When Life Gives You Lemons

What a weekend, and what a week. Things are just going terribly. It all started with my tin-can-on-wheels that broke down with me Saturday morning. Little Miss and I had gone to dance class, then went to our host church to pick up our January Angel Food Ministries order. While waiting in line, the car started overheating. It didn't get too hot, but enough that I could smell the antifreeze burning and see the smoke coming out of the engine. What...??!! I turned the heater on full blast, said and quick prayer, and the temperature--although it didn't go down--stayed the same. Whew! Or so I thought.

As we left to head home, the needle crept closer & closer towards the red. In less than a mile, the dashboard was dinging at me, the water temp was completely all the way up as high as it could go, and the heater was blowing cold, cold air. Ugh! I managed to pull over at the first thing I saw, a seafood restaurant. Little Miss had to use the facilities, and meanwhile, I was silently screaming and panicking that I didn't have my cell phone, what was I going to do, I had frozen food in the trunk that was going to thaw and go bad, and how in the world was I going to get home...?

I tried to stay calm, and that's when I noticed that, not only had I broken down in front of a seafood restaurant, I was also broke down in front of a mechanic shop!! A mechanic shop that was OPEN on a Saturday!! Halleluia! I was singing me some praises! I was still a bit panicked, but the shop owner was very kind, and the mechanic didn't charge me a dime. What a blessing. :)

So anyhow, enough rambling. There have been plenty of ups & downs since the car incident two days ago.

Still, I am optomistic. Even when things don't go as planned, I continue to remain focused and optomistic.

For instance, I planned on getting up at 5:30am today. That did not happen. I tried but could barely open my eyes and snoozed the alarm more than once. The good news? I still got up at a decent time, took a bath, put on make-up, fed the kids breakfast, got their lunches & my own lunch made, went through my son's homework folder, and managed to read a chapter from The Good Book.

And when my son came running into my bedroom this morning, naked as the day he was born...I didn't get angry, didn't snap at him for waking me up before the crack of dawn. I calmly asked him what happened ("I was sweaty") and instructed him to meet me in the bathroom so I could start his bath water.

And when I was swamped at work with the usual stuff that needed to get done, plus a re-hired employee orientation I needed to do, plus, plus, plus, I thanked my maker for the busyiness because it means I can provide for my family.

And while I sit here next to my Christmas tree, a semi-permanent living room fixture...at least for now...I am thankful for One who sacrificed all He had. And I know that my trials are temporary. And really, in the grand scheme of things, does it matter that my car broke down, that my mind and body will not cooperate with my heart, that my almost-6-year-old son is a mommy's boy, that my husband loves his family and wants to do something for us, a little thing called a kitchen remodel, so that there's no room or space to walk around or put things so the Christmas decor can get stored away, or that I find work frustrating and overwhelming at times? I suppose, not in the eternal perspective.

So I will not let the occurrences of the past few days drag me down. Instead, I'll keep my chin up, and put my trust and reliance in Him, as it should be.