Good morning…
“Sue, Thank you for your post this morning,” she wrote after yesterday’s message Flip On The Light. “Watching the movie clip made me smile and cry, which surprised me. I think it is a lot of things wrapped into one.”
She went on to explain, “One of the greatest compliments that I have received, since our 7-year-old daughter died of cancer, is from a dear friend who told me how much that she admired me because I choose joy despite my deep loss. That is exactly what today’s movie clip shows…choosing to be positive and see the world through different eyes, to be in relationship with others, to truly express your feelings, to be polite to strangers, supportive, laugh at ridiculous situations, celebrate successes, etc.”
She explained further: “We all wear ‘masks’ in life, and they are needed. But, we just have to make sure that there is balance and honesty in wearing those masks and that we don’t hide so much of our true selves that how we are living becomes a lie. We cannot always change our circumstances but we can change how we react to our circumstances.”
Her thoughts turned to the truth grounding our hope: “You and I know that I can be joyful because of my faith in Christ and knowing that our daughter is with Him in eternity, and I will be united and reunited with them forever one day. We have so much to be thankful for and have so many blessings. Thank you for being such a dear friend and sister in Christ to share life’s ups and downs!”
“Yes, this quirky movie touched me deeply,” I replied. “I also love the wisdom you share about choosing joy when you could have chosen despair. May I use your words anonymously to lay out this key choice, hour by hour, for our blog readers? I think your words will resonate with many of us who have woken up into circumstances we would never choose, circumstances we are powerless to change, circumstances in which we can consciously choose to find slivers of joy, day after day.”
A Message from the high and towering God, who lives in Eternity, whose name is Holy: “I live in the high and holy places, but also with the low-spirited, the spirit-crushed, and what I do is put new spirit in them, get them up and on their feet again” (Isaiah 57:15-16, MSG).
…Sue…
