It’s time for another peek behind the screen- lucky you! This week, I want to share with you the fun that we have been having in the Thomas household.
In the last 10 days, we’ve had 2 busted toilets, an “aging dog”, a car in the shop, and been locked out of our house. The toilet thing was actually just a nuisance. We still had one working toilet in the house, and my husband had rigged up one of the broken ones so that it could be gently coerced into flushing. (Don’t ask me how!) My dog is fine; it turns out that he just really hates being groomed. (The groomer had to get in the tub with him because he wouldn’t stand for his bath, but I promise he’s running and jumping with no problems.) Being locked out of the house was the kicker. We had to wait an hour, in our uncomfortably HOT garage, for a locksmith, and when he arrived we paid almost $300 for 10 minutes of work. (I’ve been telling my son that he’s going into the locksmith business. My retirement will be golden!) My husband tried and tried to negotiate with him on the price, but there was NO budging. That one hurt. The unexpected expenses of all of these issues plus the time that was spent to fix them started poking at my brain. Honestly, as these things were popping up, I didn’t really pay attention. We just addressed each one without looking back. It wasn’t until my car started acting funny that I sat back and thought about the last few days.
These little nuisances of life have a way of really frustrating you. If you stare at them too long, it can really dampen your outlook on life. When you do that, you run the risk of allowing these annoyances to cloud out all the good things in life. Right now, we also have a lot of good things happening in our home as well.
In Charlotte Gambill’s devotional, Breathe, she says “I have found that God guards His very great promises with just enough problems, ensuring the journey is itself often the hidden gift we get to discover along the way. The problems act like extra security codes asking you to try new things, uncover new depths and in so doing, unlock more keys of wisdom and experience.”
I don’t know if God’s great promises include working toilets. (I hope they do!) So, it’s about what I learn on the journey. On this particular journey, my husband learned how to fix a broken toilet. We fixed our key situation and learned a lesson for the future. My son is going to be a locksmith and be set for life! My dog is better- turns out he was just being a grumpy old man. And the car, well, that remains to be seen. I think we both learned a lesson about reactions.
I want God to trust me with new wisdom and experiences. I want Him to know that I can overlook these irritations and keep moving towards the good that is present. I want Him to trust me on this journey and trust that I am training those coming along side me., and I know you do, too.
The next time that you are faced with recurring challenges, remember that God is forming new wisdom and strength in you!
~Shiney
