The next topic in the book is “Clear the decks” and starts with the chapter “God is not disorganized – Why are you?” It starts with a reference to some research group that says we waste six weeks a year looking for our own stuff. Six weeks is a long time, so I am not sure I believe them. If we sleep for seventeen weeks and look for stuff for six weeks, that only leaves a little over a year to eat, exercise, and at some point, we have no time left to do anything.
The clear the decks reference comes from a story about a sailor who did not put up his equipment correctly, just before the shooting started. The guy survived but was not a pretty sight. While reading the chapter, the author made a reference that I was compelled to look up. The phrasing made it seem a clear reference to needing to have all your stuff in the right place. I checked with my handy four version Bible and found the phrasing was not consistently followed and its use was almost a false teaching.
But the chapter itself makes use of the whole historical application of the Bible as providing ever improving order to the life of God’s chosen people. I found it a wonderful assessment and thought about chasing the rabbit of how God is continuing to improve the order of our lives as we discover more and delve deeper into technology. But I doubt I can chase it far enough to be of value.
The author states that there should be discipline and order in our lives and we are not to live in a mess or work amid chaos. I sat with little d talking about learning instruments and how hard school needed to be and we eventually got around to why do people even live and why did they not just go straight to heaven. In a roundabout way, I told her that without experiencing the chaos that we have been saved from, we would not appreciate the order that God provides in heaven for the enormity of the greatness that it is.
As I went through the chapter again this morning, I saw the relative order with which I now keep my desk. In days past I had stacks in which I thought I knew where everything was. I am more organized now, but I probably only think I know where everything is. I still find that sometimes I forget where I filed something and spend what seems like forever tracking something down that was filed “properly” but not in a way I could remember.
One of the parts I liked most about the chapter was the line that organization provides a structure for creativity, risk, experimentation, vibrancy, and improvisation. Each of these topics is its own little rabbit trail, but one of the funny things about creativity and innovation is that sometimes when one comes up with a solution, they do not realize its value because they are so unorganized, everything accomplished is “wonder”. The phrase “necessity is the mother of all invention” rings true, but it is not always. The guys that invented post it notes were doing something entirely different and only discovered post it notes by adding up two failures.
Another life example the book uses is the question: ”Did you make your bed today?” The concept is that making your bed each day is a first of the accomplishment and can be encouraging you to achieve more. I do not make my bed. I pray first and accomplishing that starts my day out right. Still being asleep when I leave bed and having not prayed first does not ever seem to start of a great day. I have never felt encouraged by having to pull apart the covers to fall into bed at the end of the day, but we are all different.
Another aspect of making your bed is the opportunity to learn that little things matter. If you cannot do the little things, how can you do the big things? This follows the aspect of if you do everything as if for the Lord, then you should be doing it all really well. I am beginning to feel the author is cramming too much into one chapter, but he sells books and I blog for free.
Lastly, we feel better when organized and living neatly. I believe this. I don’t really live to feel better as we have so much opportunity to have adversity living for Christ, but things that make me feel better just might get done a little sooner than things that do not.