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Are You A High Maintenance
Christian?
By Eva Marie Everson
Do you know what it means to be “high maintenance?”
Some people say that being “high maintenance” means needing a lot of
money spent on them. “She’s so high maintenance,” Jeremy bemoaned. “If
I’m going to keep dating her, I’m going to have to rob a bank before
every weekend.”
Others say that if a person is high maintenance, they require a lot of
money in order to purchase all the finer things in life. “He’s so high
maintenance,” Kate said, pointing to her boss. “He can’t just drive a
car, it’s got to be a ‘Beemer’ and he can’t just wear a watch, it’s got
to be a Rolex.”
Still, other people say that (in particular) a woman is high
maintenance, if it takes a lot to get her ready for the day or
presentable for the public. Every hair has to be in place. Make-up
expertly applied. Nary a chip of polish on her perfectly groomed nails.
Clothes are high fashion and she’s label conscious. Shoes match both
outfit and purse, of course!
For some of us—and especially as time has marched on—it’s not that we’re
so much “high maintenance” as it is that it just takes that long to get
ready now!
Such is my life. I remember a time when I could wake up, take a shower,
throw on my makeup, style my hair, slip into some clothes and be in the
car, completely ready for work, in less than a half hour. Now…it takes
me that long just to reach the bathroom.
I stand under the spray of warm water and then adjust it a bit hotter
and turn my back to the pelting, hoping the heat will limber my muscles
a bit. I put on my makeup with the understanding that I must now wear
more to look as though I’m wearing less. As far as clothes go, what will
look good on me today is anybody’s guess. Does this make me look fat? I
ask the mirror. Too old? Too young? Do I even look like a woman?
I have determined that two hours is about what it takes these days to
get myself up and out of the house.
But there’s another side to all this. With age has come great wisdom
about what it means to take care of myself. As a young woman I could
flitter the hours away, never worrying about tomorrow. I could dress in
any old thing and look good, I could eat all I wanted and not gain a
pound, and I could take or leave exercise. But then I woke up one day
and I was an older woman who was in horrible shape.
But, as the old song goes, I actually enjoy being a girl. I like pretty
nails, my hair in place, clothes that fit. I like shoes and purses and
jewelry. I really like jewelry. I like looking good and feeling good and
smelling good. I like lipstick and eye shadow and mascara. I wouldn’t be
caught dead without moisturizer and foundation.
Furthermore, I like taking naps and walks and being taken on romantic
dates by my husband.
I’ll tell you something else I like. I like being the “Bride of Christ.”
I like being His girl.
But that requires a bit of “high maintenance” on my part, too. I cannot
take care of my spiritual body without understanding its needs. Like the
physical, the spiritual needs proper diet (the Word), exercise (prayer),
and water (fellowship with the brethren). The physical cannot survive
without those three components and neither can the spiritual.
So what are you doing about this in your own life? If you are a younger
woman who hasn’t quite caught on to the needs of your body…hold on,
honey. It’s coming. And believe me; you’d do better to start working on
it now. If you are a young believer (and I’m not talking chronological
age here), you’ll soon learn that without a steady diet of reading God’s
Word, spending time with Him in prayer, and spending time with
like-minded believers, your spiritual body will soon whither and die.
It’s that simple.
See? Being a high-maintenance Christian gal isn’t so “high maintenance”
after all.
Eva Marie Everson is the award-winning speaker and author of the
recently released Oasis: A Spa for Body and Soul. For more information
go to: www.EvaMarieEverson.com
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