It's a gray day; early morning. I've finished my Bible reading and now sit in my workspace with my cat curled beside me, sipping a hot cup of coffee as I glance out at the world through the window. A split in the clouds reminds me of the crack in the wall on Dr. Who. But this split reveals the light blue sky beyond the heavy gray. It reminds me that above all the gray there is sunshine and blue skies. I thank God for that reminder and soon the split is larger and the tangerine highlights of the sun mark the bottom edge of the widening split. In the short time it took me to type this, that crack has turned into a large swath of blue sky with layers of lacy gray clouds drifting to the north. It reminds me of my favorite verse from my reading this morning.
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| Verse of the Day Psalm 50:53 |
With all that life throws at us, it is hard at times to "feel" thankful, but long ago, I learned to practice thanksgiving as a sacrifice to God, even when I didn't feel like being thankful.
"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:4-7)
My first memory of putting this into practice is from back in the 80s as I drove to work on a gray day in Northern Illinois. There were times we didn't see the sun for weeks and it could be depressing. I'd use driving time to talk to God, but that day I was in a bit of a funk. The sky showed no definition of clouds, it was like a ceiling painted a solid color. Light gray. I didn't feel like going to work, I didn't like the cold weather, and I could easily fall into grumbling about all the things I didn't like. But I was reminded that "in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving..." And so I searched for something to be thankful for and looked at the sky. I realized it was the color of my favorite eye shadow at the time and I thanked God for it's beauty. As I scanned the world around me I realized I had much to be thankful for, and by the time I walked into work, it was with a new attitude, God was guarding my heart and mind.
I am thankful. Amen