When Your Whole Job for that Moment, Is To Simply Not Wig Out

We have bought a house. Yesterday was the closing, and eager to get things moving, we headed to the new house to get some simple repairs done, start on some painting, and get prepped for the hoard of repair folks coming through today.

Closing was a breeze. We survived rush hour traffic. Got to the house. No electricity. Hm. When I finally called around 7:00, I was assured the electricity was on. I looked that light switch turned on and the lights that were still off. No. I don't think so. Forty-five minutes later, I was told a technician would be out there before midnight. Midnight? I still had an hour drive back to "old home" and needed to return to new home by 0730 this morning. Midnight? Midnight.

At ten minutes after midnight, I called again. Where are the lovely techs? Fifteen minutes later I was informed they would be out there today. Some diagnostics had been run. They knew the problem and couldn't fix it in the dark, so they would be there today. And no one could call and tell me this? As a matter of fact, no.

So at nearly 0030 this morning (12:30 for those who aren't sure), I locked the front door of my very toasty, dark new home and headed toward bed...an hour away.

As someone who was raised in church, I was taught situations like that means one of two things:
1. You are right in the middle of God's will, and the enemy is attacking you because of it.
2. You are outside God's will, need to get still, and figure out how you are screwing up.

Both of those are legitimate biblical options, but let me propose a third thought. What if the opposition is of God, planned by Him and purposed by Him, and you are right where you are supposed to be? What if the whole situation is a set up, and your whole job is simply to embrace the moment, to walk through it knowing no one else in it is enjoying it either, and your purpose is simply not to wig out...but to be Him?

I won't pull your righteous leg and tell you it was some super spiritual moment. It wasn't. Fact is, it was frustrating, but, I was really over the aggravation before I was even off the phone with the customer service rep.

Before I even got off the phone, I thanked the lady who had the great job of saying, "You've sat there four hours in the heat, dark, and mosquitos for nothing." Can you imagine having to tell someone that? Ugh. I thanked her for tracking things down, finding the answer, and being sympathetic, and she really was. She did a great job, and it wasn't her fault. I don't even know if it is anyone's "fault". Sometimes this stuff happens for the sole purpose of us going through it well.

THIS TIME--which is important to point out because so often I get this so wrong--I got off the phone and prayed for God to bless that rep and everyone who helped and for the techs coming today.

Then--and this was the absolute BEST part--the kids and I had a great prayer time for the next 45 minutes or so--thanking God for the house, for the people who have blessed us as we've looked, the people who have been so faithful to pray us through so much. We prayed for folks we know battling all kinds of illness. The last part of the trip, we just talked about a lot of good things.

While we were there waiting, we looked at the stars, listened to crickets, and patched holes in the walls by flashlight. As odd as the circumstances were, it was a great evening.

I think there were a few reasons we ended up being there late--all God-ordained. But once we were home and I was rinsing off before passing out in bed, I had a really neat thought--what if that whole four hours was simply so I could be nice to that customer service rep? Maybe she needed someone to appreciate her yesterday? What if God deemed her important enough to invest that four hours into her? You know, I'm not on this planet to own homes. I'm on this planet to bless. What if that was one of the reasons for THAT house? She is certainly worth four hours. *I* would want to be that important. And what if all that happened so I could be a GOOD example to my kids on how to deal with things? What if that was a four hour investment into their heart's and character? How fabulous that the God of the universe would do that for my kids.

I doubt I will ever know all the reasons why last night happened the way it did, but the idea that last night God's assignment for me was, "For the next four hours, your whole job is not to wig out but to simply be nice," rattles some "poor me, I'm a victim and picked on target" theology and mindsets, and honestly, I like it. I like the simplicity of such Jesus-living.

Sometimes I really love my job. :-)