"And Then It Hit Me......And It Hit Me Again......"

Why am I discouraged?
    Why is my heart so sad?
I will put my hope in God!
    I will praise him again—
    my Savior and my God!

Psalm 43:5

When I was in elementary school, I was one of those kids who had trouble sitting still and keeping quiet.  On one of my "talking during quiet time" incidences, the class was supposed to be working on an writing an essay.  I was caught talking to the person in front of me who wouldn't respond to me.  Since I was the one talking, I was sent to stand in the hall as punishment.  As if that was not enough, while I was standing in the hallway, my Mom (who was a substitute teacher at my elementary school) came walking around the corner.

I learned something about the physical properties of the human body that day: Try though you might, you cannot make yourself invisible.  My Mom saw me in the hallway, and immediately wanted to know why.  Upon hearing my reply, I heard those dreaded words, "we'll discuss this further when your father gets home."  This was the moment where your mind plays that dramatic BOM Bom baaaaaa.  And your stomach lets you know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you are in for a very bad day.

Ever had one of those days, weeks, months or even year when nothing seemed to go right?  Even feel like your life just keeps crashing down around you no matter how hard you try?

Ever feel like you're the punching bag for the heavyweight boxing champion to work his frustrations out on?

Me too.  And some days, it is physically painful to have to plaster on a smile and make everyone to believe you're okay.  Because, after all, being a believer means all our problems are solved and everything in our lives is just absolutely perfect.....right?

I wish I could tell you that being a Christian makes everything perfect.  But my experience has been quite the opposite.  In fact, there are points in my life where I am unsure why I'm still here.  But I can tell you this without hesitation: every single event that makes up my life has been for a reason.  The Master has taken this block of stone and has been chipping away in order to form me into who He has chosen me to be.  

Have I enjoyed it?  Hmmmmm.......NO!

Have I learned from it?  I've picked up bits and pieces here and there.

Have I ever been discouraged?  Uhhh.....YEAH!

But God has ALWAYS reminded me that He's got me, and THAT brings everything back into focus.