Philippians 4:4 – “Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again, Rejoice!”

God tells us that no matter the circumstances we should always rejoice in Him. In difficult situations this is sometimes hard to do. But those are the perfect times for God’s people to band together.

For the third time I opened the dishwasher to check my dishes.

For the third time I groaned in disgust as the realization finally hit me that the dishwasher had gone on the blink.

In our busy family the dishwasher is a very important appliance. This electronic “maid” normally takes care of a mundane but necessary chore, allowing the rest of us to attend to other more pressing business. But as I looked inside again at the still food-encrusted plates, cloudy glasses and sticky soap dish, I knew that our “maid” had walked out on us.

I was tempted to scream at the frustration of yet another broken necessity, but quickly clamped my hand over my mouth as I remembered the Bible verse Pastor Craig challenged us with on Sunday. Philippians 4:4 says, “Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again, Rejoice!”

But did God really mean for me to rejoice about the nuisance of a broken dishwasher?

Soon I found my answer and my reason to rejoice. Good can come of even the most frustrating situations. For the past few days I have been blessed to see everyone pitch in to help with the extra work load.

Dad has washed most evenings when I wasn’t available. Emily has taken the initiative to put the dishes away when the rest of us have been at work or school. And John-Keith and I stood side-by-side at the sink – he washed and I dried – while we had a pleasant and meaningful conversation that we usually don’t have time for. What a treat.

In the busy-ness of modern life we have lost the art of old-fashioned dish washing and the camaraderie and deep conversation that goes with it. Something forgotten was found again, and only because the dishwasher broke down.

We just got the dishwasher fixed, but we were able to rejoice when it was broken. During this inconvenient time, we built character as everyone did his part. And I made a cool discovery – instead of only one broken-down dishwasher I actually had seven efficient ones. Thanks everyone.

Sandra Sheridan is a Midwest wife and mother of five. She shares her messages to her children with Farm World. Visit her at www.VersesFromMama.blogspot.com