Category: Choosing to See the Bright Side

Optimism is a discipline that can be learned. Choosing to see the best in all situations makes us happier and healthier in the long run. Optimists live longer than pessimists.

Giving Thanks in All Circumstances

Posted on by Wendy
When we focus on God instead of our situation, His presence radiates like the sun.

Monday was a much awaited day off for me. Yes, we had just had a couple of weeks off for Christmas, but the College Football National Championship had been the week before and it had me and my family and for that matter, everyone I knew, up well past midnight, and the old gray mare, well…..

Anyway, I was super excited about the long weekend. I did have to do fasting blood work that morning, but I was okay with that. I could just sleep until it was time to go, piece of cake.

After that one little chore, I went home and grabbed a cup of coffee and some breakfast. I was reading my devotional and giving thanks when my teenage son came downstairs and collapsed in a chair. He said he didn’t feel well. I took one look at him and I knew it was the flu.

His high fever and a visit to the urgent care clinic confirmed my diagnosis. I had to go to two pharmacies to get the prescriptions filled. I also had to make a Publix run for extra juice, soup and crackers.

There was a time in my life where the entire ordeal would have really bummed me out. My carefree, no plans day was no longer mine.

But, I have come to a point in my life and in my faith, where I really try to give thanks for all that I do have when adversity crosses my path. It’s amazing when I give thanks, how the many blessings, once hidden in my subconscious, show themselves.

I was blessed to have the day off to take him to the doctor. We were blessed to have great medical care close by. We were blessed to have no wait time and a very kind doctor we had never met before. We were blessed to have transportation to get us there. We were blessed that the second pharmacy had what the first one did not. We were blessed with insurance to cover the medications. As I continued to give thanks, I remembered that my hubby had already taken two additional days off because he had maxed out his time. He would be home to care for our son. Since it was a holiday, my son would miss less school.

As I prayed, I was increasingly sure that none of this was a coincidence. God’s timing is always perfect.

Now, no one in their right mind considers the flu a blessing. Jesus never promised a trouble free existence on this side of eternity. We live in a broken world. Pain and sickness are sometimes going to be present in our lives here on planet earth.

Yet, when we walk in faith and open our eyes, we can always see God’s presence with us. He’s always close to His children, helping us along. When we focus on ourselves or our misfortune, we often miss it. When we focus on Him, it shines as brightly as the sun.

A sick child reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too!

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Beacons of Light

Posted on by Wendy
All Christ followers have access to the light.

As I sit here typing my last post of the year, I remember that it’s December 21st, the longest night of the year. We have more hours of darkness on this day that any other day of the year. Starting tomorrow, the time of light gets a little longer everyday and the time of darkness gets less.

I think that today is a perfect day to reflect upon this past year. There are many that would argue that 2017 has been absolutely horrible. We have been barraged by hurricanes and ravaged by wildfires. We have suffered mass shootings. Our political landscape has been nothing but anger and hate spewing from both sides, and it seems that every time we turn on the news, there’s another sexual harassment scandal.

Yet, in all of that darkness, there’s been light as well.

Every disaster that hit us also bred stories of mercy and kindness. Strangers used boats, cars and everything at their disposal, to help those in need. They stood in lines; wrote checks and gave their own blood for their fellow Americans.

The sex scandals have at long last, resulted in justice for many people who have been victims for a long time.

Perhaps it’s by design that the longest period of darkness occurs right before the light bursts forth. Perhaps it’s important to truly acknowledge the darkness in order to fully appreciate the light.

There will always be a certain amount of darkness on this side of eternity. God’s people have an enemy who will see to it. Yet, we are called to remember that just the tiniest flicker of light can dispel the darkness and all Christ followers have access to that light. We also have the means to spread it.

Just yesterday, when I was out doing some last minute Christmas shopping, it was pouring down rain. An older woman stepped out of the store and dropped something out of her bag. No sooner than I had commented to my daughter about her misfortune, another woman came up and helped her get her things back in her bag.

Yes, there are beacons of light everywhere.

The longest night and a rain storm reminded me that wherever we find darkness, we have an opportunity to shine the light and make no mistake, the light wins. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day! Have a Merry Christmas! Have a Happy New Year! See you in 2018!

Wendy 🙂

Unexpected Gifts

Posted on by Wendy
The best gifts rarely come wrapped or from underneath a tree.

Last Sunday morning, when my hubby and I were running out the door to go to church, my car wouldn’t start. We assumed it was the battery and took his car instead. After church, he went and got a new battery. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the battery. It was the starter.

The minor, easy to fix car repair, had quickly turned into a tow truck call and a much pricier fix, right at Christmas time.

But, this Advent, I have been determined to see all of the many gifts that I so often miss. My sixteen-year-old son volunteered to drive me to work. My daughter, who is home from college for the Christmas break, volunteered to pick me up. Just like that; I had transportation.

I can’t really fully express how much I enjoyed being driven by my children. I’ve come to a point in my life where I realize that time and people are the most precious gifts we are given on this side of eternity. I enjoyed our conversations. I enjoyed their choices in music. I enjoyed seeing my children happily helping out in adult roles.

When I discovered that the starter was covered under a warranty, it also meant it took another day to get it repaired. I saw it is a gift all of the way around.

And when my daughter dropped me out at the mechanic’s to retrieve my car and I told her that I didn’t know what I would do without my kids chauffeuring me around, she said, “How many times did you chauffeur us around?” I immediately felt the sting of tears in my eyes.

I gave thanks on my drive home for my what initially seemed like misfortune. God, in His timing and wisdom, gave me not only the unexpected gift of extra time with my children, but also the gift of allowing them to serve me. Now, I’m not one who likes to be served. I like to be the one who does the serving.

But, when we allow others to serve us, we allow them to be a blessing. I wouldn’t trade the time with them for anything, but if I hadn’t been looking for it, I would have missed it.

I could have easily been angry, discouraged or frustrated about my car. I could have chosen to feel inconvenienced. Instead, I chose to look for the blessings in my situation. I was not dissappointed.

But, then again, when I’m truly seeking God in what I do, I never am. Car trouble reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Wilderness Peparation

Posted on by Wendy
When we walk with God, we are never lost.

If I were to ask you to picture wilderness, what would come to mind? Would it be desert? Would it be a forest? Would it be an island in the middle of nowhere?

Whatever you picture, I’m sure it’s not a place where you would ask your travel agent to book your next vacation.

When I hear the term wilderness, I also immediately pair it with the word lost. Lost in the wilderness seems like a horrible state to be in and I remember news stories of people being lost in the wilderness. I suppose when I think of wilderness, I think of no way out.

But, the Bible tells us a different story about the wilderness. When God sent His people to the wilderness, not only was there a reason, but they were never lost. He knew right where they were and why.

In the Old Testament, the Israelites were in the wilderness for forty years and while it was a punishment for disobedience, it was also an opportunity for them to grow, and to trust, and depend on Him. It was a time for them to ultimately leave their Egyptian captivity behind for good. Keep in mind He fed them and led them the entire time. They weren’t where they wanted to be, but they weren’t lost either.

And when the time came to claim the Promised Land, they were ready.

In the New Testament, when Jesus went out to the wilderness, He fasted for forty days and then was tempted by Satan. There was nothing fun about the wilderness for Jesus, but the Son of God went head to head with Satan and won. He too, was being prepared.

God had not abandoned Him.

There are times in our own lives when we find ourselves in a wilderness of some sort. Sometimes we made choices that put us there. Sometimes we have no idea how we got there or even why. Either way, if we lean into God, He will use those times to grow us and stretch us, to refine us, and to build us into something better and stronger.

God never abandons His people. We never walk alone. Then, when we least expect it, He will call us to our own promised land, the one He has uniquely planned for each of us.

Learning to accept seasons in the wilderness is part of our faith journey. Learning to trust that God will lead us out and into something better, is also part of our faith journey.

Sometimes I need reminding that the promised land is just ahead. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Choosing Peace

Posted on by Wendy
Jesus will always get us safely to the shore.

Yesterday my daddy was scheduled for a heart procedure. Between him and my mama, my family has been through a lot of heart procedures. He had a minor heart attack over twenty years ago. My mama’s and my daddy’s hearts have taught me a lot about faith. They have taught me not to panic.

Interestingly enough, Mama sent me a text yesterday morning that included her daily devotion. She felt that it was a message straight from the Holy Spirit and felt led to share.

The verse was Isaiah 41:13, “For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.”

The writer then went on to recount a conversation she had with Corrie Ten Boom. She said, “There is no panic in heaven, only plans. The Holy Trinity has never met in an emergency session; God has not stepped down from His throne; Jesus has not left his right hand and the Holy Spirit has not stopped interceding for you.”

The devotion went on to say that anything contrary to that truth was lies.

I thought about those words all day long. When my children were little, before they could swim, we had a pool in the backyard. I always told them if they fell in, not to panic. The pool was not that big. All they had to do was get to the side. They could dog paddle or open their eyes and walk, but never panic. Panic would make them drown.

Perhaps I knew that truth because it had been shared with me. My great uncle used to come and visit us in the summer for a few weeks. He loved to fish in my parents’ pond, but he didn’t know how to swim. One day he was fishing and he fell out of the boat. He told my mama about it long after the fact. I think she almost passed out herself, before she weakly asked him how he got out.

He told her, “Hon, I got on my hands and knees and crawled to the shore.” The man clearly did not panic.

I always remembered those words, so much so, that I passed them on to my own kids.

If we remember not to panic, Jesus will always get us safely to the shore. We have an enemy who will desperately try to steal our peace, but we are called to remember that peace is a gift from the Holy Spirit. It’s ours to guard or to forfeit.

We always have a choice.

A later text from Mama told me that when the doctor came to see Daddy, his heart was actually back in rhythm. They didn’t have to do anything after all. I could have worried all day, but what would that have accomplished?

I might have missed a blessing. We are called to choose peace. A text reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

PS My daughter is coming home from college next week. I’m going to spend every moment possible with her so I won’t be posting. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Everyday Beauty

Posted on by Wendy

Yesterday was one of those days when I felt like I ran around in a circle all day long, getting nothing accomplished. I had computer software issues all day and when I finally got them cleared up, the task I was originally asked to do was completed somewhere else.

It wasn’t as if any kind of tragedy struck. In the grand scheme of things, I probably won’t even remember it a year from now, but it was frustrating enough to give me a headache. Maybe you have had days like that?

When I got home, I got a cup of tea and grabbed my writing journal. I always keep it close by and I jot down all sorts of things in it, from ideas for posts to Bible quotes, to quotes from Pinterest, and sometimes when I’ve had a tough day, I read back through it.

It’s a road map to the places I have been and there are recurring themes that remind me where I’m going and why I’m here. As I read through it, I felt myself begin to relax. I read line after line about God being light and my day slowly slid back into perspective.

But, then I came across a quote that made me stop, because I had the perfect visual to go with it.

Sometimes it’s almost impossible not to see God.

“Never lose an opportunity of seeing something beautiful, for beauty is God’s handwriting.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

The temperatures have cooled and the leaves have begun to fall, and that quote made that photo immediately pop into my mind. There is beauty in the everyday because God is always with us everyday. Sometimes it’s easier to see Him than others.

Sometimes I need reminding. Today that reminder came from something I wrote down over a year ago, something that God knew even then, that I would need today. Isn’t that amazing?

Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Remembering to Seek Him

Posted on by Wendy
“Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things.” Philippians 4:8

A couple of weeks ago, I had to run an errand for work. That errand took me through our tiny downtown where traffic backs up like it does in a huge metropolis. When I finally got my turn at the stoplight, a big eighteen wheeler was on the other side. Of course, I needed to go left.

I found myself seriously grumbling. Why was that truck there? Were those big trucks even supposed to be downtown? As my negative inner-dialogue continued, the driver of that truck flashed his lights, signaling me to go ahead and go.

I was immediately grateful and humbled at the same time. The one thing that I was grumbling about, made it possible for me to get where I was going.

I made a mental note to remember that everything happens for a reason and that God always has a plan.

Yesterday, I had a meeting right after work. As I got into my steaming hot car to drive home, I saw that my dashboard said it was 86 degrees. Now, I’m not someone who complains much about the heat. I loathe being cold. However, it’s mid-October and a little crisp, cool air, would be nice.

When I arrived at home and took my dogs outside, I was treated to a stunning display of blooming hibiscus plants on my porch. Those plants are tropical. They can’t survive the cold and if we were having normal fall weather, they wouldn’t be blooming. I would have missed the beauty.

I felt God really working on my heart. For a gal who considers herself optimistic by nature, I’d been awfully half-empty lately. I reasoned that it’s partly because all of the negative world events going on at the moment. It’s been fairly hard to find the light in all of the darkness.

Yet, the Light is still there. God still remains. God is still in control. God still has a plan. Whether it’s in global disaster, or bumper-to-bumper traffic, or stubborn weather, if we seek Him, we will find Him.

That’s a promise to all of His children. That promise gives me peace. Sometimes I need reminding, perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Hummingbird Wisdom

Posted on by Wendy
Some hummingbirds reminded me to always lean into God, especially when the storms come.

Last week in Georgia, in preparation for Hurricane Irma, we were told to secure all of our deck furniture, lawn furniture, outdoor potted plants and anything else that might become a projectile in the raging wind.

We did as we were told well in advance. We even moved our chiminea, which I thought was way too heavy to be an issue, but better safe than sorry.

However, when it came to my hummingbird feeders, I decided to wait until the last minute. I sought advice from my mama who was further south. She and my daddy have like twenty hummingbirds or more every year. She told me she had taken theirs down for the storm.

I kept watching mine and planned on taking them down midday when it was supposed to get bad. I didn’t want them to become missiles. But, we have around ten or twelve this time of year and they are in a feeding frenzy. They have to double their weight in preparation for their flight to Mexico or South America, depending on the bird.

As the hours passed, the number dwindled to four, but still I was hesitant to remove their source of food. What if the ones that remained were behind because they were very young or very elderly? I kept watch and as the wind whipped the trees, the feeders didn’t move much.

I kept telling myself as soon as they stopped coming, I would run out to the deck and remove them.

The storm came and went and the birds never stopped feeding, so I never removed the feeders. By the next day, they were all back. They were all in a frenzy again, dive bombing one another and fussing at each other.

In the days that followed, when people were without power, and trees and limbs were down in our area, I couldn’t stop thinking about those four birds. The wind was whipping. The rain was pouring, but those birds relentlessly continued to feed.

Where were the other ones? Did they just take cover somewhere?

I am reminded of times in our own lives when the storms come and life gets bad. Those are often the times that we become so overwhelmed that we stop our spiritual practices. We stop going to church. We stop meaningful prayer time. We stop reading our Bible. We attempt to take shelter from everything including the One source that can feed us and sustain us.

Four little hummingbirds in a storm reminded me to be vigilant and to always lean into God, especially when the storms come. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Choosing to Trust

Posted on by Wendy
Frustration is certain on this side of eternity, but trust and obedience is a choice.

One morning last week I was struggling. I was running late for work. I had a million things on my mind. My to-do list seemed impossibly endless, and I was having some serious doubts about my decision to return to work full-time after being at home with my kids for so many years.

The list of tasks waiting for me on my desk that morning seemed insurmountable as well. As I drove, fighting the urge to speed, I prayed. There are those days when we just need to call out the name, “Jesus.”

The Bible tells us that there is power in His name and at the moment, I felt completely overwhelmed and powerless. Hadn’t God led me to this place? Hadn’t I listened very carefully? Had I heard wrong? As doubt and uncertainty filled my restless soul, I desperately pleaded with Him to show His face to me in all of the chaos.

And in my own despair, I weakly asked that I be given the opportunity to be His face too.

I was only two minutes late to work. My day was busy as expected and I had to go and run some school errands. When I arrived at the grocery store to pick up some sandwiches for a meeting, they weren’t ready.

I had ordered them hours earlier. They were supposed to be ready, but they weren’t. They only had three done and I had ordered seven. The woman working there was very apologetic. I smiled and told her it was fine.

As I waited, I read the daily devotion I had neglected earlier that morning. As I waited, I took some deep breaths and felt a calm come over me. As I waited, I acknowledged that this situation was completely out of my control and to be honest, so are the majority of the situations in my life.

There was a line forming in the deli and they were very busy. The woman who was making the sandwiches breathlessly told me that there was only one more to go. I assured her that it was okay.

A moment later, an older gentleman with completely white hair, wearing hiking boots, carrying a shopping bag, walked up to me and said, “You are being very patient.”

Then, he just walked away. I was stunned. I had no idea who he was, or where he came from. I called back, “I hear it’s a virtue!” He grinned and kept walking.

Moments later, my order was complete and I checked out. I walked out of the store much lighter than when I walked in.

I always stand amazed at the way God reveals Himself in so many small ways. I am also amazed at how He blesses us when we choose to bless others.

Frustration is going to happen on this side of eternity. But, obedience and trust is a choice, a choice that often leads to unexpected blessings.

A trip to the store reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂

The Best is Yet to Come

Posted on by Wendy
To begin the next chapter, we have to turn the page on the old one.

Last week was a blur of activity for me. I work in an office of an elementary school, and it was the last week of school. The activity was nearly constant. We had visitors and speakers. We had a flood of parents coming for lunch just one more time. We had a step up day where each grade level got to visit the next and meet the teachers there. We had a day where the high school seniors who attended our school as children, came through in their caps and gowns and walked the halls one final time.

We had fifth grade graduation to middle school. We had lots of parents and grandparents with lots of cameras all along the way. The kids were all smiles and happiness. But, the parents, had tears mixed with their smiles.

The parents know that each step in their child’s journey is a tiny step away from them and towards independence.

My own daughter, graduated from high school last week. My week was mixed with joy and sadness. I cheered for her on honor’s night as tears slid down my face. I celebrated with her as she donned her royal blue cap and gown, and my eyes swam with tears on and off all day long.

As she marched in with her graduating class, I thanked God for the gift He entrusted me with almost 18 years before. I thanked God for her health and for her beautiful spirit. I thanked God for the friends He has blessed her with along the way and for the new ones He has already sent her to travel with her along her new leg of her journey.

I thanked God for my family who made the trip to come and be a part of her big day. My heart was filled with joy and sadness as I fought tears.

I knew that her world and mine would change forever once she crossed that stage and received her diploma. I knew that it would be the end of a beautiful chapter in both of our lives.

But, I also knew and embraced that it was the beginning of a new chapter as well. As I have poured my heart and soul into loving and nurturing her all of these years, Jesus has done the same. He has sent many other prayer warriors along the way and I know that she has been protected on her journey whether she knew it our not.

I also knew that she would continue to be protected. And as I heard her name called out, I cheered loudly for her, allowing some tears to escape. I felt Jesus hold me close and a little voice inside told me the best is yet to come.

This is how it’s supposed to be and although this mama’s heart mourns a little for the past, I also can’t wait to see where God will lead her and what big things He will do with her.

Change can be hard. But, we simply cannot begin new chapters until we turn the page on the old ones. A high school graduation reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂