 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23
We recently moved, and wow, was that a lot of work! It technically still is as we are unpacking, organizing, and getting rid of things that we don’t need. We tried to do our best in planning ahead, packing a little everyday, and being wise with what we could control. Unfortunately, we couldn’t control everything and have learned a lot about patience in human error. People are not perfect. Amen? During the past few weeks, it seems that mistakes made by others have cost us hours of time and hundreds to thousands of dollars. I won’t go through every detail, but one example is that even though we completed our financial paperwork months in advance, the bank was one day late in filing their information so our move had to be delayed. This meant getting a hotel room, renting the moving truck for more days, and hours on the phone quickly arranging all of the changes. And honestly, this was not the most expensive human error that we had to fix during the moving process! This time has really challenged me in thinking of how mistakes and sins affect others. They don’t even have to be mistakes that are made on purpose but simple oversight or ignorance. One moment of forgetfulness can cost someone else hours of stress or having to rearrange their schedule completely. Have you felt this in your own life? Has someone else’s mistake cost you precious time and money? What about the flip side…has one of your mistakes cost someone else precious time and money? Maybe you delayed in paying a bill and someone had to spend time calling you or writing you a letter to remind you to pay it. Maybe you didn’t want to do something so you simply procrastinated. I know I’m infamous for procrastinating when I need to ask someone a question, and I don’t know what their answer will be. Ironically, it makes my anxiety last longer so costs me my own precious time. I think something that we need to remember is that there is at least one thing we all have in common. We are all imperfect beings! In Romans, it says that we have all sinned and we have all fallen short. Yet, we are all given God’s grace! Pretty unbelievable that He sees all of our mistakes but still gives us grace. I want you to think of that the next time someone lets you down or makes a mistake that affects you. We have all fallen short and “we” includes you and me. God gives us grace so let’s give grace to one another. Take some time in prayer right now and confess your impatience with others, times that you know you have been imperfect, and ask God to give you some patience in the days to come.
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 “And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.” Romans 5:5
Our house was sold, and then it wasn’t. When the COVID-19 social distancing was just starting, it wasn’t too hard to handle. Someone had just put an excellent offer on our house, and we were waiting for the final paperwork. Stay in the house for 3 weeks? No problem. I would have the house packed up in no time, and then we could see what was next. A day passed by, and then another day, and then a couple more days. And, sure enough, the buyer was backing out for fear of the virus and the certain down-spin of the economy. I was crushed to say the least. I really thought we were finally going to find a new house. And with the social distancing mandate, there was no way someone would come look at our house or consider moving during this time. Disappointment was unbearable and inevitable. I am thankful to have a roof over my head, but this house has caused me grief since day one. It pushes my anxiety over the top. See, I am not a country girl. I was not made to live where there is little internet or by a corn field that welcomes pests of all sorts. I want to be near civilization in a house that I feel comfortable with organizing like you wouldn’t believe. I want a house where my belongings get to be moved in immediately instead of five months later. I want a house where I actually know where my jewelry ended up. There was this huge burst of hope, but now, hope seems to be gone. Hope seems to be dwindling. When will this end? When will people want to buy houses again? The thing about hope is that it seems to be gone, but it’s never truly gone. Even when disappointment seems to be reigning, there’s always a glimmer of hope, and hope does not disappoint. Sometimes, we need that hope to keep pressing forward, persevering, waiting for what’s next. In my disappointment, I know I need to focus on being thankful and taking care of what God has given me. I am thankful that since our house was for sale, it was extremely clean before all of this started so we are able to tidy up each day and keep it fairly clean. I am thankful that we have fixed up so much in this house and have little fear of anything breaking since so much is brand new. And, I am thankful that the market as a whole is paused and it’s not just our house. These reminders keep hope alive in me. Above all, I know that God is in control. So friends, what are you needing hope for right now? What disappointment has you so downtrodden that hope is having a hard time peaking through? God brings hope. He brings peace. Trust in him while you wait. Bring your disappointments to his feet and ask for help. Ask for hope. He’s got you. |
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