Practicing What We Preach

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)

In January, I received a letter from BASS regarding equipments. With limited supply of Power Point projectors, some teachers might have to use overhead transparencies. I sent in my justification and prayed. Only God can control what happens!

At 11 p.m. last night, I finished my Power Point slides and the handouts. "All Done!" I prayed with my husband and went to bed, leaving the laptop on for automated backup.

I was puzzled when I found the laptop screen tilting forward this morning. I repositioned the screen and touched the curser -- Nothing. Keys -- Nothing. "Ctrl Alt Del" -- No response. Power botton -- Nothing. My heart started pounding. My limbs grew weak. This laptop has never been frozen in 14 months. Why now? Questions raced through my mind: ... No visual? ... Did he (my husband) tilt the screen? ... Was he trying to pack? If so, why didn't he finish the job?

I tried to hide my devastation when I got to the bedroom. "Wake up. Laptop frozen. I need to take shower and get ready. Please help or we'll be late!" was all I could utter before rushing into the bathroom. I needed a shower! Honestly, I was shocked, angry, afraid, and anxious ... I started reciting Philippians 4:6-7 a few times to refocus my attention.

"Lord, I don't understand this but I know you love me ... Was I too proud last night? ... I almost lost it and blamed him ... Thank you that I didn't yell ... Emotions can be so crippling ... Thank you for being here for me ... Thank you for the handouts ... This is not the end of the world ... Even if there is no computer and no power point, I can still talk. I can always trust in you."

My husband forced the laptop to reboot. I prayed out loud on our way to Castro Valley for further protection and provision. When we got to room D2, two guys were there setting things up. They hooked up our laptop to the projector -- nothing! Aware of my mounting anxiety, I walked to the back of the room to pray. By the grace of God, my first workshop on "Developing Emotional Intelligence (EQ) started promptly at 9:00. Guess what? Almost 60 people came. We were connected as fellow human beings, brothers and sisters, when I shared my personal story from this morning.

God created us with the ability to feel, to think, and to will. Emotions arise when life happens. He accepts our emotions and teaches us how to deal with them. We need to develop EQ so that we can relate better with ourselves, others and God. Although we cannot control life, we can always share our feelings, validate other people's feelings, think, and respond wisely. The fruit of the Spirit helps us to face life and choose our actions and words. Praise the Lord!

Copyright © 2006 Winnis Chiang, Parenting ABC