As most all of you know, my site was recently completely deleted. Obviously, this was unexpected. I can’t even tell you how stressful that was. Everything I had worked on, just gone. I wish I could say I patiently waited for all to be fixed by my domain host, but alas, no. I’d be straight up lying. Just ask the operators who I contacted probably twenty times the last few days. I’m fairly certain they had an idea how urgent it was to have my site back up and running. Thankfully by the grace of God, they were able to restore everything within a few days and my biggest problem is that I lost a few days worth of emails and a couple of bookfairs will need to be rescheduled.
It could have been way worse
Honestly, it could have been much, much worse. I was thinking to myself, how in the world would I rebuild this site? It took me forever and a day. I don’t even remember all the little things I did to make it work the way it does. I’m not a website designer, but I pose as one when I’m not running after my children. So clearly, it would have been devastating if I had to start from scratch.
Although I was reassured repeatedly they’d be able to recover everything, still. I wondered, but are you sure?? Like, SURE sure? And then I’d remember, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, with prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present all your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus,” (Phil 4:6-7).
LORD have mercy. I’d have the peace of God for approximately 2 seconds and then go back to worry. Anyone else?
Been there, done that
Thankfully, the LORD has brought me through a few much more stressful times in my life. He reminded me that no matter what happens, He is there. His name WILL be glorified, no matter what, when we allow Him into our mess. Seriously, no matter what. And although I had to ask God to not be anxious approximately 2,500 times these past few days, I knew I could keep coming to Him. He wouldn’t get annoyed at me. He’d keep listening, and keep bringing me peace, even if it felt like it was just a few seconds each time.
Water bottles are great teaching tools
I remember a pastor once using this great illustration about anxiety producing times in our lives. He had a bottle of water in his hand, and he slightly loosened the cap. He squeezed the bottle and shook it. And you know what happened? Shocker, water spurted out everywhere. So what was the point? The point is that we are often times just like that bottle. And when we are squeezed and shook in our lives, what truly is in us is what comes spurting out. We can hide it when times are easy. Not so much when times are tough.
That sermon made a big impression on me. I try to remind myself that when things don’t go as planned and I’m getting squeezed, I don’t react in a way that dishonors the LORD. To be sure, I am a work in progress. Getting sanctified is never easy. Praise God, the LORD knows just how much we are to be squeezed. And it’s not to torture us or to punish us. It’s partially for us to see what is going on in our own hearts, as well as for others to see how we deal with difficulties that inevitably spring up. But most importantly, it’s for us to draw near to a Holy God, Who can function as quite the filtration system.
God is good. ALL the time. And all the time, God is good.
And again, sorry for the inconvenience of no email and access to the website! (:=
