Over the Easter weekend there was a terrible collision in the middle of the night less than a block from my daughter's apartment. The drunken drag racing cost an innocent man a broken leg and the loss of his walking companion, a labrador retriever.
The neighborhood was awakened to the insistent urging of the car horn and many ran out to witness this horrible nightmare. Fortunately, no humans died as a result and the folks inside the apartment that the car eventually crashed into were all fine, but homeless!
All of this caused my daughter to be quite distraught. The suddeness of the impact, the urgency of the medical needs, the severe sadness of the broken-legged man, hit while walking and now unable to move, asking for his dog. It created a feeling of being unsafe and caused alot of thought and worry about how the car could have plowed right into her bedroom.
We talked about the collision alot throughout Easter Sunday. It weighed heavily on her mind and heart.
And it made me think about how unsuspecting we are when those MAJOR changes happen in our life. Whether it be a car accident or a death, or less seriously an ignored child or loss of a friendship, we are never quite ready for the change and the swarm of feelings that come with it.
But one of the best things about God is that He is always ready to turn our stumbling blocks into stepping stones. He always has a Plan B. He is always, always working things for our good.
Believe me, I know exactly how difficult it is to believe that when we are full of sadness, regret, depression...But those are the exact moments when we must have faith. If we can look at each event, each person, each chance meeting as an opportunity....If we can look, actually look for the good, no matter how small....then we will see God's hand at work.
Yes, when life gives you lemons, you can make lemonade. Or, change to chocolate! Just keep your mind and heart open to that teachable moment, your opportunity to grow, change and become someone new, better, improved.
Dear God, I thank You for the wake-up call this weekend. While we lift those up who were injured and saddened by the collision, we also thank You for always being at the ready when we have need. We don't have to wait for the emergency team to arrive to call out Your name. We don't have to live in fear that something dreadful might happen because we know that with You, we can make it and that You have a good and perfect plan for our lives. Amen.
Real Gurl Life! Real, meaning authentic, true, and comfortable in our own shoes. Gurl, incorrectly spelled, to acknowledge that some days just don't go right, no matter how hard we try. We are messy, make mistakes, and don't follow directions sometimes. Real Gurl Life is Authentically Imperfect!