tlc4me


Focus on the Blessings

By: Pastor Kari Lineberry
(Senior & Children’s Pastor)

Why is it that other people whine more than we do ourselves? Could it be that we just notice when other people whine and don’t realize we are doing it too? Who likes to be in a room with a whiner? You’re right. Not you, not me, not anyone really.

I know this woman who always sound like Eeyore, the melancholy donkey friend of Winnie the Pooh. She thinks she’s having a wonderful conversation with you but doesn’t understand that every word coming out of her mouth is a whining, negative piece of her life that she can’t help but share. One day I would love to have a positive, uplifting conversation with her but no matter how I try to push her words in that direction, she always brings it back to the “Oh bother” mentality. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her smile. I wonder what it looks like. I sometimes day dream about what her teeth might look like if she actually showed them or how her brow might wrinkle if she could smiled with her eyes. It must be hard to live in her sad and depressed skin.

Philippians 4:8 says this, “Finally, brothers and sisters, 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.” If this woman could get a hold of that scripture it would totally revolutionize her life! I probably wouldn’t even know her anymore.

Looking in the mirror: I find myself complaining lately, to myself and to God. (Even if we don’t complain out loud God still hears it.) I think sometimes I forget this one simple scripture. Sometimes it just feels better to whine and complain about my circumstances but when I realize that God is in my circumstances and looking out after me then I really have no business complaining about them. He already knows where I am and what is going on in my life.

How about instead of asking God to fix our situation that we take the good things that are going on and use them as “Thanksgiving” prayers to him? Take our focus off of all the “whoa is me” stuff and set our eyes on those blessings around us. It may not make the bad things go away but it will sure help us lose our fixation on them. It isn’t healthy emotionally, spiritually or even physically to concentrate on all the lousy, gloomy and dreadful things in your life. If we do that our lives get more lousy, gloomy and dreadful. Instead, we need to encourage ourselves by concentrating on all of the wonderful things that we have going on. As we do that we will be in more of a position to encourage others around us.

So I say, “Have a GOOD day!”… and I really mean it!

Posted in TLC Devotional on November 3, 2014.