The blessings of contentment

One of my favorite things to do in life is to just hang out with friends, have fun and talk. I've had the opportunity to do that twice this week and I am thankful. I had dinner with my friend Joan and her sister, Christy, on Monday night, then on Tuesday, Christy e-mailed me to see if I wanted to go to the fair tonight down where their other sister, Gwen, lives. Of course, I said 'YES!' It had been absolutely forever since I'd been to a fair and it was so much fun! It was fun just being there, but it was fun to spend time with friends (Christy, Gwen, Christy's daughter Jessica and their Aunt Sybil) talking and enjoying each other's company too.

There were many times I spent (and many tears I shed) between the ages of 37 and 40 looking at what everyone else had and looking at the things I didn't have in life, coming to grips with the fact that I more than likely wasn't going to be blessed with children, realizing that I was going to have to make it on my own and just battling that feeling of loneliness in several areas of life. I know the scripture about being content in all circumstances and I know the scripture in 1 Corinthians about the unmarried not having divided interests, but none of that seemed to matter. It was an emotional thing, not a spiritual thing, so it took a while to work though. God knew what He was doing though...my 40th birthday was fabulous...a huge turning point for some reason...and I haven't looked back a day since. It's like I adopted 1 Corinthians 7:17 ("Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him.") and applied it to to my life. The things I've read about this verse apply it to a vocation, but I felt it was applicable to my life in general. I needed to come to grips with where I was and 'turn it around,' so to speak. Since I've attempted to do that, I've come to fully realize that my singleness is, more often than not, a gift. Over time, it has allowed me to have a VERY active part in my nieces lives that I know I wouldn't have had if things were different; likewise it has afforded me the opportunity to have time in the lives of so many of my friends' children that I never would have had otherwise. It has given me the opportunity to build some wonderful, deep friendships that I may not have had the time to do otherwise. It has freed me up to be there when I've needed to be there for others and it has given me a huge opportunity for blessing and ministry in the lives of people, who often turn out to be friends, that God puts in my path. Being allowed all these things has blessed ME....I have been blessed FAR BEYOND what I could have imagined or expected and to be honest, I can't imagine having a life any different than the one I have. There are still times that I worry about my future, from a monetary standpoint mostly, but when I look at how far God has brought me these last few years....how far He has brought me in my relationships and in my trust in Him....I know He has that aspect of my life under control too.

I don't know how all that ties in to me being at the fair with friends tonight, except that I am just so grateful for the people and time to invest in relationships that God gives me, even in something fun like a trip to the fair!

God is good....all the time!