Whatever Challenges We Face

This moving stuff gets harder the older you get. I’m just now beginning to recover from some of the aches and pains of moving a household and getting the new one set up. But, I can cook a meal and find what I need, we’ve moved nonessential things to the spare room or attic to unpack at our own pace, and I’m just about able to find the bathroom at night when it’s pitch black (sure wish I’d thought of a nite light).

My daughter commented that she didn’t remember moving being this hard. I had to chuckle. “Honey, you were only ten when we moved last. We didn’t have you doing as much as we have you doing now.” She rolled her eyes.

“Sometimes I wish I could go back to being ten.” Life is hard sometimes, isn’t it?

My husband losing his job couldn’t have come at a worse moment. Moving into a new home, with all its incumbent expenses. Calling on job prospects and going on interviews in the midst of trying to keep up with where a particular file went. Being too blasted tired to think straight and finding ourselves repeating tasks that should have been done only once.

I wish I could go back to being ten, too. Life doesn’t get any easier as we get older. The challenges often compound upon themselves and sometimes take longer to resolve. I’m a cup-half-full kind of an optimist, but even I recognize that reality is what it is. Praise God, I get to choose how I respond to those challenges. And I choose Him.

The first morning I woke up in our new home, I spent time in God’s Word and prayer while sitting on our enclosed front porch. I absolutely loved feeling the cool breeze wash over me as I read from Mark, and listening to the birds and passing traffic as I spoke to the Lord in love and devotion. After I finished I was able to push aside the aches and pains and continue the unpacking and organizing of the kitchen.

My daughter schlumped down the stairs, arriving in the kitchen with half-open eyes and drooped shoulders. Trying to rub the sleep out of her face, she asked with a sigh, “What is it I have to start with today?”

“Something very important,” I responded. “We have a lot to do today, but this is where I want you to start. Spend some time reading from your Bible and in devotion to God. When you’re finished, come see me.”

Her shoulders picked up, her eyes brightened a little and a slight smile creased her lips. Without another word she went upstairs to her room, shut the door, and had her quiet time. I found her in prayer a little while later when I stepped in with a box that belonged in her room.

Whatever challenges we face, God comes first.