I don’t know about you, but I am glad this past week is over. Just seems like it has been a very busy week, and I have faced one problem after another. One of those weeks where nothing seems to work out right or go as planned. Not that one major thing happened,  just lots of little, aggravating problems. Those weeks make me feel tired and worn out, feeling like I’ve been fighting a losing battle. By Friday afternoon I finally thought to myself, “OK, I give up; I’m ready to wave a white flag and surrender!”

Well, all my whining did not fall on deaf ears. God heard me and he responded this morning by bringing to my mind some things that DON’T aggravate me and some things that actually DO work out as planned. I’m calling these things my “smooth stones.”

One of my favorite stories in the Bible is David and Goliath. God reminded me that in this story while David was on his way to fight the giant Goliath; he stopped and “chose five smooth stones from the stream and put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine”-1 Samuel 17:40. You may remember that it only took one of those five smooth stones to take care of Goliath, but did you remember that Goliath had been tormenting the Israelites for forty days before David got involved? “For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and every evening and took his stand”-1 Samuel 17:16. Goliath apparently had been causing people to have almost six bad weeks in a row! I bet a lot of the Israelites felt like waving the white flag and surrendering. What a shame it would have been if they had given up right before the battle was won!

Now you ask, “Is she really crazy enough to start collecting and throwing stones?” Sounds tempting… but I think “smooth stones” for me are the things I need to throw back at the Goliath’s in my life that tease, taunt, or aggravate me. My “smooth stones” are things I need to think about when I feel like giving up; they are things that make me feel happy and thankful. Since I’m not nearly as tough as David was, I think I may need more than five in my pouch so here goes a few “smooth stones”(in no specific order) that I plan on using the next time I face a battle.  I bet you can think of some to put in your pouch too.

I’m thankful for…..

Jesus

a feeling that heaven is close by

my mom and dad

nieces who love me

a mother-in-law who loves my boys and me

coworkers who make me laugh

long hugs from Hunter Rowland

a husband who is a great daddy

cool Fall mornings

Randy and Teresa Dixon

my sister’s wit and secretarial skills

the beach

a good night’s sleep

dreams about Holt

old and new friends

Howard Harley

decorating blogs

having sons who make the world a better place

memories

hole sponsors and players for The Holt Rowland Foundation golf tournament

a God who hears me when I whine. 🙂