Siiigh. You know when something is going to happen? When you can feel it in your bones? I knew things were about to shake up. Life has been looking up in our little household lately. I have found my way back to enjoying church. God has blessed us with joy and peace that passes understanding. Our relationship has grown and matured into something so right and so rewarding I can't even describe it. And I knew that Satan wouldn't ignore it.
We revamped our budget and instead of criticizing our spending patterns, we praised God for his provision. We have been hard at work with our jobs and with Karl's school. We have been faithful with all our responsibilities and you know that is when things start going crazy.
I caught the flu for two weeks. Karl's car broke down. We got into a car accident in my car. Karl ended up with a 103.5 temperature one day. Karl's family had to unexpectedly put their family dog down. Bills have mounted up from previous hospital visits and now car repair and car rentals. Our lease is up and we can't seem to find the right place to move to. And....baseball season starts in 11 days. I will return back to my lonely life of solitude about 2 weeks out of every month...for 6 months.
The challenge here is to continue to trust God. I know what I am up against. I know why all these things are happening. I know that Satan works against us to fill our heads with lies and distractions and break our hearts until they are bitter and resentful. BUT, I know that my God is bigger. I know that He holds me close to Him and that I can rely on Him for strength through all of this chaos.
There is a way to overcome life's obstacles...with Someone who overcame EVERYTHING. When I'm sad because of loss, I can look and see where Jesus felt the same. His feelings were just as real and as raw as ours our today. He is not distant...He is very near. Praise God for the things that try to break us down...they don't. They just draw us closer.
"Come unto me all that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28
"Cast thy burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain thee: He shall not suffer the righteous to be moved." Psalms 55:22
"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted. He rescues those whose spirits are crushed." Psalms 34:18
AMEN. You know you are doing something right when Satan comes against you, and God NEVER gives us more than we can handle. You know that you will be so much stronger for withstanding it all! and what's even great is that you are one of the very few that can and WILL praise God through your trials instead of whining, complaining an blaming it on God! I can see many blessing coming your way :)
ReplyDeleteJenn!