Thursday, September 10, 2009

Vantage Point

"Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me; O LORD, be my help. You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever." Psalm 30:10-12

Each and every one of us has bad days. Yesterday, one of the computer systems over which I have purview crashed, I hadn't gotten enough sleep, my head ached all day and I was cold. All I wanted to do was to go home and sleep, and yet, even after I was off work, I had commitments I needed to fulfill - and they ended up going longer than anticipated. I got home late, tired and stressed.

Yet, even in the midst of what really amounts to nothing more than a "bummer" day, I am utterly convinced of the reasons for gratitude and joy, and not just it spite of the bad day. This verse (and the many, many other like it - praise God!) remind me of the necessity of looking at life with His eyes and from the vantage point of His kingdom and the big picture.

I look at my life before I decided to let Jesus have His way with my heart, and I can't deny that, yes, there was wailing. There was the modern day equivalent of sackcloth and oh-so-much grief, sadness and mourning. My heart felt nearly dead for many years.

Do I still have occasion for grief, sadness and mourning in my life? Yes, of course. But when I look at the scope of my entire life, and the landscape of my heart as a whole, I have joy. I dance and I sing. It is these facts of which I hope to never lose sight. And I have found that when I keep my eyes pointed toward Him, no cruddy morning can take them from my sights. And I'm oh-so-grateful!


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