The Fruit of the Spirit

My husband is self-employed.  Almost a year ago, he bought a semi and started driving for himself.  The downside to owning your own truck is if anything gets broken, we have to fix it.  Luckily, Jeremy has an uncle who is a diesel mechanic, so a lot of the minor stuff is done by the two of them.  However, just recently Jeremy had to take it to a mechanic, who happens to live in south GA.  The plan was for Jeremy to deliver a load near his shop, drop his truck off and I pick him up.  Sounds simple right?  Well there's one problem...it's two hours away!  Not to mention, I have to drive through downtown Atlanta in the middle of rush hour...NIGHTMARE!  

When Jeremy calls me, he informs me that the work that needs to be done will only take 30 minutes, so I suggest that he wait.  He agrees.  Three hours go by and Jeremy is still waiting on the mechanic, who happens to be a road mechanic!  Apparently that is a guy who travels and fixes vehicles.  I begin to feel bad that I did not pick him up earlier, so I offer to pick him up at that point.  He is mad at me because I did not stick to our plan.  That results in a fight, go figure.  So here I am, 4 pm, getting ready to drive two hours away, preparing myself for the nightmare that is waiting for me in downtown Atlanta (since rush hour seems to last all day on Fridays), and he calls to tell me that the mechanic is finally on his way and he is going to go to his uncle's house and wait (please tell me why he did not do this from the beginning!).  

So there I am, sitting in a Walmart parking lot (waiting on Jeremy's cousin to get Alexa), mentally exhausted from the day.  The back and forth, the fights with Jeremy, the frustration; I just have had enough and I start crying.  I just want Jeremy home.  I just want to start our vacation.  I just want to escape from reality.  Then I read today's devotional and am reminded that at moments like that, I need to be filled with Him.  His strength gets me through the day.  His strength gets me through moments when I just want the world to go away.  And if I am filled with more of Him, and less of me, I would not be so anxious, annoyed, interrupted and mad.  I would've understood Jeremy's frustration and given him compassion, without trying to defend myself.  I would've apologized for my selfishness and maybe the end result would have been different.

Let Him fill us with His love, joy and peace.  These are glory-gifts, flowing from His living presence.  Our weakness provides an opportunity for His power to shine forth more brightly.  As we go through this day, trust Him to provide the strength we need moment by moment.  His Spirit within us is more than sufficient to handle whatever this day may bring.  In quietness and confident trust is our strength.

2 Corinthians 4:7; Isaiah 30:15

Today is STATday.  I lost the two pounds I gained last week.  I do not know what happened since I did not stick to my calorie counting this week.  Most likely, those two pounds were from the Chinese food I had eaten before my weigh-in.  I did manage to also lose an inch off my waist and chest again, and a quarter of an inch off my arms.  I decided I am going to delete the fitness app on my phone.  I am not against calorie counting, but when it takes over your life, that is when you know you should back off for a bit.  I want my life to be about health and wellness, not guilt and regret.