It’s not something you want to see…especially at 9:00 pm. It isn’t something you want to see at any time of the day…but when it occurs at night when you are really tired…it seems even more of an “inconvenience”.
I went down into our basement the other evening and just happened to glance at our upright freezer. Well, it really wasn’t the freezer that caught my attention…it was the trickle of water coming out of the bottom of it that did. If you know anything about freezers, you know it isn’t supposed to be leaking, so I immediately knew we had a problem.
I first checked to make sure I had shut the door the last time I had been in it, because I just might have neglected to do that one other time, which had caused the same problem. But this time, the door was firmly shut, so I knew we had a bigger problem than just my negligence.
I then heard the freezer try to cycle on…and then cycle back off. It was trying its hardest to work for me…but it was evident it wasn’t going to stay on. So, at 9:00 pm…we got to unload a freezer of partially thawed food items. Fortunately, since we have a catering service on our property…we had a freezer to move things into…so that was a blessing!
Life’s inconveniences. They never happen at a good time, do they? I mean, I’ve never heard anyone say, “Oh the other evening my car broke down in the middle of nowhere and I was so happy about it because it was just the most perfect timing!” Nope, you just don’t hear anything like that very often. All you need to do is check what the dictionary says about the word “inconvenient” to know it isn’t a good thing. It says it means: “Something inconvenient; trouble.”
Ahhhh, trouble. That’s a great word for most of life’s inconveniences. Everyone has times in their life when trouble suddenly shows up and many times…it isn’t anything that is earthshattering…but it sure can be an event that “ruffles our feathers” a little bit. As I’m sure you know…we then have a choice. We can rant and rave and scream and cry and throw things and even blame God…but after we have exhausted our energy doing those things…we still need to deal with the trouble at hand.
I wonder sometimes if God watches us during these times and just shakes His head. I wonder if He is proud of how we react, or if He wishes we would put these inconvenient times in perspective and realize that most of the irritants that come our way have no eternal value. I wonder if it saddens Him when I get more upset over my freezer going out…than I do over the fact that there are people whom I know who will spend eternity in hell because I didn’t have the time to tell them about my Jesus. Probably because I was too busy ranting and raving and screaming and crying and yes…even blaming God.
I don’t know about you…but I really want to get to the place in my walk, where, when an inconvenience happens, I immediately ask myself, “Is it going to heaven or hell?” And if I determine it has no eternal value…then I’ll take the “hiccup” in stride and get it taken care of…without any ranting and raving and screaming and crying and yes…even blaming God.
We are living in a messed-up world that often seems unhinged, so I think there just might be more important things to dwell on than a broken freezer. So, when we are tempted to throw a hissy fit this week over something that isn’t going to heaven or hell…let’s practice self-control, smiling, soft words…without blaming God. I think He will be proud of us if we do
“Take control of what I say, O Lord,
and guard my lips.”
Psalm 141:3
BY THE WAY…have you watched all four lessons in my latest YouTube series entitled, “Fears, Worries & Futures” on my YouTube channel, Image Seeker? If not, check it out and make sure and subscribe so you won’t miss out on the next series when it becomes available! You can find Image Seeker at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0szlDSgNBtFuzzNLBWzwMA
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