When Tomato Sauce Hits the Floor

It's been a wild day...and it's only 3:06 pm.  This morning, I woke up, fed the baby, welcomed my daycare child, got dressed, fed the baby, changed the baby, dressed the baby, put the baby to sleep, cleaned our room, scrubbed our bathroom, put away some laundry, fed the baby, changed the baby, loaded car seats, took three munchkins to the post office, mailed my Christmas cards, stopped at the ATM and met my hubby for lunch...with three munchkins.  That was all by 12pm.  You should stop and note here that in the above list you did NOT see "loaded and turned on crockpot" because, well, it didn't happen even though it should have. So, at 1pm, I went on a mad dash to get the crockpot loaded and turned on hoping that the dish that is supposed to cook on low for six hours will be just as good cooking on high for three hours.  This mad dash led me to a true moment.

While browning ground meat and measuring oregano, I began opening a can of tomato sauce.  I guess I misjudged my counter space because as the opener unlocked the last little bit of lid, the whole can fell over and spilled on the floor.  No wait.  It splattered on the floor.  Nope.  It exploded all over the floor, cabinet and drawers below.  Nice.  It looked pretty spiffy next to the whole diced onion I had dropped a few minutes before off the opposite counter.  And to make matters worse, as I went to clean it up, my phone rang with an important call from our foster/adopt agency that I have been waiting for since Friday.  I had to answer it. 

Twenty-five minutes later, I'm riding another roller coaster of emotion and trying to make sense of what-in-the-world is going on with this case now?!  I went to type a quick email to our caseworker and decided to leave a voicemail instead.  I contemplated sitting at my computer and screaming and decided against it so, I walked into the kitchen and saw that not only was there tomato sauce still EVERYWHERE, but the already tardy crockpot, had still not been turned on. 

I raced to get the final things in the pot (including a spare tomato sauce) and flipped the switch to high.  Now to tackle the spilled sauce, which by now has become BFF's with the floor and refuses to be separated with a simple paper towel.  This clean-up job required me to be on my hands and knees scrubbing.  I went all in and as I did, the emotional roller coaster from today's case drama decided to come racing to the surface.  I was on my knees, bowed down and...crying.  Then I heard sweet Holy Spirit say, "You're at my feet anyway.  Why don't you just lay it down?" 

In a swift second, I knew why the tomato sauce had spilled in the first place and I was wrecked.  I ended up laying down on the clean spot below me and crying my guts out to the Lord.  "Move Heaven and Earth, Lord.  Shift the heavenlies and the spiritual realm.  Protect my baby from harm.  But whatever you do, Lord, take this from me because I need you.  I'm laying it down, again."

There are most often times in my life that things spill on the floor, stuff hits the fan or I lose control and I use those situations as ammo for my anger, fear and rebellion.  And then there are days like today, when I find that Jesus will meet me in the place of my brokenness and need even if it's in the middle of an explosion of tomato sauce.  For His presence anywhere, I am so grateful.


To our amazing prayer partners, please continue to pray!  Cry out to the Lord on our baby girl's behalf and ask God to speak to each party involved for clear direction from Him.  Please pray for utmost protection for our baby girl and for a quick resolution to this case in her favor.  Pray against confusion and fear.  There is stuff happening and we KNOW that the Lord bends His ear to listen so we will pray as long as we have breath (Psalm 116:2) We are so thankful for your commitment to pray with us.