There are two electric irons in my house. One is old and has lost its battle to remain relevant in the world of clothing. You may be tempted to think I’ll b focusing on this iron, the many storms it may have witnessed; and how, after many falls, was still found useful. No, I am not. Instead, I’ll b talking about the relatively new, inexperienced iron. Its design is what draws me, beckons me to come and learn a few truths about my life as a Christian.
Looking at this iron, you may say, “well, this is an iron, nothing special about it”. But plug it into the socket and switch it on and let your lesson begin.
Immediately it is turned on, it gives off a light blue light and asks you to select the kind of fabric you want to iron. The colour then changes to suit the kind of fabric that is being ironed. The light is quite bright, and there is even a written notice of the kind of material the colour corresponds to. This has struck a chord with me, as it reminds me a lot about the different seasons we go through as Christians. Some of the colours look fun, others look boring, and one looks dangerous. But they all are the standard indicators and this can’t change. For example, the light blue colour denotes cotton, so this means to iron cotton, the colour indicator has to be light blue. So it is with us. If we are in a season where we need to learn patience, we cannot expect instant gratification for all the requests we tender to God. There is great work being done in our lives. God is ironing us; He wants to show us off to the world, and even if sometimes there is no clear sign of what season we are in in our lives, as long as we’re in God’s hands, we should always remember that we are more than just ok.
Also, though there are indicators to guide us in the best conditions to iron particular fabrics, this really doesn’t mean that we have to follow the rules. We can choose to use the polyester setting to iron linen. This doesn’t mean the linen won’t be ironed, but it may mean the linen won’t be well ironed, or the process would be more stressful. There is a reason there is guidance available to us from God. It is because He wants to guide us into making the best choices. In mcq exams where we are told to pick the best answer, this means there is more than one right answer, but then only one best answer. For best results in ironing linen, iron using red, which is linen’s indicator. For best results in our lives, we need to obey all that God says, not just the general idea of what He means, but in all its entirety.
Dare's Journal 