Recently I have begun amping up my work around the house. That’s right, handyman Adam stories are sure to follow. There are no major improvements to be done, nothing collapsing or caving, just some paint here or there and some cleaning. The funny thing is that it took someone else coming and giving my house a good “once over” for me to even notice some of the things that needed attention.
Why?
Because, I am there every day and my home is very familiar to me. The little things that happen over time don’t catch my attention. I see them every day and I lose my attention to details.
My attention to details.
This is true of my house, but it made me think and then I crossed my mind again as I was reading today. What other things am I looking past just because they are familiar to me? What details am I missing because they are so familiar to me?
If I think of my family, I see them every day. Sadly, as I began to think, there are certainly times of neglect. Much like my house, there aren’t any situations that are collapsing or caving, but if I do not pay attention and care for the minor improvements it would certainly seem that a major improvement may be on the horizon.
Who really wants there to be a need for a major improvement in our family? Don’t we want to avoid major breakdowns if at all possible? Certainly there are some that are out of our control, but many can be avoided by investing some time before things get out of hand.
I could go on and on, but the point has been made.
I mentioned this idea crossed my mind as I was reading today. I feel I have been reeling a bit lately, and it all seemed to culminate with an event this weekend that left me more than unimpressed with myself. I decided to go back to some basics and read some material that I often turn to.
Once again, the familiar things.
Familiarity isn’t bad as long as we do not lose focus, which is one of my glaring weaknesses.
One of the materials I was reading was the book of John. In chapter two of John the well known story of Jesus turning water into wine is recorded. I kind of blew through it…why?
Because I knew it.
Something struck me, and it seemed as though I should go back and try it again. As I went back, I tried to envision the whole event.
Water…to wine.
To me it is so familiar, so known, so …I don’t know…surreal?
I know it so well that it isn’t real anymore?
I don’t know if that is exactly what I want to communicate, but that story, that true story, has become so familiar that it has lost its miraculous wonderment on me. I had to stop and rethink how miraculous that actually was. For one thing, to see it happen, then to understand what happened molecularly in those huge jugs of water as they turned into wine.
I began breaking it down in my mind as He raced with me down the pathway of enlightened understanding. This simple miracle that has become some commonplace to me was, and still is, a phenomenal event that has often gotten lost on me.
So, what has become a little too familiar to you? Family, friends, and the truths that we hold so dear are often times the victims of familiarity and from familiarity, neglect. Today, I encourage you to take some time to reassess and think about the people around you … and get unfamiliar with them, rediscover, explore, and truly reunite with them.
