Have you ever noticed how easy it is to complain? In this world where we experience times where we donít get a fair shake, itís easy to notice the things around us that are wrong, instead of focusing on the things that are good and right.
There is a story of a pro golfer playing in the Masters at Augusta. The course is a place to be seen. It looks like you just walked into a painting. It is groomed to near perfection. This golfer said to his caddie, ìYou wonít find a single weed all week!î
Imagine the golferís surprise when a few days later his caddie looked down and remarked, ìHey, look, I found one!î
How often are we prone to do the same thing. Our lives are full of good things God has given us, but instead we go on a weed hunt. When we do that, we tend to miss many of the blessings that are blooming all around us.
What would happen to your outlook on life if you focused on a list of reasons to have gratitude? What if every day instead of looking for weeds, you look for flowers? Itís so easy to get caught up in the wrong words, the wrong turns, in our wrong reactions. Maybe you spoke when you should have listened, indulged when you should have resisted. And when these sorts of things happen one right after the other it is easy for us to get caught in a downward spiral of seeing everything thatís wrong instead of seeing the things that are good and right. Donít let yesterdayís mistakes ambush todayís attitude.
There are times when it feels like weíre walking under a raincloud. But in those times, we have a choice we can make. We can continue to get wet or we can intentionally look for things we can give thanks for.
1 Chronicles 16:34 encourages us to have this kind of attitude when it says, ìGive thanks to the Lord for He is good; His love endures forever!î
Why not today choose to counter those downpours of discouraging experiences by opening your life to downpours of Godís grace, daily washings of His forgiveness, constant reminders of His love.
Lamentations 3:22, 23 says, ìThe Lordís love never ends; His mercies never stop. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness.î
God is forever doing good things in our lives, but too often we get caught up in all thatís wrong. Itís time to adjust our focus. Itís time to focus instead on the things that really matter, the blessings of God in our lives everyday if we will just stop long enough to notice. And so hereís the challenge. Make the choice today to turn your day into a ëgratitude day.í How do you do that? One thing you can do is choose to trust God more and stress less. Look for opportunities to turn up the sound of gratitude and hit the mute button on grumbling. Choose to allow God to be enough in your life. He knows your needs. Seek Him out. He will give you everything you ëreallyí need today. And tomorrow? He already knows about it. He knows the weeds that will show up. If God created this world we live in, right down to the last detail and keeps things together each and every moment of the day, donít you think He can handle your cares, your concerns, your hopes and dreams and yes, even your weeds?
Godís efforts are greatest when our efforts seem the weakest. And the thing we can count on all the time is that God is always good, even when we donít understand what He does. When we choose to rest our lives, our thoughts, our attitudes in God who is good, we are more likely to see more flowers than weeds.
This Faith Matters column is brought to you by Tri-Community Baptist Church in Beiseker.
