We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.
SOMETIMES WE HAVE our joy, only to misplace it. There are as many ways for joy to elude us as there are personalities in the world, but one way we lose it is by not being present in the now. We spend so much time thinking about where we should have been, where we need to be, what we need to do, and how we’re going to do it that we forget about right now. We’re not going to get this second back, so why are we such poor stewards of this moment? Notice, I didn’t say be in the moment. I want you to be in this moment. I want you to begin to recognize when you have a “this moment” with your family, your peers at work, your friends. I’ve found that it is very difficult to be in this moment if we’re constantly plagued with thoughts of yesterday or tomorrow. Living a not-so-perfect life, I have experienced the consequences of sin-my own and those bestowed on me by others. I have made mistakes that shame me to no end; sins that if I dwelled on them and failed to receive the forgiveness freely given, would send me into a black hole from which I would never return. And I have also experienced sin on the receiving end: abandonment, betrayal, manipulation, and emotional abuse. Accepting my failures, as well as those of others, is the only way to deal with a fallen world. And moving on is the only way to hope. Don’t let your past haunt your now. What happened yesterday, last month, or when you were twelve years old cannon be undone. It happened; and it was probably sad and unfair. Thinking about, dwelling on, and reliving the past-one created by you or for you-will only rob you of joy today. Joy is a state of contentment that cannot be affected by outside forces. Remember: yesterday is an outside force.
I cried out to the Lord, And he answered me from his holy mountain. I lay down and slept, Yet I woke up in safety, for the Lord was watching over me. (PSALM 3:4-5)
Are you willing to let it go? Notice I asked if you were willing. Most of us are capable but have become so comfortable rolling around in our tormented pasts that we’ve come to relish our “victimhood.” What will you choose? The agony of yesterday or the joy of today?
TAMF m:41 xh:41 T: 20 M: 15 D: 16 D: 14 Bomb dropped: 7/3/10 separated: 7/15/10 H moved in to new apt. with OW: 7/1/11 divorced: 8/26/12
