How Do You Handle Bad Days?
Have you ever had one of those days? You know, the kind where anything and everything goes wrong, and tasks take three times longer to accomplish than they should. I had one of those days this week.
I woke in a good mood considering I was facing a project deadline that day. I had a plan and most of the day set aside to work on the project, so I wasn’t overly concerned. But then, the day began in earnest.
I started the day as usual by taking Barnabas for a walk. Actually, I should say I tried to take him for a walk, but it was cut short due to circumstances beyond our control. Another dog in the neighborhood had gotten free and insisted on following us. The trouble was, he wanted to follow closely and was insistent on gaining my attention, which Barnabas perceived as a threat to my safety. Have I mentioned Barnabas is VERY protective of his mommy? He behaved admirably and tried to scare off the dog without doing any harm to him, but the other mutt wouldn’t take the hint. He continued to follow, which meant Barnabas kept stopping to confront him. Long story short, after not having even reached the end of our street, we turned around and returned home—me feeling frustrated and Barnabas feeling cheated out of his morning walk.
After having my devotions (which I definitely needed at that point), I called Barnabas to ready him to try our walk again. As soon as he reached the living room, he promptly threw up all over the floor and my shoe. Lovely! He’s been fighting off a cold, and the drainage has been causing stomach upset, so I wasn’t totally surprised by this emptying of his stomach contents, but I was feeling a bit annoyed.
After cleaning up the vomit (I hope you’re not eating right now) and giving Barnabas some bread to calm his stomach, we finally made it out for our walk. I was hoping to make it quick since we’d already lost so much of the day, but that wasn’t happening. My sweet pooch was in one of his moods where he needed to sniff every blade of grass and check out every pile of leaves. I could have hurried him along, but I felt sorry for him for having his first walk attempt thwarted and then getting sick. So, I indulged him and let him go at his own pace.
Finally, I could start on my project, which quickly turned into a nightmare of file size and format issues, program malfunctions, and one hiccup after another. After a couple of hours of fighting problems, I took a lunch break to regather my composure. When I opened the freezer door, I realized the ice box had shifted at some point, which meant the freezer door hadn’t closed all the way, which meant everything in my freezer was a soggy mess. SIGH!
After lunch, I got back to work on my project, hoping all the bugs had worked themselves out and things would run smoothly from then on. Didn’t happen! The problems continued. Every step was met by error messages and the idea that maybe what I was trying to accomplish wasn’t possible. . .at least, not for me. By the time Jason got home, I was a complete mess!
See, I told you I had one of those days. The question is, how do we handle bad days? What do we do when problems overwhelm us and our patience runs out? How do we respond to unmet expectations, dreaded delays, and frustrating situations?
Well, I’ll tell you in a moment, but first, let me share with you what NOT to do. This is how I handled my lousy day. First, I whined and complained and cried. Then, I sent Jason out for pizza, which I greedily enjoyed and washed down with a soda, followed promptly by a rather large hot fudge sundae. (Please don’t judge me!) Yes, I tried to drown my sorrows in comfort food. Did it work? Temporarily, but then I felt guilty about the number of calories I had consumed in one sitting, which made me feel frustrated by the amount of exercise I would need to do to work off those “comfort calories.” So, in the end, my bad day remedy was unsuccessful.
There are several people in the Bible, however, that handled their bad days in the right way. For the sake of time, I’ll only share two with you.
“Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped. ”
In the first chapter of Job, God’s faithful servant experiences a day worse than any I could ever imagine. In a matter of hours (or possibly even minutes), Job lost nearly everything he had. His children. His livestock. His barns. His servants. Gone. In the blink of an eye. Talk about a horrible day! So, what did Job do? According to the verse above, he worshipped. Say what? Worship? In such a dark hour? Yep, that’s what he did. And he wasn’t the only one to respond to heartache in such a way.
“I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. ”
Most scholars agree David penned this psalm when he was in the cave of Adullam. Fleeing for his life from the angry King Saul, David sought refuge in Gath, which was enemy territory. When the king of Gath sent David away, he found safety in the cave of Adullam and was joined by over 400 other “misfits” of the time. Despite David’s misfortune, this psalm is one of unending praise. Even after a series of bad days, the psalmist was able to say, “His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” Continually. In the good days and the bad. When things are going well and when they’re falling apart. Just like Job, faced with considerable opposition and loss, David worshipped God.
So, how do we handle bad days? If we follow the example set forth by these men and countless others, we’ll worship God. Praise Him in the sunshine and in the rain. Praise Him in the good days and the bad. Worship Him for who He is because no matter what we’re going through, God never changes. He is and always will be worthy of our praise!
“Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.”
You Can't Go Wrong With Worship
Andwhen Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in theirhand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth. And he asked them of their welfare, and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom ye spake? Is he yet alive? Andthey answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yetalive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance. - Genesis 43:26-29
I encourage you to read through the entire story of Joseph, for it holds many golden nuggets, but for now, allow me to set the scene. Joseph's brothers have returned to Egypt to buy food, this time bringing their youngest brother, Benjamin, as Joseph had commanded them. Upon arriving, they are sent not to the court but to Joseph's house. Fearing they are about to be enslaved because of the money that had been in their sacks after they had come to buy food the first time, they strive to explain their predicament to the steward, who assures them that all is well. When Joseph arrives, they present him with a basket of the finest fruits and spices that they could muster up during the famine (which I imagine was a pretty pitiful offering) and bow themselves. After he asks of their welfare and that of their father, they answer his question and then bow again and worship him.
These men had been through it when they visited Joseph the first time. They knew him to be a hard man (or so they thought). At this point in time, they are each wrestling with a sea of emotions. They are afraid. Why are they being brought to his home? They are confused. Why had the steward placed their money back in their sacks? They are dealing with guilty consciences because they had already attested that all their troubles were due to their poor treatment of Joseph. But when Joseph appears before them, they don't protest. They don't argue. They don't question. They don't beg or plead their case. They answer his questions and then do the only thing they can think to do--they bow down and worship.
Oh, what a powerful lesson for us today. How many times do we wander through life tossed about by many questions and uncertainties? How will we make ends meet this month? How can I juggle everything I need to do and still have time for the things that are the most important? Why is this happening to me? What is God doing? Like the brothers, we are afraid, confused and plagued by doubt. So when we appear before God, what do we do? I don't know about you, but typically I whine, cry, pout, question and accuse. But what should I do? The same thing the brothers did. I should bow down and worship.
When I don't have a clue what's going on, that's okay. I can worship the One who does. When I don't have the answers, that's not a problem. I can praise the One who does. When I can't seem to find the way, I needn't be afraid. I can lift up the name of the One who is the Way. No matter how hard the trial, God is always worthy of my praise. Always! In fact, I believe it is through this worship that we find true peace and joy in the midst of our troubles.
James 1:2 says, My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations. Joy? Seriously? How can I possibly be glad to being going through this dark valley? By worshiping God anyway. By giving Him praise and honor. By taking my eyes off of myself and my circumstances and placing them on Him. By remembering that He is working something good in me and through me. How many times have I missed the joy that was waiting just on the other side of worship because I failed to give God the glory He deserves? How many times have you?
My dear friend, in the midst of the trials, when you don't know which way to turn or what else to do, worship God. Praise His name, even if it feels a bit insincere at the time. Don't let that stop you. Just keep praising, keeping in mind that He is worthy. There's no need to whine, cry, pout or explain. Let's learn this valuable lesson from Joseph's brothers. We simply can't go wrong with worship!