A WORD FOR TODAY, May 20, 2025
Peggy Hoppes
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Blessings. Peg
A WORD FOR TODAY, May 20, 2025
“Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun. Yes, if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. All that comes is vanity. Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your heart, and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment. Therefore remove sorrow from your heart, and put away evil from your flesh; for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.” Ecclesiastes 11:7-10, WEB
Someone I know had a really bad day. Well, I suspect many of us have had similarly bad days in our lives. We all deal with health issues, car accidents, financial problems, disagreements. Sometimes we get caught up in the issues of the day that create tension with people we know, even people we love. Bad weather sets us on edge. Sometimes it takes just the smallest thing to make a day really, really bad, but it really wasn’t just that one thing. It was more likely a thousand little things that led up to that moment when the day became bad. We can handle just so much until we finally break.
And then it becomes difficult to praise God. We’ve all had a moment or two in our lives when we have said “woe is me.” “Why me?” we ask. We wonder why these things go wrong. We think we deserve better because we have done good works or kindnesses for our neighbors. Shouldn’t God bless me because I gave food to the food bank or mowed my elderly neighbor’s yard? Why should I suffer ill health or financial difficulty when I give generously of my time and resources? We let those little things build up in our hearts and when the moment comes that we break, we forget the millions of blessings that God has provided for us throughout our lives.
This is why we are to live a life of rejoicing. Our pastor (and I’ve seen others encourage the same practice) has asked us to write down three good things every day. We are to thank God for those things. They don’t have to be anything special. Today I wrote that I was thankful for air conditioning. I was having a less than wonderful weekend a few weeks ago, struggling with a situation that had me on edge. Through the practice of joyful thanksgiving, I found positive aspects about it. I praised God for the good things. I made opportunities to do good things for those who had caused me pain. It didn’t change the situation; it changed my outlook. I could have responded to the hurt with more hurt, but that would not have made anything better. I could have asked God, “Why me?” That wouldn’t have helped either. Instead, I looked for the lesson. I looked for God’s grace. I looked for a way that might change the situation for someone else in the future. I also looked for my own fault in the situation.
The teacher in Ecclesiastes encourages his students to rejoice, to let their hearts cheer them. We are to remember that God sees even our hearts and all that we do. He knows our struggles. He knows our pain. He has promised to be with us through them. “Woe is me” is nothing but vanity, but “Praise be to God” will always keep us on the right path. We will have good days, and we will have days of darkness, but when we rejoice every day, we’ll realize that good can come out of the bad as we grow in faith and trust that God will always make all things right.
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