Some of you have probably wondered if I’ve fallen off the edge of the earth? To be honest, there have been days in the past couple of months where I wish I had. To say it’s been a trying period of life would be an understatement, but through it all, I have seen God at work in our lives. He’s been with us every step of the way, and through these difficult circumstances, He has taught me a lot, like the importance of gratitude and perspective.

Do you remember Jonah? You know, the man who refused to obey God and was swallowed by a whale as a result. Then, after finally getting his act together, he saw an entire city turn to God and pouted about it. He didn’t like Ninevah and didn’t want them to be saved. What kind of Christian is that? I guess God wondered the same thing when He came to Jonah and questioned, “Doest thou well to be angry?” (Jonah 4:4,9)

I’ll be honest with you. I’ve had some pretty nasty thoughts about Jonah until I recently discovered I was just like him. (Talk about a kick in the gut!). While I don’t share Jonah’s aggravation about the lost world finding Christ, I tend to pout when things don’t go the way I think they should. Yup, just like Jonah, I fold my arms, sit on my duff, and whine and complain to anyone who will listen. Woe is me!

Can I be even more honest? Deputation has caused this trait to escalate in my life. While it is full of many highs, it is also full of many lows. The hours of traveling make me weary. Plastering a smile on my face when what I really want to do is cry requires more strength than I can explain. Watching the days pass by and finding ourselves no closer to reaching our goal of Wales is discouraging. And before long, disappointment leads me, once again, to the tree of despair, fussing to God about all the ways He’s not working things according to my expectations.

And just as He did with Jonah, the Lord questions me, “Doest thou well to be angry?” The petulant child in me wants to snap, “Yes, I have every right to be angry.” But the more mature (and less grumpy) side of me realizes I’ve been so consumed by what was going “wrong,” I had failed to notice all the ways things were going right. In my murmuring, I’d overlooked my many blessings. Doest thou well to be angry? No, not at all!

Now, I’m going to tell you a quick story you may find difficult to believe. (I don’t think I would believe it if I weren’t living it.). You know about our breakdown in January, right? And our accident in February? Well, two weeks ago, the Lord blessed us with another motorhome. I don’t have time to tell you the whole story, but I will say that both Jason and I felt great peace about this being our new home.

Yesterday, as we were making our way back to our home base in South Carolina, the compressor seized up and caused the serpentine belt to snap, leaving us stranded at a rest area an hour and a half from our destination. Currently, we’re at the repair shop, trying to determine the best course of action to make the necessary repairs and get us back on our way.  

So, to recap, that’s a four-day breakdown in January, a complete totaling and loss of our motorhome in February, and then another breakdown in March. They said 2020 was the worst year ever, but honestly, 2021 hasn’t been all that great either!

I tell you all that to say this: I have a choice to make today. I can be like Jonah and sit under the tree, pouting and whining about how unfair life is. Or, I can choose to count my blessings and trust that God has a purpose for yet another trial in our lives. As I thought about that choice this morning, the Lord brought a wonderful verse to my attention.

These crazy, unexpected events seem wrong to me, but according to God’s Word, my Lord only does wondrous things. So, if He’s allowing these trials (and He obviously is), then it must be a good thing. And as long as I keep my heart and mind focused on that truth, I’ll be much less likely to find myself crying over a wilted gourd!