Do you love your alarm clock? Or, do you want to take a hammer to it when it rudely interrupts your latest dream? Do you ever hit the snooze button and try to grab a few more moments of rest? Do you feel sluggish when you arise? Do you feel excited? Or do you have a feeling of vague dread when it is time to face a new day?
A lot of people, Christians included, feel fear about what the new day holds. How will work be that day? Will the family be healthy and cooperative? Will you have enough money to pay the bills? Will terrorists do something crazy? There are a lot of things “out there” to cause us untold amounts of anxiety.
If we start the day off wallowing in negative emotions, then it is no wonder the day doesn’t go too well. We are setting ourselves up to fail. I have struggled with this over the years. I went through a major health crisis several years ago. And, each day, I woke up worried about how much pain I would be in, and wondering how I would make it through the day. My fears and worries magnified my pain and made it even more difficult to manage.
Recently, I heard about a lovely elderly man named Josiah. Josiah has been walking with the Lord for a long time. A retired farmer, Josiah has worked hard all his life to serve the Lord and take care of his family. When asked the secret to his life of contentment, Josiah said that he spends about fifteen to twenty minutes each and every morning, in fellowship with God before he even gets out of bed! He went on to say that if he is in “right fellowship” with God, then the other parts of his day will work out better.
Josiah is a realist. He understands there will be problems in this life, and sometimes there will be plenty of them. However, he chooses, on a daily basis, to put his faith and trust in the Lord. He understands that nothing “gets by God” and that if it is okay with God for a situation to come into Josiah’s’ life, then that is okay with him. He is the first to admit he often struggles with it, but he doesn’t give up.
Josiah also strives to look at problems as possibilities. He says it is hard to do, but he knows that life will be better if he does. He asks God to show him the way that He wants a situation to be dealt with and then does his best to follow what God leads him to do.
This week I encourage you to spend time with God as you are waking up. Commit each day to Him. Ask Him to carry you through it, and He will. He wants you to commit it all to Him. Ask God to turn your problems into possibilities. Be encouraged and be blessed!
