A CURE FOR THE TERIBLE HORRIBLE NO GOOD VERY BAD DAY

 
 
 
 
Last Friday, I opened my eyes and rolled out of bed as tired as I got into it the night before!
 
 Five minutes later, with coffee in hand, I was going through the long checklist in my head of things that had to be done that day as I was checking my email on my iPhone and trying to stuff sheets into the washer… while 3 dogs were barking and running circles around me…
 
Yes, it was going to be “one of those days”! I could just tell. For a few seconds I contemplated junking the whole day and climbing back into bed! “I think a few more hours of sleep followed by reading a stack of magazines and drinking copious amounts of strong coffee might be just the thing to let this dark-cloud-of-a-day pass by”!
 
Not possible! I had a house filled to the rafters with family… and breakfast to make for all of them. And for some reason, I had been “off” making breakfast lately. And today I particularly did not want to make it! But I was just too tired to carry the guilt of not making breakfast for my family around all day… so I begrudgingly and sorta grumpily got through it! 
 
By 8:00 AM a DOZEN other things were plucking at my last nerve.
 
Later that morning when breakfast was over and cleaned up but I wasn’t… and the family went in their different directions for the morning I settled in working on a decor project for my home and blog, trying to check one thing off the long to-do list in my mind!
 
That was quickly interrupted by bad news about my new upcoming blog design… news I really was not prepared to hear!
 
By then I was mad at the world and frustrated and wanted to cry and I was not handling life very well at all!!!! A heavy black cloud had formed over my head. And, albeit imaginary, it was the thunderous kind and sparked with flashes of sharp and jaggedy lightening and it was not raining… but pouring… on my parade-of-a-day!
 
As I was digging through a closet to find the glue gun a shelf came unfastened from the wall and crashed to the ground! Glitter and glue sticks and papers and burlap and paint came crashing down. One of the paint cans bounced off my big toe… OUCH… and its contents splashed all over the floor!
 
Standing in a pool of duck egg blue paint with little floating glitter islands I wanted to say every bad word I had ever heard!
 
But instead, “This is NOT working” came out in a thin defeated breath!

 

 

I was having a terrible horrible no good very bad day!

 
As the words were escaping me, like air being let out of a tired balloon, I realized where I had gone wrong earlier that morning! 
 
Yes, it certainly was a “terrible horrible no good very bad day” as Alexander would say . But at that second I remembered the antidote, the cure to a day like this! And it had nothing to do with going to Australia (if this is a little confusing you need to read the children’s book…. Alexander’s Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day).
 
I cleaned off my duck egg blue feet leaving the rest of the mess to deal with itself and grabbed my bible and my journal and r-a-n upstairs to my bedroom and locked the door.  Not to sleep but to spend time with My Father!
 
He, and He alone was the cure to my Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day! Jesus knew this too. His example taught me.
 
Jesus spent time early in the morning praying and communicating with His Father. He spent time when things got bad communicating with His Father.  
 
HE SENT TIME WITH HIS FATHER!
 
There has never been anyone on the face of this earth that has had more stress in their human life than Jesus,  and never will be!
 
His answer, his cure to a Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day was time with God!
 
 
After time with My Father talking and crying a little, and reading His words of comfort and advice from His book, and telling Him my failings and shortcoming in handling the terrible horrible no good very bad day, I was in a much better, stronger and happier place. A place of Shalom. A place of peace.
 
Nothing about the circumstances of the day had changed!
 
I was still physically tired.
 
 I still had a huge long list of things to do. But now most of them did not seem that important.
 
I still had a house full of people. But people I love so!
 
 
There were still 3 rambunctious dogs making messing of my windows and floors and one with a slobber issue (which is never okay in my book) but I was handling it (and him).
 
Breakfast was over, but dinner was still ahead of me!
 
 
The blog news did not change and believe me the pool of duck egg blue paint with glitter islands was still there.
 
Nothing had changed… but ME!
 
 I had changed! God changed me and equipped me and strengthened me and blessed me for the day ahead! 
 
Spending time with Him being honest and transparent and authentic before Him giving Him all the terrible and horrible and no good of this very bad day was a very good thing!
 
So, now I know and you know the cure for our terrible horrible no good very bad days!
 
But we’ve known all along! Sometimes we just need to be reminded that things happen! Terrible things and horrible things and very bad things and no good things! But God is always there. Always waiting! And He is always Good!! 
 
He is the Eternal Listener! The All-Powerful Burden Lifter! The Loving Father with big strong arms! The Merciful Cure to all our days- bad, good and in between!
 
This week’s memorization verse:
 
Pray to me when you are in trouble! I will deliver you, and you will honor me! Ps 50:15
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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55 Comments

  1. AMEN. I needed that about your “cure for the terrible, horrible day. My problem is that I just don’t feel like doing anything – no drive. I’m going upstairs to sit quietly and spend some time with God.

  2. Such a wonderful reminder that life is a journey filled with ups and downs and our Father is there for all of it to carry us through.

  3. In “spending time with God”, it is always the “time” factor that I use as an excuse. Your words remind me that making the time should be a priority. Indeed, Jesus had a far more stressful life than I can ever imagine! Thank you for sharing this! Hope you got that paint cleaned up without too much difficulty!

    DD

  4. My favorite Sunday post, Yvonne.
    When I’m having a ‘terrible, horrible no good’ kind of day . . . I find a quiet place to pray.
    I always . . . always . . . feel better during and afterwards.
    Thanks so much for sharing. We can all related to you in some way or another.
    Hope your Sunday is filled with all that is good and happy :0)
    Suzanne

  5. Anonymous says:

    Hi YVONNE,
    Loved the post. I would like to know what are you “go to” readings in your bible. I have my favorites, always interested in other peoples. Your blog always brightens my day! Thanks so much, also for showing your human humble side. JENNIE

  6. Yes! If only Alexander would have realized that! Although talking to God in Australia might be nice sometimes!

  7. Thank you for sharing, sometimes it is so hard to take a breath and talk with God! Di

  8. Anonymous says:

    Thank you for this! An important message here……..oh so true.

  9. Hi! Yvonne! Do you know the song “Thou O Lord?” That’s what we sang today for our special. “Thou, O Lord are a shield for me. My glory and the lifter of my head . . .” It is the most beautiful song. You were needing a Lifter of your head! I’m thinking your week will be smooth sailing, now!

  10. Anonymous says:

    When the last nerve your have left gets twanged by paint and glitter, I would say your CURE is fabulous!
    The “energy you need” and “work you have” with a house full of family is “enormous”….and “stress” and “no sleep” on top of that, s o m e b o d y needs to ____________(you fill in the blank) WE CARE ABOUT YOU!!!!

  11. Anonymous says:

    Thank you for reminding me to take some time to “talk”

  12. Sometimes hard to remember in the moment, but always nice when a friend can relate to how you sometimes feel, and have good advice to share in those times. Thanks!

  13. I was having a bit of a pity party myself today – thanks for this wonderful post!
    Shelia

  14. Even He cares for the kind of day we have, that’s what I love about Him 🙂

  15. Such wonderful truth that we have to be reminded of sometimes. HE is the answer to all our needs and as you said, it’s not our circumstances, but us that need to change. Great post!!!

  16. Just what I needed to read! Even thought I know this is the answer, I still needed to read this!

  17. YES! Thank you for your boldness in your faith… and for sharing that with us! xo, Emily

  18. I’ve read the book with my kids and “been there, done that.” So glad you could turn things around! I had a long talk with Him in church this morning ~ did my soul good. Hope you got the paint cleaned up:)
    xo Kathleen

  19. Anonymous says:

    Thanks for being so honest, Yvonne. We’ll all been there, and time with Jesus is the remedy! You are so right.

  20. Thank you Yvonne, you always have the very words I need to hear. And yes I need to be reminded often that our Father is the answer to every trial and and hardship in our lives. Thank you again.
    xo Pat

  21. thank you for sharing….and helping your readers to realize…that we all live in an IMPERFECT world. hope your day brightened….and i thank you for the reminder.

  22. Thanks Yvonne. He is always there…and my days are better when I remember to check-in. Thankfully He is patient with me.
    Cheryl Ann

  23. Beautifully written Yvonne, thanks for the reminder that when we start off the day with God, then we are more than conquerors!

  24. Yes, great reminder of the real cure. Thanks for sharing your life with us. I always get good news here.

  25. Thank you Yvonne! I have had a pretty bad Saturday this week and found praying very comforting…though it didn’t take all the bad feelings away it did help to see things more clearly. Thank you for sharing!
    LuAnn 😉

  26. Oh girl, you could be describing my day…and yes, the Father is so good to help us turn it around. Thanks for sharing, it means so much.

  27. Yvonne, you hit the nail on the head….again! I too was having a “terrible horrible no good very bad day” and when I got tired of being “tired” I too ran to our Father – Matthew 11:28 came to mind where Jesus promises to those who are weary and heavy-laden that He will give us rest. Ahh… Rest…peace…knowing Christ is the perfect solution for those “terrible horrible no good very bad days”. Thank you for being an encouragement!

  28. Just found this WONDERFUL post! So glad I did. So sorry you had such a terrible, bad day. Sometimes they happen and hit us upside of the head!!! XOXO

  29. Gail True says:

    Praise God! In Him is renewal of mind and spirit! Thanks for sharing!!

  30. Yvonne Thank you for your weekly devotion and encouragement. It especially spoke to me this week as I seem to be having this kinda day for the last month. I love what you said about Jesus having the most stress on the earth it’s true nothing we go through could ever compare and he is the cure!

  31. You are so right…we know this lesson so well. Still, at times we forget that He is ALWAYS there for us to make wrong things right. Thanks so much for the reminder and blessings for a great day ahead.

  32. Judith Marsch says:

    Thank you Yvonne!! Today is such a day, maybe you don’t believe, but I went back to bed for a short time in morning. ….

  33. Thank you Yvonne! This was so on-point with what our Priest said yesterday at Saturday evening Mass. He also shared the struggles, anxieties, and stress related when he was a brand new Priest assigned to a Parish as the only pastor. And although the work was very hard, and he had so much on his plate, he realized that God walked with him and he was not alone, and he got through it and everything was taken care of. It’s about having Faith. I always loved that quote from the Janette Oke series of Love Comes Softly when the character Clark says, “The truth of God’s love is not that He allows bad things to happen. It’s His promise that He’ll be there with us when they do.”

  34. Bobbi Duncan says:

    Such a great post, Yvonne–addressing what everyone goes through but seldom admits. As the saying goes, you can’t control everything that comes your way but you can adjust your reaction–and there is no better way to calm frazzled nerves than by spending time with God. It’s amazing how well that works to restore peace within. Thank you for sharing a personal experience that will help so many. Hope you are enjoying a wonderful day.

  35. What a real moment post it reminds me of a modern day David post. I’ve been looking at some of the Psalms in a bit more depth and as I read on, I felt what you described. I found myself in the scene! And as you ran to the Father, my heart raced too. And you had a phrase. “Sometimes we just need to be reminded that things happen! Terrible things and horrible things and very bad things and no good things! But God is always there. Always waiting! And He is always Good!! “. It resonates with my heart.

  36. What a wonderful message . I have read Alexander to several grandchildren and it sure applies every so often. Nice to think of talking to God, rather than going to Australia! Thank you Yvonne ❣️

  37. Cathy Penn says:

    Thank you for reminding me. It was much needed. Bless you and all you do.

  38. Thank you for this reminder. I needed this today. May God bless you for sharing.

  39. Thanks so much for sharing about your horrible no good very bad day. This day has been a very good day for me. But I’m having a problem: I can’t seem to get signed up for the decorating course. Help!

  40. Shelia P. says:

    Thanks Yvonne, I needed that. Have a great week!

  41. Cecilia from Georgia says:

    Wonderful message. I cried and laughed and reading this made me feel good. Thanks!

  42. Amen!!! God bless you Yvonne for your faithful reminders of what is truly important. You are such a blessing & a treasure!!!

  43. Sandie@afoodieaffair.com says:

    So very true. We all get wrapped up in “stuff” we have to do in a day. God doesn’t give us anything we can’t handle. Most of the time, we just don’t know it.

  44. God bless your dear heart!!! Exactly the reminder I needed this morning. I have been feeling that old black cloud following me this week. This morning, I poured my cup of coffee, sat down and got out my devotional books intending to refresh my soul with words I knew would comfort me. Instead. Instead, I jumped up and put another load of clothes in to wash. I sat back down with my cold cup of coffee and got on Facebook. Like I said, I needed to be reminded of what is truly important to feed my soul and wash away those black clouds