When Life Gives You Lemons...

Have you ever noticed that some people respond to bad news better than others? I can't recall when it happened but I clearly remember a time when I decided not to let what life throws at me to determine my attitude. I discovered that most times the most powerful tool I have at my disposal is the choices I make when something unexpected happens that isn't all the pleasant. Such was the case on the morning of August 6th a couple of weeks ago. Ruthie and I had left the day before on a much anticipated car trip in our little convertible Mazda Miata. The car was a recent purchase for the purpose of relaxation and fun drives in the country. Emily, our daughter recently married to Jeremy, was having a reception in Nampa Idaho where Jeremy grew up. Jeremy's family all live in Nampa and so they were planning a fun gathering of family and friends to celebrate the recent wedding. Ruthie and I were really looking forward to the trip which we were sandwhiching in between seven days of our road trip. Looking forward to the vast and beautiful parts of Montana and Idaho we were going to be driving through we set out on the morning of the 5th. The first night we stayed at a nice new Holiday Inn in Lewiston, Idaho. After an evening diner it was back to our room and a good nights rest. The next day we would travel through Grangeville, Riggins, New Meadows, Macall and then down into Boise and the Treasure Valley. A beautiful drive of about 280 miles. I got up at about 6:30 Friday morning and started getting ready for the day. I went out to the parking lot where I had parked the car the night before and to my shock, found that someone had taken a knife to the cloth top. My first response was, "Are you kidding me! That's going to be expensive!" The next thought was,"I wish I would have caught the rascals in the act!" My next thought I've already asked forgiveness for so there is no need to post it here. Now if the car was an old beater it would have been one thing, but this was a beautiful 20 year old car I found sitting in a teacher's garage for the last 12 years with less than 34,000 miles on it. It was like brand new. I was very proud of the purchase. As I stood there looking at the top cut into pieces I knew I had a choice to make. Will I let this destroy our vacation or will I be glad for the low deductible on my insurance policy and just go buy some gorilla duct tape patch the top together for the rest of our drive. I decided a long time ago to hold onto things losely and people tightly so the choice was actually pretty easy. It is only a piece of cloth I would need if it rained. We moved on and, by the way, had one of our best times ever!
The point? We all have choices to make as life throws us curve balls. At Silver Creek Family Church we are constantly vigilant to help people live life to the fullest and honor God at the same time. That means occasionally we have to turn lemons into lemonade. Good thing most of us really like lemonade.
As you face your week, be thankful for the people God has placed in your life. Remember the relationships you have are for life, the things you possess will fade and wear out. I continue to expect God's best for all of us.

Great days ahead!

Pastor Steve