The phrase “when life throws lemons” seems to pretty well spell out the “sour” parts of life that are often not pleasant. How do we deal with those? Do we even NEED to deal with them? These are two of the most asked questions I hear when it comes to life circumstances and how to handle them.

One thing I’ve learned over the past umpteen years of my life is that life happens – the good, the bad, and the ugly. We live in a world where it’s “all about me” and what’s best for me. When we have that attitude, it’s pretty difficult to see beyond ourselves. Unfortunately, society seems to be training us to become self-focused. Yes, some of that is good but there is an overboard to everything. Too much of a good thing perhaps? It’s the pendulum swing that hits both extremes. So, how do we find the balance point?

On my journey into wholeness, I’ve had many opportunities to look at life circumstances in a new light. I share some of my own journey in the video titled “Embracing Trials” at The Gathering conference for NW Ekklesia in the summer of 2019. I encourage you to watch it so you have an idea of how I view it when life throws lemons my direction. Here’s the deal…. various religious organizations treat the subject of trials in a variety of manners. The most popular version of that is “Well, it’s God’s will for me to go through this.” Uh, really!? I’m not sure where that teaching came from but how can a loving God purposefully force trials on us? Would you do that to your own children? Of course not! The best “teacher” in getting through life allows us to learn from the “school of hard knocks.”

The other popular belief is at the opposite end of the spectrum. It’s the attitude that we should never have to go through trials. We then spout off a “command and demand” wording. When we do have struggles, we think we’ve done something wrong. There is some truth to this belief because science does say that our thoughts and intents really do affect us. We should be careful with what comes out of our mouth. The Word also says that “life and death are in the power of the tongue.” It’s in Proverbs so have fun looking it up. Where people get it wrong in this belief is the idea that we should never have to deal with trials and tribulations. My question to those people is “How are you going to learn to deal with life if nothing ever goes wrong?” When we don’t experience hardships and then learn how to practice working through those hardships, we don’t mature. It’s like giving a kid everything they want growing up. Then, when they move out of the house, they don’t know how to handle any form of opposition that comes their way. Since I teach at the college level and have for over 30 years, I see this first-hand. I call it the “entitlement” attitude. When we feel entitled, we assume things will go as we expect. When we expect, we don’t honor those around us. And, when things don’t go as expected, entitled people don’t know how to handle it.

How then do we handle life when it throws lemons at us? I’ve been on a journey for several years now in learning to look at trials in a new light. At the same time, I’m also learning that Holy Spirit speaks to us, giving us a “heads up” at times, too. It’s those thoughts that flit by that we often ignore because they don’t make sense. I’ll use a recent example in how I actually paid attention to that “still small voice” coming from within. I recently purchased a new computer because the old one started having issues. I researched before deciding what to buy. I looked at consumer reports, talked with computer geeks, and consulted those knowledgeable concerning computers. I finally settled on going directly to a computer company rather than a retailer. The salesman walked me through the options after I told him what I needed. At that point, we began to talk price and all the add-on options, one of which included a premium support plan. At first, I didn’t want to spend the extra money but something within said it was a good idea. I’ve never done it before but the thought of having technical assistance for a lengthy amount of time intrigued me, especially since I just moved to a small town where there’s limited resources.

Long story short… A Microsoft update fried a few things on the new computer after I’d had it only three months. Because I had the premium support plan, the company sent a technician TWICE to my house to replace the fried parts. Many days and hours later, my computer was fixed. Yes, it did hinder progress but I chose not to let it frustrate me. The day after everything was fixed, I was sitting in my heart garden having a discussion with Yahweh about it. He said to me “Do you remember when you felt the nudge to purchase the premium support?” I thought about that for a moment before He replied, “You listened to My voice… When you listen and then do, those things minimize the chaos of a situation.”

I learned something new from that conversation. When we spend time developing a relationship with the Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), out of that relationship, we learn to function IN Christ which in turn infuses a frequency of entrainment with the Trinity from that relationship into how we live life on earth. How many times do things flit through our mind that are directly from the heart of the Father? We ignore them because they don’t make sense. And, we’ve not practiced hearing His voice. Those thoughts can prepare us for an upcoming situation if we pay attention. No, having computer issues wasn’t fun. However, I did rejoice because it didn’t cost me anything to get it fixed and I didn’t have to send the computer back. It was still operational in it’s fried state but on a limited level. So, I still got some work done. For me, this was a victory because I listened without the understanding of why I should do so. The more we practice doing this, the less life’s lemons have the potential of wreaking havoc on our lives.

As you watch the video of my presentation at The Gathering, you’ll get the opportunity to see how I walked through seven years of uncertainty about my living situation. I share times I messed up as well as those I got right. (Because the original video didn’t turn out, I re-recorded it once I got home. And, it allows you to see the entire PowerPoint presentation.) I’ll be honest, the years 2012 – 2019 were a bit tricky. I had no control over the eminent domain process. What I DID have control over was my attitude and response to the situation. I chose to make lemonade rather than eat sour lemons from this experience. I matured through it, learned to legislate from the heavenly realms, met territorial angels, understood more of what’s on my life’s scroll, and received a better home than what I previously lived in. I believe that had I chosen more negative responses, things would be different. I understood this was an opportunity to learn and grow in the midst of a circumstance. How I chose to do that was totally up to me, even when I didn’t have control of the outcome.

CONCLUSION…

When life throws us lemons, it’s important to pick them up and ask Father, “What should I do with this?” This helps us put on the right attitude that in turn sets the wheels in motion for us to walk through the circumstance with honor. Life is simply going to stink at times. It’s HOW we deal with a situation that determines the level of peace we walk in during the circumstance. When we step into the heavenlies and partner with the Trinity, making our relationship with Them first and foremost, we create character building practice sessions. Without practice, we don’t mature. In order to mature, we get to go through trials. If we keep facing the same trials, that means we’ve not yet passed that test. That’s when I go before Yahweh seeking the truth, even when I may not want to see it. Ultimately, when I make the decision to deal with junk from my life, I get to be free of those things that hold me back.

Finally, as we develop that intimate relationship with the Trinity, we’re able to recognize that still small voice. If we give priority to building an intimate relationship with the Trinity, we learn to function from our true identity IN Christ. This is a perfect life opportunity to practice hearing the voice of Yahweh. But, it’s best done when our focus is on building relationship. It’s not about going before God and saying, “I need this from you today….” Everything else begins to fall in place OUT of that relationship. May you enjoy making lemonade out of life’s lemons!

Del

© 2019 Del Hungerford