An Ox in the Barn

Proverbs 14:4, "Where no oxen are, the manger is clean, but much revenue comes by the strength of the ox."

Feel free to laugh when I tell you that this verse of Scripture jumped off the page at me during a few days of marathon "aunting". I got to have my 2 year old niece all to myself for about a week and I loved every second of it. I like a good mess when it comes to play time. She and I would wreck the place with toys, puzzles, and snacks; I would clean up while she napped and then again at bedtime. We stayed busy. Amazingly enough her tiny little clothes somehow amounted to five times the amount of the laundry I normally do, and we burned through more dishes than a high school cafeteria. But I am not complaining. As a matter of fact, I am pretty sure there were cartoon birds and Disney music playing every time I rinsed a soapy dish. Why? Because there was an ox in the barn.

A clean barn is an empty barn, but a farmer needs animals to succeed and build revenue. A farmer complains less often about the mess his ox makes when his thoughts are bent toward the blessing that the ox brings. Our homes can look like museums if we empty them of the messy lives that make them wonderful. Or we can fill them with family, guests, and noise and delight in the joy of the mess. I tease my best friend and her husband that they are physically incapable of putting empty cans in the trash or dirty cups in the kitchen. I have my suspicions that they are superheros in disguise and empty aluminum cans are their kryptonite. Do not tell them I said this, but I will let you in on a secret - it makes me smile when I clean it up. It makes me happy. I love being the host. I like the mess. They are part of a wonderful cast of characters that make life life.

I am so grateful for the barn full of people in my life. What a wonderful revenue of laughter, joy, and fun.