Making the Most of It by Larry Refsland
“Of all the place you’ve lived, what is your favorite?” I posed that question to a lady that was then living in a nursing home. She had moved around a lot during her interesting life. Several states had been home to her as well as living abroad. I expected her to tell me her favorite place was Florida or New Orleans or even Minneapolis. Surprisingly, her answer wasn’t any place that I would think of as exciting or even interesting. Her favorite place, she said, was right there in the nursing home! She told me she had already made up her mind before she had seen her room that she would consider this as her favorite place. She knew that happiness doesn’t depend on how big your house is or how the furniture is arranged. It depends on a decision to look for the best in every situation. The apostle Paul wrote in Acts 26:2, “I think myself happy.” He wrote those words from a prison cell! Paul said he had learned the secret of contentment. The secret was trusting in Christ for strength for each day and hope for the future. How are you looking at the present circumstances? The Bible tells us to look at each day as a day the Lord has made and to rejoice and be glad in it (Psalm 118:24). As difficult as that may be sometimes, it is possible when we have faith that God is on our side. In Romans 8:31, it says, “If God is for us, who can stand against us?” My prayer is that you will have a day of rejoicing knowing that God loves you and is working all things together for good for them that love Him. Have you ever pulled on a stray thread and unraveled half of your sweater? It didn’t seem like a big deal at the time. Just give it a little tug and things will be fine. Then suddenly the ordered whole becomes a tangled mess, and it seems impossible to put it back. The same thing can happen in our lives. The smallest mistake can sometimes turn out to unravel our whole life! Trying to fix it on our own, we make matters worse.
God has woven the fabric of our lives together. He is the one who made us and designed us. When a part of our life is out of order, we can be tempted to ignore it, deny it, or try to fix it ourselves. These methods are sure to just make the problem bigger. To fix a stray thread, I go to someone that knows something about needles and thread. The sooner I get professional help, the less damage has to be repaired. In the same way, when we see something wrong in our life we go to the one who created life. The sooner we come to Him, the less damage has to be repaired. The loose thread could be trouble in our home, or a physical problem or a financial need. Before it becomes a crisis, take it to God. He is able to mend the brokenhearted and repair any damage in our life. Not only does he make the repairs, he comforts us in our pain or loss. A daily time with the Lord helps keep our lives from unraveling. He is the Master Tailor and wants to help us keep our life in order. No repair is too small and no damage is too great for him to make it as good as new! |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
May 2016
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