Regaining Focus

I'll have to admit, for the most part, these last couple of years have been pretty easy. Kids are doing well, no deaths in the family, no health issues. You can probably say we've been on "cruise control". Cruise control is great when you are driving. It allows you to relax a bit, and when you are driving on the highway at night halfway through a 10 hour trip, it's nice to have that little relief. You would think, however, that having one less thing to concentrate on would allow you to focus on other things: other drivers, keeping yourself between the lines, watching out for the police (not that I speed!). I notice it does the opposite for me. I get more tired, I'm not as focused. Often times during a long trip, I'll take the cruise control off just so I'm more aware of everything and feel more in control. It's kind of how our lives are now. When things are going great and we're on "cruise control" you would think I would have more time to spend with the Lord, more things to thank Him for. I don't. I spend less time with Him. I get tricked by the sound of the easy road beneath me that I think I don't need him today, or yesterday, or the day before. Maybe I just think - "things are going great....why bother Him, He has enough to do". I don't know where I ever got that thinking, but it's wrong. He wants a relationship with me, at all times. There is something about going through hard times that drives us to our knees. We are thankful for these times because it brings us back to the One who loves us most. It forces us to focus on Him and what He can do and not on what we can't. I have struggled tremendously this last week with what the future holds and where God wants us to be. I feel the waves coming and fear starts to creap in. Do I brace myself and fight the current, or do I just allow the water to crash over us and pray we float to the top long enough to breathe? Is God going to calm the storm before it cranks up another notch, or is He going to allow this turmoil to continue? What is He trying to show us through this, and is He even hearing our prayers? I don't have the answers yet, but I know the One who does. I will say one thing, as unnerving as these past few months have been, I have had tremendous peace this last week, simply because I have spent more time with Him. I have seen him answer prayer for others, and I have faith that our prayers are going to be answered as well. There is one thing though about watching a massive storm roll, it makes you secure the things that are most valuable to you.