Greetings all and happy Sabbath! Just a reminder there are potlucks in all three congregations tomorrow. For those in Columbia, it is our 3rd annual ‘Summer’s End Taco Fiesta!’

Joy and Adjustments

This week has been interesting. I’m not sure if anything at all went according to plan, but never-the-less, we made it through. When considering lessons I could learn from this week, I came up with the theme, “Joy and Adjustments.” Allow me to explain.

Earlier this week, my mom came down to visit with us awhile. This of course brings me great joy! But it also brings a need for adjustments - shower schedules, meal planning, etc. Nothing major, but some adjustments to the daily routine.

Later in the week, I had a buyer contact me who was interested in my son’s old car. I was overjoyed at the prospect of getting it out of my driveway. Unfortunately, during the test drive, the engine blew up! The gentleman still wound up purchasing the car, but needless to say, I had to ‘adjust’ the price downward quite a bit.

How to adjust

Life can go from being fun and full of laughs to very challenging very quickly. Hopefully, the good outweighs the bad, but the reality is there are ups and downs. The key is in how we adjust to them.

All too often, people attempt to adjust with unhealthy coping mechanisms, such as drugs and alcohol. Much better choices include sharing our feelings with others, journaling, or taking a long walk.

Finding joy

Joy is one of those things that is everywhere, if you look for it. Sometimes it’s easy. For me, a lot of it has come over coffee and conversations with my mom.  With the car, the joy was that the problem with the engine occurred before the sale. Had it blown up after he bought the car, I would probably be dealing with a very upset individual.

Life is full of ups and downs and requires adjustments at times.  Some big, some small. But whatever circumstances you find yourself in, make the necessary adjustments to find joy!