The Dance and the Pole

Do you ever struggle with feeling inadequate? I will admit that I do from time to time, and it seems the inadequate feelings always attack my parenting. I watch other moms drive their kids here and there and wonder if I have my kids involved in enough extra curricular activities. I see patient moms gently explain things to their children after I’ve just lost it with my own. I hear of moms giving up everything to homeschool their children and wonder why the mere though of homeschooling my own children sends chills down my spine. And the list goes on.

Recently, God taught me a very important lesson in quite a humorous way. Among the many toys in our backyard is a tetherball pole, however, through much weathering over the winter, the ball deflated and eventually fell off, so all that’s left is a pole. A few weeks ago I was doing dishes and glanced out the window to find my youngest daughter dressed in her fancy dress up clothes, an old pair of my sling back, high-healed shoes, and, well, she was dancing around the pole.

My mind raced forward 10 years as visions of nightclubs came to mind. I vaguely remember yelling, “How does my seven-year-old know how to pole dance?” I threw down my dishtowel and ran to the backyard as fast as I could. I could feel the horrified look on my face start to melt away as shock turned to laughter. What I failed to see from the kitchen window was that my daughter was listening to an iPod and belting out the song “Come to Jesus,” as she twirled around the pole.

A HUGE sigh of relief came over me. What looked like a very inappropriate situation was really very innocent. She was having her own quiet time with God that happened to involve dress-up clothes and a pole. No worries, right? “I’m still a good mom, I’m still a good mom…..”

I think the church in Philippi experienced similar situations as they grew in their faith. I’m sure on many occasions they looked around at other saints and felt feelings of inadequacy. Though they knew in their heads that they were a new creation in Christ, and that their former lives had passed away, they still wondered if they were good people.

In steps Paul with his words of affirmation. “…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6.

It is often difficult, if not impossible, to see a good work when all we notice is our inadequacies, but today I want you to personally grasp the encouraging truth Paul states. Whether you are seven or seventy-seven; whether you are a mom trying to teach your children righteousness, or you are a child learning to find truth in a world that often tells lies; you who are Christ-followers are a work in progress—a good work in progress.