Many ways to say it...

"Stay calm...carry on!"

"Chill out." "What is all the cafuffle?" "Be still." "Settle down." "Don't get your feathers ruffled."
I am sure there are many other sayings that communicate this thought both appropriate and inappropriate. I read these words last night...in the quietness of the evening. All those things that I get riled up about during the course of a day...don't matter abit...now. What a pathetic waste of time and energy I spent getting flustered about normal life happenings!

I sputtered about the tracks made all over the floor when Chevy was let in by an inattentive door holder.
I fussed about the mess in the bedrooms.
I whined about fiddling.
I nagged about this chore and that chore not done.
I moped about having to go out to the store.

The girls were excited for "just the girls to go out shopping"! Heart prick one. We combed our hair and headed off, the girls chattering about this and that. Heart prick two.
And when we got home...our eldest daughter handed me two blue and silver packages..."Mom, these are for you...because you are the best Mom in the whole wide world." Heart prick three.
My girl...who loves all things sweet...especially chocolate...used her own money to purchase treats for everyone...but not herself. She bought her momma York peppermint patties... "because I know you like those best." I hugged her tight and whispered a raspy, "Thank you!" all the while thinking, "I don't deserve this at all."
As I recall the events of the day, my spirit is grieved. I read those words, "Stay calm...carry on." Heart prick four.
God, once again, used our children to show me how selfish I can be. I want things to go a certain way, at a certain speed, with minimal disruptions, to suit my agenda....because there are things that I want to do or need to get done. I want my needs met and cared for because, "I work hard being wife and mom every day all day 24/7."
How selfish am I?
Ashlynn used her own money to do something nice for each of her family members today. I had no idea she had stuck her money in her pocket, till she paused at a display to look..."I want to get a treat for Teddy and Dad," she explained. Lord, I need Your help not to destroy her spirit with my selfishness!
Thankfully, I didn't have an agenda or time constraint. I nodded my approval and waited for her decisions to be made. I didn't notice "all the items in her hands" as I was ahead of her in line. Sometimes...I believe the Lord supernaturally steps in on mothers and takes care of opportunities that we might "mess up"! We had an extremely talkative cashier (odd for Walmart, in my shopping history!) that kept saying to me, "You know, girl..." I couldn't help but smile at our girls' reaction later. "Mom, why did she keep calling you "girl, this and girl, that" Do you know her?"

My spirit gets rumpled during the day...and that is wrong! I get in that "zone" and lose focus of what is really most important...and I displease the Lord. In light of eternity...what matters most? You'd think I'd have learned this by now and have complete victory over those times...you'd think...
"Be still and know..."
"My strength is made perfect...in your weakness..."
"Therefore to him that knoweth to do good...and doeth it not...to him it is sin."
Yes...these are the verses that are scrolling through my mind...and many more! God says the same thing in His Word using many different words and examples! He knows me...in my every weakness...yet, He expects me to do what His Word says! I know how to say it...it is just not always easy to do it!
"Stay calm...and carry on!"