When
I was in my twenties, I read Zen and the
Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Persig. I had no interest in motorcycles
or Zen Buddhism. Yet, I found Persig’s style of finding meaning in mundane,
daily tasks intriguing. This book has greatly influenced the way I think.
Recently,
my husband was doing some routine maintenance on our lawn mower. I was just
assisting him—basically handing tools to him and observing from the side. He
siphoned off the old gasoline from the mower and put in new gasoline. He
explained that you have to do this every season, because the old gasoline
separates and clogs up the machine. Then he changed the oil and filter. He took
out the old, cruddy, black oil first, then changed the filter, and then put in
fresh clear oil. It was just another messy, mundane task, but it reminded me of
something else.
Lately,
I’ve been feeling like my spirit is being siphoned out of me.
I
can identify with this verse from the Psalms.
“They’ve
kicked me around ever since I was young, but they never could keep me down.”
(Psalm 129:1-4 MSG)
Lord, You keep
me going. You maintain me. You take out the crud and refill me with good. When
people and circumstances suck the human spirit out of me, You fill me with the
Holy Spirit.
___
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