How To Have An Awesome Life Even When Life’s Not So Awesome

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Sometimes life isn’t all that awesome.

I was reminded of this awful truth when I woke up to a house without power this morning in 4 degree temperatures. Oh, and my pipes were frozen, so no heat, no water, and no power.

Normally this would send me into total-Darren-freak-out-panic mode. My wife says I’m a bit of a pessimist when it comes to these types of situations, or any situation for that matter.

My brain tends to see everything that’s not there. I like to see what’s coming, so I analyze every possible scenario before any of them actually play out. I’m always looking past what I see and trying to see what I can’t see.

Wow, just writing that makes me realize why my wife gets so annoyed with this trait.

So, yes, I was seeing busted water pipes, a flooded crawlspace, huge plumbing bills, no heat for a week, a whole new heating system, and a fridge full of unusable food.

But, while I would normally be in total-Darren-freak-out-panic mode where I begin pacing the house in a space daze while ignoring every word spoken in my direction, I didn’t freak out at all.

And I had to ask myself: “Darren-Self, why aren’t you pacing the house and ignoring your loved ones right now?”

And then I realized….I’ve spent the last month writing about faith on my blog. And I’ve been pondering what faith means and how it plays out in everyday life. And suddenly, the faith I’ve been writing about actually kicked in.

Sure, I woke up to some possibly scary scenarios, but God’s in control of my life because I’ve handed God the controls of my life. So now it’s time to simply trust Him. And when I’ve done that in the past, I’ve never been disappointed.

So, instead of blankly wandering the halls of my semi-freezing house while ignoring my children’s cries for socks and blankets, we all packed up and headed to the nearest Starbucks at 7am, who unknowingly served as our Master Bath for the morning. (Thanks Starbucks!)

And guess what? Our power came back on awhile later, so disaster #1 averted.

As of this moment, my heat still isn’t functioning quite right and despite my best efforts wandering through my crawlspace with a hairdryer, my pipes are still frozen. But I’m still not in total-Darren-freak-out-panic mode, because I’ve handed God the controls of my life.

And by doing so, I’ve found that I can have an awesome life even when life isn’t so awesome.

More Thoughts On Faith:

When Faith Gets Messy

The Greatest Three Words Ever Spoken

Faith Is Not A Magic Wand

When God Fails Can You Still Trust Him?

It’s Okay To Trust In God: a testimony of faith and healing

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