So my hubby was in Arizona for a week of golf and FINALLY returned yesterday. I find it interesting that while he was gone it seemed like my schedule was packed, the phone rang more than usual and decisions needed to be made about a variety of things. I coped, but was so thankful that we were able to talk things over on the phone. And then his cell phone began to malfunction! Conversing with him became problematic but he borrowed his friend's cell phone and I managed to get the advice that I so needed.
One of the more time-consuming and stressful situations was when my daughter and son-in-law decided to list their house for sale on Zillow so that they could try to get it under contract to make it doable to get financing on a new house. I had minimal stress....but they were overloaded with stress! They were working like crazy people to "stage" the house for an open house on Sunday and I volunteered to handle the open house so they wouldn't have that aggravation to deal with. They received a full price offer that evening. And then things got really crazy with another offer the following day for a bunch more. I felt so sad for them as they navigated their way through dealing with the offers on their house, their phone ringing constantly with people interested and real estate agents wanting to list it, as well as scrambling to get their offer in on the house they hoped to get. Because of my real estate background I was immersed in helping them with the contracts and giving them the information they needed to make proper decisions. Unfortunately they did not get their offer accepted so now they are trying to figure out what to do.
So, anyway, my stress level is almost nil today as I have no responsibilities elsewhere and I am beginning to wonder just why I was so overwhelmed for the past many days! Ah, there really were reasons and I won't go into all the other situations that needed attention. I am thankful, however, for a bit of relief.
It was interesting that yesterday's memory verse was quite relevant to me. James 1:5 "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault and it will be given to him." I shared this with Shauna because I knew she needed that reminder.
Today I randomly pulled another card from my box of verses and amazingly it was the followup verse. James 1:6 "But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind." I am so thankful that God does give us wisdom when we ask and that my faith is firm as I believe he will give it to me. I sure don't want to be doubtful. I shudder to think of myself out to sea on a life boat, blown and tossed by the wind, without the Lord calming the seas.
Praise God! He is in control of all of our circumstances and will direct us when we look to him for guidance. What a relief that is!
The book of James is my favorite book of the bible. It continually speaks directly into my life to give me pause to make sure I am doing and saying what is pleasing to God.
