Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Agree or disagree with this statement? Life can throw us the biggest challenges...ie, illness, unemployment, children taking the wrong path...and we have a sense that God will carry us through and work it out, but the little things in life send us over the edge.
When faced with the giant struggles, we have hope and a sense of peace. Don't get me wrong, it hurts. We cry. Yell sometimes. Might even punch a pillow or two. But in our hearts we know God is in control. He provides. He loves us. He wants the best for us. We know he is stretching us to grow our faith or transforming us into his image. We trust him.
But when our kids get the wrong teacher, a lightbulb blows out in our car, someone spills milk on the carpet, or for heaven's sake, a selfish driver pulls out in front us on the freeway, we literally BLOW A GASKET!!! We flip. We start biting heads off. We think the world is going to turn around and revolve backwards. Why is this?
I learned a very valuable lesson this week. On Monday I wrote about Stephanie Chase and her terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. (that's a children's book :)) I blew a gasket that day. I cried. I yelled. I wanted to quit. Tonight, however, I received one of the sweetest e-mails ever. A dear friend wrote how God used Monday's blog to encourage her in the midst of a friend's battle with cancer.
Was God orchestrating my unimportant little challenge on Monday to bring glory to Himself and encourage someone else? What if that was the reason I had to endure the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day? The answer: if the reason was to help 1 person, I would do it all over again!
In a tiny, remote way isn't that how Jesus must have felt on the cross? Did he think, "I would do this all over again just to save that 1 person from hell, to give life, hope, and peace to that 1 who needs it." Jesus must have said, "I will suffer the most terrible, most horrible, awful, painful day, so that you may have life!" WOW! I get all excited thinking about it!!! Thank you Jesus!!!!
So...the next time you are throwing a fit about something, crying on the phone to tech support, getting cut off in traffic, or your child's teacher is a major dud...imagine God using this 1 small thing in your life to bring glory to Him by using it to help someone else!!! These thoughts will turn our no good, terrible, horrible, bad days into encouraging, helpful, Christ-centered, selfless moments!
When faced with the giant struggles, we have hope and a sense of peace. Don't get me wrong, it hurts. We cry. Yell sometimes. Might even punch a pillow or two. But in our hearts we know God is in control. He provides. He loves us. He wants the best for us. We know he is stretching us to grow our faith or transforming us into his image. We trust him.
But when our kids get the wrong teacher, a lightbulb blows out in our car, someone spills milk on the carpet, or for heaven's sake, a selfish driver pulls out in front us on the freeway, we literally BLOW A GASKET!!! We flip. We start biting heads off. We think the world is going to turn around and revolve backwards. Why is this?
I learned a very valuable lesson this week. On Monday I wrote about Stephanie Chase and her terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. (that's a children's book :)) I blew a gasket that day. I cried. I yelled. I wanted to quit. Tonight, however, I received one of the sweetest e-mails ever. A dear friend wrote how God used Monday's blog to encourage her in the midst of a friend's battle with cancer.
Was God orchestrating my unimportant little challenge on Monday to bring glory to Himself and encourage someone else? What if that was the reason I had to endure the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day? The answer: if the reason was to help 1 person, I would do it all over again!
In a tiny, remote way isn't that how Jesus must have felt on the cross? Did he think, "I would do this all over again just to save that 1 person from hell, to give life, hope, and peace to that 1 who needs it." Jesus must have said, "I will suffer the most terrible, most horrible, awful, painful day, so that you may have life!" WOW! I get all excited thinking about it!!! Thank you Jesus!!!!
So...the next time you are throwing a fit about something, crying on the phone to tech support, getting cut off in traffic, or your child's teacher is a major dud...imagine God using this 1 small thing in your life to bring glory to Him by using it to help someone else!!! These thoughts will turn our no good, terrible, horrible, bad days into encouraging, helpful, Christ-centered, selfless moments!
posted by Stephanie Chase @ 7:56 PM
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