Gray Days
And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. Romans 5:5
The day does not start out that way! Little things start going wrong or more likely, not as we had planned. All of a sudden, we find ourselves in a funk. What happened to our positive outlook? Our smile? Our good mood? Now it looks like we have sucked on a sour old lemon. The wrinkles on our forehead are deep and we can’t think of a nice word to say to anyone.
Personally, I don’t like gray days because they just feel yucky! However, I think they do serve a purpose. Mopping happens and for me, that stirs up thoughts of wading through a murky, muddy swamp with no way of knowing when the water will be over my head.
Now there is a choice to be made. I can either yell for assistance or keep moving inch by inch into the muck. Yes, when I call for help, I am publicly admitting that I don’t have it all together and I am in a pickle. But let’s take this one step further. I can pray to my Protector and Savior and sometimes, He sends a person at the right time to pull me out of my melancholia. There are times when He says, “Get back here and stop feeling sorry for yourself!” Then there are also times when He reminds me of all the blessings and the beauty that I can see from the swamp and then He lets me decide which way to go.
Most assuredly there are other ways to fight against gray days. Some are talented enough to keep a smile no matter what. Others think happy thoughts, read jokes, watch funny movies etc. The down side is that there will be gray days. The up side is that they do not have to stay around. We can discard them with just a few scripture verses of our own choosing.
Prayer is the best place to start. We might be totally surprised by how He answers us.
Father, thank You for hearing my prayers, even if they sound more like whining or complaining. Help me to have a grateful heart in all situations. AMEN.
Photo Michael Johnston