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“During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.” Hebrews 5:7 (NIV)

Often, we have issues that plague us. They seem to get the best of us and keep us down. We find ourselves frustrated. I hear people say, “I give it to the LORD, but then, I take it back again.” Several years ago, I read that when we give a circumstance to God and that issue keeps coming back on us, we need to say each time, “I gave that to God.”

It is hard to see the same condition come before us or even into our hearts with regularity. Some of those circumstances never seem to let up for us. As we grow in the LORD, we have to realize that all we are, all we have, and all we do is from Him.

I have a friend who saw me as I was coming out of a store. Her husband said, “There she is.” I looked up and saw them both as the came through the front door. He went on inside and my friend started the conversation with,” I am frustrated.” She told me why.

All I could respond with were these words. “Now days, everyone is frustrated, about something.” She talked more. I listened; then I shared a couple of prayer requests with her.

As I drove toward my next stop I had to make, a thought came to me. God gets frustrated about things He sees us do and about how we sometimes live.

Another friend has a stepdaughter who receives radiation treatment for breast cancer. She has a circumstance that creates concern for her dad and stepmother. Her dad went online to learn what could cause this additional issue. What he read caused him more anxiety. My friend told him they would pray and not read about this added issue.

When we submit to God, He expects us to obey Him. Submission to God is not hard. We give an issue to Him; He molds it to His liking and gives it back to us, as He sees fit. My husband and I did a revamping of our enclosed front porch. As I searched for patio furniture, I felt led to include him in the decision. I thought he wanted wicker furniture because he kept bringing it up, “Are you going to get wicker?” When I found some wicker that I liked, all of a sudden his story was, “I don’t want wicker.”

An internet search yielded an abundance of wicker patio sets. We went to one of the major home improvement stores in the area. I then heard, “I don’t like the wicker that gouges me.” So, we looked at wicker furniture at two different stores. We discovered that the new wicker is not made of wood but a plastic resin. We finalized our search and bought wicker. However, he likes it.

"The Way" from Kevin Pauley

A Great House Falls