PROBLEM, WHERE ARE YOU?

 

I was thinking this morning..... Early last week, I had a late morning flight to catch and decided to get to the airport two hours earlier so I could settle in and join a meeting scheduled for an hour before the flight. I got a quiet room in the VIP lounge and went about my business. While there, my mind was heavy with pressing needs and delayed expectations.

A short while later, a group of passengers came into the lounge. Amongst them was a couple with two young children. From the smiles on the faces of most of the people, it felt like I was the only person with problems. Just then, the little boy started screaming on top of his lungs. His dad attempted to calm him down, but no luck. Another lady in the group joined in, even as the little boy became violent. It was obvious he was in the autistic spectrum. Omo. After just a few minutes, I got a glimpse of what this young couple goes through daily. I literally sat back, looked around me, and asked, "Where is my problem?" My problem had disappeared in the face of the bigger problems of the couple.

In my humility, or should I say 'humbility', I recalled how I was worrying about raising money for a need weeks ago. While I worried, we received heart-wrenching news of how a friend had lost his 20-year-old son in an unfortunate incident. I thought I had problems, but when that sad news hit, I sighed and asked, "Where is my problem?"

If you are stressing about your children not winning awards at school or not having money or a job, just visit a few parents with autistic children, or parents managing a child with sickle cell anaemia, you will not only salute the grace of God upon their lives but also leave there looking for what you thought were your problems and asking yourself 'Problem, where are you?'.

Sometimes, we are so myopic, thinking the world is against us, ignorant of the serious pain others are in. We think we are the only ones having problems. Everyone is going through life with one challenge or another. Don't carry yours like a badge of honour. Be grateful for life and for your children (1 Thes 5:18). I pray for more grace upon parents of kids with special needs and that soon they shall look around and ask, 'Problem, where are you?'.

Stay hopeful. God's got our back.

Happy Sunday!

......Just the thoughts of a certain Wey Mey