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Ups and Downs

Ups and Downs

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Ups and Downs--Grand Tetons behind the Snake RiverWe all have our ups and downs.

  • Good and bad times
  • Positive and negative relationships
  • Happy and sad days
  • Successes and failures

That’s life.

Like a hike up a mountain, our journey through life often feels like an uphill battle. However, once we reach the top, the view takes our breath away.

When we look down, we see how far we have come. A look around reveals the possibilities on every side of us. If we look up, we realize we have hope for future mountains.

We choose whether to focus on the good or the bad.

The choices we make determine how we feel.

When hard times hit, we can dwell on the negatives. Or, on the other side of the coin, we can focus on the positives and hope for the future.

Ups and downs occur in every area of life, including:

  • Marriage
  • Work
  • School
  • Parenting
  • Social activities
  • Health

All our experiences offer opportunities to grow.

Through each one, let’s keep on keeping on. Remember, like a mountain climb, our hardest times often teach the greatest lessons.

“He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he causes me to stand on the heights” (2 Samuel 22:34 NIV).

Thanks to Laura Lee Leathers for the suggestion.

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Cold Turkey

Cold Turkey

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Cold Turkey--two turkeys in the snowI love to eat cold turkey. However, I hate to quit a habit cold turkey.

To stop a habit immediately and completely usually hurts.

Cold turkey means no slow withdrawal. Instead, we tackle the problem all at once.

Few of us enjoy giving up anything that has been part of our lives a long time. Although it may be bad for us, we have a hard time letting go.

Addictions are especially hard to quit cold turkey.

For that reason, support groups exist for addictions to:

  • Alcohol
  • Drugs
  • Gambling
  • Eating
  • Plus, a long list of other behaviors

Support group members talk turkey. Speaking plain hard facts encourages hard, but needed, actions.

Support groups remind us to help one another in all of life.

We may not suffer addiction. Yet, we all need encouragement to make good choices. We also need guidance back to the straight and narrow when we choose poorly.

While we enjoy our post-Thanksgiving cold turkey sandwiches, think:

  • Why wait until the new year to begin better habits?
  • Perhaps now is our best time to quit bad habits once for all.

“Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall” (Ezekiel 18:30 NIV).

Thanks to Tim Lewis  for the suggestion. Photo courtesy of Robert Jones on Pixabay.

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Hang Out to Dry

Hang Out to Dry

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Hang Out to Dry--clothes on a clothesline outside a windowAfter Mom washed our clothes and put them through the wringer, she took them to the clothesline to hang out to dry. Most days the clothes dried in sunshine and gentle breezes. However, they occasionally received the worst of weather:

  • Storms
  • Freezing rain
  • Winds so strong clothes blew off the line

Whether good or bad weather, those clothes had no control over the winds that blew.

When we hang others out to dry, we desert them to face danger alone.

Like clothes in the wind, they have:

  • No control over the situation.
  • Little or no support

At times, we want to hurt or punish them. Other times, we simply want to avoid our own trouble.

I don’t know anyone who wants to hang out to dry.

Life is hard enough without others leaving us alone in a bad situation.

Neither should we hang anyone else out to dry.

When anyone deserts us or we desert someone else, remember the situation will eventually come out in the wash.

The Golden Rule tells us, “In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you” (Matthew 7:12 NIV).

Thanks to Karen Hart for the suggestion. Image by Philipp Ruch from Pixabay.

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Beat around the Bush

Beat around the Bush

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Beat around the Bush--a bush behind bare tree limbsA preschool relative visited our family years ago. She used my mother’s perfume without permission. When Mom asked what she had done, Kim beat around the bush. Over and over she responded, “I’m just tired.”

When we don’t want to say something, we may beat around the bush.

Ways we do that include:

  • Avoid a discussion or a question, as Kim did
  • Waste time talking about something else
  • Delay the discussion or our response
  • Answer cautiously, giving little information
  • Offer misleading information

To beat around the bush referred originally to bird hunts.

The Phrase Finder explains, “In bird hunts some of the participants roused the birds by beating the bushes.” Therefore, beating around or “‘beating about the bush’ was the preamble to the main event, which was the capturing of the birds.” According to The Free Dictionary, “Not to go directly to such foliage but to work around it instead gave the impression of wasting time or not trying very hard to raise the birds.”

Beating around the bush may cause a tangled web of trouble.

 If we fail to speak honestly and clearly, we risk harming ourselves or others. Minor issues may not matter. However, important issues demand our best response.

May our words, as well as our actions, always follow the straight and narrow.

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone (Colossians 4:6 NIV).

Thanks to Brad Leverett for the suggestion.

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If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It

If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It

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If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It-old house and overgrown rail fenceHave you noticed how often we change our lives? We try to improve ourselves, other people, or our possessions. A desire to improve can be a wonderful idea. However, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. (I apologize for the poor grammar, but that is the way we say it.)

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it tells us to leave things alone if they work well.

A word to the wise: Why cause problems if we have no need to change?

Small children who take things apart often fail to put them back together. The same happens with adults. (Ask me about my one and only effort at plumbing.) When we try to fix something not broken, we may never get it to work again.

We often try to fix our lives with the newest, best, and most expensive of everything.

  • Cellphones
  • Laptops
  • Televisions
  • Cars
  • Houses
  • Clothes
  • Shoes
  • Appliances

And the list keeps growing.

We give away, sell, or throw away perfectly good items to buy similar items to take their place.

As a result:

  • We stay in debt.
  • Landfills grow larger with all our trash.
  • We never find satisfaction with who we are or what we have.

Fix what needs to be fixed, but don’t try to correct a problem that does not exist.

We do well when we learn to live well whatever our circumstances. Certainly, we want to:

  • Take care of our health
  • Improve our lives and the lives of others
  • Make our world safer
  • Stand firm for what is right

Yet, we don’t want to:

  • Tear down progress already made
  • Hurt others
  • Destroy our world
  • Compromise what is morally right

When we try to fix what ain’t broken, we get everything out of whack. Instead let’s live in such a way that we and those around us have reason to burst for joy.

“Correct and rebuke your people when they need it, encourage them to do right, and all the time be feeding them patiently with God’s Word” (2 Timothy 4:2 TLB).

Thanks to Charles Smithers for the suggestion.

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Through the Wringer

Through the Wringer

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Through the Wringer--old fashioned wringerAfter I told a friend of recent family health problems, she said, “Oh, my goodness, Diana. You have sure been through the wringer.” Life has certainly felt that way.

This summer:

  • My husband spent three weeks in two hospitals.
  • I had an emergency appendectomy three days after he came home.
  • My husband had out-patient surgery a month later.

We have spent most of the past three months with health care providers.

However, people we know (and don’t know) have suffered much worse. They have been through the wringer in ways we cannot imagine.

Through the wringer (or through the ringer) means a difficult or unpleasant experience.

Years ago, my mother used a wringer washer. Water did not spin out of the washer. It was squeezed out. We did not want delicate clothes to go through the wringer. It could ruin them.  Neither did we want our fingers in the wringer. That damage could be far more difficult.

Difficult experiences may result from bad treatment from others.

People may:

  • Gossip about us
  • Scold us
  • Punish us

Difficult experiences may also result from life circumstances.

Our situation this summer fits that description.

We all suffer hard times. That’s life. Yet, we know these experiences will not last forever. Rather than wring our hands in worry, we recall past good times or look forward to better days. We expect everything to come out in the wash.

We can also look to the God of all creation who promises believers:

  • Peace in the midst of storms
  • Eternal life in heaven with no more pain or problems

With God’s love and care, we keep on keeping on.

“When I am in distress, I call to you, because you answer me” (Psalm 86:7 NIV).

Thanks to Tracy Crump for the suggestion. Photo courtesy of dagrimshaw from Pixabay.

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The Pits

The Pits

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The Pits-overflowing bowl of cherries and knifeMany in the world have faced difficult circumstances in recent days. A few describe their situation as the pits.

One problem stacks on top of other problems.

  • Illness
  • Storms
  • Difficult relationships
  • Job loss
  • Death

Troubles never seem to stop. Each day people wonder what will happen next and wait for the next shoe to drop.

The pain and uncertainty of life occasionally overwhelm.

People wonder where to turn and what to do. They feel like they are dealing with the worst of the worst. At the end of their rope, they want to give up in despair.

The pits can refer to a situation or a place.

Either way, no one wants to go there or stay there.

The origin of the pits remains uncertain.

Possibilities include:

  • Cherry or other fruit pits
  • Holes in the ground
  • Armpits
  • The service area in a car race
  • Coal pits

 None of these sound like a good place to stay.

Most people eventually get out of the pits.

  • They recover from illness.
  • Storms pass.
  • Relationships improve or they find new ones.
  • Other jobs become available.
  • Faith offers hope for life beyond death.

Whether in the pits or on top of the world, we have access to God who offers hope in every circumstance of life.

“I called on your name, Lord, from the depths of the pit. You heard my plea: ‘Do not close your ears to my cry for relief.’ You came near when I called you, and you said, ‘Do not fear.’” Lamentations 3:55-57 NIV).

Thanks to Debbie Tapscott for the suggestion and the photo.

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Nose Runs Like a Sugar Tree

Nose Runs Like a Sugar Tree

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Nose Runs Like a Sugar Tree--maple tree with sap bucketsFor many of us, our nose runs like a sugar tree all year. A related expression says our nose runs like a sieve. However we say it, we feel a little under the weather. Plus, we need tissues all the time for that steady drip.

A runny nose may result from:

  • Colds
  • Allergies
  • Weather changes or smells
  • Swollen sinuses
  • Eating, especially spicy food

Read this Mayo Clinic link for more information and other causes.

My friend Karen had never heard this expression until recently. When she first heard it, she wondered if the person who said it was making it up.

Those of us whose nose runs like a sugar tree wish it were made up. Instead we must blow and wipe … and blow and wipe … and blow and wipe.

However, compared to many other problems in the world, a drippy nose is not so bad. Therefore, we keep tissues on hand and thank God for life’s blessings, great and small.

“The human spirit can endure in sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear?” Proverbs 18:14 NIV).

Thanks to Brenda Mullins and Karen Richardson Puckett for the suggestion. Photo by diapicard from Pixabay.

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Keep On Keeping On

Keep On Keeping On

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Keep On Keeping On--storm at seaMany times we feel like we are drowning in a sea of responsibility. The storms of life hit. We have too much to do with too little time or energy to do it. Yet, we keep on keeping on.

Storms at sea can arise quickly and cause much trouble.

  • Clouds roll in.
  • Thunder and lightning threaten danger ahead.
  • Rain pounds, and waves toss our boats.

Yet, we have no escape, so we batten down the hatches and keep going.

If we keep on keeping on, we refuse to give up.

Instead, we keep doing what we are doing — what we have to do.

Like storms at sea, life storms can arise quickly and cause much trouble. They may also be slow-moving day-to-day responsibilities with no relief in sight. Either way, we hang on for dear life and do the best we can.

Most storms soon pass.

The sun comes out, and a rainbow appears.

All is well. Our troubles of the moment disappear.

Keep On Keeping On--whales in a choppy seaOther storms remain with us.

Our troubles continue, yet we make the best of a bad situation.

We look for moments of pleasure, like the sudden appearance of whales in a storm-tossed sea.

  • Friends call or visit to offer encouragement.
  • A funny moment occurs in the midst of many not-so-funny moments.
  • We enjoy a brief walk, beautiful music, or favorite foods.

Whether storms come and go or come and stay, we do not have to face them alone.

Other people will help if they know our needs. Jesus promised the presence of His Spirit to all who trust in Him.

When hard times come, keep on keeping on, my friend. May you know God’s never-failing peace.

“I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever” (John 14:16 KJV).

Thanks to a 5-3-20 commenter on Upper Room for the suggestion. First photo by enriquelopezgarre from Pixabay.

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Too Many Irons in the Fire

Too Many Irons in the Fire

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Too Many Irons in the Fire--Anthony SalyersAnthony Salyers demonstrates the work of an old-time blacksmith shop during Greg Lawhorn’s Molasses Day a few years ago. Anthony knows not to put too many irons in the fire. If he does, he will probably ruin part of his work.

Many of us have not learned that lesson. We fail to limit ourselves. Instead, we stay busy as bees with too many activities at one time.

Too many irons in the fire means we try to do more than we can handle.

A blacksmith must limit the number of irons in the fire when making horseshoes or other items. We must also limit what we do, if we want to do anything well.

Although we know better, we still try to do too much.

We overload ourselves with:

  • Work commitments
  • Family responsibilities
  • Community events

Often vacations get overloaded as well. We cram as much as we can into the short time we have. As a result, we return to work exhausted.

With too many irons in the fire, something will eventually fail.

  • Our work becomes less than the best.
  • We get sick.
  • Our families struggle.
  • No one’s needs get met.

Rather than overdo, why not do what we can do well?

Focus on the most important. If we have time and energy, we can add more. If we see we cannot do it all, let someone help.

“You’re going to wear yourself out—and if you do, what will happen to the people?” (Exodus 18:18 TLB).

Thanks to Emily Akin for the suggestion.

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