Swept Away by Emotion

      Sometimes it feels like you should give up, that things will be too difficult and you shouldn't even try. You feel like everything is going wrong and you don't know how you will be able to make it work again. You try what you can and try to stay calm only to be met with more frustration. This is how I felt Saturday morning as I plugged in my tablet to begin writing in my novel over the weekend and work on an upcoming blog for this week. On Friday night all had been well and it worked fine, but Saturday morning the cord died, and so did the battery. The emotion I can say now was definitely blown out of proportion for such trivial situation, but in the moment that was what I felt like.
       I was mad to say the least but nothing I did made that cord work and when I looked closer I saw why. The cord had frayed and was now a fire hazard, so I quickly unplugged and set the cord to the side to cool, then decided to get on my phone and order a new one. This seemed to be a simple enough task, but nothing went smoothly Saturday morning. My phone is also badly in need of being replaced and malfunctioned the whole time I was trying to use it to find and order a cord. What should have taken 10 or 20 minutes was now taking me over an hour. Twice I became so frustrated with the situation that I threw my phone across the room, scaring the crap out of my poor cats, and probably further damaging my phone (not my brightest idea.).
       Although in reality this situation wasn't as bad as it seemed in the moment, at that time I felt like giving up. I felt like why should I bother. My phone wasn't cooperating, my tablet was dead and I didn't know if I would have access to the computer at work this week to post or work on the a blog at all. I didn't know how long it would be before I could again write and in my frustration instead of thinking of what I could do in the mean time to help my situation or take advantage of it,  all I saw was how difficult things were at the moment. All I saw and felt was frustration and how things weren't working out the way I wanted. I allowed this emotion to over take me and it led me to act rashly, like when I threw my phone.
     Eventually things did get worked out and I will have a new cord Wednesday, I also spoke to my employer and got permission to use their personnel computer until then, and I know if I am patient I will have a newer phone soon, whenever we get the money and opportunity to replace it. So why did I share all this? Because it is so easy to lose focus, to get swept up in the moment, in the emotion, and forget that things aren't as bad as they seem. After I got everything all squared away I took a good look at myself and this situation and realized how childish and immature I had acted. I realized how silly and selfish it was for me to be upset over not having a computer for several days, when others don't have homes. I thought about my actions on a bigger scale, and saw that I still have a long way to go when it comes to not letting the situation get the best of me. With God's help I know I can overcome my flesh and behave better in the future, with His help I know I can keep a right mindset and not be so selfish. Today I hope if you related to my behavior, or saw yourself in this post that you remember to focus on Jesus and not get swept away as I did, to look at the bigger picture and realize how blessed you actually are. Stay blessed brothers and sisters.

 Proverbs 16:32
Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.

Proverbs 25:28
A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls.


Ephesians 4:26-27
Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.

James 1:19-20
Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.