Some of Life's Lessons
To my dear readers, I apologize that I have had nothing to say for the last few weeks. The fact is, I feel as though God wanted to me keep my mouth shut for awhile, which is what I've done. Today, I am opening my mouth again, and I want to share with you a few of the ups and downs I've experienced and some of the surprises and blessings we've received from the Lord.
God provides: Like many others, my husband and I have struggled financially in the last year or so. We've watched the price of everything increase, while our income has been shrinking. At the same time, all our efforts to put a quick fix on the situation have failed. What have we learned? Whether rich or poor, we trust the Lord. God provides even when we cannot. It has been tough, but there has been a blessing in this--more than once we've seen God provide "not too early, and not too late, but just on time."
God protects: While driving down a two-lane country road last week, we crested a hill and came upon a pickup truck that was stopped halfway in our lane and halfway off the right side of the road. The driver's door was wide open, and the driver was hanging out trying to pick up something in the road. Seeing the left lane was completely open, I proceeded to pass the pick up truck. Just as I caught up to him, he popped back in the truck, slammed the door and began driving.
Next thing I know he is turning left in front of me. I had no where to go but into the side of his truck or off the left side of the road. I choose off the road. I slammed on my breaks and my van slid through grass about forty feet knocking down a road sign and bouncing over clumps of wet grass and weeds. The car finally stopped just before plunging down the hill straight into a fence where a herd of cows stood chewing their cud and staring at my van as if it were a space ship from Mars. Miraculously, I wasn't hurt, my children weren't hurt, and we drove away with nothing more than a small dent and long scratch on the front fender to remind us what had happened. The night before, my youngest daughter and I had specifically prayed for God's protection on that trip.
God Reigns: One of the worst parts of being a landlord is that from time to time I have to evict someone. The most recent eviction escalated into something just short of a nightmare. From the time the tenants moved in (not long ago) and up until, they have given me and my husband nothing but grief. While I won't go into circumstances, the whole thing has made me wonder if there is such a thing as justice left in this world. Last week when I was stressing over the fact that I have no control over the situation, the Lord reminded me that He is in control, not me. I have to let go. The blessing? While the law says I can't rent the space, the tenants who were causing all the grief have left, because the power company turned off the power.
When circumstances get out of hand, it is easy to try to take control and try to fix things ourselves. Somehow, we think we have the know how and power to put it all straight. The truth is, we are (I am) not in control. we don't call the shots; God does. When the going gets tough, we are not supposed to "get going". We are supposed to get on our knees and commit the circumstances to God, and then follow Him wherever He leads. The path He leads us down may not be the easiest one, either.
I will end with this thought: God is our Navigator. He knows where we are, and He knows how to get where we need to be. The smooth road to the other side the mountain might seem the easiest way to get around, but it ends in at a steep cliff that cannot be climbed. So instead God leads us on the rocky, narrow, mountain path that seems almost impossible to climb, but it is the only way to get to the other side of the mountain. We cannot control what the road will be like. We only know that God will lead us on the right road.
God provides: Like many others, my husband and I have struggled financially in the last year or so. We've watched the price of everything increase, while our income has been shrinking. At the same time, all our efforts to put a quick fix on the situation have failed. What have we learned? Whether rich or poor, we trust the Lord. God provides even when we cannot. It has been tough, but there has been a blessing in this--more than once we've seen God provide "not too early, and not too late, but just on time."
God protects: While driving down a two-lane country road last week, we crested a hill and came upon a pickup truck that was stopped halfway in our lane and halfway off the right side of the road. The driver's door was wide open, and the driver was hanging out trying to pick up something in the road. Seeing the left lane was completely open, I proceeded to pass the pick up truck. Just as I caught up to him, he popped back in the truck, slammed the door and began driving.
Next thing I know he is turning left in front of me. I had no where to go but into the side of his truck or off the left side of the road. I choose off the road. I slammed on my breaks and my van slid through grass about forty feet knocking down a road sign and bouncing over clumps of wet grass and weeds. The car finally stopped just before plunging down the hill straight into a fence where a herd of cows stood chewing their cud and staring at my van as if it were a space ship from Mars. Miraculously, I wasn't hurt, my children weren't hurt, and we drove away with nothing more than a small dent and long scratch on the front fender to remind us what had happened. The night before, my youngest daughter and I had specifically prayed for God's protection on that trip.
God Reigns: One of the worst parts of being a landlord is that from time to time I have to evict someone. The most recent eviction escalated into something just short of a nightmare. From the time the tenants moved in (not long ago) and up until, they have given me and my husband nothing but grief. While I won't go into circumstances, the whole thing has made me wonder if there is such a thing as justice left in this world. Last week when I was stressing over the fact that I have no control over the situation, the Lord reminded me that He is in control, not me. I have to let go. The blessing? While the law says I can't rent the space, the tenants who were causing all the grief have left, because the power company turned off the power.
When circumstances get out of hand, it is easy to try to take control and try to fix things ourselves. Somehow, we think we have the know how and power to put it all straight. The truth is, we are (I am) not in control. we don't call the shots; God does. When the going gets tough, we are not supposed to "get going". We are supposed to get on our knees and commit the circumstances to God, and then follow Him wherever He leads. The path He leads us down may not be the easiest one, either.
I will end with this thought: God is our Navigator. He knows where we are, and He knows how to get where we need to be. The smooth road to the other side the mountain might seem the easiest way to get around, but it ends in at a steep cliff that cannot be climbed. So instead God leads us on the rocky, narrow, mountain path that seems almost impossible to climb, but it is the only way to get to the other side of the mountain. We cannot control what the road will be like. We only know that God will lead us on the right road.
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