I heard a joke that by 8:30 in the morning most people will know if they are going to have a bad day or a good day. This morning at 8:40, I found out that a package I had mailed was damaged and I didn’t know where it was. It had personal information about me, and I became very upset. As I tried to get more information, I became increasingly more upset because I couldn’t talk to anyone. I finally, went to the store where I mailed the package. Just before I walked in. I realized that I had a choice. I could go into the store angry and act that way or I could be calm and explain how upset I was feeling. Although I wanted to yell and curse, I realized that wasn’t going to help. The woman who was at the counter really didn’t do anything wrong. So, I just told her I was upset and explained why. She was understanding and helped me. Her answers made me feel better.
My day started long before 8:30 and I don’t think my day was set by 8:30. I do know that every moment of every day, I am given chances to decide how I am going to act. Sometimes, I will be able to be mindful of my actions, I will see the light of God in other people, and I will feel His love coming through me and I will see God in other people, even in difficult situations. Other times, I will be too much in this world and I won’t.
Last night, my husband decided to clip the dog’s nails in bed. He clipped the quick. The dog bled all over the bedspread and the dog headbutted me. My head is very sensitive due to my headaches and the pain of the headbutt was too much. I got angry and snapped at my husband. It was too much in this world feeling my head throb to think about anything else. Yet after I calmed down, I did apologize to him.
I realize that anger, fear, and pain just make the world a little too real sometimes. We forget to see beyond ourselves and remember to love those around us. That’s probably one of the most difficult and amazing lessons to learn.
There’s a movie that says that God makes rules that go against our instincts. Whatever we want to do, we are told not to do it, but I realize that actually isn’t the case. God wants what is best for us and He is trying to guide us. Here’s my example. I had a rescue dog named Piper. I loved her very much. She loved eating. If I put down food, she would eat it. In fact, she always wanted more food. If I gave her more food, she would continue to eat. She would eat until she got sick. However, because I loved her, I didn’t give her all the food she wanted, I gave her the amount of food that was good for her. That’s the love God has for us. He is trying to guide us to what is best for us, not what we think we want.
When I feel anger, fear, and pain, I know that I want to focus on myself, and I want to do everything I can to make myself feel better. Yet, I am learning that when I feel bad, I need to focus my energy on other living things because feeling love towards others is the best remedy for anger, fear, and pain. It isn’t the course of action that I feel like I want to take, but it is the course of action that God leads me to take.
My faith saved me. May God’s peace reside in all of our hearts.
