Pressures of Life

The story of a parakeet named Chippie reminds me of the pressures and unexpected circumstances we can face in life. Chippie never saw it coming. One second he was peacefully perched in his cage. The next he was sucked in, washed up, and blown over. The problem began when Chippie's owner decided to clean Chippie's cage with her vacuum cleaner. It was when she turned to answer the phone that Chippie accidentally got sucked in.

The owner gasped, put down the phone, turned off the vacuum, and opened the bag. There was Chippie-still alive, but stunned. She grabbed him and raced to the bathroom to wash him off. Then, realizing that Chippie was soaked and shivering, she reached for the hair dryer and blasted the pet with hot air. Poor Chippie never knew what hit him.

A few days after the trauma, a reporter contacted Chippie's owner to see how the bird was recovering. "Well," she replied, "Chippie doesn't sing much anymore-he just sits and stares."

Sometimes we may face days like that. We may start off the day singing on our perches, but wind up stunned and staring into space. It may be a stalled car, a sick child, or problems at work.  Sometimes what we think is a calm day can turn into a day filled with unexpected heartache.

We all have those days and as a single parent it can seem very overwhelming because the weight of the world seems to be all on our shoulders.  Many times we get out of bed singing but only a short time later we want to just want to go back to bed and skip the day.  Or perhaps it's a day when we just do not have the strength or want to get out of bed at all.

God knows what we are feeling and what we are going through and He cares.  When things go wrong in our lives, He is right there with us and longs to help us through situations if we just turn to Him and ask Him for help.  God doesn't promise to help us out of the problem, He promises to help us through the problem if we only ask. 

Are you going through a trial today? Are the pressures in your life mounting? First Peter 5:7 says, "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you." Christ cares for you and wants to help you. Let's determine to take time today to cast your cares upon the Lord. He knows what you are going through, and He wants to help you today.