Have you had one of those days recently? You know which ones I’m talking about. The day where you just woke up on the wrong side of the bed? Or maybe your day started out ok, but quickly turned into a “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.”
Everyone has days that are what I’d consider “less than perfect.” It’s just the way things go sometimes. We can’t control everything around us, so things don’t always go the way we’d hope. Have you ever considered what makes a good day “good” or a bad day “bad” though?
I woke up refreshed, had lunch with a friend, and got paid. Yep, it was a good day.
I didn’t snooze my alarm, and left for work 10 min earlier than usual so i had time to get breakfast. It’s gonna be a good day
I made it through my long to-do list. My hair cooperated today. I got my morning coffee for free with my reward! Good day, check!
More often than not, we let our circumstances dictate how we feel at the end of the day.
It’s usually not a very good day when we get a flat tire from the roofing nail you drove over on your way to work, or when you hit every single red light on your way to work when you’re already running late?
Days like that… you know… the bad ones, are when our character and the quality of our faith get tested the most. And it’s in that split second of reacting that you find where your true hope and peace lies.
Jesus said in John 16:33, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” And if we believe Jesus’ words to be true, and trouble is inevitable in life, how are we to react to difficult/frustrating circumstances in a way that glorifies God?
The verse says, “take heart!” Other versions of the Bible say, “take courage.” So there is our answer. When life throws that awful stuff our way — the stuff that doesn’t seem to be fair or make sense—we need to “take heart.” Now, let’s be real, not all problems are the end of the world, but many of us are faced with troubles and trials that seem monumental. Maybe it’s cancer, a car accident, a death of a loved one, unemployment?
The fact is this however, we are called to handle the big challenges the same way we are called to handle the small ones.
Jesus didn’t say, “listen people, only take heart when little things come your way. But if the big things come, completely lose faith in Me. I can only handle the little things so you’re on your own with the big.”
He said he overcame the world. That means He overcame EVERYTHING IN THE WORLD, including the hopeless situations in your life.
We have to trust the process even if it doesn’t seem fair, and maintain a heart of gratitude at all times.
Its way easier said than done, though.
There are days when we are ruled by our emotions, and those days are when we waiver in faith and stumble through a bad attitude.
But, the bible also says in 1 John 3:20, “if our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything.”
So don’t be afraid to be imperfect and don’t condemn yourself when those imperfections rise to the surface. When silver is refined in the fire, all of it’s impurities rise to the surface and are skimmed away. When the fire heats up, the silver is cleaned and becomes so flawless you can see your reflection in it.
God does the same thing with us. Through every circumstance (good and bad) our character and our faith are being refined, and He promises to use everything we face in our lives for our good—and for His glory.
Some of those “refining moments” may hurt, cause pain, and be humiliating—but God promises that He will always have our best interests in mind because He loves us.
So, invite God into your daily mess, and trust Him to handle the rest.
Courtesy of: Be Salt & Light
