When things are going all wrong... just stay put!

It was one of those days when everything seemed to be piling up on Laura and nothing was going right.

Turning to social media she posted: “Aaaarrrggghhhh, I’m going to run away!”

She got half a dozen responses in

HE’S been in and out of jail many times and been an addict for longer than he hasn’t.

When I met him the other day, he was on some sort of high. He looked terrible.

After a hug, I asked him what he’d been up to that day. “Praying,” he said. “Just praying.”

After he and I parted, the friend I was walking with was doubtful. “Praying,” he said, “Yeah, right?”

But I believed him. Because those who live their lives out there on the edge have more reason than most to ask God for help. And those of us who don’t, who have more comfortable lives, well, we could offer a prayer of thanks that our prayers, and our lives, aren’t so filled with despair. the next 10 minutes. None of them wasted time asking what was wrong. They were all along the lines of: “Oh, good! Run to me – I’ll get the kettle on!”

And the day got better from there on in.

“Running away is something we do when we have nothing to lose and nowhere to go,” Laura said.

“But when people would be glad to have you run their way… that tells you you’ve done some things right and that gives you the strength to stay put and sort the day out.”

THE bike had stabilisers, the cyclist was little, and the hill ahead of her looked like quite a slog.

“I might need a push here, dad,” she said. “Sure thing,” replied dad, putting his hand on her back.

A few seconds later, he turned to me, smiling and showing me the palm of his hand.

Despite her worry, his daughter made it all the way to the top of the hill under her own steam.

She said, “Thanks, dad,” and he replied:: “No problem.”

A fine example of how we can often do the things we fear we can’t, and how they are so much easier when we think we aren’t doing them on our own.