Wednesday, April 16
My Cup of Miseries Overflows
“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” – Isaiah 43:18-20
Has your cup of miseries ever been full to the brim?
About twenty years ago my father was in poor health. My son was at war on foreign soil. My husband did not have a job. I was in a stressful job with very little pay. I was having some health problems of my own. My cup of miseries was more than full to the brim. It was overflowing. How were we going to make it? I prayed every day “Give us this day our daily bread.” We never went hungry. We just did not eat fancy things.
Our son told us that he would send his paycheck to us. He only needed enough money to get his hair cut every week. How thoughtful of our son to want to take care of us. We never had to take his paycheck.
My father did not recognize my brother, and my brother warned us that “Pop” might not know us. Pop called my name and my husband’s name as soon as we walked into the door. After we left he was moved into a nursing facility. As he got weaker some of my sister’s friends sang him into heaven. I was at Boy Scout camp when the call came. My phone would not work so my friend, Nancy, told me to have my sister call her. She found me and gave me the phone. It was a gorgeous blue sky with fluffy clouds. I thought, “What a beautiful day to go to heaven.” I finished my week at camp with only my friends, John and Nancy, knowing my father had died. I had to keep upbeat because of my boys.
Our son had made it clear not to contact him if anyone died while he was away. He had a dream and his friend Roger comforted him. He did not know what had happened, only that something had happened. Roger was able to calm him down, and they served overseas for eight more months and came home.
My husband got a job. He had to be away from home a lot, but he had a well paying job. I learned to rely on God to make my job less stressful. Wearing a hat reminded me that God was above me all the time and he is much greater than I. Every drop of misery in the cup filled to the brim and overflowing had one or more blessings attached that re-filled the cup to overflowing with blessings. If your cup of miseries is overflowing, do not fail to count on God and his Amazing Grace. There is more than enough to refill your cup with blessings.
Loving God, please help me to dwell on the good in my cup instead of the miseries. Let me count my blessings naming them one by one. Let me see the great things you have done. Amen
Daphne G Grady