You Are Loved: January 2013

Are you familiar with the saying, "first world problems"? It is one that I have only become familiar with in the last couple of months, and, I must confess, I use it liberally to chide my friends and family about being wrapped up in their own little worlds - which is exactly what the saying is about, referring to the difference between the types of day to day struggles we face in our modern culture compared to those in a developing, third-world country.

For example, my parents are currently on a 5-month long world cruise (tough life, I know!); as they were getting ready to go, my dad realized he was going to miss some event that he really liked because they would be on the boat, and my immediate response was something like, "Oh boo-hoo - its so hard having first world problems!". Now, of course, my dad wasn't seriously upset or even really complaining about missing the event because of the cruise, and, in reality, my parents are some of the most humble people I have ever met. But the point is that we so easily get wrapped up in our own little existence and so rattled by our "first world problems" that we can easily lose focus on the fact that there are bigger issues and bigger problems out there than ours.

I had this exact experience today. Another confession - I am as prone to getting wrapped up in my own stuff and wallowing in my stupid humanness as anyone else. Now, I am fairly certain that is not a shocking revelation to anyone, but its true. And today was one of those days. I was wrapped up in my own, relatively small, problems and concerns, including something as silly as the fact that I did not lose any weight this week on my new wellness plan, when I ran into a friend who I had heard was having some health problems. When I asked her how she was, she calmly told me that she had been diagnosed with cancer earlier this week. Well, that ripped me right out of my own little pity party, that's for sure!

But the really remarkable thing is what happened next - and that is that she went on to tell me the details of the disease, treatment plan, and outcome expectations - all of which sounded like little pieces of hell - peppered with comments on how awesome God is, how she sees His hand in all of this, and how blessed she is.

Wow. Now if that isn't a wake up call, I don't know what is. Here I was, feeling sorry for myself that I hadn't lost a pound this week, while this beautiful young mother is telling me how she likely won't be able to eat because the radiation will cause her throat to swell to the point where she could have trouble getting water down.

Here I was, wrapped up in how I will manage to get everything done that I want to this weekend before the Super Bowl, and here was this amazing example of faith, telling me she was confident that God had her doing exactly what He wanted her to be doing right now.

And here I was, stressed about whether or not I would be able to get my hair cut and colored before a wedding I am going to in a few weeks, and standing before me was a woman who has so much courage that she was calmly telling me her plans to cut her hair short before it falls out from chemotherapy.

Here I was, wrapped up in my first world problems, trying to juggle things by myself that, in the grand scheme of things, don't really matter and here was someone who was handing total control of something that mattered SO MUCH completely over to God with an overwhelming attitude of peace and confidence in His plan.

Talk about gaining a little perspective on things!

God tells us to trust Him over and over again. He tells us to root ourselves in His love - not love of the things of the world. He tells us not to worry - that He has wonderful plans for us and will take care of us always. He tells us that we are His Beloved.

But how well do we really listen most of the time?

I certainly wasn't listening today until I was blessed to encounter someone who was, and my eyes were opened. Because, yes, we all have "first world problems", and that is OK, as long as we keep the right perspective on them.

We need to learn to trust God with ALL our problems, first world and otherwise, because the truth is that you do not develop a faith as deep and strong as the one my friend showed me today if you are holding onto the little stuff. You develop that kind of faith, that intimacy with God, by letting go of everything, including the little stuff, and watching God transform your life through the trust you put in Him and His love.

You Are Loved

Thursday, January 31, 2013

First World Problems

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Steubenville NW Promo Video!