It’s tax season.
Every year I vow to be a bit more organized and prepared than the last. Medical bills. Donation receipts. Insurance claims. The usual.
As I fill out the checklist our tax preparer provides, I warily eye up the pile of papers sitting alongside my desk. The pile that teeters precariously each time a new set of papers are added to the top, which is nearing the height of the very desk it leans against. The pile that probably holds that last piece of paper missing from the necessary documents: The donation receipt from a school fundraiser back in September.
I sigh as I realized I would have to dig through the pile. I haven’t quite reached the organized status I was hoping for, but I’m still more prepared this year than last. So I’m happy with the little progress I have made. Not happy to have to go find that paper though.
Life is funny like that sometimes, isn’t it. And it really isn’t that funny.
We think we have it all together. Or we schedule and plan for things to go perfectly. And there’s that one little hiccup. The one piece that keeps us from completing the puzzle. Perhaps it’s a spilled bowl of milk and cereal on the kitchen floor before school, or the baby sitter calling sick on your date night. Maybe it’s a little tougher like a declined credit card at the checkout line. Or tougher still, an accident putting all plans on hold indefinitely.
Whatever the interruption, it’s never convenient, and hardly ever in our control. But what IS in our control is our reaction. I won’t lie, sometimes it’s horribly hard to control, but our reactions are all our own.
As a young Christian, I would find myself crying out to God in these moments. Wanting Him to see me through it, or asking Him how I was going to survive an interruption such as this. My limited faith couldn’t see past the mess. But further along my walk with Jesus, I learned more about trusting in the unseen – a big step in deepening my faith. And in this case, the unseen is the future. The main concern I’d always have with interruptions was trusting that it would all be okay.
“A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all;”
Psalm 34:19, NIV
Throughout the Bible, we see God seeing the righteous through tough times. Some tough times last longer than others, but it’s always according to God’s good and loving plan for us.
Even before the biggest interruption in the disciple’s lives – Jesus’ crucifixion and death, Jesus promises that there will be trouble, challenges, interruptions. But just as the Lord delivers, He encourages His disciples to stand with hope!
“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33, NIV
So can I encourage you today, friend, as you face life’s challenges and interruptions, as you clean the bowl of spilled milk, or search for the missing tax paper, God will deliver us. If we hold onto this faith, we’ll be able to see past our circumstance and into the good, good future He has waiting for us.
May the peace of God be with you today, and always.
I’m so encouraged by this today. You’re right, and while I know that God is going to see me through the challenges I’m facing at work now, I needed to be reminded today. Thank you!!!