You know they say that trouble doesn't always last. But who is "they?" And have "they" not noticed how crazy life gets sometimes. (Hence the reason why this weekly blog hasn't been updated in almost a month.) Well, whoever "they" are, they've engrained in us that whatever troubles we face in life doesn't last forever. The saying goes that weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. Are any of these sayings Biblical though? 2 Corinthians 4:17 NLT states that, "For our present troubles are small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever." It is important to note the version of the Bible that is being used here since the KJV uses the word "afflictions" and the NIV uses the phrase "momentary troubles." Either way you put it, the Bible basically states that whatever troubles we have are temporary and what is on the other side of those troubles will be greater than what we can imagine. But can we truly believe that? It seems like there's trouble around every corner in this day and age. Adulting sucks! And every week is a week where I tell myself that I just have to get through this week, and I'll be fine. So, where's the glory?! This is a perfect instance of where faith and mental health should go hand in hand or else, we become spiritually and mentally wounded. Spiritually, we know that we live in a world that has a lot of issues, troubles, evils, etc. but we trust and believe that God will bring us through them. Mentally, we may become anxious and depressed about all the troubles that we face, but we use healthy coping mechanisms to help face them and process them effectively. Trouble might not always last, but it's definitely always nearby. And just because trouble is always lurking, doesn't mean that trouble always has to negatively affect us. "They" also say that it's not about what happens to you, it's about how you respond. And as cliche as "they" sound saying that, "they" are absolutely right about it. We can't control what happens in this world. We can only control ourselves, and we do that by living authentically and choosing joy amongst all the chaos that is happening. That doesn't mean that we ignore the chaos, and it doesn't mean that we won't have bad days. It means that in the midst of it all, we choose to be ourselves and do the best that we can with what we have all while simultaneously living a life that honors God. Is that easy? Absolutely not! But do you really think that God expects perfection out of us when we live in an imperfect world? The math ain't mathing! The moral of the story is that trouble will only last as long as you let is last. So, take your pick. Are you going to let trouble have the final sayso? Or are you going to show trouble who the real troublemaker is? And that's tea!