Problems, Prayer and a Laughing Duck

Phil 2:5 KJV

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:...

In several instances during the past few months, I began to feel like I was "losing it." Instead of waking up with a song or scripture verse in my mind, I would wake up to the sound of maniacal laughter. I would also hear it during the day, while praying or reading in my office. Always the same sinister "ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha".

The past several months have been a valley in my life, full of questions and concerns. While I was still praying and believing God for the answers, I couldn't help but feel like I was getting laughed at by the enemy of my soul - Satan. Physical problems in my family, lost loved ones seeming more lost than ever, families continuing to crumble and discouragement was running rampant.

One day last week, I heard the laughter very loudly. I quickly spun around in my chair and looked out of my office window. There, just a few yards away, were my neighbor's ducks. I noticed that one duck, actually I think it is a drake, opened his bill really big and let loose with that same menacing laughter that I had been hearing. Now it was my turn to laugh, hysterically. I have never, until that point, encountered a laughing duck, well, at least one whose call sounds like a laugh.

Since then, things have been different. Where there had been darkness, shafts of light have begun to push back the inky blackness. Some families on my prayer list are showing signs of healing. Broken relationships are being mended. Again, I'm waking up in the morning with a song or a scripture verse in my mind.

Are there still problems in my life and family? Sure! However the power and strength to deal with those problems is also present through my relationship with Christ. Am I relieved that I am not losing my mind? Absolutely! (Some might say I lost it long ago.)

What are you and your spouse or family facing today? Know that your strength, hope, fulfillment, joy and happiness are found only in Christ. He is the one who can get you through the times when it seems like Satan is laughing at and lying to you! Be fervent in prayer, asking God to renew your mind and give you the mind of Christ. Wait for God to answer - because he will!

Oh yeah, when you think you hear someone laughing at you, be on the lookout for a white duck