Be Grateful, Be Sane

It's that time again, the time to feel stressed and overwhelmed and slightly crippled by how much I'm not doing or can't control. This is usually when I stress eat chocolate or binge watch Netflix. It's 1:02 am and I can't sleep.

We just paid a moving crew to move us into a beautiful, big house. We quickly found out that we'll be moving again in 5 months out of state for my husband to begin a rigorous CRNA program. My sister just moved here to be near our family, and now we are leaving her. Some of my extended family on one side is going through a crisis after the recent death of my grandmother. My husband and I are on a starvation plan to lose 60+ lbs that we put on in the 4 years of being married. Both of my children are going through some sort of emotional crisis at the same time. Daddy is gone working all the time to pay for all the above. 

It's all overwhelming and the reason I'm up at 1am. Yet, through all of this, two pieces of advice from my mom keep popping up in my head, "Choose joy when you are struggling with sadness" and "Be grateful if you want to be sane." If I don't choose to change my outlook, I might go insane. I can look at the same situation in a totally different light, that of gratitude.

My real current situation: My life is rich. God is good.

Life is ALL about relationships: with God, family, and neighbor. Nothing else matters, it will all pass someday. But relationships can last an eternity if they are founded in Christ. If we allow ourselves to wallow in self pity or surrender to our emotions, we can end up in some pretty dark places very quickly. God gave you and me free will. Our freedom to choose is better than a super-power. It can change even the darkest of situations into one that brings us closer to God and others. So choose joy, and be grateful. Don't wait to appreciate what you have; it may be gone tomorrow.