Much like Marilyn Monroe, this 5 letter phrase is something that I live by.  I wish I could count the number of eye rolls I get whenever I say these words a loud, ha, but honestly I believe this.  We all have a plan.  Awful things happen yes, and some things seem incomprehensible and wrong, but I must stick to my mantra.  Of course if someone shares a deep hurtful experience of their past, I wouldn’t reply with, “everything happens for a reason”.  I do have a heart, I would totally work through this issue with them, but deep down I would know that whatever the situation was, it had to happen for a reason.  What that reason might be?  I am not able to answer that.

I have had my share of unfortunate experiences happen to me.  If you know me, you know that I am quite the positive person.  I always try to be the one thinking about the rainbow, while the storm is afoot, but when certain experiences have happened to me, at the time, I thought my life was over.  Why me?  I don’t deserve this!  How am I ever going to get over this?  But, in asking those questions to myself, unbeknownst to me, I was actually praying.  During all of these experiences I have never questioned if God existed.  I know that God has a plan for me.  When all the pressure is coming down on me and the walls appear to be closing in, he is where I turn.  Sometimes it takes longer for me to accept and give in than other times because I am a very stubborn girl, but it always ends the same way.  I break down, I apologize, give thanks, express my feelings and soon I saw the light.  Not to say that by doing these things, changes happen overnight, but I am lifted up and overtime the oh so wonderful clarity comes.

It is almost eerie how some things come together.   Let’s say you have this beautiful puzzle- an image of a gorgeous sunset on a calm body of water and in one instance disaster happens. The pieces are so tiny, thrown about every which way and you can’t tell if one piece is water or if it is the sky.  You look at this mess and it’s hard to imagine it was ever a puzzle.  This is very similar to the events that happen in life.  The water is calm, everything is good and all of a sudden tragedy strikes.  Most times you don’t see it coming and in the midst of it all, thoughts of giving up enter your head.  The end must be near!  No, no my friend, this is just the beginning.  A new beginning, if you will.  Some things happen, turning you off course, because it is very possible you were going in the wrong direction.

This has happened numerous times in my life, but a perfect example of this just happened last week.  My husband Matt and I got married May 27, 2012, so we are still considered newlyweds. It was our goal when our lease was up in September to purchase the condo we were renting.  If we were unable to buy, more than likely our landlord would raise our rent, which would force us to move and at that point we would be shopping for a home.  The goal is to buy.  We want to invest in the city we have grown to love and invest in our future.  My husband’s blog Mkent52 explains it the best, but Tuesday the 15^th he lost his job.  Yep, fired!  He did not do anything to deserve this, but it happened.  I am the type of person that has a plan, I wish I could say that I am a go-with-the-wind type of girl, but that simply is not the case.  We had a plan.  We wanted to buy a home.  We have been saving for this, but without two incomes this cannot be achieved.

The younger, less mature Jasmine wanted to come out… throwing a temper tantrum on the floor, surrounded by a puddle of tears because I didn’t get my way.  Where are we going to live?  What’s going to happen to us? But in this case, what came to mind?  Yes my mantra.  I had a feeling his time was coming, it was not a healthy environment.   Matt was steadfast, always telling me how he’s going to make things right and how this job is teaching him patience and gave him an inner peace that he has never had before.  To me, this happened so that he could find what was truly meant for him, but of course I was still sad for him.  Losing a job takes a blow to your confidence and I would never want Matt to think for a second, he was anything short of amazing.  He is extremely smart, a hard worker, creative and would add volumes to any company, if given the chance.

Interesting as it sounds, we went to church this past Sunday and the message was about Anxiety, focusing on Philippians 4:4-7 and how we need to release the control, because WE are not in control.  Verse 6 says, “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God”.  Funny, because this is how I have always tried to go about things, this was my mantra.  When something bigger than myself rocks me, like I said above, “I break down, I apologize, give thanks, express my feelings and soon I saw the light.”  While I was not nervous that Matt wouldn’t get another opportunity, I was a bit anxious because I did not know when this might happen and patience is not my forte.  I prayed and prayed, letting go, thanking the Lord for the moments when I felt lost and afraid, but by grace was granted a new way.  When we got out of church I felt good, I had no doubts in my mind that something was coming.  It was at that time Matt checked his phone and had an email waiting from a company he was very excited to apply to, asking to schedule an interview.  Yes, an email from an employer on an early Sunday morning.  Strange?  I think not.  Everything happens for a reason and God works in mysterious ways.  He actually never ceases to amaze me.  I laugh to myself, as if God’s like, “ha, had you going for a while”.

There is no saying if Matt will get this position or if he will even want it once everything is explained, but the fact is we cannot get down on ourselves, because we do not hold the control.  Everything happens as it should.  Sidenote- As I was writing this about Matt the song, Below My Feet by Mumford and Sons was playing, “let me learn from where I have been.  Keep my eyes to serve, my hands to learn”.  Of course this is another example of my mind being blown.  Anyhow, whatever happens, I think those moments are meant to remind us to keep our chins up… the big man upstairs is looking out.  As if that is not enough, because our lease is up in September, a friend of ours suggested that we write to our landlord and ask to extend our lease.  At least if she did want to raise rent, we would know now 8 months in advance and we could start looking, but guess what her response was?  “Of course you can extend your lease for another year”.  She complimented us as tenants and even added a smiley face to the end of the message.  We are able to keep our same affordable monthly payments and live in this condo that we absolutely love.

Everything happens for a reason, everything happens for a reason, everything happens for a reason!  I cannot say it enough.  I think this post is actually very therapeutic for me because if I am ever confronted with a situation that I feel I cannot handle, I can be reminded of how to deal with it.  There is much comfort in knowing that you are not alone and things will get better.  Whether you believe in these 5 little words or not, I feel everyone needs something to believe in and so far these words have served me well, so if this helps me deal, then I will continue to live in my little la la land.