lowercase life.

I read somewhere recently (the source of which I cannot recall) that when we are asked how we are, and we know what we are facing or feeling is nowhere near the magnitude of others facing gargantuan challenges, we tend to completely dismiss our smalls struggles because they are not nearly as harsh as they could be. Instead, we could look at our overall well-being as our uppercase Life and the daily stuff our lowercase life. Today my Life (overall) is far better than I deserve to have it be. We are healthy, all here together, there is food to spare and room to share.There is incredibly much to be thankful for.

 

If I'm perfectly honest, though, my lower-case life today feels a little lonely and futile.

I have friends, and several very good ones. I have a husband who loves me. This is huge.

The God who made me is there and ready to help, I know He is.

 

Even with all these good things, there are days when:

 

One step forward is constantly taken back three steps...

 

 I feel lonely and there is no real good reason, but I just do...

 

When creative play, which I encourage, makes such a huge mess that it tires me to even think of cleaning it up (and my mop, er, dog won't eat up the pebbles for me).

 

 

...When tempers flare and the repercussions are found behind closed bathroom (thatijustcleaned) doors...

 



...When I am tempted to compare the shot (with a half of someone else's child) from a quick beach day trip with the family all-in-white-linen portraits against a pastel sky & sea I so admire. We had FUN! Who cares we didn't COORDINATE! We live close enough to the beach to leave in the morning and be back by dinner! What a fool to see anything lacking! (this is the talk-to I give myself when I'm being utterly ridiculous). We don't live to capture the perfect portrait. We capture life by living fully. If we get a few pretty pictures in the process, great. If not, great!

 

Life is messy, and if it weren't, God wouldn't be necessary.

 

Perspective can often be obscured by self-pity...even when there is every reason to be thankful for many good things under the sun.

 

 

There is no neat and tidy little ending to this post. I'm simply writing this for my own therapeutic interests and if perhaps you are having one of those days too, you can know that you are not alone. We are human, and Life--even when it's very, very good--can have those days (or weeks) (or months) when perspective is in need of adjustment and continual reforming of thoughts and emotions.

 

 

 

We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.

2 Corinthians 10, The Message