A Fluff and a Buff, Please

Work was over, if that is what you could call it. The day had been wild. Laughter was rolling around the room faster than the tears were able to roll down our cheeks. It felt good to be goofy as it helped to relieve any tensions deep down inside. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end and it was time to come home and prepare for class at the church. Between the journeys from work to my class a dent was put in my spirit due to the things going on at home. Hesitating for a moment to assess the damage, I thought for sure I was fit enough to go on to class.

Wearing my “feelings on my shoulder” as I remained shook up from the recent dent I got in my spirit; it didn’t take much to make me “dent-shy,” if Webster will forgive me. It reminded me of the time I was hit by a drunk driver. For a long time afterwards the slightest movement made me jump. One day as a friend of my daughter’s was riding with me she stated, “Boy you can tell she was recently in a wreck.”

Sure enough, not to anyone’s fault emotionally it was easy to tell I was acting a little “dent-shy” as I didn’t want to be hurt again. All it took was one comment from someone in my class to make me crumble against the affects of my first dent that evening. I felt as if I was beyond being able to shine again to the point where no amount of fluffing or buffing could put my spirit back to where it needed to be.

In the midst of my pain God reminded me of the time prior to my second brain surgery. One day at my parents’ ranch I stood near the cattle in the field wondering what was in store just days ahead when my surgery was scheduled. Nervously I began to cry, and then I stopped myself, thinking I’m not going to waste any prayers. The same holds true 10 years after my surgery, “I’m not going to waste any prayers. I am not going to let God’s work come back useless,” I thought to myself.  I knew in my heart God had done a lot of spiritual body work in me mixed with the many prayers sent ahead on my behalf. Both were fluffed and buffed together with the price Christ had to pay for me to be a free woman, not one bound by the trials in life. All of which were things not to be wasted.

To some within the church I must have looked like an emotional wreck being brought in on a weekly basis via a tow truck. Surprisingly enough at the time we had just that, a red and white tow truck that came to church each Sunday. Thinking about that I began to chuckle as I thought about how the tow-truck of life is there to bring us to church for repair not to take us away. We need to have the attitude that we will not allow God’s work to be useless, permitting ourselves to be something that’s good for only parts whenever needed.

To me over the years the church had served as my “spiritual body shop.” It was a place to go to get the dings out, a new paint job, redone, refreshed, re-fixed, refueled, “A fluff and a buff if you would please.” I knew in my heart the only person who can tag me “totaled” was myself. One day God’s going to lovingly reach down from heaven with a big grin on His face with a sign that says “total” as in “complete,” not “totaled” as a wreck.

Until then we need to hold on to the promise Hebrew 4:16 gives us when it tells us, “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive His mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it.” We don’t have to be ashamed of our dents. We don’t have to get the dents out first. We don’t have to do it alone. We can do it today and any day with God’s help. Once completed, oh what a shine as His glory serves as our new paint job reflecting His love, grace, and mercy.

“A fluff and a buff, please.” A fluff and a buff.

Copyright 2000 Karen J Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipe Publishing