It's late Sunday night, but before putting my head on the pillow, I must pause for a moment and simply give God thanks for a mighty good week. The Lord's been so good, so gracious, so kind to our family this past week...nothing we deserved, nothing we could ever earn but the outflowing of an extravagantly good and loving Abba blessing His children. The only response to such utterly unmerited grace is thanksgiving, adoration, and worship of the One who is the Giver of all good gifts. He is the Creator; He is the Source; He is the Sustainer of every good and perfect gift in every one of our lives. (James 1:17) So we trace the gift directly back to the Giver and give Him every bit of the glory, honor, and praise.
Here's how Lewis explained it in Letters to Malcolm: "Gratitude exclaims...'How good of God to give me this.' Adoration says, 'What must be the quality of that Being whose far-off and momentary coruscations are like this!' One’s mind runs back up the sunbeam to the sun." How I love that--run back up the sunbeam to the sun...or The Son.
Thank You, Father, for giving us weddings to celebrate and to remind us anew of the glory and wonder of love, of family, of wedding feasts now and in our glorious eternal Home with You in heaven. Thank You for sunny days, for teammates enjoying sports together, for friends with whom we share our joys and sorrow, and for this priceless, crazy, wondrous gift of life. Regular old daily, challenging, astounding life. Thank You for dancing and music and laughter and cake and celebration. And thank You for times for resting, reading, reflecting, and being still to know that You are God. You are just as surely in the mundane Mondays as You are in the celebratory, momentous events of our lives.
Yes, for our family, this has been a mighty good week...but as I sit here, I want to remember this moment. I need to emblazon this in my heart and mind to remind myself (and remind anyone reading this) that life is full of these kinds of joyful, wondrous moments. And life is just as full of hard, lonely, frustrating, disappointing, frightening, sorrowful moments as well. Today, this week, has been good--to God be the glory and praise. But I know that challenges and difficulties will inevitably come as well. They always, always do. Yet, just as surely, those times will pass as well.
The other day, I heard Beth Moore share these words from one of her Bible studies: "Whatever we're going through, we're not staying there. We're not stuck." When we're going through one of those hard, dark places in life, we need to remind ourselves, "I'm not staying here! I'm not stuck here. I'm just a passing through." The joyous times, the hard times, the celebrating times, the lonely times--they all come to each of us. And the secret is to keep our gaze locked on Jesus and know that whatever valley or mountaintop we're walking through, He's both leading us and walking with us every step of the way. Whether we're traveling through the good or the bad, the joyful or the sorrowful, this is not our true home. We're just pilgrims on our way to our glorious and eternal Home, and we have a Savior, a Redeemer, a Friend who will stick closer than a brother, who loves us infinitely and who will bring us all the way Home.
If you're in the midst of a season of joy, thank Him! Rejoice in Him. Trace that sunbeam back to the sun--The Son--and give Him glory and praise! He's the Giver of all good gifts, and we should laugh, dance, and sing with joy over His extravagant goodness.
But He's just as good, just as loving, just as wise, just as sovereign, just as powerful, just as merciful when He's allowing us to walk through a season of struggle or sorrow. Trust Him. Even when you cannot see His face, you can trust His heart. Know that He's got you by the hand and is walking with you--you, His beloved son or daughter. And He's working and moving in all kinds of ways you cannot see and do not know...but will one day.
So thank You, Father, for this week of joy, of blessing, of happy tears, of family, of friends, of celebration. It's all from You, by You, and for You. Thank You for these sunbeams of joy, but we give You--The Son and Source of every single sunbeam--all the glory, thanks, and praise. Whether our weeks are good or hard, joyful or sorrowful, You are the One we adore, the One we follow, the One we worship...for You are forever worthy.
To God be the glory.
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