Wisdom from Unexpected Places

Don’t you love when you find wisdom in unexpected places?  Whether it be through nature, my kids, or mistakes I’ve made, I love when God reveals a hidden nugget to me when I least expect it. I’ve been reading Lauren Casper’s #ITSOKAYABOUTIT which is collection of these nuggets that she has gathered from her son. Tonight I was able to add a nugget to my growing collection of wisdom from unexpected places.

Usually Lukas, my 6 year old, has a hard time doing homework, while Camryn, my 7 year old, sails smoothly through hers. Things were backwards in our household tonight.  Luke finished up quickly while Camryn dragged her feet, whining every step of the way.  We were working on a spelling packet and she had a new complaint with every spelling word I said. When I asked her to spell “kind”, she replied “I’m not being kind today.” Ugh – totally pulling teeth the whole night but at least she is self-aware! I finally asked her “Why are you being this way?” and she replied, “I’m having a bad day.”  And can’t we all relate to this?  I definitely can!

But unfortunately, we had homework to finish so I said to her, “If you just focused, you would’ve been done by now.” And as I spoke those words, I knew they were for me and not her.

This week I’ve been feeling overwhelmed – lots at home, lots at work, all good but just too much. But I think what was overwhelming me most was a task that I had been avoiding for too long. Once I started it, I realized it wasn’t as hard or scary as I thought.

Isn’t that so often the case?!

When I checked this item off my to do list, I immediately felt a weight lifted off of me But how much energy and time did I waste by not focusing on this task?

Are you wasting energy by complaining, keeping busy, avoiding, or worrying instead of focusing on what you need to do?

In Lauren Casper’s #ITSOKAYABOUTIT (pre-order it today from the link in the photo! it’s great!), she talks about fear that can cloud our reality – like my avoidance of a “difficult” (but really not) task. But she also talks about justified fear – where the consequences are big – miscarriages, death of loved ones, instability in relationships, loved ones’ addiction. God has shown me over the years a few things that help ground me when these types of fears creep up.

1. He is in control.
2. He is good.
3. He loves the people I love more than I do.
4. His ways are not our ways and His understanding no-one can fathom.

Wherever you are tonight, I pray that you’d be able to focus. Focus on the things in front of you instead of avoiding them. Focus on the God who loves you instead of the fears that cripple you.