The sunrise had a lot more purple in it today. I wonder why. Maybe God knows variety is the spice of life, and that there’s not a lot of variety or spice when you’re knee deep in your morning routine of trying to get little girls up and out the door, with actual clothes on (not just princess costumes), and with some resemblance of a nourishing breakfast, while toothpaste is smeared all over the sink, and 1000 reminders to PUT YOUR SOCKS ON PLEASE!
Why is fighting for joy and gratitude so hard for us? At least it is for me. I may appear cheerful (or so I’m told… by those who don’t actually live with me) but it’s still an active battle at times. How do we not get sucked down a well of discontentment and discouragement when life is hard sometimes? We’re just humans dealing with a lot, and sometimes that feels heavy. On the flip side, how can we- who have been saved and rescued from death and hell and fire and eternal punishment, by King Jesus- be anything but joyful and beaming with rays of gratitude? If you feel stuck between those two worlds, welcome to earth! I live here too, and I’m right there with you: saved, grateful, blessed with more than I deserve, and on the same given day, struggling to live in light of eternity, sour on the inside, impatient, not very nice. This is our reality because even though we’ve been raised with Christ, we battle our (dead!) identity that still lingers under the surface. It’s easier to be selfish because that’s what our flesh wants and thinks it deserves. It’s easier to roll our eyes like the 3-year-old that wanted to put the toothpaste on herself, and to choose to act ugly, instead of choosing to be gracious and kind. It takes an act of God (walking in the Spirit) to choose patience, joy when the circumstances aren’t ideal, and love love, always love. The takeaway in all of this, is that if we know Jesus, we have the OPTION to walk in the Spirit, to throw to the ground our rotten flesh, and live our lives God’s Way. We have the option to see a sunrise with colors that weren’t there yesterday, and to silence our negative mindset, our inner critics, our old nature, and instead send our praise, awe, and admiration back to the Creator Himself. We have the option to send our praise back to the One who didn’t leave us here on earth alone, but left His Spirit to walk through life with us, highlighting the purple He put in the sky just for you.