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Three Ways to Cope with ‘Windy Days’

7 Mar

Two guys were standing inside a building of a local theme park. They were looking outside, and it was WomanOnWindyDay_croppedan extremely windy day.

The area’s custodian, the one who had the job of sweeping up debris, was a very small woman (4’10″& 90 lbs) and she was having a rough time trying not to be blown away. When she asked her park manager what she should do, he replied: “You have a warm down jacket don’t you? Well put rocks in all the pockets!”

Then a minister, who was standing nearby, suggested she say a little prayer to ask the Lord to help her cope with the wind.

Then the park clown suggested she could kill two birds with one stone by saying the prayer she said each night. He said, “You know, the one that goes:’ Now I weigh me down to sweep…‘”

LOL!

All of us have “windy days,” don’t we? Days that threaten to knock us off our feet. Days that cause debris to flurry around us. Days that feel like hurricanes. All we want to do is survive.

Here are three ways to cope with the strong winds that blow through your life.

1. Be sure you are “weighted” correctly. At the park manager’s suggestion, the woman placed rocks in her pockets to help weigh her down. The Rock that is our secure foundation on “windy” days is the Lord (1 Corinthians 10:4; Matthew 7:24-25). We are founded on Jesus Christ, and we continue to build our lives on Him. His Word will help us stand in the storm and in every circumstance, and we will find our faith strengthened in the process.

2. Call out to God. The pastor’s advice in the humorous story above is certainly good counsel. When the winds of adversity come, cry out to the Lord (Psalm 57:2). Either the Lord will make the winds subside, just as He calmed the storm in Mark 4:37-40 – replacing fear with faith and giving you peace – or He will help you go through the storm as He did for Paul in Acts 27:14-44. He will deliver you out of your troubles (Psalm 37:17).

3. Rest in the Lord. The clown’s advice, though silly, had a bit of truth in it. He mentioned her bedtime prayers, suggesting the idea of sleep. Instead of fretting, we can rest knowing that God never slumbers (Psalm 121:3-5). He’s always watching, always aware of what’s going on in His children’s lives (Psalm 91:1, 5). We can “lie down and sleep in peace” (Psalm 4:8). But that “rest” continues even when we are awake (Psalm 37:7); we can have God’s peace all day long (John 14:27).

The One who is our “Refuge and Strength” is a “very present help in trouble,” and the secret of abiding in His peace is to “Be still” and know that He is who He says He is – the God of the universe (Psalm 46:1, 10a); and if God is for us, who or what can be against us? (Romans 8:31, 35, 37-39)

Who then is this that even the wind obeys Him? (Mark 4:41) It is Jesus, the Mighty God, our Refuge and Peace. I don’t know about you, but it helps me to know that God is in control of all things, even my Windy Days. Have you found this to be true?

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Straight Thinking about Holiday Oxymorons

9 Dec

My husband and I often laugh at the covers of women’s magazines.  So often they offer high-calorie foods and gorgeous desserts (like the Molten Chocolate Cake shown here) right next to dieting articles (like this one ~ “We lost 230 lbs!”).  Have you noticed that?

Some other cover oxymorons (and it’s not just Woman’s Day):

  • “Your healthiest year ever”… next to a whole collection of muffins and pound cake
  • “Eat healthy fast-food cheat sheet”… next to Corny Cupcakes (cupcakes on a skewer made with brown butter frosting and jelly beans)
  • “Drop 10 lbs in 4 weeks”… next to Simple & Delicious Cheesecake Brownie Bars
  • “8 Reasons why your diet isn’t working”… next to Strawberry Shortcake Parfaits.
  • “Stop Gaining Weight!”… next to “Easy Holiday Baking: Delicious pies and cakes”

You get my point. Why is it we don’t think straight when it comes to food or other things we want?

I laughed at a recent post by Jeff Goins, a writer I follow. He suggested (in an email titled “Giving Thanks ~ for EVERYthing!”) some funny holiday oxymorons:

  1. Remember to be grateful for what you have… Don’t miss these great deals!
  2. Catch up on work before the end of the year… Don’t forget to rest.
  3. Try to get some “me” time… Don’t neglect spending time with family.

We need to think straight about those seeming inconsistencies, don’t we?

When we have that normal stress (“tension”) going on in our lives, it’s important that we listen to a voice outside of ourselves. We need to ask our Heavenly Father what He wants us to do, and search the scriptures for His wisdom. Right thinking can help us walk that fine line of tension this month (and every month).

You’ve felt it.

  • We want the 90″ flatscreen TV for our family for Christmas, but know our budget will only allow for one much smaller (if at all).
  • We want a new dress for the Christmas party when the truth is, we already have three or four outfits that will do just fine.
  • We want to spend hundreds of dollars more on gifts than last year, but we don’t want our family to fall over a financial cliff.
  • We want to sit down and read a Christmas novel like Unexpected Christmas Hero, but there are cookies to bake for Junior’s school party…  and the office party… and the Christmas Eve party.
  • We want to stuff our faces at the holiday office get-together, but a little voice says, “What were you saying to your friend yesterday about not wanting to gain more than two pounds over Christmas?”
  • We want to curl up by the fireplace and take a nap, but God’s Spirit nudges us to visit Sister So-and-So in the hospital.
  • We feel like we owe everyone a piece of our time, but God says, “come apart with Me before you come apart” in all this holiday rush.

It’s the tension of all those extra choices that adds to our stress at Christmas. We need God’s wisdom, don’t we?

The Bible gives us that wisdom. Proverbs 4:23 says, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” That is the protection we need ~ surrendering our will to God’s will.

We’re also instructed, “…do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). That is the source of godly priorities.

And we are told, “…seek those things which are above, where Christ is… Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth” (Colossians 3:1-2). That is how we embrace an eternal perspective.

What we become and how we deal with circumstances is largely determined by our desires, thoughts and focus. Whether during the holidays or any day of the year, God wants us to make balanced, wise decisions. Seeking Him and responding with proper attitudes is a good start.

So … how are you dealing with the normal stress and challenging tension of these holidays?

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Some ‘Sick’ Humor

29 Apr

I think my friend Rhonda Rhea (1) has captured the award for “Sick” Humor. Her recent posts on Facebook made me LOL!

Rhonda wrote, “NyQuil and ice cream. Yeah, what could get a person over a cold faster than a NyQuil float?”

She also wrote, “Carpe Diem-e-tapp. Sneeze the Day!”

I’ve often heard people say that laughter is the best medicine. The Bible says something like that (Proverbs 17:22). A happy, cheerful heart is “good medicine,” healing the soul. It diffuses stress, exercises the heart and lungs, increases oxygen consumption, reduces carbon dioxide in the lungs, relaxes muscles, and blesses the body in many other ways.

I read a story about a “humor cart” at Lutheran General Children’s Hospital (Park Ridge, Chicago area) that helps sick children laugh. (2)

Wearing a set of bobbing antennae, a retired teacher, Cathy Risberg, pushes the cart laden with toys, coloring books and other silly trinkets, but it’s the jokes that make the children smile and giggle… silly jokes that children love, like this one:

“Why did the boy throw the butter out the window?”

“I don’t know.”

“So he could see a butterfly!”

Melodie Merrick, clinical manager of pediatrics at the hospital said, “Laughter releases endorphins, and that helps us feel better and heal. It decreases anxiety and can mean less pain medicine. It takes a kid away from a fear of the hospital, and that’s important to building a trusting relationship.”

Because the Bible says there is “a time to laugh” (Ecclesiastes 3:4), we can look for opportunities God gives us. Laughter is coupled to joy ~ especially joy when we observe God’s creative works ~ in Psalm 126:2-3.

I have to admit that hearty laughter has pulled me through many stressful seasons of life. And I’m in good company. I read that Abraham Lincoln said he could only handle the stresses of the Civil War by cultivating lightness of heart: “If it hadn’t been for laughter,” he said, “I could not have made it.” Likewise, comedians often say they learned to cope with their problem childhoods by cultivating a sense of humor and helping others laugh more, too.

A Jewish proverb says, “What soap is to the body, laughter is to the soul.” Yes, I’ve washed away many gloomy days with a good scrubbing of clean humor, especially since I started cultivating a LOL heart.

The story about the hospital’s “humor cart” was sweet, but it was Risberg’s final statement that arrested my attention.Smile Note

“Most of (the children) can smile,” she said, “and those who can’t, I make sure I’m smiling at them.”

Ah… the power of a smile.  I thought about all the people ~ and not only children ~ that I encountered just this past week. So many of them were sad, depressed, frustrated, lonely. No smiles there.

But God allowed me to give them a great gift. I could share my smile with them. And sometimes I could add a word of encouragement, a silly joke, or a few moments to pray together. (I have this note near my desk.)

Yes, laughter is the best medicine, but a shared smile is a quick shot in the arm!

(1) Wants some laughs along with wisdom? Read How Many Lightbulbs Does It Take to Change A Person?: Bright Ideas for Delightful Transformation by Rhonda Rhea (New Hope Publishers, 2012)

(2) http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/health/2013617033_weblaugh10.html

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