Nighty Night, Don't let the Bed Bugs Bite. Seriously, don't let them.

(Long drawn out inhale, followed by a long drawn out exhale)

Ah yes, nothing like fresh morning air. Here I am at Brueggers - a great place to chat, grab some breakfast or a snack, study, hang out, or plant yourself in a booth for 4 hours before school because your apartment has been overtaken by exterminators who are applying two coats of pesticide and heating everything up to 120+ degrees in an attempt to kill bed bugs. I'm sure that this last description of time spent at Bruegger's is the most common for all of us (yeah right). As Sam and I were vacating our apartment at 7am this morning we ran into the guys who were going to be in our flat (that's a cool way to say apartment I think) for the next 10 hours. I imagine at this point that they are in giant yellow Haz-Mat suits, boots and gloves and all, spraying down every nook and cranny in our place. Bring the heat boys, bring the heat. Godspeed.

I'll admit I haven't been the happiest camper through this ordeal. I miss our bed, although the air mattress that we set up in the living room every night has been a great alternative to the floor. Sam and I shared a pillow for about 2 weeks because we were afraid of the other ones that were in the bedroom. Then there was the prep for the exterminators. The walls had to be stripped, everything had to be put in boxes or clothes baskets and piled into the center of the room on or around the furniture that had to be 3 ft away from the walls, closets had to be empties, and anything that could melt or explode had to be put into special boxes marked "Do Not Heat!". So basically, everything we own is in 3 giant piles, one in the kitchen, one in the living room, and one in the bedroom. I'm sure this is one of those experiences we will look back on and laugh about.  It's a good newly-wed story I suppose.

Through it all, God has brought me conviction (for those times when I found myself complaining, saying, "Ohhhh, woe is me!", "How could this happen to me, messing up my comfortable, American lifestyle?!" and the like) and comfort through a chorus:

Hallelujah, All I have is Christ
Hallelujah, Jesus is my life. 

Here's why I have found conviction as well as comfort in these words -

In comparison to the majesty and ministry of Jesus Christ, earthly circumstances are trivial.

My comfort is unimportant. Living an uninterrupted, smooth, easy-going life is unimportant. Always having things go the way I want them is unimportant. The fact is that Shift Happens. What is important in the midst of trial is that we remain on our knees in the presence of God, thankful for the very next breath we will take, because it is a breath that we do not deserve. What is important is that we proclaim that our hope is in Christ, not in comforts of this world or easy living. So as I sit here in Bruegger's watching the snow fall, I can rest. Not in the fact that the bugs will hopefully be gone by tonight, because as well as that may be, they could always come back, or a different problem could arise, but rather, I can rest in the fact that Jesus Christ has reconciled me, a filthy sinner, to God and that makes life a bed of roses.

-M