Life Is Difficult, So Smile
Posted in adventure, Brandon's Posts, marriage 0 comments
My wife and I have been married for 4 years. Married on May 23, 2009. It was a beautiful day. I was so excited to tie the knot. But I was nervous too. In fact, my soon to be mother-in-law saw me about 30 minutes before the wedding and asked if I was okay because, as she said, "you look like you might throw up."
Great pre-wedding talk.
Once I saw Jenny walking down that aisle though, all those feeling left, and we began our life together as a married couple.
Ever since that day, life has been hard. We lived in a 500 sq.ft. house, with no oven, a tiny little fridge, and the room that was meant to be the bedroom, we couldn't fit our bed in. I had a part-time ministry job and that was it. We were living off of Wal-Mart gift cards and odd jobs that we could pick up: babysitting, building grain bins, or grouting bathrooms.
We've moved several times and each of those came with the difficulties of finding a place to live and a job. We now have 2 kids whom I love. They do seem to take a lot of time and money to take care of though. On top of all of that, you have two different people (my wife and I) trying to figure out what it is like to live as one.
Life just isn't easy. We've all experienced stress of one sort or another. Job struggles, being fired, death of a friend or family member, divorce (either our own or someone close to us), tensions at home, or perhaps tensions because of our faith. There are times in our lives, when we wonder if it is possible to go on.
Through those situations we must remember God is still in control. God still loves us. As Christians, we have the Holy Spirit with us always. He guides and takes care of us. We just need to make sure we are following along in God's will. If we are doing that, even when things get so difficult, we can take comfort in knowing that God is still with us.
Anything worth having, is difficult to keep and maintain. I like what Ben Affleck said about his marriage in his acceptance speech, "I want to thank you for working on marriage for ten Christmases. It's good, it is work, but it's the best kind of work, and there's no one I'd rather work with." Marriage is work, but its so fulfilling. It's beautiful kind of work and so worth it.
Our walk with God is the same. It's down right difficult and sometimes seemingly impossible, but it is so worth it. We have a God is is here with us and doesn't leave us to fend for ourselves. The rewards we receive on a day to day basis are amazing. He shows us His love again and again.
Paul said in Philippians 4:10-13, "But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned before, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."
Paul's contentment did not hinge on his circumstances. He served the same God no matter where he was or what circumstance he found himself. We would learn well to do the same.
I don't want you to get the idea I'm trying to diminish any of our problems. I understand they are very real and can cause quite a bit of heartache, or stress. So in saying, "smile," through these problems, I'm not saying, "Your problems aren't that big, get over them!" I'm saying we serve a bigger God, who has an amazing plan that we can't always see, and we need to trust He knows what He is doing.
Life is hard. There's no way around it. But our God is bigger and loves us more than we can imagine. Trust He knows what He is doing, and jump right into the adventure He has in store, no matter what bumps we find along the way.
Great pre-wedding talk.
Once I saw Jenny walking down that aisle though, all those feeling left, and we began our life together as a married couple.
Ever since that day, life has been hard. We lived in a 500 sq.ft. house, with no oven, a tiny little fridge, and the room that was meant to be the bedroom, we couldn't fit our bed in. I had a part-time ministry job and that was it. We were living off of Wal-Mart gift cards and odd jobs that we could pick up: babysitting, building grain bins, or grouting bathrooms.
We've moved several times and each of those came with the difficulties of finding a place to live and a job. We now have 2 kids whom I love. They do seem to take a lot of time and money to take care of though. On top of all of that, you have two different people (my wife and I) trying to figure out what it is like to live as one.
Life just isn't easy. We've all experienced stress of one sort or another. Job struggles, being fired, death of a friend or family member, divorce (either our own or someone close to us), tensions at home, or perhaps tensions because of our faith. There are times in our lives, when we wonder if it is possible to go on.
Through those situations we must remember God is still in control. God still loves us. As Christians, we have the Holy Spirit with us always. He guides and takes care of us. We just need to make sure we are following along in God's will. If we are doing that, even when things get so difficult, we can take comfort in knowing that God is still with us.
Anything worth having, is difficult to keep and maintain. I like what Ben Affleck said about his marriage in his acceptance speech, "I want to thank you for working on marriage for ten Christmases. It's good, it is work, but it's the best kind of work, and there's no one I'd rather work with." Marriage is work, but its so fulfilling. It's beautiful kind of work and so worth it.
Our walk with God is the same. It's down right difficult and sometimes seemingly impossible, but it is so worth it. We have a God is is here with us and doesn't leave us to fend for ourselves. The rewards we receive on a day to day basis are amazing. He shows us His love again and again.
Paul said in Philippians 4:10-13, "But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned before, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."
Paul's contentment did not hinge on his circumstances. He served the same God no matter where he was or what circumstance he found himself. We would learn well to do the same.
I don't want you to get the idea I'm trying to diminish any of our problems. I understand they are very real and can cause quite a bit of heartache, or stress. So in saying, "smile," through these problems, I'm not saying, "Your problems aren't that big, get over them!" I'm saying we serve a bigger God, who has an amazing plan that we can't always see, and we need to trust He knows what He is doing.
Life is hard. There's no way around it. But our God is bigger and loves us more than we can imagine. Trust He knows what He is doing, and jump right into the adventure He has in store, no matter what bumps we find along the way.
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