There was a little girl. Who had a little curl. Right in the middle of her forehead. When she was good. She was very, very good. But when she was bad, she was horrid.
My tagline might read: "Serving up thoughts with a twist of humor in a squeeze of time", but I'm about to serve you some thoughts, turned to words, that fried to a crisp and stuck to the pan, ones that even if I tried to add the spice of humor to them, would taste like the burned up failure that they are.
The little girl, with the little curl matured and married a hunk. They grew in the Christian faith- together- reading God's word, developing friendships with other believers and praying that the Lord would show them The Way. The baggage each brought to the family they created was heavy and busting at the seams. It would take a lot of grace and many decades to unpack.
Even after 23 years of complete commitment and miraculous love, it was not uncommon for a scenario such as this to unfold:
(Driving home from a seminar meant to bring attendees financial peace.)
He: You're quiet.
She: I'm trying to stay out of trouble. I'm just enjoying being with you. Here in the car. I talk too much. You take a turn.
He: (long pause) I was thinking about {Plan A}, I want it to work out, but...
She: (stopping him dead in his sentence) What do you mean "But."? Do you mean {Plan A} might not be an option? Because we agreed on {Plan A}, we are all counting on {Plan A} working out.
He: We agreed to check into other options.
She: We did check into other options. ( kickin' it up a notch in volume) I'm feelin' a little pressure here. {Plan A} is happenin'!
He: You're feeling pressure? I have the whole weight of the entire situation on my shoulders. Not to mention this OTHER thing!
She: ( passing the neighbor's house, which recently needed a pricey repair) Well! I certainly hope we don't still live in our house when all the stuff breaks!!
(they pull into the garage, go into the house, hang up their coats, get ready for bed...)
He: Where did that come from?! We aren't even talking about the house! What makes you think all the stuff is going to break?!?
She: That stuff is old and I don't want to live in this house the rest of our lives!!!
He: What's wrong with our house?
She: Nothing is wrong with our house!!!! I don't want to move out of our house!!! I just don't want to live in it the rest of our lives and I hope the stuff doesn't break while we are living in it!!!! And {Plan A} better be happening!!!!!!!!!!! AND I NEED to keep the OTHER thing!
He: (silence) (He goes to bed)
She: (crying) (She sits up all night, on the couch, trying to figure it out)
He is perplexed. He loves her. He spends most of his time trying to do what is best for her, to care for her, to protect her, to provide for her and the family. And why does she think all the stuff is going to break?
She loves him. She is mad. At herself. She didn't listen. She jumped to conclusions- again. {Plan A} scares her. It's taken weeks to talk herself into believing {Plan A} will work out just fine. Not following through with {Plan A} scares her. She blames the whole thing on Dave Ramsey. (But of course it isn't his fault)
This girl, her curl long turned gray (so she colors it), knows this verse well (requiring her children to memorize it long ago):
"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." Ephesians 4:29
And once she gave a talk to a roomful of women using this verse as the thesis:
"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
Hypocrite?
No.
Just a good, good girl, who lost this battle to horrid.
It is true. We need a Savior.
So thankful to be saved by grace through faith in Christ- alone,
