Day 9 {fragments}

Okay now … you can be honest with me. Did you click on this post because of the unusual title? I hope you did!  I’m happy that you’re here reading my rambling thoughts on Day 9 of the 31 Day Writing Challenge hosted by Myquillyn Smith aka The Nester from the Nesting Place.

When I started praying about this Writing Challenge I really had no idea where to head with it – I mean there are so many topics that have already been beautifully covered and an incredible number of amazing bloggers writing far more capably than I ever could. Remember when I had to gather {courage} and where that courage was found? 

Looking around at what other people are doing can be terrifically inspiring … or in my case, completely intimidating. I found courage in the Word of God, knowing that I am a unique creation and thus I am able to write in my own way. I hoped that what I write during this challenge might be something to bless or encourage one of you. With that thought, I committed.

When I finally settled on the idea of {gathering} I made a list and one of the things that came to mind right away was the thought of gathering {fragments}.

fragment

[n. frag-muh nt]

noun

          1.     a part broken off or detached.

          2.     an isolated, unfinished, or incomplete part.

          3.     an odd piece, bit, or scrap.

verb 

          4.     to break (something) into pieces or fragments; cause to disintegrate.

          5.     to divide into fragments; disunify.

When The Historian and I were first married, we were given a helpful Mennonite cookbook called ‘The More -With- Less Cookbook’. Considering we were living in an old parsonage supported by a dwindling congregation, it was pretty important that I learn to make more with less! Quickly!

At the end of many of the sections there are helpful tips called ‘Gathering Up the Fragments’ and they opened my eyes to the idea of planned leftovers – making one meal last for many. My Mum was really good at this when I was growing up … I just never bothered to learn from her. People talk about the leftovers after Thanksgiving, but I started to think in terms of purposefully creating leftovers to ease the burden in the kitchen at every meal. Jen at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam often refers to C.O.S.T. cooking or Cook Once Serve Twice and she’s got several great posts on how it works for her.

But THIS post isn’t really just about food … it’s about ALL of the {fragments} we regularly gather together to make something whole, something amazing - something bigger than the sum of its parts.

God seems to be in the habit of gathering up what seems to be just bits and pieces and making them into something. He made the world from the Words of His mouth, Adam from the dust of the ground, and Eve from Adam’s spare rib. He puts a man and a woman together in a marriage relationship and a family is created. He used Elisha’s meager pantry provisions to feed 100 hungry men … and they ate until they were full and there were leftovers too (2 Kings 4:44). Jesus took a boy’s lunch in Matthew 14 and had his disciples pass it around to 5000 men and the women and children gathered there. You know the results – everyone had a nice full tummy … and there were leftovers once again.

{fragments} of this and that gathered together 

to meet a need.

Isn’t that something I can try to do too?

There’s an old saying that I heard often as a little girl:

‘Little is much when God is in it.’

I don’t know about you, but I can get really overwhelmed looking at the BIG PICTURE of my daily responsibilities. I’ve had to learn to break down an overwhelming task into bits and pieces and work on each {fragment} until it comes together - completed.

For example …

Each day I have {fragments} of time – I can fritter away that bit of time … or I can gather it up intentionally and pray for a friend, write a thank you note, read a chapter, listen attentively, give a backrub, tackle a load of laundry, sweep a floor, scrub a sink, cut some flowers, make a call, take a cat nap, watch the sun set, iron a shirt, sew a seam, clean off a counter, hug a teenager, drink a cup of tea with my girl, write an encouraging e-mail, read a Scripture verse, dust a bookcase or polish my hubby’s shoes. 

Sometimes I put off the simple things that I just don’t have TIME for … things that can really be done quite simply if I just gather those fragments of time and use them wisely.

The same is true for the {fragments} of energy, creativity, knowledge, and organization (ahem) 

that I’m blessed with each day.

‘Little is much when God is in it.’

I really want to be more intentional about gathering up the {fragments} of my days – not trying to shove more into each overflowing hour, but to use my days more thoughtfully. Weeding out the things that are not beneficial and using wisely the {fragments} of my days to bring glory to God and be a blessing to our family.

Have you ever kept track of the way you spend a day? What is your biggest time waster? How can you re-capture those {fragments} and make something beautiful out of them?