Seth Barnes Feb 19, 2006 7:00 PM

Confronting chaos

The natural state of things is to move toward chaos. That's entropy. Periodically in our house, my grip on the order of things begins to slip. Take th...

Subscribe


The natural state of things is to move toward chaos. That's entropy. Periodically in our house, my grip on the order of things begins to slip. Take this morning for example. One of our children flat-out lied to me. I said, "Did you clean your room, everything picked up off the floor?"

"Yes."

I could have sat there, but I went to look at the room. It was a disaster. Chaos had come and challenged me to a fistfight.

"You lied to me," I declared, and the fight was on.

Two other children in this home are also doing battle with chaos. Work that was promised to have been done is unfinished. Relationships are misfiring because of poor communication.

It's a call to arms. Monday morning you just want to nurse a little coffee and do something quiet. But when chaos comes slithering your way and begins to slime you and those you love, it's time for the lion in you to rise up and roar.*

Genesis tells us that in the beginning, God hovered over the chaos. It felt his weight. He is the order-bringer and, amazingly, we are made in his image. We must hover over the chaos in our lives and let it feel our weight. We are order-bringers. There is a lion inside you waiting to be uncaged. You may feel weak and overwhelmed by it all. Stop playing defense! Go on the offense. Bring truth where lies have set up shop in your life and the lives of those you love. Bring consequences for wrong behavior. Confront chaos!

---------

*A caveat: This is not a license for control-freaks to run amok either. Everything in love.

Comments


Comment created and will be displayed once approved.

Related Blogs

The fruit of men getting away from it all

The fruit of men getting away from it all

We all need to get away to see our lives in context and to get God's help in the...

By Seth Barnes
When chaos attacks, fight back!

When chaos attacks, fight back!

               ...

By Seth Barnes
The Hunger Games and you

The Hunger Games and you

In my household, I can't ignore The Hunger Games. My five girls (including Karen...

By Seth Barnes

Related Races (3)

Nepal | Alumni | August 2026

Nepal | Alumni | August 2026

Gap Year | 9 Months | August 2026

Gap Year | 9 Months | August 2026

Alumni 10/40 Spring 2026 - Central Asia

Alumni 10/40 Spring 2026 - Central Asia

Next article

Killing Christians

Our AI generated post content for you!

Here's a suggested caption you can copy and tweak.