Thanking God for the Challenges

As I have gotten older I have become more and more convinced of the need to be transparent. So, in that vein I have to just say it - today has not shaped up to be a very good day.


Now, there was no sign of this very-bad-rotten-no good-day when I got up this morning. It was a beautiful, sunny, clear day. I blissfully got ready and got my boys off to school without a hitch. Then I came home, piddled around the house, did a blog post about cats and Black Friday, and talked to my daughter on the phone.

Good day….and then the phone rang. It was my daughter with “bad news”. Her bad news was that she - after 3+ years of driving - had her first up close and personal meeting with the Georgia State Patrol.  Not only will this be a very expensive little lesson, but I am angry at her choice, which could have taken her life or someone else’s (I am seriously angry). It scares me to my core to think what could have happened. Also, I now get to sit back and feel just a bit sick about what that means $$$wise. Next,the furnace repair guy came out to do a repair.  I knew he was coming but what I didn’t know, was that it would be a $530 visit. Now, I just get to feel sick again.

A few years ago I learned in a Bible study that we should thank God for the challenges. That was something that has resonated with me many times. Most of the time, honestly, I don’t “feel” like thanking Him for the challenges. My instinct is to whine over the challenges and just be frustrated (we ARE being transparent here, right?). But, I try to Thank Him for the challenges, even if at first it is more of a “fake it until you make it”. He knows my heart and He knows the struggle I have with thanking Him when I don’t see His big picture.

But, even in the shallow world in which I live, He gently reminds me of ways to be thankful. I am thankful that my daughter is safe. I am thankful that I am not planning a funeral or sitting beside a hospital bed. I am thankful that I have a furnace that needs a repair (as so many souls sit in the cold without heat), that I have a roof over my head; no one in my house is hungry. I am thankful that I serve a God that is in control and has a plan, is patient and especially that He puts up with my whiney self!

I give you thanks, O Lord, with all my heart; I will sing your praises before the gods.

I bow before your holy Temple as I worship.

I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness; for your promises are backed by all the honor of your name.

As soon as I pray, you answer me; you encourage me by giving me strength.

Psalm 138:1-2 (NLT)