One At A Time

Sometimes I compare the troubles which we have to undergo in the course of the year to a great bundle of fagots [sticks], far too large for us to lift.

But God does not require us to carry the whole at once;

He mercifully unties the bundle and first gives us one stick, which we are to carry today, and then another which we are to carry tomorrow, and so on. This we might easily manage if we would only take the burden appointed for us each day; but we choose to increase our troubles by carrying yesterday's stick over again today and adding tomorrow's burden to our load before we are required to bear it.

--John Newton

As these months drift by, a seemingly endless cycle of hope followed by disappointment and heartache, I find comfort in the fact that right now, God is not asking me to deal with another six months, or three years, or a lifetime, of continued childlessness. All He asks right now is that I bear today's burden, and that I get through this day. So often, I make my burden unnecessarily heavy by heaping on tomorrow's troubles, and next month's sorrows, and then wonder why God is not coming to my aid to help me bear it all. He will help me bear today's burden, and that is all, for it is not His will that I take up tomorrow's load today. As long as I stay in my little yard, doing His bidding for today, and seeking to do it with a cheerful and contented heart, He will help me.

These days, I feel as if we are caught in a "time warp". The painful barrenness continues, month after month, with no end in sight. Added to that, now, is the burden of our desire to serve the Lord while we wait, by taking care of little ones who need love-- and yet, the home study process does not seem to be moving along at all.

And that is why I am so thankful that I do not have to bear the whole heavy load of sticks all at once today. I am thankful for a merciful Father who unties the bundle and only requires me to carry one stick today. And I pray for grace to carry that stick cheerfully and contentedly, with all my might, and without trying to carry tomorrow's burden along with it.

Therefore do not be anxious for tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

--Matthew 6:34