For the days that get off to a wrong start...like today...
I sat around my kitchen table on Monday with a group of girls I met in college. We talked about the fact that, well, sometimes life is hard.
Even for God's people.
Even though He is always good.
Some where along the way, we got the idea that nothing could ever be wrong. At least, not mentionable-y. We must maintain this impeccably strong attitude that we can handle any difficulty life throws our way as if nothing could possibly get us down. But the real truth of the matter is that some days, life is less than fun. And sometimes, it's easy to get down.
I woke up early this morning. I have started meeting with a sweet college girl who has asked me to mentor her. We just started this journey together, and I want to be the best mentor I can be. Honestly, I'm new at this, so I'm not quite sure what that looks like. Thankfully, she's full of grace and patience, and so I'm sure she'll help me get there. Anyway, my main objective was to be on time. I may not know what to say, but I can at least be there. That has to count for something, right? I placed my backup alarm clock across the room so I would get up on time. I managed to get ready in record speed, kissed my sleepy husband goodbye on the way out the door, and left not a moment too soon.
According to my calculations, I would arrive to my destination at 7:00AM on the dot, which would have been correct had I not hit every single red light. I texted her to let her know I would be a minute or two late. I pulled into the parking lot at 7:01AM, and I saw the perfect parking spot. It was as close to the door as I could get, which was ideal because it was cloudy with a chance of rain. I waited behind a gold sedan who, to my surprise, had passed up the spot. I got half way into the parking spot when the sedan's reverse lights came on. I began honking, hoping the signal would reach their brain before their car hit mine, but it didn't work. Needless to say, breakfast was delayed 30 minutes, and the rest of my day was, well, not that good.
Life is full of choices. Bad stuff happens all the time. Some of it is trivial, some of it is kind of bad, and some of it is really bad. Some of it is so terrible we can hardly deal with it. And while we may not have the choice of what happens, we have the choice of how we respond. Of how we view it. But the truth is, bad days will happen no matter who you are, where you're from, or what you did... as the Backstreet Boys put it.
And so we look at our bad day and we say, "Thank you, Jesus." Thank you that today is only 24 hours long. Thank you that tomorrow is full of new mercies. Thank you that you've packed all sorts of new blessings and opportunities into tomorrow for me. Thank you for the unknown goodness that awaits. Thank you for taking my today and for using it somehow, someway to teach me, to refine me, and to grow me. Thank you that even the bad stuff isn't wasted when we place it in your hands. Thank you for all of the potential that awaits me in the morning. For the chance to start new, to start over again. Thank you for giving me something to look forward to. For filling my future with hope. For the things you are going to do, and for how you're going to use and redeem what has already been done. Thank you, Lord, that you will begin a new work tomorrow.
"That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever." - 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
Even for God's people.
Even though He is always good.
Some where along the way, we got the idea that nothing could ever be wrong. At least, not mentionable-y. We must maintain this impeccably strong attitude that we can handle any difficulty life throws our way as if nothing could possibly get us down. But the real truth of the matter is that some days, life is less than fun. And sometimes, it's easy to get down.
I woke up early this morning. I have started meeting with a sweet college girl who has asked me to mentor her. We just started this journey together, and I want to be the best mentor I can be. Honestly, I'm new at this, so I'm not quite sure what that looks like. Thankfully, she's full of grace and patience, and so I'm sure she'll help me get there. Anyway, my main objective was to be on time. I may not know what to say, but I can at least be there. That has to count for something, right? I placed my backup alarm clock across the room so I would get up on time. I managed to get ready in record speed, kissed my sleepy husband goodbye on the way out the door, and left not a moment too soon.
According to my calculations, I would arrive to my destination at 7:00AM on the dot, which would have been correct had I not hit every single red light. I texted her to let her know I would be a minute or two late. I pulled into the parking lot at 7:01AM, and I saw the perfect parking spot. It was as close to the door as I could get, which was ideal because it was cloudy with a chance of rain. I waited behind a gold sedan who, to my surprise, had passed up the spot. I got half way into the parking spot when the sedan's reverse lights came on. I began honking, hoping the signal would reach their brain before their car hit mine, but it didn't work. Needless to say, breakfast was delayed 30 minutes, and the rest of my day was, well, not that good.
Life is full of choices. Bad stuff happens all the time. Some of it is trivial, some of it is kind of bad, and some of it is really bad. Some of it is so terrible we can hardly deal with it. And while we may not have the choice of what happens, we have the choice of how we respond. Of how we view it. But the truth is, bad days will happen no matter who you are, where you're from, or what you did... as the Backstreet Boys put it.
And so we look at our bad day and we say, "Thank you, Jesus." Thank you that today is only 24 hours long. Thank you that tomorrow is full of new mercies. Thank you that you've packed all sorts of new blessings and opportunities into tomorrow for me. Thank you for the unknown goodness that awaits. Thank you for taking my today and for using it somehow, someway to teach me, to refine me, and to grow me. Thank you that even the bad stuff isn't wasted when we place it in your hands. Thank you for all of the potential that awaits me in the morning. For the chance to start new, to start over again. Thank you for giving me something to look forward to. For filling my future with hope. For the things you are going to do, and for how you're going to use and redeem what has already been done. Thank you, Lord, that you will begin a new work tomorrow.
"That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever." - 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
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