I can honestly say that yesterday was a horrible day. At least the morning was! I am a planner. I don't like last minute changes, surprises, or anything that is going to put a kink in my schedule. I plan out things out to the minute, although often I might leave padding for unexpected delays. Yesterday was not one of those days. Every minute was accounted for.
My husband has been sick and that in itself can cause a delay. Not because it's my husband but because if any of us is sick, we are not at our best and may be sluggish. We had a goal of having everything completed by noon because we had to be somewhere. Unfortunately, we had different expectations of who was doing what. I knew we had to get my father-in-law's medication to him from the pharmacy and I thought my husband would do it. He thought the better one to do it would be me since I was not sick and a threat to my father-in-law's health.
He said "You go get the meds, I'll go wash the truck." "Wash the truck???" So off I went. I also brought a movie that we rented but I had to go to another pharmacy to return it. What was the possibility of having a rental box where his meds were...slim. I get the meds and as I am leaving I see it....the rental return! Ah ha! I go to the car, retrieve the movie, run back inside, attempt the return and the machine won't take it. Ugh. Crazy machine!. I assume I can't return it here because I didn't rent it here. I take it back, open the case and you guessed it...empty! Ugh again!
I head to my father-in-law's house already in a not so content mood because of the movie, and decide to take the "easy" route right off the main road into the side streets. Oh my goodness...I truly am an intelligent woman but I got so turned around, I wound up on the opposite side of his house by the freeway. So in that journey down the back streets by the golf course is when it happened...I got into a fight!
If you know anything about me you know I don't lose many fights. But this one gave me a run for my money. It began with yelling. I yelled because I was being laughed at...."how dare you laugh at me because I'm lost and discouraged!" He threw the first punch and I doubled back and bam....I hit where it hurts. I began with John 8:44 There is no truth in you...you are a liar. Then I struck with John 10:10 You have only come to kill steal and destroy! I followed up with Psalm 51:10 Father return to me the joy of your salvation. "You can't have my joy-Give it back!"
I thought of my friend Lorraine Hill who wrote the book Reclaiming your Joy and tried to gather everything I could about how I could win this fight. I was grasping for every ounce of information I could recall on joy. I remembered one of our pastors saying "Your joy should not be connected to your circumstances, it should be connected to your relationship with Christ."
I also thought of a friend who said when the praises go up, the enemy can't stand it! So, I turned up my radio and they were playing old familiar hymns...the ones I grew up with. It looked like I was winning the fight and the enemy was going to have to go away with his tail tucked. Joy at last, not because my circumstances had changed but because of my relationship with Christ.
I get to my father-in-law's house thinking "I'm good, we will make the noon deadline after all" I get his meds in order, I'm set to go when he says "I need to go to the bank before you leave." Gulp! I smile and say-"Let's go pawpaw" after all, the battle's already won.
The enemy tried to take my joy but God said "Give it back!"
We will all have to fight this sort of battle at one time or another. That is why it is so important to have ammunition to go into battle. That ammunition comes from the word of God and if we don't have a Bible handy, it is important to have that word in our heart.
I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:10-11
Reclaiming Your Joy by Lorraine Hill
Captivated by God Ministries 2013
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