I remember reading a devotional that FCA put out by John Wooden years ago and he was talking about dealing with the passing of his wife. The two had been still very much in love after a long marriage and it had been hard on him when she died. I remember him quoting James 1:2-3 (I love James...he's my favorite): Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. And he talked about how he had to make himself go through life (even after her death) and continue to "count it all joy."
I was coaching at the time and the thought stuck with me...to count it all joy. All the turmoil and bumps and bruises along the way.
Well, it's funny how God reminds you of things before you really need them because we just finished Lysa TerKeurst's Unglued in our women's Bible study (which is FANTASTIC, if you're looking for a good book) and she talked about thoughts to help you take on situations with more grace. The statement that stuck with me was something like If this is the worst thing that happens today, then it will still be a pretty good day.
Again, I was reminded of the Wooden lesson and smiled at the similarities and preceded to dive head first into a home renovation.
Which you know.
What you don't know? Today, we failed the foundation inspection.
I know...but first let me back up.
Monday, we had tornado and flood warnings. Wanna know what showed up at our house?
The wood. For our addition. (And here, I get into My Cousin Vinny mode...if you look trew dat dirty screen, past all dos leaves and over da fence, what do you see?)
The guy attempted two trips into the back yard before the mud was too deep for him to get through. (Cue the major divots in our yard. Right beside the attractive dumpster. There's a porta potty on the other side of the dumpster too...our neighbors love us.)
So Tuesday, another guy came out and put this plate on the top of the block wall and we felt that we were ready for inspection.
Except we weren't.
Today, the inspector came out and several things were wrong. We couldn't frame tomorrow, like we had hoped. The foundation needed to be fixed. The wood would have to stay in the yard.
Oh my, I had myself quite the pity party.
And then I remembered. And so I said to myself, "If this is the worst thing that happens today, then it's still a pretty good day."
And it was. The contractors addressed a major issue today by waterproofing the foundation.
And then the block company will come back out to repair the rest tomorrow. The remainder of today? It was gorgeous. The weather was perfect. I made dinner and my children had moments of sanity. My husband came home a little early from work, our SC house that's for sale had a scheduled viewing, and I got to talk to some good friends on the phone.
It wasn't until I was doing dishes tonight that I thought, "I could have been so bent out of shape over the failed inspection that I would have missed the rest of the good of today. Oh, thank you Lord for that silly sentence that can turn my brain around so quickly."
Oh, and the fact that the inspector was making sure that our foundation was of quality work for our new addition. Yes, that really was a good thing too...you know, if you're counting it all joy. ;)
Have a great night, my friends.
