Was It A Bad Day?

I recently saw this quote that really made me think…

“Was it a bad day? Or was it a bad five minutes that you milked all day?”

Don’t get me wrong, there are days that are bad, very bad, terrible days. I’m not questioning, downplaying, or talking about those days. I’m talking about worrying when we shouldn’t, panicking when it’s manageable.

 I think that’s what Jesus was talking about when He said, “…do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’” (Mt 6:31). And it is what Paul was writing about in Philippians 4:6: “Be anxious for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made know to God.”

This isn’t just saying, “Don’t worry, be happy!” Jesus is the reason that big things can be small things. A lot of it is a matter of perspective, but some things ARE big, but with Jesus, they can be faced, managed, and gone through.

Perspective doesn’t mean problems are nothing, it means they aren’t EVERYTHING. They may feel like EVERYTHING in the moment, but in reality they aren’t. This is why Paul includes “prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving” when he says not to be anxious. Prayer reminds us that we’re not alone when we feel we are facing problems – we have our Creator, the God of the universe, on our side and listening to us. And thanksgiving reminds us of the many things we have in spite of our problem(s). This puts problems in perspective. Some problems are not as big as they feel in the moment. We take a moment. We pray to God. We see and are thankful for what is right in our lives. It can help.

It is interesting to me that Jesus deals with the major issues in life: sin, death, glorifying God, forgiveness, etc. Even when He heals and feeds people, it is done so they will think seriously about Him and the major issues of life (Ex: after feeding the 5000 Jesus said: “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him” (Jn 6:27). Food is important, even necessary for life, but it isn’t the most important thing. We work so we can feed ourselves, our families, and others, but physical food must not be our primary focus, it must not be our greatest worry. Even life itself must not be our greatest worry, our soul and its health must be (Mt 10:28). When spiritual things are right in our lives, when our relationship with God is strong and we have confidence that we will be with Him in eternity, it changes how we live. It changes what a good day looks like and what a bad day looks like. Life in Jesus Christ can make that kind of difference if we will trust and follow Him.    dd