Lifelore

The saying “when it rains, it pours” is so true. We all have those times in life when most things that could go wrong, do. That has been the situation for my family and I over the past week or so.

When things first start going haywire, it is hard to see the trend in the beginning. It seems like just one or two things going not so right. It is after a few of those “not rights”, though, that the trend starts becoming noticeable and can really bring us down, especially if all of these events happen within a short time of one another.

For my family and I, what started out as a huge hospital bill from my daughter’s Emergence Room visit, then turned into the starter in our car going out, followed by me losing the diamond from my ring somewhere in our yard, and continuing into the alternator in our truck going out, and a few other big bills approaching. It is so easy to look at these events and start building on them in our heads. We could even go so far back in time that it seems like our rainstorm has lasted forever!

It is totally understandable and normal to feel beaten down for a time and wallow in self-pity, but that should only go on for a short while. We are of no use or good to anybody, especially to ourselves, if we continue to have this attitude. We are wasting precious time that we could be looking to the future and asking ourselves, “What positive lesson can I learn from this”? Or yet a better question could be, “What beautiful things in life am I missing out on while I sit here being miserable over something that I can not change?”

When we have the wrong outlook on things, we not only bring ourselves down, we bring those around us down. Nobody likes to listen to someone complain and have a negative attitude. When we are around people like that, it makes us feel negative and “down in the dumps” ourselves. There is nothing wrong with talking to a friend or family member about things that are bothering us, but there has to be a point where we move on and change our perspectives.

I thought I would write this blog post because this is something that I have really been struggling with as I look at the mounting expenses and the fatigue that comes with seemingly not being able to catch a break. I decided yesterday that I had to stop these feelings. God has always helped us in the past when these types of situations arose, and I have absolutely no doubt that He will help us this time around, too. It is exhausting to go on with the “what next?” outlook and the stress of wondering how it will all work out. We just need to do our part and leave the rest in God’s hands.

So now is the time for my family and I to grab our umbrellas while it seems to be pouring down rain at this particular point. The rain is watering the flowers that will bloom again once life slows down. Maybe we can even jump in the puddles or dance in the rain while we wait….

Written by Kathryn Conrad