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Strength and dignity are her clothing,
and she laughs at the time to come.
Proverbs 31:25 ESV

Have you ever watched a tight-rope walker? I cannot even imagine the technique involved in balancing on a two-inch cable between two very high points.

But my life seems like a tight-rope walk most days. Mine is not nearly so high, but seems ever-so-emotionally death-defying. And trying to do it with “strength and dignity” is very difficult. I can sometimes find the humor in situations–I just lack the dignity!

The tight-rope I am walking is between overwhelmed and over-confident, swinging wildly between the two hourly, daily.

I returned home from our first family trip post-daddy with great confidence. Doing the long driving by myself made me feel pretty invincible. I had ridden roller coasters on this trip, which was something I hadn’t done since the first kid had been born eighteen years before. I had this single parenting thing down, I thought.

And then it happened. Reality struck after getting back into the swing of things. Several events shook me up. And every situation was a picture of how my late husband and I dealt with the issues differently.

Over-confidence or Overwhelmed

Over-confidence at thinking I have it figured out, and overwhelmed when I find out I don’t.

One situation was with the mower. We live on nearly an acre, so cutting the grass takes a while. After charging the mower’s battery (as was the norm with this irritating mower) I had finally hit an all-time low. (Insert sarcastic voice here) And knowing that being bitter and angry makes the kind act you are doing so much better, I growled and complained the whole way around the yard as I did the mowing.

Nice example of “strength and dignity” if there ever was one!

Picture this: family sitting around table enjoying corn dogs mom had put in the oven to cook, while mom, in her (modest) swim suit, was out mowing the yard. I came in and went psycho-mom on them. I wondered aloud, How much grass would I have to cut before any of you felt any guilt? One said, “I thought you wanted to cut the grass.” Really, son? What I said was, “I want the grass cut.” A large canyon separates those two statements!

The other problem was that there is something wrong with the mower since it has to be jump-started at each use. My man was the charging master, having been doing it to his cars since time began. He kept it charged and starting. I was not interested in keeping this little tradition going!

The last straw

The tile removal in the master bath was the last straw. I have never really assisted in any remodeling projects because we just talked about change but never really did it. So when several church men said they would help me re-tile my bathroom, I took them up on it. My boys could get the job started, they said. No problem, I thought. How hard can it be? I turned two teens loose with a mallet, sledge hammer, hammer, and a crow bar. My man would have taken forty-five minutes to show them how to do it, demonstrate, talk about it until they were bored to tears, then help them prep the room.

Prep the room? I guess that would have kept the tile grit from getting in my toothbrush.

I really do want to be a better example of “strength and “dignity” especially to my girls. They need to see that my strength and dignity come from somewhere outside myself, from God and the time I spend with Him in Scripture.

How are you doing balancing your tight-rope?

Your tight-rope might be between grief and joy, worldly advice and Scripture teaching, or wanting to be loved again and not wanting to replace your first love. Whatever it is, turn to Scripture. Use your concordance in the back or the search bar on your Bible app to find verses for your concerns. Another thing that helps me with this tight-rope walk is a sister walking with me. She might be a widow just ahead of you on the journey or one just starting out. She might be a special friend who is a true prayer partner. Seek out those who will walk biblically with you, not pushing you in a direction that is contrary to Scripture.

Whatever your tight-rope is, walk it with a strength and dignity that others will notice is from ABOVE and not from what the world offers.

Heavenly Father, thank You that You created me and that You have plans for my life. Give me the desire to spend time in Scripture to regain my focus for the day. I pray for strength and dignity today as I walk the tight-rope in my life. And help me to see the humor in some of life’s situations. Amen