When Things Go Wrong

When things go wrong...

We all have those days that just seem to get worse and worse. 

You get up determined to have a good day, regardless of how bad yesterday was...

And just one little thing happens. 

Suddenly you know.

It is going to be A Very Bad Day. 

There's a song by U2 called 'Sleep Like A Baby Tonight'. 

The main message is 'no matter how bad today was, or how terrible the prospects are for tomorrow, you can sleep like a baby for just one night. Because while tomorrow may "dawn like a suicide" nothing will disturb you this night.' 

But do we ever think that when we're headed to bed after a bad day, knowing that the next will likely be worse? 

Not often. 

We worry, and we fret. We agonize, we threaten to just quit. We shake our fists at God and demand 'why'? And we complain. A lot. 

Did you know it is a sin to worry? 

I didn't, till yesterday, when I was listening to a sermon by Dr. Gibbs. 

At one point in his sermon, he stated: 'I worry about things in life, and then I worry because I am worrying!' 

(Let me tell you this much...I don't think that I would have signed up to be a Christian if I had known it was going to be so hard when I started.)

Thankfully, I didn't know. :) 

Anyway, we're currently worrying about the Very Bad Day that's slowly creeping into our lives...and we're NOT thrilled. 

EVERYTHING has gone wrong the past few days, and we really don't think we can handle ANOTHER bad day. 

Psalms 77:3 says: 'My soul refused to be comforted. I remembered God, and was troubled; I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah.'

Isn't that just what we do?

Something goes wrong, and we refuse to look to God. Then when we can no longer go on alone, we look to Him, and expect Him to fix everything. If he doesn't, then we get upset. If He does, we often aren't grateful. 

Instead we ought to follow Psalms 77:1: 'I cried out to God with my voice--To God with my voice; And He gave ear to me. In the day of my trouble, I sought the Lord...'

But what DO we do when things go wrong? 

Moping definately isn't a good idea. 

There's essentially three things:

First, know that regardless of what happens to you, or what affects you, know that everything--good or bad--will touch SOMEONE for God's kingdom. 

Everything happens for a reason, even if it isn't for us to learn from.

(Oh, and we may never know what impact that chapter of our life had.)

Second, pray. Yep, that simple. Just pray. Because nothing that we ever experience can be survived without prayer.

Third, praise God, no matter what. Look for the benefits in what you are experiencing, and what good may come of it. Even wars happen for a reason. Be positive. Nothing will tear you down quicker than yourself. 

'Its hard to be happy when someone's always being mean to you.' ~Unknown

One last thing...smile. 

Yes, find a corner, hide, and cry your eyes out for a moment, but come out of it smiling. Because nothing kills a bad day quicker than a smile. 

Oh, and say something nice to the person most annoying you that day. It helps a lot. 

(Disclaimer: I definately can't say I've got it all together--this post was inspired by A Very Bad Week I just experienced, and I do have to say...I've got a lot to learn before I'll get to the point where I'll be able to deal with Very Bad Days the way I just explained. It's the theory, that's all.)

Shalom, 

Yeshua be with you this week!

~Marissa