Clearing the Water

There is an old saying that comes from the Tao de Ching that I love: "Muddy water left alone becomes clear." The more you think on this statement the more it will reveal to you.

What this says to me is that I need to live in the present, to be alive to the delights and guidance available to me now. I need to prepare for the future, but not let thoughts or worries about it consume me. I need to leave the things of the past to the Lord because He can heal that past.  But I can’t change a thing. The truth is that what has been, has been. It is done. Fretting about it accomplishes nothing good. Stewing and vexing over the past does nothing but cause unnecessary pain, and basking in the glory of it does nothing but make me vain and proud. Instead I need to let go of the past and spend my energy doing what is best right now.

When I live in the present I leave the muddy water alone so that the sediment sinks and I am left with clear water. And that’s what I want to live in; clear, clean water!