In between

At this stage of life I thought I would have "it" all in place, in order, planned out. But... I'm in between 60 and 70, in between /almost empty nest, in between two stages - me still working outside the home and hubby "retired" - in between two communities, two churches, two homes in two states even! It might sound very odd to younger people, but 60s are weird (yes, 1960s were weird, too :D!). You have to plan both for the possibility of dying in the next few days/months and for living another 30+ years, contradictory options in many respects. But there are other "in betweens" thrpughput life that are hard, too - in your 20s it seems everyone else is married and you are "in between relationships"; in your 30s you might be trying to conceive and "in between" wanting to be a parent and successfully giving birth or getting that great news from the adoption agency; you might be "in between" a terminal disease announcement with a parent and that final gasping grief of loss; in between joblessness and a job; in between marriage counseling and reconciliation or separation; in between a bad decision and forgiveness and healing; in between surgery and recovery..... life brings some hard - really hard - in betweens. So how do we deal with these? How do I trust God when my ears ring with silence? How can I rest when my world is spinning in unsettled restlessness? How do I keep focused on love. and service. and peace when I am so totally overwhelmed with the uncertainty of all of these in betweens? Psalm 37 says 3 times what to do - wait on the Lord - and 3 times what NOT to do - do not fret. Many scriptures tell us to wait, trust, be patient, but today I went back to Psalm 37 during this hard "in between" to also read the do NOTS - do not fret! Lord, help me trust. wait, but most of all to not fret. Thank You for Your beautiful Psalm to remind me.