I worked in retail for years. The best part of my job was the creative outlet it provided. I am creative and need an outlet. I must create. It's my thing. I always loved shipment day. To open those boxes and see all of the new sweater sets and spring merchandise was just more than this girl could handle. Shortly thereafter I would get a vision. I loved turning the store upside down, changing the store set as well as creating new pause points and t-stands. Not to mention switching out the front feature table and creating a major floor move. Now keep in mind that the company only sent directives for a new store set once a month. But I think my amazing, real life friend Kellie can give you a very loud "Amen" here that we were creating floor moves once a week or more. We also had something called "Sunday Night Store Set", the only night of the week the store closed early so we could freshen things up a bit! We were witnesses to how things would just fly out of the store and off the shelves as soon as we did something new. We could take shirts that were not selling and move them to the front of the store and style them in a new way and would sell out completely. We could move around suits and dresses and crisp white cotton shirts, put jeans and t-shirts with pearl necklaces on t-stands and move cashmere sweaters to another table and it felt like we had a new store. Our sales would sky rocket and things that weren't previously selling were suddenly selling like hot cakes! In this case-change was a good thing. It was to increase sales and to keep the store from looking stale and boring. I was never afraid to put the sleeveless dresses out front in the middle of February or to display a pink sweater set in December. I just loved to have everything fresh , new and looking really beautiful.
So today, this ex- retail girl still uses those same skills. Only I use them in my home. Yes. I still create "Sunday Night Store Set" only it's in my home. Remember me telling you that I need an outlet? Yes. Almost every Sunday night I change the furniture around in my home. You can take it to bank. If you come by for a visit- the table where we last had coffee together could very well be in the nursery by now. It depends on how many weeks have gone by. Oh yes, just in case you were wondering- my husband has put up with this for years. Mr. Pearls and Grace is in agreement and will cheerfully and sometimes not so cheerfully shimmy a table up several flight of stairs to help with my need to create or give a few visual directives. The man is a saint. I have even moved furniture around by myself while I was pregnant. Even 7, 8 and 9 months pregnant- every pregnancy. I love it. I change out the area by the front door sometimes even twice a week. And I love to have seasonally appropriate decor on that table! I move mirrors and lamps and tables and dressers and couches and any and everything. I do not follow any rules and do not care what other people think- so my creativity is always in full swing. However, when we have visitors, sometimes the very first thing they say is "Where is the table that was in the kitchen?" "What happened to the ottoman ?" They know that I create and that I am constantly changing things, but they are still looking for what used to be. Others come in and say "Ooooh, nice floor move!" I just love it. I am shocked at the folks that say their furniture has been in the same spot for years! Come on. Let's move some things around......
But what about God? Did you know that God creates floor moves? He does. And when He does we can find ourselves looking for the thing that used to be and He is trying to give us something brand new. It is human nature to dislike change. We get comfortable. We like routines. We do not like surprises- especially when it comes to a cut in our finances. We want the familiar. We cling to it and wear it proudly. We can expect that pay check to come every week or every month. But what if it stops coming? What if suddenly we find ourselves unemployed. Without a pay check. Without insurance. Without any help from anyone. What if God allowed this to happen in our lives? What if you received a transfer and had to sell your home- in this market? What if you were transferred overseas? Where is God in life changes like this? As I continue to grow and mature in the Lord there is one thing I have noticed about Him. God loves a good floor move. He loves to bring about change. He loves to allow certain things in our lives. Not to harm us. Not to cause suffering. But to help us or sometimes to force us to grow, develop and change. He brings about these floor moves and turns our world upside down so that we could possibly see Him in a new way. So that we could see God in a different area in our lives. He wants us to know Him in every way. That has been extremely hard for me to learn. I had a view of God that if He loved me- then why would He allow this or that to happen? If you love me then why would you allow this level of suffering? If you love me then why would my husband lose his job? If you love me why did I have another miscarriage? If you love me then why was I betrayed by family members? If you love me God why is this relationship so broken? It has been a hard lesson for me. But as I have spent more time with Him and have come to know Him in knew ways, it is never more clear to me than now, that above all else, He has the master plan. He holds the big book of visual directives.
On more than one occasion- read many, I have offered my creative abilities up to God in this department. I have made multiple suggestions to my personal Chief Imagination Officer and most often- he completely ignores my ideas. His ways are not our ways after all. He always knows what is best for us, regardless of what the situation is. Regardless of whether or not it seems fair. Regardless of whether it hurts like nothing we have ever experienced before. His word says that He will use every single thing for our good and for His glory. I am sure that each one of us could sit down and write out a list of "Why God?" questions. I think if He could write us back He may simply write these two words. Floor Move.
What does that mean? Quite simply it means that sometimes the only way He can get us out of the dark ages and into the light is by moving things around in our life. The only way some of us will ever come to know Him is if He uproots our entire life and shakes everything we call comfort and familiar and favorite. It means that there will be times that He doesn't answer when we expect Him to or how we expect Him to. I know for me personally, the past two years have brought about more change and more uncertainty than I could handle. It was more than I could bear- or so I thought. It was during those times of desperation that I have grown closer to Him and relied completely and totally upon Him in new ways. There was no help or support from others-He was it for our family. Those "floor moves" in my life brought me to my knees- in brokenness and sorrow- which in turn allowed Him to set my feet on solid ground. His ground. What a blessing it has been to endure two years of personal floor moves and come out better off for it. I am forever grateful.
So today, if things begin to move in your life. If things begin to change, or if everything just begins to fall apart at the seams- know that the Master has you in the palm of His hand and He is just getting you ready for the spring floor move.....
"You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest regions, and said to you, you are my servant. I have chosen you and have not cast you away; Fear not, for I AM with you; Be not dismayed, for I AM your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous hand." - Isaiah 41: 9-10