Tender mercies when least deserved

I have been so richly blessed this last week. I had this paper to write in my family therapy class. I had to pretend as if I was presenting for therapy with a current problem I am having, discuss my family dynamics, and then create a treatment plan. At first that seemed like it would be fun and not too hard, but it was such a hard paper to write. Not academically. However, it was very emotionally hard to write the paper. Anyone that knows me decently well knows that I have a dysfunctional family. I knew that this paper was an exploration project, but I just did not want to go there. I was also asked last week to sculpt a scene from my childhood using my classmates. I picked a scene I have no recollection of but my sister remembers vividly. It and the discussion afterward really had me thinking about a lot of things.

Anyway, everyone in the class was granted an extension for Friday. I heard that some were granted until Saturday to write it and I just couldn't do it, so I emailed the professor and asked if I could get an extension as well. My professor understood. She said, given the fact that I had just done a sculpting, I could even turn it in Sunday or Monday. I laughed to myself and said, "Monday it is then!" Anyone that knows me well knows I am a notorious procrastinator. There is no way I could have pulled through the paper without the Lord's help. Although I had been trying my best to work on it the previous days, I just did not get very far and I did not know how I would pull through even with the two extensions! The Lord knew I needed help, and three of my clients ended up not showing up and a meeting was cancelled on Monday! Normally, I would be upset by that, but I was so grateful and I was able to finish the paper in a timely manner.

While writing this paper, I was realizing just how unique of a family I have. I was asked to do a family therapy intervention...but no one in my nuclear family has lived together for years! My parents divorced at a young age, Lisa, mom and I moved up north and eventually lived with my grandma. Then, Lisa went to college and joined the military, I went to college, and then mom moved out. My nuclear family is scattered around the country! It's really hard to have a meaningful analysis of my family dynamics and family roles when I don't live with these people, I'm lucky to see them every few months, and I don't really talk to them that often! I wonder how many people in my class struggled with that. Anyway, I just needed to write because I totally did not deserve the Lord's help on this one, but He knew what I needed and gave it to my anyway.