Yesterday was just one of those days… Everything seemed to be more difficult than it needed to be at work. When I tried to avoid getting messy, I only got messier. Work just seemed more “work” than usual and I was frustrated.

I knew the day was rough on my wife, Michele, as well. With a 18 month at home who seems to have a knack for getting into everything and just seems allergic order and prefers chaos to our 4 year old who thinks mommy needs to be serenaded with “Do You Want to Build a Snowman” every ten minutes. At 38 weeks along with our daughter, keeping up with two very active boys can be a struggle (you do a fantastic job honey).

So coming home later than I wanted to, I missed Jacks getting off the bus (if you’re having a bad day just come watch this kid get off the bus, it will brighten your day) and knowing I needed to help get the boys ready for church as Michele was leaving soon for praise practice, I was focused on dinner and a shower.

Life had other ideas though, as Michele informed me, “The dryer isn’t working.” Great… the knob had broken off earlier that day so I hoped that was all it was. I grabbed a pair of pliers, turned the knob to the proper setting and hit the start button. Nothing. Fantastic. I checked the breaker, the dryer plug at the outlet, going into the control panel, nothing, no dryer.

Frustrated, I threw my pliers at the work bench, and stormed back into the house. Stupid thing is broken I reported to my wife. Both of us felt a weight settle on our shoulders. Here’s yet another thing to fix/replace, both of which will cost money.

I got to church with a distracted mind, settled into the pew and halfheartedly listened to our praise team sing. The worry over how we are going to fix the stupid dryer, what we were going to do with all the dirty clothes in the meantime consumed my mind.

Then a still small voice spoke to me. “Am I not Great, just because your dryer isn’t working? Have I not provided for you? Am I not worthy of your praise simply because you had a bad day?” The gentle rebuke of a loving Father brought my mind out of the gloom it was mired in.

I stood up and began to be an active participant in worship. Why? Because God is good, all the time, and all the time, He is good. Long before our dryer had its issues, He provided. Long before I struggled through the day, He died for my sins, filled me with the Holy Ghost, gave me a beautiful wife, two amazing kids, put a roof over our heads and food in our pantry.

How easy it is to let the distractions of life take our mind of the amazing God that loves us. He is good, He is great, and He deserves great praise. Clearing all the worry from my mind, I lifted up my hands, my voice, and my praise to the One who deserves everything I could give. In that moment, when I praised despite my circumstances, when I worshiped in spite of problems, when I recognized that Great is the Lord, He poured His love into my heart. He lifted me up, He strengthened my soul.

Basking in the presence of God is so amazing. It reminds me that no matter how big or small our problems seem to Him, He cares for us. When you focus on Him, everything else will fade away and what seemed so big will become as nothing when compared to the Greatness that is our God.

When I got home, my wife asked me to take one more look at the dryer. This time, I opened the door and saw that a corner of a towel was stuck in the door that was preventing the safety switch from connecting to allow the dryer to start. Our laundry pile diminished as we washed and dried our clothes, and the insurmountable burden of everyday life was now a task completed.
Because HE is Good, All the Time.