Oh, Look!

Yes, my friends...a new post! Please restrain yourselves from fainting. Contrary to all appearances, I did not, in fact, fall off the edge of the earth. I'm sorry to disappoint. Why I haven't written here is mostly because I have simply not felt like writing, mostly due to being quite sick. Sounds like lots of fun, doesn't it? Anyway, I hope to get back to posting more regularly soon.

Something I learned from being sick is not to take anything for granted. As a young people, we tend to forget that we are not invincible. It is easy to forget to be thankful for things we don't notice until they are taken away, like simply having the energy to get out of bed in the morning. I thought about the fact that there are people that have to deal everyday with some of the issues I had to deal with for only had for a week or two. I can't imagine having to struggle everyday with not having enough strength just to do simple tasks around the house. I would encourage everyone who reads this to cultivate a thankful heart. Be thankful for those little things that we don't usually notice until they are taken away. We aren't automatically thankful creatures, we have to teach ourselves to be thankful. Look around you, think hard about what you usually take for granted, and thank Yahweh for the countless good gifts He has given to you.

You Don't Know

You don't know...
the rejection.
the hurt behind her smile.
the emotional turmoil.
the pain beneath his laughter.
the tears that soak the pillow.

Behind their masks are painful wounds...
some fresh.
some scarred over.
some painfully tender.
some almost forgotten.

No matter. . .
how hard the laugh,
how bright the smile,
how chirpy the greeting,
every heart has its aching wounds.

We should thus treat those around us. . .
with gentleness.
with kindess.
with patience.
with tenderness
with love.

One of those days...

Sometimes, you have "one of those days". What exactly do I mean? Those days are where nothing (or at least a lot) of things go wrong. Today was close to being one of those days. My big disappointment of the day involved experimenting with homemade marshmallow peeps. Now, you are supposed use an electric mixer but mine broke so I tried to do it by hand, but in the end it was a flop. Then I injured my little toe while dancing - the day before I am supposed to help my aunt shoot a wedding. I'm sure I don't have to tell you the temptation we all have on these type of days towards self-pity and despair.

It is so easy to start focusing on the bad things that happening and miss out on the good. For example, the failed peeps turned into delicious oatmeal creme pies. If we seek to turn ourselves into regular ol' Pollyannas, always looking for the good in *every* situation, we will be rewarded. Trying to find the silver lining doesn't come naturally; in fact, it can take a lot of time and practice to cultivate that "talent". But if we seek to find joy in every situation, we will be happier people. Our cups will be so filled with joy that it will "splash" onto those around us. Even so, the joy does not come of ourselves but is a gift from Yahweh. The world will wonder at the inexpressible delight we find in Him.

Sometimes the burden becomes too much for us, though. We can't seem to find joy anywhere. It seems as if everything that could possible go wrong has. The cloud of depression weighs heavily on your soul and nothing seems to be able to dispel it. What then, are we to wallow in our sadness? No, we need to seek our joy from Yahweh. Even on our absolute worse days, we are not beyond the reach of His grace. Even on our best days, we are not beyond the need of His grace. As Christians, we are constantly supposed to be joyful. What to we have to be sad and mournful about? The maker of the universe loves us. He gave His most valuable, precious possession to be torn, beaten, hung on a cross for us. What more could He have given? It was for me, for my sins that He was smitten of God and afflicted. For the lies I have told, the sins I have committed. By His stripes I am healed, my sins are forgiven. Now, is that not something to be joyful about?

A glorious Easter Sunday to you all.

SDG,
Jessica
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