Yesterday when my husband got home from work, I heard him say, “Hey, do you know why this nail is on the table?”
I had no idea what he was talking about. I hadn’t seen a nail on the table. From the other room, I yelled, “Did it maybe fall from something? What does it look like?”
“It’s huge, he said, and there’s nothing near that it could have come from. Weird,” he said.
By the time I entered the kitchen, he had already thrown it away, so I asked if he could easily get it, as I was curious what this “huge” nail looked like and where it might have come from. He peeked into the trash for a minute, then looked at me with an expression that showed it wasn’t going to be easy to find, so I told him not to worry about it.
But I couldn’t stop thinking about that nail.
As a writer, (and sometimes over thinker), I’m often finding symbolism in simple things. My current novel in progress, titled What the Wind Blew In, has wind as a symbol of both the chaos that enters into the characters’ lives as well as the representation of the spirit of God working in their lives to make order of the mess. This nail that appeared randomly out of nowhere, came right during a time that has had its share of goodness and difficulties. It also appeared on the day right before the start of lent. I couldn’t help but think it was there for a reason.
So today, I went to the Lenten morning chapel service at my church, had ashes placed on my forehead at communion, and sat in that place soaking up all the goodness there. This is a place where I always feel the full presence of God and his love and am reminded of who I am. The last song we sang was “The Goodness of God.” The words of this song always remind me of God’s constant faithfulness and truth: “All my life you have been faithful. All my life you have been so, so good to me. With every breath that I am able, I will sing of the goodness of God.”
I left feeling all God’s goodness, and as I drove home my eyes filled with tears thinking about it. Thinking of this first day of lent, where I will journey through 40 days walking closer with Jesus, I again thought of that nail. The nails that pierced the hands and feet of Jesus are not nails that we want to forget, not because we want to stay stuck in the sadness of that horrific event, but because we want to remember how much he loves us.
As I drove, I decided I needed to get that nail back. If Jesus died on a cross for me, I could certainly dig through a little trash to find a nail. Maybe he didn’t land this nail on my kitchen table, but he might have impressed the thought of it on my mind for a reason.
At home, I went to the trash can, peeked in, and then said, “never mind, I don’t need the nail.” I shut the lid and poured some coffee. Guess what? I kept thinking about it. A little bit of trash shouldn’t stop me, I thought.
So I went back to the trash, pulled out the bag, felt around the outside of it, and found it. There was the nail. Reaching in, I was thankful that there wasn’t too much trash to go through, but was also reminded of how his sacrifice on the cross is what erases all the trash and muck of our lives.
I pulled out the nail, washed it off, and then found a gold ribbon to tie on it, because this nail represents the king. This nail represents Jesus and the unwavering love he has for me, the love he has for everyone, and the truth that he is ever present with us in good and hard times. He cleans out the trash of our hearts and minds and takes up residence in us. He walks with us and carries us through it all. The nail is back on my kitchen table where I can see it and remember this each day.
My last blog post was part of a series called “Falling into God’s Love.” This post today, which has come much later than I originally intended, was to be part of that series. It was to be on the theme “Think Good Things” based on the repeated phrase in my children’s book Zeke Can’t Sleep that says, “Stars and moonbeams shine tonight, hugs and kisses hold you tight, close your eyes, THINK GOOD THINGS, remember you’re loved, and dream sweet dreams. The Bible passage I chose that connects to the words, “think good things” is from Philippians 4:8:
“Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”
With all the things going on in the world, in my life, and in the lives of those I love, those words from Philippians have been a grounding truth. I’ve intended to write about this verse since January and for some reason haven’t found the right words to say even though I’ve been thinking about them a lot. It only took a nail to light a fire under me and get my fingers onto the keyboard.
One of the books I’ve been reading that centers on Philippians 4:8 is Present in Prayer by Jennifer Tucker. Each chapter contains a guided prayer and additional scripture that focuses on what is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, and admirable. I highly recommend this book as a way to start your day.
Below is an adaptation of a surrendering prayer I read in this book yesterday. It’s my prayer for each of us today:
May my pace be slow and unhurried,
Ever aware of Your presence with me.
May my mind be attentive and clear,
Noticing the gift of every moment.
May my heart be gentle and kind,
Showing compassion to myself and others.
Today, I confess my sins and lay down my shame.
I will rest in Your loving grace and forgiveness.
Keep turning my thoughts to whatever is true, honorable right, pure, lovely, and admirable.
Transform me to be more like you.
I pray these words bless you and give you some peace. I pray you find something today that reminds you of God’s presence and love.
Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” For me, it was a random nail, dropped from who knows where onto my table. I believe I would have found God today, nail or not, because of this promise in Jeremiah. I believe you will too.
Have a blessed day, seeking, and finding, and walking with Him.
Comments