Writing Makes It Better

When we wonder where God is when we are having a hard time, remember, the teacher is always quiet while the student takes their tests.

This has been a yucky day. It's the kind that kicks you hard, where you aren't 100% sure you will be able to wake up in the morning and move because you feel like when you finally fall asleep you'll need to sleep a year to catch up you feel so tired. Today was that kind of day. The day I envy Rip Van Winkle. It seems almost comical to me today is the day I feel utterly overwhelmed, when in reality I had a stinking chest tube and was hospitalized just a couple weeks ago. (I guess the meds must have done more than I thought!)

It makes me very grateful for a wonderful husband, who has introduced me to lots of great speakers and books. And for the Lord helping me to recall things in the moment I need them most. A little while back I read a book called When Your Prayers Seem Unanswered by S. Michael Wilcox. He talks about how we have a fourth watch God. That he tries to help us learn, and allows us to struggle a little to do so.

Here is an excerpt from the book:

The night Jesus walked on the water he calmed the wind afterward, and the scripture specifically says:

"And immediately the ship was at the land whither they went" (John 6:21). Isn't that the ideal finale to

the crises of our lives? "Please calm my storms, Lord, and immediately get me to my destination." He can

do it, can't he? When the storms are blowing in my life, that is usually the solution I desire -- simply still

the storm, at least still it in the second watch. But if we arrive at the darkness of the fourth watch and he

still hasn't stilled it, we likely have learned something-- something wonderful and powerful, something

about ourselves.

The Lord knows all the trials and hardships we will encounter. He will never give us more than we are able to bear. "Before the wind ever started to blow, he prepared us to withstand it." If we couldn't withstand it, He would have stilled the storm by now.

This leads me to believe, that if he isn't stilling the storms, he must know my worn out boat can withstand the stormy seas. I wish I felt like I was in the fourth watch, but unfortunately, I don't think I am there yet. I just think whoever is in charge of the watch schedule made my watches a tad too long. Unfortunately my complaining doesn't seem to be shortening them at all, so it's probably better to be optimistic. After all, when I've prayed for years for the Lord to help me accomplish big things and to be more like Him, I guess I should expect to work for it. What worth accomplishing isn't hard to do?

So I ask everyone as a personal favor this week to be extra kind. Think twice before you say inconsiderate things about yourself or others. Compliment the people around you. If someone asks for help, give it willingly. There is enough negativity and gloom surrounding us every day, try to add something beautiful.

To quote my favorite talk from my church's General Conference this year, "Surely the thing God enjoys most about being God is the thrill of being merciful, especially to those that don't expect it and often feel they don't deserve it." If you have 15 minutes, this talk is well worth your time. Whether you share my faith or not, it is a wonderful message, and was EXACTLY what I needed to hear.

We all need mercy, from God, from others, from ourselves. Because none of us can get through this life on our own. Whether you realize it or not, whether you accept it or not, you need help. And the people who need it most are usually not the ones who will ask for it. Unfortunately people don't wear signs saying, "Be nice, my child died unexpectedly two weeks ago." or "I haven't showered because my house foreclosed and I have been living out of a car." You don't know what someone else may be going through, so please just be nice. Isn't that just easier?