Trying Times

There have been times in my life when the circumstances that surround me prove to be extremely trying. It is during these periods of my life that I have learned the value of keeping my testimony in tact. I haven't always done it the right way. I will be the first to admit that I have made mistakes and allowed my circumstances to harm my testimony. The price that is to be paid as a result is very costly. Once you have damaged your testimony in front of another it is almost impossible to regain it. I think I have learned from those mistakes that I made, but even though they taught me a lesson I wish that I would have conducted myself so that I would not have done damage to another's opinion of what it means to be a Christian.

As the work on our home comes closer to an end we find ourselves in a difficult situation. We will be meeting with our contractors and doing a final walk through tomorrow and I ask that you please join us in prayer about this meeting. There are some differences that must be worked out before final payment is given and we are NOT confrontational people at all. Our goal is to keep our testimonies in tact, be fair, and be honest. There will be a meeting around 12:30 and I pray that all will end well and the job that was hired to be done professionally will end just that way.

During my Ashley's journey I have faced many difficult situations and along with those difficult situations came some difficult people. Not every one I meet will become a close friend. We all have different personalities and not every personality will be instantly drawn to one another. The important thing is that I treat them all with kindness and respect and that I try to see them as HE sees them. If Christ loves them then so should I. I learned many things about what was truly important in life. The biggest lesson that came to me in all of those circumstances was that my testimony is what will remain once I am gone. People are more important than things and difficult circumstances. I need to let them know that they matter more to me then anything else. Tomorrow as we face a difficult circumstance this will be our goal. The people are more important than the job that was done. If I have to go in and repair broken things or complete unfinished items what does it really matter? What matters is that they see the love of Jesus come through. That's it. Please pray for us. Pray that we will be able to walk away knowing that we have done the right thing and knowing that we did our best to allow them to see Him in us.

There will always be trying times in our lives. There will always be difficult situations that we face, and there will always be opportunities to allow our testimonies to speak for us. I pray tomorrow goes well. Good night and God Bless. Trish