To everyone -- please forgive my attitude. Especially to BrambleRose -- This is for YOU <P>IS GOD DANCING ON YOUR POTATO CHIPS? <P>Not too long ago I had "one of those days." I was feeling <BR>pressure from a writing deadline. I had company arriving in <BR>a couple days and the toilet was clogged. I went to the bank, and the trainee teller processing my deposit had to start over three times. I swung by the supermarket to pick up a few things and the lines were serpentine.<BR> <BR>By the time I got home, I was frazzled and sweaty and in a <BR>hurry to get something on the table for dinner. <P>Deciding on Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup, I grabbed <BR>a can opener, cranked open the can, then remembered I had <BR>forgotten to buy milk at the store. Nix the soup idea. Setting the can aside, I went to plan B, which was leftover baked beans. <P>I grabbed the Tupperware container from the fridge, popped the seal, took a look and groaned. My husband isn't a picky eater, but even HE won't eat baked beans that look like caterpillars. <P>Really frustrated now, I decided on a menu that promised to be as foolproof as it is nutrition-free: hot dogs and potato chips. Retrieving a brand new bag of chips from the cupboard, I grabbed the cellophane and gave a hearty pull. The bag didn't open. I tried again. Nothing happened. I took a breath, doubled my muscle, and gave the bag a hearty wrestle. With a loud pop, the cellophane suddenly gave way, ripping wide from top to bottom. Chips flew sky high. I was left holding the bag, and it was empty. <P>It was the final straw. I let out a blood curdling scream. <BR>"I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!" My husband heard my <BR>unorthodox cry for help. Within minutes he was standing <BR>at the doorway to the kitchen, where he surveyed the damage: <BR>an opened can of soup, melting groceries, moldy baked beans, and one quivering wife standing ankle deep in potato chips. My husband did the most helpful thing he could think of at the moment. He took a flying leap, landing flat-footed in the pile of chips. And then he began to stomp and dance and twirl, grinding those chips into my linoleum in the process! <P>I stared. I fumed. Pretty soon I was working to stifle a smile. Eventually I had to laugh. And finally I decided to join him. I, too, took a leap onto the chips. And then I danced. Now I'll be the first to admit that my husband's response wasn't the one I was looking for. But the truth is, it was exactly what I needed. I didn't need a cleanup crew as much as I needed an attitude adjustment, and the laughter from that rather funky moment provided just that. <P>So now I have a question for you, and it's simply this: <BR>Has God ever stomped on your chips? I know that, in <BR>my life, there have been plenty of times when I've gotten <BR>myself into frustrating situations and I've cried out for help, all the while hoping God would show up with a <BR>celestial broom and clean up the mess. <P>What often happens instead is that God dances on my chips, <BR>answering my prayer in a completely different manner than <BR>I had expected, but in the manner that is best for me after all. Sometimes I can see right away that God's response was the best one after all. Sometimes I have to wait weeks or months before I begin to understand how and why God answered a particular prayer the way he did. There are even some situations that, years later, I'm still trying to understand. I figure God will fill me in sooner or later, either this side of Heaven or beyond. <P>Do I trust Him? Even when he's answering my prayers in a <BR>way that is completely different from my expectations? Even <BR>when he's dancing and stomping instead of sweeping and <BR>mopping:? Can I embrace what He's offering? Can I let His <BR>joy adjust my attitude? Am I going to stand on the sidelines and sulk, or am I willing to learn the steps of the dance he's dancin' with my needs in mind? I'll be honest with you: Sometimes I sulk. Sometimes I dance. I'm working on doing more of the latter than the former. I guess the older I get the more I realize that He really does know what He's doing. He loves me and I can trust Him. Even when the chips are down. <P>-- Author Unknown <P>Thank You Bramble Rose for dancing on my potato chips!!!! Please forgive my sulking.<P>And to Mrs. O especially. You hit the nail right on the head as far as how I was feeling. Thank you so much and I have begun reading Streams in the Desert for my daily devotional of which my dad had a copy. You really stepped me out of my doldrums and got me back on track. Thank you too.<P>And thanks to others who also gave of themselves to me. Forgive me for not being able to accept those things in the spirit they were given.

I have tears in my eyes....<P>I responded to your first post, and I really and truly understood your frustration -- and now I understand this too...<P>Have a lovely weekend <P>------------------<BR>~Sheryl<P>And we know. We who have seen. ~Pellegrino

Oh Nora, all I can say is that I am speechless...and that's a pretty hard thing to do me!! <P>Your apology is absolutely accepted, what a beautiful way to make amends!!!!<P>I am going to copy your story to my Al-Anon message board!!<P>I do understand where you are at and what you are feeling...because I could have written your post word for word many times. But my answers aren't necessarily your answers..and sometimes I forget that. I am really sorry that I did upset you - I certainly didn't want to do so.<P>(((((((((((hugs))))))))))))))<P>------------------<BR><I>Pain is a given, misery is optional.</I>