Becoming Like Him - Day 5 - Stuck

For my 31 days of writing, I am linking up over at Heading Home and over at the Nester. There are several of us that are taking the 31 day writing challenge. Kate has suggested that we spend 31 days of Five minute writing. You can use the prompts or write about anything you would like, you just need to write.

I am sharing my journey for 31 days as I strive to become more like Him. My prayer is that you can find hope and peace in my words.

Everyday is a new beginning

Take a deep breath

And start again.

Todays prompt is:  STUCK

START

I have found that it is easy to feel stuck. Stuck in a job, stuck in a life, stuck in depression, stuck in chores, and housework, and just trying to do too many things. Sometimes, I get stuck because of someone else, sometimes it is my own fault. But it always seems to happen at the very worst time. It always seems to happen when I need to be somewhere important, or when my family needs me, or even when I need a little time to myself.

I have learned that it is not if I get stuck, it is simply when, and what I do about it when it happens.  

Take yesterday, I ended up working all day, on a Saturday, when it should have been my day off.  Funny thing was, I had a feeling in the morning and got up and drove an hour to the office that I am watching out for right now.  I was planning on doing stock counts and only working a couple of hours until they were completed.  Instead, I had a clerk go to the hospital and have to have surgery, I needed to try and find someone to come help, and I stayed all day just trying to get things done.  It was a crazy and exhausting day.

I was stuck at work and I really could have been grouchy about it.  It was conference and I wanted to listen.  Instead, I laughed.  I called my clerk and told her not to worry about the office, just get well.  We will be fine.  I called other Post Masters to try and get some help in for Monday.  I did not get my counts done.  But you know what, I took a deep breath and remembered that tomorrow is a new day and we will survive.  

I am learning that getting stuck usually means figuring out how to get unstuck.  It requires more work and effort.  It requires prayer to receive the help I need to fix things.  I have learned that the Lord rarely fixes something for me that I haven't tried to fix myself first.  He rarely gets me unstuck without a little sweat and effort from myself.  I love a quote from Conference:

"When our wagon gets stuck in the mud, God is much more likely to assist the man who gets out to push than the man who merely raises his voice in prayer—no matter how eloquent the oration. President Thomas S. Monson put it this way: “It is not enough to want to make the effort and to say we’ll make the effort. … It’s in the doing, not just the thinking, that we accomplish our goals. If we constantly put our goals off, we will never see them fulfilled.”

The Lord is there for me, but He wants me to try and help myself too.  He wants me to learn from the experience of being stuck.  

STOP