Though I do a pretty good job of
'looking on the bright side', I am most often discouraged when I
start feeling the weight of the world, and by that I mean I can be
crushed by having too much coming at me all at once - things like
unmet expectations, disappointments, hurt feelings, stress, and all
of life's little downers. And sometimes BIG downers.
But whenever I get discouraged, what I
generally try to fall back on is taking all of the good in my life
and bringing it to the forefront. It's tempting at times to dwell on
what's wrong, but the 'wrong' is always there. We are in a fallen,
completely messed up place, out of sorts absolutely all the time. We
have to make a habit of finding our little joys and focusing on the
good – otherwise we run the risk of getting swallowed up by the
bad.
I'm human, and sometimes I forget who I
am and what's important. I forget to have perspective, or better yet,
I choose not to have the right perspective – because
attitude is always a choice.
The good is often pretty simple and
easy to see. My children are healthy. We are comfortable and fed and
warm in our beds at night. I have people I love to share my life
with, however messy that life may get. That kind of perspective tends
to keep me going.
But if you are feeling the weight of
the world right now, perhaps it's not all that easy to make a list of
the good. Thankfully, we can find rest in the hope that lies beyond
the veil, despite the battle that wages around us.
“For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
- 2 Corinthians 4:17-18
I truly believe that all we see and
experience has value beyond the temporary and a greater and more
beautiful meaning than we could ever imagine. Without that hope, I'm
not sure where I'd be. I do know, however, that I can have glimpses
into eternity by knowing the One who has promised it to me.
