It's a late, lazy afternoon. The humidity hangs in the air like a wet dish rag...and it's led to a sort of weariness all day long. And then I read this by G.K. Chesterton--
Here dies another day
During which I have had eyes, ears, hands
And the great world round me;
And with tomorrow begins another.
Why am I allowed two?
Why, indeed? Forgive my callous ingratitude, Father, for the undeserved gift of another day. Another day to see, savor, taste, touch, love, listen, work, and worship.
Suddenly that staggeringly massive load of laundry has transformed into something beautiful--it represents the treasure of 3 boys (and sometimes our girls too) home with us for the summer. And soon, all too soon, they will be off on their own. But we have them here now--we can celebrate and savor and love and laugh with them this day. Thank You, Lord.
Or walking Bingley on the greenway. Just this morning I sighed and dreaded heading out in the heat and humidity--ugh, not again, I thought. Yet not all that long ago I grieved over the loss of Moses and desperately missed strolling with him...I even remember thinking, "I'll never complain about walking the dog again." Losing Moses left such a hole. Yet I forgot.
So today, all for free, Bingley and I enjoyed God's "great world round me"--with the blackberries, the birds, the lush green canopy of trees, and joy of seeing old friends.
So many gifts all about us every day...how often we miss them in our busyness or weariness or distractedness. "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like the shifting shadows. (James 1:17) He is the Author, Creator, Sustainer, and Giver of every gift...so many gifts in every conceivable shape and size.
Phillip Yancey writes of some of these myriad gifts:"Guided by Chesterton, I came to see sex, money, power, and sensory pleasures as God's gifts which, in a fallen world, must be handled with care, like explosives. We have lost the untainted innocence of Eden, and now every good thing represents risk as well, holding within it the potential for abuse. Eating becomes gluttony, love becomes lust, and along the way we lose sight of the One who gave us pleasure. The ancients turned good things into idols; we moderns call them addictions. In either case, what ceases to be a servant becomes a tyrant.
Every Sunday I can turn on the radio or television and hear preachers decry the drugs, sexual looseness, greed, and crime that are 'running rampant' in the streets of America. Rather than merely wag our fingers at such obvious abuses of God's good gifts, perhaps we should demonstrate to the world where good gifts actually come from, and why they are good. Evil's greatest triumph may be its success in portraying religion as an enemy of pleasure when, in fact, all the things we enjoy are the inventions of a Creator who lavished them on the world."
Yes! "Every good gift and every perfect gift," James tells us, come from our generously extravagant, infinitely loving, astounding creative Father. The world takes so many of His gifts and perverts them. So does our sinful flesh.
But it's time we take them back...remind the world (and ourselves) that every gift comes from the relentlessly gracious Lord.
Our response should be--awe and gratitude. Wonder and worship. For this day. This day "during which I have had eyes, ears, hands and the great world round me." Another day to see the face of my husband and children. Another day to laugh with my friends. Another day to chat with our daughters on the phone. Another day to feel the warmth of the sun. Another day to savor the taste of chocolate. Another day to walk with our dog. Another day to live and love in God's big, wide creation.
Thank You, Father, for Your gifts. Help us to see and savor them. And then might we worship with gratitude and awe the Giver of every single on of those gifts. You are worthy, Lord.
To God be the glory.
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