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Even a sunshiny day has its cloudy spots. Life is sure like that, sometimes it seems that we have the same old trials spotting up our happy days…and it’s up to us to choose how to react. By God’s grace we don’t have to slug around in the shadows!
Today started out slow for us, with me feeling typically behind after “losing a school day” yesterday. Tuesday was a crazy busy day away from home…picnicking at the zoo, running errands in the “big” city, delivering a meal to a good friend who just had a baby boy (!), and barely making two meetings at church. The girls and I rushed home at 9:30 pm, head-achey and starving, threw a pizza in the oven and commenced to carting in all our “stuff”, coolers of perishables I’d bought, bags of other grocery items…by that point I didn’t want to even eat supper I was feeling so nauseous. But I slept great!
And I slept in…putting me further behind. Woke up to some discouraging news of the financial variety and you know what? God has shown me over and over again that nothing is TOO big for Him. But I’m human, and venting is part of the process. Fortunately for my kids, my house took the brunt. I cleaned all morning like a mad woman breaking only to supervise school and start on lunch. All the messy spots that remained from my bout with poison sumac are washed away…and something about all that homemaking rooted down deep within me and God brought peace to my heart.
It’s like, the sky can be falling in, but I am a mother and a wife and a woman, and these things are my heart–the things that matter–they surround me. My family and my home. I may not be able to change any outside circumstances, but I can whip my household into submission and be better for it!
I even got industrious about supper–thawed some cubed steaks, beat the tarnation out of them with my meat mallet, breaded them and fixed them up for smothered steaks tonight! Which reminds me, I have a pot full of potatoes boiling that needs checking…
Once my youngest was down for her afternoon nap, the older girls and I got out our devotional book and our Bibles and had a great quiet time…which progressed to reading a chapter in our Health book, and then assembling our spelling notebooks and filling in one of the spelling rule pages…we even had an hours worth of fun with our Botany, playing Taxonomy with shoes! Didn’t get all the subjects covered, but we had a wonderful time together, no sour faces about school today!
Around five o’clock, we headed outside to clean out the chicken’s brooding boxes and refill them with fresh wood shavings…collected ten cucumbers from the garden from which the girls chose a couple, hosed them off and munched them gone. Mmm!
For a day that started out sluggish-turned-panicky, I feel real peace and happiness right now.
I just shared one of my favorite verses with a good friend yesterday, and God knew I’d need it today. Maybe it would bless you as well.
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 (italics mine)
So next time you’re hit with something unexpected, try to turn it over immediately to Him…with thanksgiving! And don’t be surprised at the peace that eventually follows.
It’ll be okay.
Great post and great Bible verse! Tuesday was “one of those days” for us too!
Thanks for the pick me up this morning. I needed it! Yesterday was a day I fell into bed with tears. It just all got to me. Today will be better…with God’s grace.
I really needed to hear those encouraging words Mary, thank you.
I have to admit my faith is being challenged and I know that He loves me and I know that He is faithful, but it is so hard when their is a constant reminder.
Anyhoo, sorry for babbling on…glad you are doing well.
Leticia’s last blog post..RADICAL ISLAM TARGETS CHRISTIANS
That is a great way to make lemonade out of lemonade!
Giving it to God is the only real solution–I don’t know why it’s not always my first response.
Jessica’s last blog post..1 month old
Colleen, you too? Funny how a bunch of good things can “bunch” together and wipe you out! Glad you got something out of this post.
Jana, I’m so sorry. Days like that are good to bid farewell! Is today going better? Prayers and hugs, right this minute! (Guess what? I got in on last night’s Focus on the Family, with Tommy Nelson! Thanks for the head’s up!)
Leticia, you call that babbling on? You didn’t share nearly enough. I’m so sorry…I know you face tough trials on a regular basis, it would be enough to wear anyone down. When the external pressures are overwhelming, that’s when you need an extra dose of time with God. Even just memorizing this verse in Philippians and getting in the habit of bringing it to mind the minute discouraging things happen. That’s using the “sword of the spirit”…our arsenal is the Bible! Love ya, praying for you!
Love that, Jessica, lemonade indeed! Life is like a pitcher of lemons, sugar and water. It’s what you do with it that makes it easy or hard to swallow!
Hey, would you all keep Amy Melton in your prayers? She just lost her baby, at 7.5 months along. A beautiful baby girl, Sarah Elizabeth. You can visit her weblog at melton.wordpress.com
Thanks!
I’ll definitely keep her in our prayers!
Than you, Colleen!
Wow, the 2oth must have been universally difficult. I had 2 major financial bummers and 2 health issues, one my 15 year old daughter, and one for me. I thought I’d need to hurry and get a mammogram, but spoke to a dear friend and I made an appointment for a thermogram next week instead. Could I really be having problems after nursing 10 kids??? Anyways, do any of you know about thermography as opposed to x-rays? Any experiences? I’m learning a bit from the internet, but mostly going with a gut feeling that I’d never want a mammo…
But thank you for this post, it was encouraging and made me remember God is still God. And… there are things around here that if organized or cleaned would definitely bring some home peace. That’s something I have some control over.
Thank you.
It’s those days and times when we are weakest that He is strong. But we could all learn from you to keep a correct perspective– one that’s focused on Him.
Thanks for sharing what’s going on in your day. Are finances trending better or worse?
Oh Cena, I’m so sorry–your 20th sounded infinitely worse than mine. Health tests are much scarier to me than financial tests, to have both at once…I hope things evened out. I’ve never heard of thermography tests! But I hope you will share more…I share your desire to avoid mammograms! Keep me updated, okay?
MIn, things on the financial horizon are the same. But one of most looming of the problems has been put off for now. Thankfully! Thanks for asking!
WOW! God works in mysterious ways. I have been feeling very sad in the last few weeks. A friend dropped off a ton of cucumbers and I figured I would do the cinnimon cukes my grandmother used to can. So I jumped on the internet to see if I could find the recipe and I found it on your site! Then I thought…what a nice web site…I think I will put it in my favorites for the future. Maybe I will take a moment and read so more….and I found this! It made me feel better. Remembering God is in charge. I am a mother of 7, and at 46 years old figured my child bearing years were over (my youngest is almost 10 yrs.) and my husband and I were shocked, and delighted to find I was expecting. Unfortunately the happiness followed quickly by sadness as I miscarriage last weekend. The worse part was my doctor informed me 2 months ago that the baby was no longer “viable”. We prayed, and with my hcg beta numbers rising, (much to the docotors surprise, and could not figure out why) we all had great hope. But it was not to be. So I am missing the little one we lost. Sad about the 20 lbs. I gained (yikes!) and just plain not having a good day! So thanks for cheering me up! Now I will go and start those pickles.
Dear Becky~I’m so sorry about your lost baby. And the bad day. I sure feel for you. ((hugs))
I have another blog friend that just lost her unborn baby girl at 7.5 months. It’s so hard to not mourn the whys and just *trust* as you ache your way through it and normal life keeps happening, doesn’t it?
You really bless me in sharing how God brought you here! That is amazing! I’m so glad He spoke to you through this post. His words are so powerful, this verse in Philippians has quieted my heart on so many occasions. It’s a great one to memorize and bring to mind often. I’m praying right now that God blesses you and your husband with peace to accept this situation, grace and mercy as you move through it…do you think you’ll try for another child?
I hope you come back, and enjoy those cinnamon cukes! 😉
Hugs,
Mary