   It’s a small little store run by an Amish family (which we have a lot of in our area) and they are extremely nice.    We are walking around picking up the things we need when a large black fly goes by our heads.  Addy immediately goes into a state of panic and wants to know what the bug is.  I tell her, “don’t worry, it’s just a fly.”  Then she asks loudly and clearly for everyone to hear (probably in the whole store), “Is it an Amish fly?”   I’m sure my face turned five shades of red at that point. Thankfully the Amish gentlemen behind the checkout counter laughed extremely hard about this and said, yes.  J  I laughed all the way home!

The thing that got to me about this story, beyond it just being plain funny, was the first thoughts that ran through my head when Addy made her comment.   I was extremely embarrassed, and worried about what the store clerk would think about me.  About me?!  Why?  Addy is obviously young and we all know that young kids just say what they think.  They are honest, probably in ways everyone should be.  Beyond that, who cares what the guy thought?  Was I worried that he thought I was a bad mom, or that we look down on the Amish(which we don’t), just from an innocent comment?  I don’t know. What I do know, is that God has bringing this to my attention a lot over the last few months.  My worry and preoccupation about what people think of me. 

God has been teaching me A LOT lately, and most of it goes back to a single fact that needs to sink into my heart, God’s love for me.  It’s so simple, yet so profound.  As a Christian you would think that I could grasp that easily.  I mean come on, Christ died for my sins to save me.  You’d think it would pretty obvious that He loves me.  But, there are many actions in my life that suggest I am not to the point I truly believe in God’s love all the time.  If I did truly believe that God loved me and accepted me, then I would not care so much about what other people think of me.  I would be steadfast in a love that carried me and looking to please Him. 

So, God is using little things to remind me that He is more important than what people think.  I’m learning to go back to God’s word and let it soak into my thoughts. Like Psalm 36:5 and 7, “Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.  How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!  People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.” Every day I need to choose to live in God’s love.  To realize, yes, He does love me no matter what others think and I need to focus on Him, not myself.  It’s not easy, but so many other things in my life are connected to the concept of God’s love, it’s essential.  When I’m secure in the love that God has for me, I don’t worry about what people think and I’m free to live for God not men!  Who would have thought an Amish fly and a three year old could teach you that?