Get Real

Tuesday night I hosted my Mom's Encounter Group at my house. Jeremy agreed to take the older kids out for some fun. I had this image of my guests arriving to my clean, quiet serene home where they smell yummy food and comforting candles, and hear worship music playing. Reality: I forgot to put my CD in until the guests had already begun to arrive, forgot the candles altogether, Libby had dumped 2 baskets of toys in the middle of the living room floor, and the best part was that Jeremy and the kids didn't leave until the ladies started getting there. The garage door was wide open, and we all know what most of our garages look like. And Sam was crying. I started to feel embarrassed and stressed, but then I sort of got tickled. I told the ladies, "This is real life." We had a great time. And nobody cared about any of that stuff. Probably an hour into the meeting,  there was a knock at the door and a friend let herself in. She was dressed in sweats and commented on the fact that she wasn't dressed for the meeting,  and brought no food, because she wasn't expecting to get to come. She ended up being able to drop in for an hour or so. She said she knew it was ok because we loved her. I just thought,  "You know, it isn't that my home and children are perfect,  or anyone else's in the group.  But we have love for each other." They will know us by our love for each other. Find yourself a group, small or large, doesn't matter. What matters is that you're real with them, and they're real with you. You can talk about the hard stuff. You can show each other grace. You can do life together. It's vital.