Spectacular

Spectacular.



That word has been floating around in my head for a few months now.



The slight obsession with this word began a while back when I wrote a note in my prayer journal about a desire for our family to be useful, dynamic, and overall spectacular. Pretty reasonable request, huh?

I am not quite sure what I mean by these adjectives, because some days I consider us to be pretty spectacular if we accomplish a Target run without anyone melting down in the aisle or licking the shopping cart haphazardly. Other days I feel some type of calling for our family to "do" rather than just "be". Does that make sense or am I just a rambling mess today?



Recently I viewed a commercial...for what exactly I can no longer remember...in which someone proclaimed in that advertisement, "I just want to be spectacular."



Again, the word came back to me, voiced in a similar train of thought. The word is there. The exact definition of the word when applied to my life has yet to be discovered.



This week I finished Beth Moore's study of Esther. It is an excellent bible study full of hilarious banter, biblical wisdom, scripture-rich teaching, and a few fabulous pieces of clothing from Anthropologie. In case you haven't brushed up on your Esther reading lately (you should...it is only ten chapters), the basic storyline involves an orphaned Jewish girl who happens to become Queen and eventually ends up saving the Jewish people from complete annihilation, the same Jewish people who just happen to be of the lineage from which Jesus is born.

Esther 4:14 reads, "...and who knows but that you (meaning Esther) have come to royal position for such a time as this?"

Pretty spectacular that Esther found herself wearing the royal crown and being placed in such a position that she...a young, orphaned female... was able to save millions of people.

The story of Esther is empowering to women, it is a bit romantic, and it leaves us with that warm and fuzzy notion that God has a plan for our lives. Yet it leaves me a bit stuck in the mud and a tad perplexed.

I love and hate the notion that God has a plan for everyone's life. I relish in the fact that the Lord holds me in His hand (Psalm 16:5), but I cringe everytime someone casually throws out the phrase "God has a plan for you." as a form of encouragement. Such a notion can hold an incredible amount of promise yet mean so little when placed in a certain context.

I am perplexed about the plan aspect of this concept, probably because I am such a planner myself.

Is this plan a one-time accomplishment, a long-term series of events, a lifestyle choice, or an "all of the above" option?

So, yeah, I am praying for our little family of four to be spectacular, regardless of the fact that I really do not even know what that means. I am attempting to understand exactly what the plan is and how it relates to the path I find myself on daily. I am looking for ways to "do" with my life rather than simple "be."

Anyone have an answer, an "Amen", or a simple nod of understanding on this thought?