This morning I was concerned about the change in the weather. The past few days have been so incredibly clear, and I have gotten some wonderful pictures of the night sky and the moon. But this morning’s sky had a few clouds coming in, and I complained about it to Jim as he was leaving for work.
As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I knew I was wrong. When he called me later on, I told him I was sorry for making him start his day on a downward note. He accepted my apology, but then spoke to me about my focus, and how we may not be able to control most things, but the thing we can control is what we pay attention to and how we react to what happens.
I know he’s right. I decided to take advantage of the still-clear skies and went out for a quick picture of the moon.
Belief comes before sight. If we don’t believe, we literally cannot see. In the beginning of this starry sky journey, I never hoped I could capture a picture of Jupiter, but then I saw a that someone else had taken a picture of it with just a point-and-shoot camera. So I looked up where Jupiter could be found, and I tried with my own camera. And Voila!
It’s like that with our faith in Jesus. Someone might tell us what they have experienced, and point us in the right direction so that we can find him for ourselves. That “someone” might be a clergyman, but most likely it will be someone we know and trust in our daily lives. We can also find the Lord by reading his Word, the Bible. (But he wants to be found–when we reach out to him with the smallest first step, he rushes the rest of the way to meet us!)
We have to believe enough to reach out to him. Sometimes it happens when we are at the end of ourselves and really want him to be there; that’s a part of faith, too. It takes courage to really seek the Lord, but when we seek for him with all of our heart, He promises he will be there. (Jeremiah 29:13)
There is something in all of us that longs for what we don’t have. Maybe that longing is rooted in the understanding that we weren’t meant to live like this. But the best is yet to come. And in the meantime, we must “look through a glass, darkly,” and can “only imagine.”
Whatever I “feed” into my mind will determine how I feel about the things I experience in the future. When I practice gratitude, it not only changes my mood, but it ups my energy level and gives me hope. Jim was right and kind to point me in a good direction! I was grumpy about the sky clouding over, but the clouds bring rain, or at least shade, and boy, do we need some.
The Lord tells us not to worry, but to be thankful, and to ask him for what we need. Sometimes, he meets those needs before we even ask. And when we practice gratitude, it leads to peace.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with gratitude, make your requests known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will protect your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7 (MEV)
Have a wonderful weekend, my friends! God bless you!
The Fullers Four 