Simple Solutions

Wednesday was one of those unbelievably good days when everything miraculously just started falling into place.

I found a wedding dress. I ate pizza. I tackled a DIY project and it actually looked like the example. 

It was a good day. A great day. Life, was good.

 

And then there was Thursday.

 

Minor changes become major overhauls. Seemingly simple choices involved a lot of compromise. And even the foolproof chicken sandwich I ordered for lunch, proved to be more foulable than I imagined. (What, a bummer.)

It wasn’t a good day.

 

It was stressful. It was frantic. It felt like a Monday. 

Frankly, it was a great big giant (figurative) kick in the butt.

 

But I started wondering, once the dust had settled, did any of that mean that life isn’t good?

   *Spoiler Alert: These just might be our invites, by the talented (and extremely patient) Sarah of HeSawSparks.

My tired logic told me that if Wednesday, life was good, but only because we were overwhelmed with our friends’ generosity, or because a pretty dress fit right off the rack… if it was only good because the bank account was in the black… and we finally found the perfect shade of teal for our invites…

Then yea. By that logic, Thursday would have been just as proportionately bad.

 

Because I drank too much coffee and got a tummy ache… and because our relatives couldn’t find our registry… and because that dress that fit off the rack cost a little more than I wanted to spend…

It must have been a bad day. A very bad day.

You might even call it a very bad, no good, rotten day...

 

IF that logic were true, then life would be fairly horrible, something to be suffered through.

 

But, thankfully, that’s not really how life works. At least, it shouldn’t be. It doesn't have to be.

 

Yes, our moods can be largely influenced by our circumstances.

Our stress levels fluctuate based on the length of our to-do lists, the decimal points in our checking accounts, and any other number of odd mathematical equations.

 

But at the end of each day, our attitudes aren't actually dependent on our circumstances.

They are determined by our choices.

 

That’s sometimes a hard truth to swallow, but there it is nonetheless.

 

Do we search for joy in the midst of our struggles?

Do we see a challenge as an opportunity for growth?

Do we dare to ask for help when we need it most???

 

Or do we give up (or become hopelessly discouraged) when the going gets tough?

 

Do we throw in the towel – or throw out the stupid printer – when things don’t go our way?

Or do we take a step back and ask what we can learn from the frustration?

More importantly, do we realize who we should call on when we face catastrophes (both the epic and temporary kind)?

 

I’ll be the first to admit, often I don’t.

 

I’ve spent more than my fair share of days sitting around sulking.

Thursday, in fact, I was tempted to buckle under the stress (and hide out in the bathroom at work ‘til the day was done).

 

Thankfully, my friends and fiancé talked me out of it. 

They helped me see the bigger picture – not the Pixelated one I spent hours messing with in Photoshop, stupid invitation insanity!!!!! - but the one where life isn't bad because it's impossible to find the right pantone for a turquoise blue.

They reminded me that life isn't meant to seem awful just because of the occassional (or in my case, frequent, stupid, self-induced) stresses.

And at one point, they pointed out the mantra emblazoned on my shirt (if not my heart).

 

That’s what life is meant to be, I think... so much simpler than we make it.

It shouldn't constantly be a struggle. Or feel like an hour spent beating your head against a wall (or your own head).

 

There will be trying times, yes. Complications? Definitely. Days that aren’t smooth as ice; those are guaranteed.

 

But when we have faith, genuine, soul-stirring faith, the bad stuff pales in comparison to the good. Because everything dims when we are focused in on His glory!

It's when we lose focus (or focus on all the wrong things) that life can start to feel like it's falling apart.

 

Maybe what’s most important then – on those less than great days – isn’t our resolve to suffer through, or our ability to overcome, but the decision we must make to surrender to His will…

Maybe learning to look for Him, and praise Him, regardless of our circumstances, is the simplest (or at the very least smartest) solution of all!!