A forward from my weekly email devotional from Max Lucado. com

Thump-Thud, Thump-Thud

by Max Lucado

When a potter bakes a pot, he checks its solidity by pulling it out of the oven and thumping it. If it “sings,” it’s ready. If it “thuds,” it’s placed back in the oven.

The character of a person is also checked by thumping.

Been thumped lately?

Late-night phone calls. Grouchy teacher. Grumpy moms. Burnt meals. Flat tires. You’ve-got-to-be-kidding deadlines. Those are thumps. Thumps are those irritating inconveniences that trigger the worst in us. They catch us off guard. Flat-footed. They aren’t big enough to be crises, but if you get enough of them, watch out! Traffic jams. Long lines. Empty mailboxes. Dirty clothes on the floor. Even as I write this, I’m being thumped. Because of interruptions, it has taken me almost two hours to write these two paragraphs. Thump. Thump. Thump.

How do I respond? Do I sing, or do I thud?

Jesus said that out of the nature of the heart a man speaks (Luke 6:45). There’s nothing like a good thump to reveal the nature of a heart. The true character of a person is seen not in momentary heroics but in the thump-packed humdrum of day-to-day living.

If you have a tendency to thud more than you sing, take heart.

There is hope for us “thudders”:

Begin by thanking God for thumps. I don’t mean a half-hearted thank-you. I mean a rejoicing, jumping-for-joy thank-you from the bottom of your heart (James 1:2). Chances are that God is doing the thumping. And he’s doing it for your own good. So every thump is a reminder that God is molding you (Hebrews 12:5-8).

Learn from each thump. Face up to the fact that you are not “thump-proof.” You are going to be tested from now on. You might as well learn from the thumps—you can’t avoid them. Look upon each inconvenience as an opportunity to develop patience and persistence. Each thump will help you or hurt you, depending on how you use it.

Be aware of “thump-slump” times. Know your pressure periods. For me, Mondays are infamous for causing thump-slumps. Fridays can be just as bad. For all of us, there are times during the week when we can anticipate an unusual amount of thumping. The best way to handle thump-slump times? Head on. Bolster yourself with extra prayer, and don’t give up.

Remember no thump is disastrous. All thumps work for good if we are loving and obeying God.

EXPECTATIONS!!

"Expectations are just disappointments in progress"

Has anyone else ever heard of this qoute? Im not sure if I entirely agree with it, but in this certain angle of this post-Im in agreement. I constantly end up disappointed from the high expectations I have on others.

My downfall is these expectations are either too high or unrealistic, or are just uncommunicated.

In my mind, I put these high expectations on people, whether its job performance with coworkers, or peers to obtain the same moral standards, or family to always come through, or friends to always be supportive, or my children to always be well-behaved.. I could go on and on. These high or unrealistict expectations will lead me to disappointment.
Im learning to consider a new point of view. For instance, I was recently disappointed over a certain situation with a friend. Her actions disappointed me terribly-more so because I expected something of her. Then my husband helped me realized there might be another perspective to look at. My view of her actions might not be the motive of hers. Does that make sense? My perspective doesnt always line up with reality. Its not my friends fault Im hurt or holding a grudge, it was my expectations that got me hurt Im suffering from those high unrealistic expectations.

Sadly, my birthday or special holidays like Mother's day always tend to end up in disappointment--because the day never pans out the way I expected it to. Ive learned to communicate with my husband that I expect him to aknowledge ME specifically on Mother's Day. Clearly communicating and sometimes negotiating with the person I have the expectations with seems to help. That way we can all be on the same page.

Lastly, its also been EXTREMELY freeing to be able to hold things "loosely". To be flexible and thankful with whatever happens-happens. Its a mindset Im learning to obtain!

So the quote "No expectations, fewer disappointments!" is something I try to repeat to myself often when it comes to these particular type of scenarios.

How do you deal with expectations and disappointments?

Refining Silver

Malachi 3:3 says: 'He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.'

This verse puzzled some people in a Bible study and they wondered what
this statement meant about the character and nature of God.

One of the people offered to find out the process of refining silver and
get back to the group at their next Bible Study.

That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to
watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her
interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining Silver.

As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire
and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to
hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest
so as to burn away all the impurities.

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she
thought again about the verse that says: 'He sits as a refiner and
purifier of silver.' She asked the silversmith if it was true that He
had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was
being refined.

The man answered that He not only had to sit there holding the silver,
but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the
fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would
be destroyed.

The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, 'How
do you know when the silver is fully refined?'
He smiled at her and answered,
'Oh, that's easy,' 'When I see my image in it.'

If you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has his eye
on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.
Whatever you're going through, you will be a better person in the end.

'Life is a coin. You can spend it any way you wish, but you can only
spend it once.'

I recieved this is an email the other day, and thought I'd share. What a great parallel.