It was a Wednesday morning.
I turned over and looked at my phone, 5:56am. My alarm was going to go off in 4 minutes.
I got up because I really needed to pee and at that point there was no use in going back to sleep for 4 more minutes.
I got up and threw on my gym clothes.
In the past, I would get up and go to the gym before Drew woke up at 7am.
But recently he has been waking up at 6:30am so instead of going to the gym first thing in the morning, I would go after he left.
I preferred the former.
So knowing that he’d be getting up in 30 minutes, I grabbed my tea mug, sat on the couch, and started reading/my morning quiet time.
6:30am came and went and no sign of Drew waking up.
6:45am came and went and no sign of Drew waking up.
A few minutes before 7am, I heard him drawing the blinds signalling to me that he was up.
My first thought: I could have gone to the gym and been back if I knew he was going to sleep till 7.
I went into the kitchen and started getting our breakfast ready.
Part of that was to make a smoothie to take with me that day.
I started adding the ingredients into the blender when I noticed liquid leaking from the bottom.
Whoever put it away didn’t screw the bottom piece on tight and I didn’t bother checking to see if it was screwed on tight.
My second thought: Seriously?!?
(I found myself getting irritated at the person who put it away. FYI, I was assuming that I knew who put it away and it wasn’t me.)
I had to dump out all the ingredients into another container, clean up the mess and then start over.
One of the ingredients was some frozen berries, which after taking what I needed, I returned into the freezer.
After getting dressed for the day, Drew came into the kitchen and began packing his lunch. He opened the freezer to grab a pre-prepared frozen meal when frozen berries went everywhere. EVERYWHERE.
My third thought: Seriously Drew?!? This wouldn’t have happened if I took your lunch out.
(Isn’t it interesting that I didn’t even consider that I could have been the reason why the berries spilled out?)
As we were cleaning up the stray berries and after taking several deep breaths, I apologized. I was the one who had put the frozen berries away and perhaps in the midst of it didn’t check to make sure the seal was perfectly sealed. I didn’t mean to do it but it happened and thus lead to an unfortunate situation. Have you ever unintentionally done something that has lead to inconveniencing someone else? If you answer no, you’re lying;).
It then reminded me of the situation with the blender. Whoever put it away didn’t mean to cause an inconvenience (and truth be told, it could have very well been me who had put it away though I am 99% sure it was someone else). Perhaps she/he thought that she/he had screwed it on tightly before it was put away. Either way, instead of automatically assuming that it was ready to go, I could have and should have checked to make sure the bottom was on properly and on tight.
A crack was forming in my joy, and the devil was mighty interested in breaking it completely. Any of you relate?
See for the most part, we don’t lose our joy by some huge event. Often it occurs one tiny insignificantly significant event at a time. The alarm doesn’t go off. You get tooth paste on your shirt. You burn your toast. Your child has a melt-down as you’re trying to get her ready. You drop something on the floor. You face a ton of traffic on a route that typically has no traffic. One thing after another-little things that when added together can derail you from the path of joy.
I know. It happens to me more than I’d like to admit.
John 10:10 says that “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy.”
The devil would like nothing more than for you and I to have a bad day in hopes that it will turn into a bad week, month, year, life AND affect others so that the same happens to them. The devil would like nothing more than for you and I to be miserable, joyless, angry, frustrated, bitter, and resentful. If we’re being honest, we sometimes hand over our joy to the devil on a silver spoon. It’s like leaving our most prized possessions out in the open and leaving our door unlocked knowing a thief is coming over.
But there’s another way. Yes things can happen. Frustration can occur but it doesn’t have to define our day. Inconveniences can and will occur but they don’t have to suck the life out of us unless we let it.
“Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission.”-Eleanor Roosevelt
If you met me 10 years ago, I would have been suckered into giving my joy over to the devil and in the midst of the greatest pity party ever. This time, frustration was here one moment and gone the next because I. Kicked. It. Out. Instead of being victimized by the attempts of the devil, I chose joy. I chose to say FU to the devil because I chose the Jesus way. I chose Jesus.
“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world”-John 16:33
Inconveniences have nothing on you. An unfortunate situation has nothing on you. Even death itself has nothing on you.
Joy is not a one day thing or a someday thing, it’s an everyday thing that occurs one moment, one choice, one action at a time.
My hope and wish is that you and I choose Joy-not one day, not someday, but EVERY DAY.
BOOK REVIEW:
“If My Heart Could Talk: A Story of Family, Faith, and Miracles”
by Dodie Osteen
Dodie Osteen is small but mighty.
In her new book “If My Heart Could Talk”, Dodie (a.k.a Mama Dodie or Ms. Dodie) opens her heart to speak to yours.
This book is raw, honest, and filled with personal stories, beautiful insight, and timeless wisdom. Mama Dodie is a special woman with an incredible spirit who has faced her share of uphill battles and seemingly impossible situations. And yet through it all, she shares what it means to have feisty faith and all that is possible when you are willing to trust God.
For such a tiny woman, she packs a mighty punch in the words of this book. It is simple and sweet, bold and brave, and daring all at the same time.
“If My Heart Could Talk” is like sitting down with your grandma for tea. Mama Dodie’s wisdom and stories will nourish your soul and fire up your spirit time and time again.
And who knows, it might just inspire you to dream bigger and believe that nothing, NOTHING is impossible with God:).
**Stay tune for a very special MOTHER’S DAY GIVEAWAY (courtesy of Hachette Publishing) where one lucky reader will win a FREE copy of “If My Heart Could Talk” by Dodie Osteen**
*A special thank you to the team at Hachette for the advanced copy:).
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- A Letter For Every Mother - April 17, 2018
- Dear Beautiful Soul… - March 28, 2018
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