Life Inventory

Let’s be real. Life is hard. Let’s be really real- Life is painful. Social media does not help either. I am not going to post how my friend is suffering with cancer, another friend lost a family member, someone else is grieving her decision (from her youth) to have an abortion and another dear friend is contemplating a law suit against a school district for mistreatment of their special needs child.

Garden variety pain? No way. These things are down right life altering.

I have been thinking about trials a lot lately and here is a summary of what I have experienced over the years or have seen in the life of another.

Marriage - Good
Kids- Struggling in Walk with Jesus
Health - Good
Financial - Good
God is Good

Or
Marriage - arguments
Kids- Strong Walk with Jesus
Health - Good
Financial - Rough
God is Good

Or

Marriage - Good
Kids-  Health not good
Health - Good
Financial - Good
God is Good

Or

Marriage - Good
Kids-  Walk with Jesus -Strong
Health - Good
Financial - Not Good
Personal Walk with Jesus- Dry
God is Good

Or

Marriage - Struggling
Kids-  Walk with Jesus -struggling
Health - cancer
Financial - Good
Personal Walk with Jesus- Dry
God is Good

Do these sound familiar?

God really spoke to me that we need to inverse this inventory.
What if we placed GOD IS GOOD at the top of the life inventory and let Him take care of the other areas?

What if we looked at each trial as Satan’s attempt to take us out (Eph 6:12)?

What if we stopped to pray instead of complaining?
What if we took personal responsibility for our actions?
What if we stopped and reminded ourselves how Holy God is and
He has the right to sovereign rule over our life and circumstances?
What if we stopped allowing our circumstances (good or bad) define us?

I have really enjoyed the words of this song

“Broken Prayers”

I've been taught how to talk to you
Hold it together, make the bad look better
Say all the words that I'm supposed to
Bow my head, say, "amen"
Yeah, that'll do
Making every dead end look like heaven
Like being okay is the way to reach you

But you're not afraid of all the things I feel
So why am I afraid of being real?

You want my tears, every messy word
Every scar and every fear
You want all I have
With no holding back
When I'm hurt, at my worst
You meet me there
'Cause you see the beauty
In my broken prayers
In my broken prayers

You don't care if it ain't poetry
'Cause all of my edges
They're a little rough
But that's all I got to bring

'Cause you're not afraid of all the things I feel
Don't have to hide the scars that still aren't healed

You want my tears, every messy word 
Every scar and every fear
You want all I have
With no holding back
When I'm hurt, at my worst
You meet me there
'Cause You see the beauty
In my broken prayers
In my broken prayers

Mascara running down my face
Desperate cry in a dark place
You take me that way
All of me

May we allow the light of God’s Love to penetrate our hearts and show us the reality that yes there will be pain (John 16:33) but Christ overcame. Let’s practice an inverse life inventory and put God’s Goodness at the top.