One day I saw a vent cover from the roof lying in my yard. Thinking it would be a two minute fix, I decided to put it back on myself. This involved lugging a 6′ ladder out back, climbing it, and carefully crawling Spiderman-style on the first level of my roof. The second level was trickier. To get on that level, I had to take a running start like a gymnast flying towards the pommel horse. (Some advice:Stay away from visualizing this one.) The third level was a steep incline where I literally slid down to get to my destination. Ironically, when I reached the vent I realized IT DIDN’T NEED A COVER! After all that climbing, I discovered that some vents were covered but others were not. Looking around, I could tell that this one belonged to my neighbor. Things got clearer when I went a little higher.
Likewise, when life gets messy, it helps to go a little higher. Instead of thinking about our problems, we can focus on God. “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:2) Sometimes the problems that come at us don’t seem to have a solution. But God is an expert in difficult situations! When the disciples thought they encountered the impossible, “Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.'” (Matthew 19:26) He promises to take care of our needs. “And my God will supply all of your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19) He meets ALL of our needs-completely, fully, entirely, absolutely. Problems? Challenges? Stress? Give it all to God. For when we go a little higher, we realize He can handle anything and everything. “This is an easy thing in the eyes of the Lord.” (2 Kings 3:18)
There are times in life when it’s best to take the advice of a popular Disney song and ‘Let It Go.’ My family had a large garage sale this weekend and we followed that mantra. We decided to stop holding on to things that we no longer needed. Six different families contributed to the sale at my mom’s and tables were filled with kitchen items, house décor, and small appliances. Outdoor and indoor furniture pieces were strategically placed in the driveway while adult clothes were draped in the garage. One entire area of the driveway was filled with everything baby: stroller, clothes, stuffed animals, and numerous musical toys. Although the sale was a plethora of different items, they all had one thing in common: it was time for them to go.
I’m thankful I live in the ‘Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.’ The privileges we get from living in the United States far outweigh the number of challenges we face. I can’t help thinking about all the men and women who sacrificed their time, their families, and sometimes their lives to allow us to live in peace in this great country of ours. ‘American Soldier,’ Toby Keith’s song expressing the thoughts of the military, may say it best. “Beside my brothers and my sisters I will proudly take a stand… I’m out here on the front lines, so you can sleep in peace tonight…” With a grateful heart, I say thank you to the military for defending and protecting the United States so we can live in peace.
Why do we waste any time worrying? Winston Churchill said he heard a story about a man who on his deathbed said he had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which never happened. Isn’t that the truth? Why do we lose sleep fretting about things we can’t change?!? Here’s a sample: We can’t change someone’s mind, we can’t make money appear in our bank accounts, and we can’t make someone do the right thing. Yet we still spend time worrying about it! Jesus said in Matthew 6:27, “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” He went on to say, “Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Today can have its fair share of problems, so we need to address them as we are able. But let’s not waste our precious time, energy, and emotions thinking about the challenges that could happen tomorrow.
This summer my niece and her family transformed an old rundown farmhouse into a comfortable, refreshing place to live. You should have seen how it looked when they started! It needed new paint in every room, the mice had to be asked to leave (evicted is a better way to put it), and water lines had to be repaired. Ceilings were raised, the stairway opened, and more windows were added. When the air conditioning went in I believe my niece did a dance for joy (and who doesn’t love a little air on those hot and humid summer days?). The transformation didn’t happen overnight and yet they now live in a beautiful home filled with kids’ laughter, family and friends, and the soft purr of an air conditioner.
As Christians, we’re called upon to be more like Jesus. Most of the time, we do this by focusing on His love. And that’s the right way to start. Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-39, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and with all your mind,” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Those commandments are a big undertaking in any life, and we must continually pursue them, but today let’s focus on another character trait of Jesus. The disciple Matthew tells a story about when Jesus and the disciples were crossing over the Sea of Galilee. He said in Matthew 8:24, “Without warning, a furious storm came up…” Sound familiar? Had any furious storms come up in your life? Have any of them come without warning? In this case, the disciples panicked, and surprisingly, many of them were experienced fisherman!