I love roller coasters.

I love roller coasters. I know, this statement is redundant. Shake it off. Now, this twice-emphasized comment is is a funny truth for two reasons: 1. Because my dad would ask me why in the world I would pay to have the crap scared out of me and 2. Because I get severely motion-sick.  Like so bad sick that if I read or sometimes-even text in a moving car I will literally throw up. Classy right? But despite the sickness and my haterade-sipping dad, I absolutely love them.  I could spend hours at any theme park riding those world-turning machines for hours and enjoy every minute of it.  [As long as I am packed full of Dramamine of course- because nothing ruins your day faster then throwing up a funnel cake.]

However, when the roller coaster ride you simply can’t seem to get off of is actually your life, it sort puts a negative downspin on your own personal “fun-o-meter.”  Because really, riding for your life on a machine that insists on throwing you in every direction possible at 60 miles an hour can only be entertaining for so long- especially if you started your day with a batch of pre-coaster chili cheese fries and the Dramamine is taking its own sweet time to kick in.  Top those delicious suckers off with one heck of a crazy-busy year, college graduation, homelessness, joblessness and the impending financial responsibilities that come after insisting on attending a private college for four years and you definitely have one zesty and heart-burn happy treat.

So that’s where I’m at.  Some pre-coaster chili cheese fries, a stomachache and the inability to move forward in any stable, linear motion, as I have a crazy case of “growing-up” induced vertigo.  Now, if I had written this all down two weeks ago, the vibe of this roller-coaster themed musing would have been much more unbearably depressing, a little self-deprecating and at the very least, a whole lot of WHINING.  Basically, you would have received an E-vite to a Liz-themed pity party- with “RSVP, ASAP and bring your own comfort food” stamped at the bottom. Sounds like a fun sort of shindig, right? 

But curiously enough, I find as I continue to write out my inner most feelings while listening to OneRepublic’s “Good Life” on repeat, in a my new little nook of home, at 2 in the morning, that I am not so depressed. Or sad. Or even stressed.  Yes, I have a lot to figure out in the coming months. Yes, I am awaiting the results of some state-mandated tests that could determine whether I get a job teaching this fall. And yes, I don’t have a whole lot of money.  Very little in fact. But I have a new little nook of home with one of my best friends for the next two months. And I have a job for the summer hanging with some middle school kids that, even at the risk of sounding like I stepped out of Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, “totally rock my world, dude.”  And I get to be in a wedding, fish with my family, thrift it up, consume the seasonal key lime pie at Famous Daves, and [hopefully] camp with my friends. So really, what’s not to love? 

I’ll admit, the “life-is-a-rollercoaster” phenomenon has its uncomfortable moments – like when the Dramamine hasn’t kicked in completely and your lunch threatens to make an unwanted reappearance.  Or you are too dizzy to figure out how to move forward.  Or you simply have no idea where to go or what to do next.  But don’t forget, you’re not the one operating the ride.  Now forgive me for using such a cheesy metaphor to illustrate a very simple concept: I am not in control, but God is.  He knows what He is doing, and I can be confident that He is guiding me every step of the way. The ride may be crazy, thrilling and even scary at times, but take heart, for we have one heck of a Father at the controls. 

So breathe. Pray. Feast on truth that will ease the hunger pains of your heart. And turn your eyes to a God who knows you. Sees you. And loves you deeply.

P.S. If you really want the whole “this is so uplifting, Liz is so funny and clever, and life is totes great” effect, then I would suggest listening to OneRepublic’s “Good Life” while reading through this post a second time.  It really seals the deal.  Just saying.