Today Is Going to Be Another Good DayНамуна

Today is going to be a good day because even when we feel like crying in despair, God holds us close, lifts our chin toward Heaven, and gives us the ability to smile at all the other blessings he has given us.

God never shames us for the things that hurt our heart or cause us distress. He doesn’t scold us for feeling our pain. And he never chastises us for not learning life’s lessons sooner.

Yet, God longs for us to trust Him for the abundant life Christ came to give; to put our focus on him rather than on our circumstances. What we focus on tends to grow. When we focus on our pain or our problems, they will eventually seem insurmountable. But when we choose to focus on God and his character, we will appreciate him more, praise him more, and in turn, smile more.

Many years ago, I plummeted to the depths of depression’s valley. It didn’t matter that I had been a Christian since I was seven years old. Nor did it matter that I was a doctor who diagnosed and treated patients who suffered from depression. All the alphabet soup after my name wasn’t enough to shield me from depression’s snare.

During those dark days, weeks, and months, I tried all the things I had suggested to my patients for decades: a nutritious diet, regular physical exercise, prioritizing adequate rest, counseling with a trusted therapist, and even a trial of medication. All those things helped, but they weren’t enough to fully eradicate the depression.

The longer I was depressed, the more my focus centered on all that was hard in life, all things I didn’t like about my life, and how I wasn’t measuring up because my own “prescriptions” for my patients walking through depression wasn’t helping me. I began to believe perhaps I was “joy immune.”

The Holy Spirit then guided me to his truth: “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning." His Word applies to me, and you, and those in the Bible to whom he spoke directly. If his joy comes in the morning, then I couldn’t be joy immune.

I then began to focus on God’s many other promises, and as my focus changed, I began praising him again with a smile on my face. Our focus matters.

What will you choose to focus on today?

Father, thank you that you never shame us for our feelings, but you also love us enough to show us a better way to journey through this life. Help us to always fix our eyes on you, to offer praise from our lips and a smile to others who are struggling. Be the song in our heart and the light for our path. In Jesus’s name, Amen.