When Frustration Rises

[2diva]

The other day, I got ready to vacuum the floor, when I noticed that my vacuum cleaner's chord had a knot in it. So, I began hurriedly tugging and yanking the chord, attempting to force the knot out quickly, since I had other things to do. But that only served to worsen the situation and make the kink in the chord even tighter.

I pulled and pulled to no avail. Not only did the knot get tighter, but, by the time I finished frustratedly tugging and pulling that chord, it ended up completely bunched up and tangled.

Honestly, I could've screamed. Though nothing serious had gone wrong, (It was a vacuum cleaner chord after all! LOL) as the time passed, I grew more annoyed and less patient. And you know how it is once you get frustrated with something, right?

It seems to get even harder to deal with.

So, there I was, standing in the middle of the floor, flustered over something as trivial as tussling with a vacuum cleaner chord. But finally, when I took a step back, slowed down, and calmed down, you know what happened? I was suddenly able to loosen the knot with relative ease. At that moment, I realized that my haste, coupled with my frustration, made something so simple appear so hard.

Can you relate to that?

When frustration rises, tiny little molehills begin to look like great big mountains, don't they? And what starts out as nothing more than a minor bump in the road, appears to turn into a major disaster. Whether your situation is tied to work, relationships, business, health, or something else,  it's so important not to allow the circumstances in your life to get you all worked up. If you do, what you deal with from day to day--no matter how major or minor--will begin to look a whole lot worse.

You see, your perspective gets tainted when you view things through frustrated lenses. Frustration works somewhat like a magnifying glass, in that, it tends to enlarge problems, issues, and setbacks. Something fixable seems impossible. Obstacles start to look insurmountable.

Remember, frustration magnifies the problem and obscures the solution. Never forget that.

That's why, from time to time, you have to do what I did the other day: Step back, slow down and calm down. Refuse to allow things to get under your skin. Make up in your mind that, even though you might be dealing with some less-than-perfect circumstances,  you're not giving into anxiety, worry, and frustration.

Tell yourself,  I may be going through, but I'm going to let my faith rise instead of my frustration! When you take on that attitude, then you can remain calm, composed, and supremely confident that the Lord is on your side even in the midst of the storm.

[mierjo]

May. 18, 2009 at 7:01 AM

Thanks for the beautifully written reminder to lean on the Lord! God Bless <><

[Stickmom]

May. 19, 2009 at 9:44 AM

Very good!