33

Everyone wants a revolution. No one wants to do the dishes. ‘I was, and remain, a Christian who longs for revolution, for things to be made new and whole in beautiful and big ways. But what I am slowly seeing is that you can’t get to the revolution without learning to do the dishes. The kind of spiritual life and disciplines needed to sustain the Christian life are quiet, repetitive, and ordinary. I often want to skip the boring, daily stuff to get to the thrill of an edgy faith. But it’s in the dailiness of the Christian life—the making the bed, the doing the dishes, the praying for our enemies, the reading the Bible, the quiet, the small—that God’s transformation takes root and grows. - Tish Harrison Warren

I came across this quote months ago scrolling through Instagram and it made me pause. I thought to myself, yes! why does no one ever do the dishes? More specifically, why don’t the kids ever do the dishes? It was one of those days… Actually, who am I kidding… those days occur often in our home where I felt the daily drain of doing the repetitive, mundane tasks of running a household. But coming across this quote gave me pause. It was just the encouragement I needed and it helped me to move on and forward with joy. Now the question stands, how do I pass this joy on and how do I encourage the kids to have the same attitude?

Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Romans 12:10-12

I printed, laminated and hung this on our fridge, highlighting the words outdo and seek. I preach this to the kids, sure, but it’s more a sermon to myself. The longer I find myself in this role of authority over adolescent teens (as well as my 4-year-old), the more I realize that I have to be able to walk the talk before anything takes shape. I don’t think I’m the first to say that this is harder to say than to actually do. We are so selfish, aren’t we? We’re always thinking about ourselves. What about me? Why me? Does it not matter what I think, want, feel, need?

The last few years (2021, 2019) have been some pretty dark years…. reading back on those words of mine I can already think to myself, “Oh Dorothy…” and writing this now I get emotional because I see how faithful God has been to me. There have been a handful of my friends who have turned 33 before me… and I have often referred to this number as the Jesus year—the age he was when he was crucified. I think about what he must’ve endured in those years of life and why he had to go so young? How much more could he have done? But then he was crushed for our iniquities, he was despised and rejected by mankind, he bore my shame so that I could live (Isaiah 53, one of my favorite passages). He has gone through every single thing I’ve thought and more. So, how lucky I am to have this life… I think I’m just barely beginning to get it.

Most of us want something great of our lives. We want to leave a mark. We want to be remembered. I recall my earliest days of motherhood, I struggled with the title of just mom. I wanted more, to be doing more, to be known for more... and now as the daily demands more from me, I find myself longing for less. Oh, how fickle we are as humans… and how God knows us so much more than we know ourselves. We were always meant for less. Less busy. Less distractions. Less stuff. So that’s I’m hoping for as I approach my mid-30’s. More quiet. More simple. More time to write (fingers crossed!) and read. More time with my husband, with my friends, with the kids. More of Jesus.