At times things happen that are outside of our control, and sometimes we may feel unjustly treated. In life we have to deal with those situations whether we like it or not, how do we handle it?

The family car was unable to get out of the garage, it was blocked by a car who we assumed belonged to one of the school run parents (we happened to live near 2 local schools). We needed to leave but couldn’t move! “How long would we have to wait? We would be late because of this delay!”

A man passing by saw me waiting and the car blocking the garage, he shook his head. “I’d want to take a baseball bat to that car” he said. I laughed because sadly those were my thoughts too. He commiserated with me and walked on.
Another man walked by, he saw our plight and shook his head, “They could have at least moved their car over a bit more, you may have been able to squeeze out!” But we couldn’t squeeze out, there was nothing that we could do but wait. And the longer we waited the more annoyed I became.

Finally the car owner arrived with her child…
“Sorry” she said.
How inadequate that word sounded against the backdrop of the wait I had endured, I was late and “Sorry” would not change that for me.
“You’re not sorry!” I said in anger “How could you block the garage? Do you think that was right? “
“No. I’m really sorry” she said.
And that was the end of it. No baseball bats, no car smashing, no letting down the tyres. No cussing. I was annoyed but I realised staying annoyed wouldn’t change a thing. Holding on to the negative feelings, rehearsing them and talking about them would only ruin the rest of my day, so the best thing for me to do was to let it go.

We experience unfairness, injustice, things in life that don’t work out as we planned. People behave in ways or do things that are not right, things upset us. However we are responsible for how we react and how we deal with the situation. The bible speaks of self-control being an important character trait. “Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city.” Proverbs 16:32.

With the help of God we need to be self-controlled even under difficult circumstances, so we don’t react in ways that will make things worse by what we say or do. Even to simmer and stew in our upset state is self-destructive. Let us aim to preserve our mental and physical health and live a happier life by letting things go. Let us forgive others and then get on and enjoy our day. It may not be easy to do, but it’s necessary for our own happiness.
“This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
Psalms 119:24.

Have a great day!