It always amazes me how life’s most important revelations can come through simple, everyday occurrences. Today, such a revelation presented itself and I found myself appreciating a divine message through the simplicities of life. Here’s what happened…
Recently, I’ve been facing one of life’s temporary frustrations. Like anyone, I’ve tried my best to remain hopeful, but often find myself wanting to just crawl in a hole and disconnect from everything. So, to help avoid depressing pity parties, I’ve made goals to clear my head and relieve stress by working out.
One of my favorite workouts has been to go for a cleansing walk on the track at the high school across the street from my home. That was my decision today, and with my iPod belting a few of my favorite songs, my heart was pumping and a much lighter mood began to take the place of personal disappointments. That’s when the atmosphere changed…
Right on the second leg of my mile, dark clouds rolled in and rain began to drizzle. Immediately, I cried out in my mind, “Dang nab it! I just got started! I was just getting into the momentum and here comes the freakin’ rain!” Feeling discouraged, I thought about jogging back to my car so I could hop in and go home… but something said, “Stay.” The drops were getting heavier and more frequent against my skin, but instead of retreating, I chose to follow the voice by staying put and kept on with my routine.
Just then, the clouds parted and the sun burst through as if there was never a threat of rain… and it was then that the revelation came.
It’s nothing new to compare life’s challenges to storms. Some roll through like Hurricane Katrina, while others barely require a windshield wiper. However, regardless of their intensity, they’re never as bad as you think!
Storms are temporary; they crash, they roll, they rage, but they never last long. Just like today’s drizzle, it took only a few seconds for me to get mad and want to retreat, and when we go through things in life, that’s what we do – we instantly lose our mustard seeds of faith and want to jump ship, throw in the towel or run for the hills! We want to give up and wallow, not realizing that the emotional consumption of wallowing only makes it feel like GOD is taking forever to work on our behalf, but in actuality, God simply wants to see if you’ll make the more productive choice of remaining steadfast and unmovable proving that you trust Him to bring you through.
Today, I chose to stay and press on through the “threat”, and almost as quickly as the clouds rolled in, they dissipated and I looked up to find a beaming sun and bright, blue skies above.
I leave you with this. It’s guaranteed that storms will come and go in your life… but what will YOU choose to do with there’s 100% chance of rain? Will you run and hide, or will you weather the storm and come out victorious? Selah…
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