The Best & Worst Part- Uncovered

My favorite part of RV life is also my least favorite part---Nothing is hidden. You can’t hide from the people around you. No going to the bathroom with any sort of modesty. No phone calls without a chorus in the background. You can’t hide your flaws either. They are on full display, sunlight accentuating every detail, non-visible ones too. The kind that you tried to cover up with busyness or justifications in the past is now entirely uncovered without any possible excuses. “My sins are ever before me.” (Psalm 51)

When I was “busy” in a scheduled lifestyle, I was blind to what I was actually prioritizing. But now I’m raw, stripped, and vulnerable in the best and worst kind of way. I can see what matters most based on what irritates me most. No longer can I blame something or someone else for my frustrations. I can't rush to the next activity or compare my rights with my schedule or limitations, so I simply blame others.

"Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account." (Hebrews 4:13) When we have nowhere to hide, we can hide nothing. We are uncovered and transformed into the best kind of clay—the kind that molds in any direction under any temperature changes or atmospheric pressures. 

For example, I’ve never had trouble getting up in the morning. Never in my life has the snooze button been a temptation. But that's how the enemy functions, through unexpected deception and pride. I don't want to be seen, and I don't want to wake anyone, so I justify staying in bed. However, another first happens-- I miraculously fall back asleep by the comfort and cover of darkness—my only place of privacy. 

If I were to exit my cold dark bliss, I may face either little feet making noises inside, or biting, swarming insects outside. As such, I decide to turn over and rest in my nice warm bed. The demands of the world do not exist in this chapter of my life, but the sins still do. I get equally as frustrated when I finally rise to a cacophony of little boys.

Without rising early, sitting in total darkness with a light to illuminate the words of my Bible, I will be seen for the sinner that I really am--angry and accusatory. My favorite part of the day has been affected once again. My intimacy with God--the quiet time that revitalizes my soul--must now be learned in the most crowded of corners. Yet, if it is really a priority, why have I made such justifications? Conviction is a great catalyst for change if you let it have its way with you.

Since I cannot block out noise, I realize that the problem generates from my own inability to wake up sooner and face the darkness without comfort. No easy chair. No plush blankets. No comfortable couch with a cup of coffee. Only stiff darkness in solitude. 

I imagine prison inmates feel this same sense of exposure. It is in the cells without secrecy where we find God’s presence everywhere. We could never escape Him before, but the cell makes our sin more visible, and His gracious presence more available. 

I love how this basic exposure highlights my choices so that all the stirring in my heart can’t help by prioritize my intimacy with God. It is on display for Him alone.

Open your heart to heed His calling. A calling to rise early and sit entirely on display for the perfect Potter to shape in any way He chooses. Even in the most uncomfortable of positions-- a cold, dark cell--and you will settle your soul.

God's glory was on full display in Alaska these past 6 weeks! I'm so grateful for the chance to glimpse the 49th state! Even with the hard moments and long drives, it was all worth it!

~Uncovered Carefully and Carelessly