When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,When sorrows like sea billows roll;Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Horatio Spafford wrote those words in 1873, after losing his son, his four daughters and all of his land and financial investments over a period of four years. If anyone had room to complain it would be this guy but complain was not what he choose to do. He chose to praise God in the midst of difficulties. I have not yet experienced great difficulty like that but there are days when my head and my heart want to complain and give up and say "It's just too much." Today could have been one of those days. As you know Jared and I are updating our kitchen which I'm sure you are aware is not a cheap thing to do. but sometimes things don't go as planned. Like when your counter top doesn't come off the way you planned and now you have to repare the wall or when you have to tear up all the trip because an old vent that doesn't go to anything throws a loop in your plan or when your washing machine breaks just three days before you are going on vacation.... So God has a great sense of humor and He likes to teach us a lesson in learning to laugh again. :D This is where I learned today to say... "It is well with my soul."
I went to the laundry mat at quarter to eight tonight and they close at eight. I didn't know that when I was driving there because I have never been to the laundry mat before. BUT that's when God allowed for a blessing to reach my heart and teach me. The Asian woman running the place came running out to my car, after I had apologized for not coming earlier, she sweetly asked me how many loads I had and said that she had some closing work to do before she could leave and that it would be fine if I stayed while she worked. I was floored. It's just laundry but half of it was wet from my broken washer and the rest really needed to get washed before we go on vacation. I accepted her offer and did my laundry while she worked. As I sat in the chair trying to read but not getting very far because my mind was overwhelmed with all that Jared and I had taken on and feeling like I had pushed this project on him at the wrong time. I scanned the laundry mat with anxious thoughts when I noticed a plaque hanging above the dryers with
1st Thessalonians 5: 16-18 on it... It reads,
" 16Be joyful always; 17pray continually; 18give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
I almost started crying because I knew exactly why God had allowed my washer to break and why he allowed me to go to that laundry mat at that time. I needed a fresh reminder that life is not over because we have a full to-do list. Life will always be full but it's what we do with it that matters and that determines how our outcome will look. If we do what Christ desires and truly bathe everything in prayer and give thanks in all circumstances then we will always be able to say "It is well with my soul" but if we choose to analyze things 'till the cows come home and worry and let anxiousness get the best of us then we will not have lived our lives according the will of God. This is a hard lesson for me to learn and apparently when I stop paying attention God has to give me a good push in the right direction until I understand it. So I am grateful tonight for all of our work and for our messy house and our broken washing machine and for our kitchen project. God never ceases to amaze me in how he desires to break us as our maker and hold us as our Father. His will is good.
God Bless, Sleep tight
CW
Songbird Ridge: The bed and breakfast we stayed at. 
We had a great time just crusing around the countryside and taking pictures of all the Amish country beauty. All the farms are so cute and set up just so. All of their gardens are beautiful and very well taken care of. The horses were groomed and beautiful. I want one now... :D Jared loved seeing the buggie with the boat trailer on it. You don't see that everywhere. The Bed and Breakfast was absolutely adorable and very cozy. Can't wait to go back! 
Back tracking a little, this is New years eve 2008 in the U.P. with the winell side. In this picture is Jared's sister Abby and her boyfriend Dan Vanderson. 
