Sometimes life is tough. Sometimes we feel like David, slinging only a small stone at a giant problem, and our greatest fear is that we will just make the problem worse. Sometimes things just work out better when we call in the big guns, when we use a real Power Tool! How about starting with this little quiz, to put things into perspective?

If you need to chop an old oak tree into pieces small enough to fit into your fireplace, you would use:

1. your bare hands
2. a butter knife
3. a small hatchet
4. a hefty chain saw (Power Tool)

If you needed to calculate the total material costs to build a 250,000 square foot building, you would use:

1. your fingers
2. a pencil
3. a calculator
4. a computer program designed exclusively for this task (Power Tool)

If you absolutely had to be in a town across the country from where you are right now, and you had to be there before tomorrow night, you would travel by:

1. walking on your own two feet
2. bicycle
3. car
4. an airplane or private jet plane (Power Tool)

If you needed the support of someone to help you through a really big crisis, you would first turn to:

1. your inner self
2. your next door neighbor
3. your closest relative
4. Someone who has every resource imaginable (and then some) at His very command (Power Tool)

You should notice that each set of answers goes from “YOU” … to something else…. to a Power Tool. You can see where “Power Tools” work better in every situation than trying to manhandle things by yourself. The point is this: No matter how big or how small the problem, task, or crisis may be … you have the greatest tool imaginable to tackle them all. Don’t grab for the smallest tool to tackle the most insurmountable problems. God is with you. He has ever resource at His command. He has promised that if you have faith as small as a mustard seed (which is really very, very small), you can move mountains! He’s the biggest tool in your life’s tool box.

No problem is too large for Him. If you think your problems are too large or too overwhelming, then you are underestimating the size and the awesome power of God.

Instead of reminding God how big your problems are, remind yourself how big God is!

If you think your problems are too small for such a majestic God to worry about, remind yourself that although he is God, he also calls you “Friend.” His greatest desire is to have that special, intimate, personal relationship with you. He wants you to want Him to help you.

When life is tough, use your own two hands… to put them together in prayer to reach for the greatest Power Tool available: the POWER of an awesome God who wants to be actively involved in your life. Put your problems into proper perspective, under the power and control of the One who lovingly calls you, “Friend”.

In John 15: 12-15, Jesus said:  “ Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”

“When everyone is born, God gives them a little basket. This little one is yours. The big one is mine. As you grow, so does the basket. But if you notice, your little basket is inside of mine. Why? Because when you were born, there were too many things you couldn’t do for yourself. I had the responsibility of feeding you, changing you, bathing you, and everything else you couldn’t do on your own. So I put your basket in mine and I carry them both – for awhile.

“As you grew older and began to do some things on your own, I began placing a few more things in your basket. When you learned to tie your shoes, that went in your basket. You wouldn’t want me tying your shoes now that you can do it on your own. And when you learned how to put on your own clothes, I put that in your basket. You wouldn’t want me in charge of dressing you now, would you?”

She shook her head defiantly.

“Now, as you grow older, there will be more and more things you must do on your own. You will eventually carry your own basket, with things only you can do, like deciding who you want to be friends with, who you will date, who you will marry, what college you will go to…” and with that last note, I handed her the smaller basket.

She looked up at me and said, “I understand. There are some things that I have to do for myself because they are in my basket.”

“Yes,” I replied, “but it’s even more than that. For you decide the things that belong in your basket, or someone else’s. Like now, you decide what to do about your friend being upset with you. If your friend doesn’t like your decision and gets angry, then whose basket needs to hold her anger?”

She replied with a smile, “HER basket!”

As she began to fully grasp my meaning, I became lost in my own thoughts of my mother and grandmother who were living with us at that time, reminiscing of the things they used to do for me that now I do for them. I held up the big basket and said, “One day when I’m much older, there will be things I can no longer carry in my basket. When that time comes, eventually you will begin taking things out of my basket and placing them into your own. Just like I do now for Grandma and Memaw. Eventually, the things that are in my basket will be taken out, for I won’t always be strong enough to carry everything I’m carrying right now.”

Life is a circle.

I reached over and gently took her tiny basket from her hands and traded with her. As she felt the large handle of the big basket and watched me take the little one, she understood. Softly, I said, “Life is a circle.”

Placing the baskets back on the shelf, my own mother approached me and asked me what I was doing. I gave her my smug overview of the impromptu skit, feeling quite proud of myself. Mom simply smiled. However, a few days later, I was surprised to see one of the tiniest baskets I’ve ever seen perched on the top of my computer. It was small enough to hide in the palm of my hand. Underneath it was a note, in my mother’s handwriting, that said simply, “Just remember, your basket isn’t nearly as big as you think it is. Love, Mom.”

Since then, I have amended my basket story. My basket now fits in the palm of my hand. I choose what goes in it and what doesn’t. I also choose if and when I want to help carry someone else’s basket. But God holds the biggest basket of all, as big as the palm of His hand. Life works best when I keep my basket inside of His and let Him carry it – regardless of my age or capabilities.

HIS PROMISE:  I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart! I have overcome the world. ~   John 16:33

MY PRAYER:  Lord, help me to trust in your promise of peace as I journey through this world and the trials of this life.  For I know there is no true peace to be found but in you, and your peace is so perfect and so restful, that it is beyond all human understanding.

I cautiously watch the water
            as it moves along the shore
                        creeping closer to the sand
                                    around my feet.

Beyond the crashing waves, where
           the water is deepest green
                        the ocean mirrors the depth
                                    of my grief.

My grief is like the ocean,
            sorrow coming in like waves,
                        sometimes gentle like a ripple
                                    on the sea.

 Other times it just engulfs me
            with crushing waves of sadness
                        as undertows of despair
                                    wash over me.

 Some days I wade out in it
            splashing memories with my feet
                        recalling days of sunshine
                                    on my face.

Stepping through the foamy edges
            never venturing out so far
                        that larger waves can threaten
                                    their embrace.

Then when I least expect it
            this freak of nature soaks me
                        in reality so painful
                                    that I fall. 

The sorrow and the anger
            that I’ve fought with day to day
                        surge through me in a tidal
                                    free-for-all. 

One day when I’m much stronger
            and my grief is not so new
                        I’ll swim just like I used to
                                    do before. 

I’ll take pleasure in the memories,
            and tread water in those places
                        that we can’t share together
                                    anymore.

~ Copyright, Ferna Lary Mills.  This poem is available on a beautiful framed print at Rainbow Faith Gifts.

There is only One who truly knows us, both inside and out. One who knows us from the beginning of time until the end of eternity, and everything in between. The One above who knows All. The Creator, the Author of our life. He has written loved ones into our life, and he has written their departure. He has also written every chapter of our life from beginning to end, and now, it is up to us to turn the page and enter the next chapter of this awesome book that He has written.

Now, this doesn’t mean we will forget our loved ones who are gone, for we never will. But it does mean that we are still here and our story is meant to continue on, at least for a time. We know this is true because we are still here. Our loved ones are still here … inside our heart, our thoughts and within our spirit. They will continue to follow us into this new adventure. Although the Author may never mention them again by name in our current book, we know they will always be a part of us. We are who we are because of them, and for that we are truly blessed. But until our grand reunion in that most Glorious Place, their name has temporarily been omitted from the rest of this book by an Author whose reasons are known only to Him.

For now, their names are emblazoned only on our heart, no longer on our pages. At times, we’re angry because we can’t comprehend the plot, and we can’t imagine the outcome of the final story. Sometimes it feels as if the Author is using up too much of his eraser and not enough of his pencil. But we must TRUST the Author with all of our heart and all of our being, and that’s the most important thing of all, no matter how the rest our story goes.

May God grant each of us the strength to get past the grief-filled pages and to walk through the pages of our new journey, letting new chapters unfold with new characters and new adventures. May He give us each the peace and mercy to continue as He continues to unfold the adventures ahead of us. May we understand that we are created in His image; He placed us within these pages and His pen has the final edit.

We may have many chapters left before our book is finished, or we may have only a sentence or two. Only our Author truly knows.  May we always keep our focus on Him, and keep His words always in our heart. For His love is perfect. His timing is perfect. And even though we may not fully understand it right now, His ending is going to be truly awesome, and beyond anything our minds can now conceive!

Enjoy your adventure, but along the way, spend some time falling deeply in love with the Author:  an awesome, loving, compassionate God.  

 ~ Ferna

HIS PROMISE:  He will wipe every tear from their eyes. ~  Revelation 21:4

MY PRAYER:  Lord, I cry out to you in my distress. As you promised, wipe the tears from my eyes and give my aching heart the fullness of your joy.  Thank you for walking with me through these difficult times and help me to walk closer to you in both the good times and the bad.

Our lives are like Books
in God’s vast library of time.
They begin with our birth and
every event is recorded on a line.

As we grow and mature or
work through each crisis one by one,
we can rest quite assured there’s a
chapter in our Book that is done.

But if we stumble in the middle and aren’t
sure of the way we should turn,
we can look to the Heavens and know
God is trying to teach what we should learn.

For remember that the Lord has
already read our Book from start to end.
He’s memorized each line, so He
knows where we’ll stumble or we’ll sin.

So, if you’re stuck in Chapter 10 and feeling
torn apart as if it’s all in vain,
turn your eyes towards the Heavens and
lift your prayers to Him, in Jesus’ name.

For He’s a loving God who say’s
we’ll never have to walk through this Book alone.
So stretch your hand to Him and know
He hears your every whimper, cry and moan.

Remember the story of all the
suffering and pain of poor old Job,
who said bravely, “When he hath tried me,
I shall come forth as purest Gold.”

God takes His gold and melts it
in the hottest of any other smelting pot
to make it pure and refined, to be the very
best that He has got.

So open your eyes and your heart
and reverently take a long, silent look;
and keep in mind that God above  
knows the beginning, the end,
and every single page of your Book.

 ©1996, Ferna Lary Mills

HIS PROMISE: Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here I am. ~ Isaiah 58:9

MY PRAYER: Lord, you promise to hear my cries and to answer and comfort me. Teach me to be still and to hear your voice even in the gentle stillness and on gentle breezes. I seek you, Lord, to comfort my heart.

Grief takes a huge toll on our soul. It’s an emptiness that can consume us and make us weary to the bone, although that term often seems like a huge understatement. We cry until no more tears will come; we bury our heads under our pillow; we find ourselves so low that we just can’t seem to find the strength to find our way back. Our strength is gone, our spirit is drained, and there seems to be nothing left to lift us back up out of this horrible pit. At this lowest point we just want to lie down and give up. It seems that life is no longer worth living and we would prefer to just to go sleep and never wake again.

That’s the depths that Grief can take us. So what can we do when we find ourselves at that depth? How do we break the chain of despair and reach the end of the rope that we turned loose of, and pull ourselves back up out of this pit? How do we find the strength? The desire? The courage? The will to go on?

It’s not easy, but it is possible, and I know this for I’ve been in that place of complete and total misery. I’ve seen it from the inside, felt it in the pit of my soul, and wrangled with its grip through the darkness of many nights. I know it’s not a pretty place and I know its powerful agony. I also know there is an escape ~ an escape from grief back to the world of the living ~ an escape that eventually leads to real joy.  This escape route begins with adjusting your focus. 

Do you remember the old camera’s, before the days of “auto-focus”? With those old cameras, if you didn’t manually adjust your focus you would end up with a photo of blurry people and a clear background. Or if you were taking a scenic snapshot, you might end up with a blurry scene and a clear telephone pole up close. Success or failure in taking just the perfect picture depended almost solely on your ability to manually focus that lens. 

Getting out of the mire of your grief depends almost totally on your ability to do that very same thing. Where is your focus? Can you only see what you have lost? Or maybe you just can’t see anything through your tears. Are you focused only on the past? Or focused on the emptiness of the present? All of these will give you a very blurry picture of your life and not a very pretty picture to give you hope enough to reach for the end of that rope.

Manually adjust your focus. 
Focus on Jesus.

Manually adjust your focus. Focus on Jesus. Period. If you can make that manual adjustment and find yourself focusing solely on Jesus and His love for you, then everything else will eventually fade away: the pain, the hurt, the emptiness, the despair. I don’t mean for you to focus on him temporarily. Rather, focus on him solely, continually, moment by moment, with your every waking breath. Talk with him in continual prayer, read the scriptures that tell of His love and His sacrifice for you. Listen for His still small voice in your heart. Ask Him to renew your spirit and be your strength. For only by focusing on Jesus will you find that place of peace and the renewal of your spirit. Only by focusing on His love will you fill that emptiness in your heart.

Sound too simple? Maybe. But it’s true. Jesus loves you. He grieves when you grieve and He wants to be your comforter, your savior, your best friend, your helper. All you have to do is focus on Him and ask. He will be your strength and carry you when you don’t have the strength to lift your head. He will cover you with a peace that no human on earth can begin to understand. He will show you the pathway for you to walk for a future filled with joy and He will walk with you every step of this new journey.

No human being on this planet can offer you relief from your grief. No amount of money, no event, no place on earth will give you that kind of peace. Yet His peace is given freely, and all that is required is that you seek Him.

Now, this kind of focus does take effort on your part. You have to lift your eyes to meet His, and you have to ask. You have to believe, and you have to trust Him. Trust in His eternal faithfulness. He is always with you and promises never to leave you. Never. Who else in this life can make that promise to you? Who else has the power to heal your aching heart? Who else loved you enough to die on a cross so that our life can be eternal and without end?

Reunions are being planned in Heaven, even as we weep. If we can keep our focus on Jesus, we can rest assured in His promise that we will see our loved ones again one day, and we can have His peace to continue to live out our lives until that appointed time.

When you find yourself falling back into that pit, re-adjust your focus back on Jesus. To focus on anything else may cause you to fall back into that pit of grief. If something is standing between you and Him, then move. Stay as close to His side as humanly possible. He will never leave you, but things in life will try to wedge between you and the Lord. When you feel alone and it seems like you just can’t feel His presence, remember His promise:  I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS. He will never leave you, ever. Remind yourself that He is STILL with you, even when you feel like you are all alone. Find that quiet place where you can be still and block out the noises of this life and just listen for His voice in your heart in the stillness. 

Most importantly, ALLOW Him to comfort you. He wants to, but you have to allow it. Be willing to give up your grief for His comfort. Sometimes it is so hard to do that because we feel like if we give up our “grief”, then we are failing to grieve our loved one properly. This is not so. Give your grief to Him and allow His comfort to take place. It does not mean you don’t still love and miss your loved one. It simply means that you have changed your focus….from your loved one….to Jesus. And that’s okay. Your loved one is sitting at Jesus’ feet, and that’s what they want you to do ~ focus on Jesus. Honor your loved ones in this way.

May the Peace of God, that surpasses all understanding, be with you. May you find that special relationship with Jesus, a friendship like no other, and may you find the real Joy that He has planned for you as you walk and talk with Him every step you take. ~  Ferna

HIS PROMISE:  Do not be fearful; do not be discouraged,  for the Lord your God will be with you  wherever you go. ~  Joshua 1:9

MY PRAYER:  Lord, let me feel your presence.  Let me be comforted even in the silence and the stillness, just knowing you are with me always, even as you promised. Thank you for always being with me wherever I am and whatever I’m going through.