Count it All Joy

Life is strange at times. This morning I woke feeling so filled with joy, so full of the wonder of life and then the phone rang....no bad thing happened, no accident, no illness but rather the kind of call that reminds me of the story of Job. Job 1:9 "Does Job fear God for nothing?" Satan replied. 10 "Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. Then Job was tested to the core of his being.
The test of mine this morning was not like Jobs, thank God, but yet, it was in a way. The very peace I wrote about was removed in an instant. Stolen, no wait, I allowed it to be taken by someone for a brief time. The part that went wrong was that I allowed myself to be taken in, pulled into the negativity. Pulled into the quicksand before I even knew what happened. It's extended family stuff. Isn't that always the worst ? As fast as water drops leap about on a hot griddle the subjects changed. It was hard to keep steady and finally I swore. Yes, I swore and hung up. I don't swear, anyone who knows me knows that for me to say a bad word, things have got to be very very bad indeed. I used a phrase for things "not so" or "preposterous". Something you might find in a bulls barn, and then I hung up the phone. It's not the swear that bothers me, it's the loosing of my temper, the allowing myself to be pushed into acting in a way I don't want to act. Maybe it wasn't being pushed so much as being pulled in. Have to think about which it was. More of a pulled in, sucked into the mire.
The point is, it was a hard experience and I feel that I failed to show compassion to someone that really is in need of it. But in this same instant I am thinking bible texts like, 2 Tim 3:
1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.
I really like the last 5 words of that text and am working hard on making the situation fit as it sure would make me feel better, but.. yes, there is that 3 letter word..B-U-T... I wanted to be more Christ like, more in control of what I say when faced with, (total lack of a word for what it was) along with what I felt, and how I reacted. Stronger in maintaining kindness without compromising my standard. Fortunately, Emery has stepped in and has attempted to take care of the situation one more time. It's a long old story. Probably every family has one to some extent. And there are times when wisdom blended with compassion calls for there to be no more contact, and this is one of those times.
I need to say the verse below over and over to myself today...remembering it for times like today when difficult situations arise. Now, to find my joy in today one more time ! Maybe I will just go back to bed, get up again and redo this morning without the phone call.
James 1: 2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.
All of us face difficulties, hard things, thorns in our sides, people that push all the right buttons to make us forget where we want to be in how we feel and act. We learn from these experiences, and hopefully we become better people from them. The Dalai Lama says "I must emphasize again that merely thinking that compassion and reason and patience are good will not be enough to develop them. We must wait for difficulties to arise and then attempt to practice them. And who creates such opportunities? Not our friends, of course, but our enemies. They are the ones who give us the most trouble, So if we truly wish to learn, we should consider enemies to be our best teacher!"

Comments

Dawn said…
Sister, I have had these days too. And I ended up, this past Monday saying 2 curse words myself (only God heard me but it was bad enough He did), and although they weren't like the horrible curse words, they were bad enough to make me feel ashamed and convicted the moment they slipped out. I don't even curse so I don't understand why they are in my vocabulary. I have been having a rough few months emotionally and i think all the pent up emotions came out of me as the last straw was broken on Monday.
I should have composed myself better concerning the situation, but I had just gotten up and realized something I begged my hubby to do, he had done, and left, and that set me off.
As I said, only God was around to hear me, but as a His daughter, I felt ashamed.
Just know Sister, we all mess up. If we don't repent, that's what will cause you to stumble further away from God.
Be serious about repenting and then get back on track for God.
You don't want satan do drag you down to his level.

Hugs!
Susan said…
I came to view your show & tell and read this first. I truly appreciate your honesty in posting this. Yes, we've all had this happen. It's just like Satan to try and mess up a beautiful, peaceful morning in the Lord. Or maybe it's God testing us to see if we can be shaken. Which ever it is it's up to us to put our eyes back on Him and count our Praise Him Anyway. I'm not preaching to you, I'm preaching to myself. Have a great rest of the day!!!
Susan
Patty said…
thanks ladies, I have spent the entire day, rejoicing in the blessings I have. My children read the posts and called immediatly, telling me how sad they were this person called and so glad their dad took care of the situation. God is so merciful, my blessings for the day grew and grew
Teresa said…
Patty,
I just read your post and want you to know that my heart went out to you at that moment. What a blessing to have a husband and children who reach out immediately and build a hedge of love around you. Your humanity showed (which endears you) then your Christianity showed (which endears you) then the ones who know you best gathered around you (which is the greatest testimony of the person you truly are).

I, too, have been dealing with extended family emotional issues for all my life. Thank the Lord that he sent my own wonderful husband into my life to show me another way to live entirely. But, about every two monthes, someone will try to suck me back into the vortex.

I wrote a parable about it on my blog, Aug. 15, 2006, called "leaving lake living" about the same struggle. You might relate.
Patty said…
I just read your August 15, 2006 post and its very good. I can't really relate except by seeing what my husband has endured. My family was always loving and kind, but his, oh my....dysfunction to the hilt and still that way. Emery was a resilient child, a rare gem among the muddy buttom of the lake !

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