Normal

What pops into your mind when you hear the word, "normal"?

Do you think of your daily routine and rhythm?
Do you see "normal" as positive?
Or is it negative?
As in, normal is boring?

For the past four weeks, we have been remodeling our house.  There has been no normal!  There is no normal when you are making daily visits to Home Depot to stare at plumbing fixtures.  There is no normal when a thin lay of dust covers every possible surface. There is no normal when you are trying to balance work, kids, and life.

So, after all these days, normal sounds like an amazing place.

This can be true when you are going through grief or trying to heal or struggling in any way.  You start to crave normalcy.  You begin to want normal not just a place to visit for a few hours...but want to take up permanent residency. 

Normal has some tremendous positives.  You can know what to count on when you are in a normal state.  There is almost a grove...it might now be the most exciting beat to dance to, but it is steady and smooth and doesn't sound like a screeching tires coming to a stop.  Normal has an upside of being predictable and persistent.  Normal is also good after living in a state of chaos or feeling out of control. 

I get why normal is scene as less than ideal.  But after a few weeks I have a much better appreciation for the positives of normal.  So, with the bathrooms nearing completion.  With the house finally clean.  With life settling back into the groove, even rut, of day-to-day, I give thanks for the state of normal.

May you find more than a trace of God's grace in the midst of the normal moments of life this week.

Blessings ~~