Joy in the face of hardship

A lot has happened in the last few months. I've gotten kicked out of where I was living, got picked up like a stray on the road, spent a few solid weeks building on my spirit's foundation, considered and then rejected college, decided to move down to North Carolina, and on top of all of that, dealing with a wife that loathes me.

Yeah, things have been rough since I left the military. People have asked me, "Why don't you go back in? The economy is so bad! You need a stable income." Honestly? I'll make my own stable income, if that's what it takes, but I neither trust in nor operate in the secular economy. People think that a solid job and an environment they can control will produce peace and contentment, but that's a load of bull. I've had both, and neither brought me any sort of peace or contentment in the least. Of course, my wife was happy, but she doesn't know much about life, and as long as the money came in, that was all that mattered. When things fell apart for me and I began the recovery process, I found myself doing it alone.

You know, even though I love my wife with everything in me - a feat that not many on this earth know how to do, or have the power to do - I'm still stable. Being separated from someone who you've actually bonded with spiritually is like having a part of you ripped off violently. It's a shocking experience, and painful in the extreme. That is one reason why the Bible says, "Let no man tear asunder what God has joined together." There are major repercussions for both parties, even if they aren't immediately apparent. I know that even if my wife never changes, or changes too late to save our marriage, God is huge, mighty, and able. If He loves me more than I love my wife, then that's a pretty impressive love, and I will remain content and at peace with the knowledge that my path will be directed by Him.

People have called me naive in the past. I've also been labeled immature, senseless, and clueless. Why? Because my tendencies don't lean toward worrying, fretting, or even being concerned with my surroundings. When you walk in the peace of God, your surroundings no longer affect you like they used to. Instead of worrying, I have a Father to trust. I can remain firm in the understanding that no matter what path I walk, He will guide me and watch over me, and keep my mind centered on Him. What do you accomplish by being stressed and frustrated, anyway? Do you accomplish even a single task better? I am not moved by what I see or feel.

Here's the truth: "Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!" That's right, I said joy. God gives us joy in the face of sorrow, courage in the face of tribulation, strength in the face of adversity. If God is for us, who can be against us?

Take the time today to inspect your life. Do you worry a lot? Are you always anxious about something? Does it take just one troubling though to get your feathers ruffled? Put those things on the altar. If you can't do anything about them, then do what you should have done in the first place: give them to your Father!