My Choice Today

Today I refuse to be stressed about that which is beyond my choice or control.

Much of the past days/weeks were spent researching, writing, editing, printing, and binding the maiden issue of the foundation and school's newsletter, Arise! 

The first 100 copies of the maiden issue of Arise!

I've been sleeping over at the office with teammates so we could spend longer hours working, not only on the newsletter but on other office details as well. We came to a point when we had to drive the for-home-use printer to work 24/7, and six of us arranged our schedules so there's always someone printing at two-hour shifts twice each day. We began to sleep later and later, and wake up earlier and earlier until the final layout was ready for even more printing.

Then everyone else had to be busy with something else, or away, and I was left to print, sort, bind, and worry when the printer refuses to cooperate as deadlines approached without slowing. Needless to say (but I'll say it anyway), all other work was put on hold - encoding, printing, preparation for the next school term, even laundry, among others. Just thinking about the work (and dirty laundry) piling up sent my brain ticking.

Yesterday, we lost the electricity before I could reach the 200 mark. Early last night, the printer stopped printing the black parts. I worried and fretted and fussed and stressed.

But not today. Today the printer stopped working entirely, calling for a reset and manufacturer service. But I am not at all stressed, not a bit. This is God's work and the uncooperative printer is His problem. He has given us grace enough to meet the most urgent of needs - 300 copies of the newsletter have been sent to the Philippine Youth for Christ congress. I was hoping to send 200 more. But that is enough for now. 

One cannot cram everything into one day. Even God chose to take six days to make this world beautiful. 

"Creation did not crash when God rested; it won't crash when you do."

Our basic printer churning out the cover page of the newsletter.
Even this office setup is relatively tidy.Now imagine the floor
with two mattresses and pages upon pages covering every
square foot.

"One day at a time, sweet Jesus. That's all I'm asking from You. Just give me the strength to do everyday what I have to do. Yesterday's gone, sweet Jesus, and tomorrow may never be mine. So help me today; show me the way one day at a time."

So today I choose to smile and be happy, to do the work that lies nearest at hand, to "do [it] heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men," and to leave tomorrow's worries where they belong - to tomorrow.

Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day [is] the evil thereof. Matthew 6:34 

Today I'm refusing to be stressed by anything. Printer stopped working? Good. I'll have time to wash the dishes, tidy up this office a little, encode a few documents, organize some files, finally call the technician (for the other abused copier), do some meditative reading (because it's easy to get caught up in the work of the Lord that we forget the Lord of the work), say hello to workmates who are suddenly no longer just motion blurs, drool over high-end, high-volume printers on the internet, and maybe even do a little laundry. 

God is merciful in that He sees the needs I could not see (or have been neglecting), and makes a way to meet them. 'Our heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us, of which we know nothing." {DA 330}. And a blackout and an uncooperative printer are just two of them.

The Arise! Editorial staff in uniform shirts and eyebags from
the late nights/very early mornings. Praise God that there's
always joy in His service.