Focus on the Blessings, Not the Problems

While we are in "church transition", I have been watching a lot of Joyce Meyer again. I am also reading one of her older books, "Be anxious for Nothing". A song that keeps playing in my mind is one by 4Him called "He Never Changes". In my Bible I continue to come across Scriptures on trials, tribulations, and peace. Not three words I would ever put in the same sentence, especially after these last couple of years. My husband and I have been experiencing a lot of "life challenges", such as many things breaking around the house, 2 cars in need of repair, sick parents,a change in our church situation,friendships ending, health changes, increasing prices on everything from gas to house insurance and on and on. Each time we are faced with yet another challenge, we are forced to accept it by saying "no one died", because truly, that would be something to cry over. And yet, life stuff still hurts. So while I am watching Joyce Meyer, it is no coincidence at all that she has been focusing on making it through your trials and tests with joy and not sorrow. She has been reminding me that being put through many tests is a sign that God is strengthening us. That he is paying attention to our prayer requests and answering those in His unique way. She said the other day that we spend too much time fighting against our problems because we don't understand that we are being tested. Well, we may not understand why things "seem" to go from bad to worse, but we have HOPE that God is working it out for some great purpose and HE will be glorified through it. I am always amazed how these things turn out. I can always see how God worked things out even when it seems futile. In our human minds, we just can't figure this stuff out. That's why it's even more important to just keep our eyes on who God is and don't worry about what He is doing. I have also been reminded to live one day at a time. Don't worry about yesterday, don't think about tomorrow, but deal with one day's problems at a time. And while all this "stuff" is going on, I haven't missed the fact that our marriage has been strengthened! Our spiritual life has improved! Our family time is even more special! And those are the things to focus on. The blessings and not the problems!