A Ship In A Bottle Set Sail
How does little Jessica stay so positive? How is she able to be so cheerful when there’s so much in this world that can bring us down?
Did you know that last week a new holiday called “National Unfriend Day” was created? Late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel came up with the day as a way for people to clear out the dead weight (people they never talk to that clog up their news feeds) on their Facebook friend lists without consequence.
Have we really come to this point? Are our lives so cluttered and burdened that we need to start removing friends? Facebook used to be so fun, such an entertaining distraction. The first time I logged onto Facebook was so exciting, being able to see friends I hadn’t seen in years, keeping up with what is going on in everyone’s lives, posting pictures, poking people. But now Facebook really has become kind of a chore.
Really, there’s a lot of things in life that bring us down that should be joyful. Like weddings. Just the other day I attended the wedding of a high school friend of mine. It was a beautiful ceremony and once again it was fun catching up with some old friends I had not seen in ages. Yet I couldn’t help but be bummed out by my position in life, nowhere near finding a marriage companion.
Not to mention the other countless drags that get in the way of us living a joyful life: bills, chores, progress reports, etc. With all these things to bring us down, how can we possibly be as cheerful as Jessica? And how can we possibly keep the same attitude as David did in Psalm 108:
My heart is confident, God; I will sing; I will sing praises with the whole of my being. Wake up harp and lyre! I will wake up the dawn. I will praise you, Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For Your faithful love is higher than the heavens; Your faithfulness reaches the clouds. God, be exalted above the heavens; let your glory be over the earth. Save with your right hand and answer me so that those You love may be rescued. (Psalm 108:1-6, HCSB)
What joy and thanksgiving flowing from David’s pen! You would think he had a perfect life from the looks of his words, but that would be far from the truth. David had plenty of issues.
David’s family never really believed in him. They never thought he could be God’s chosen warrior. David struggled with lust and was known to cheat on his wife. One of his sons died while still a baby. David had issues. And still he lifts up praises.
He’s not the only one with a broken heart giving thanks in the Bible. The stories of men like Job, Joseph, and the apostles of Christ are stories of pain and suffering mixed with praise and shouts of joy.
That’s because, the life following God is not about a life without difficult circumstances. It is about a life of facing all the difficult circumstances with an attitude of praise. You cannot expect to always be able to change your circumstances. You can only change yourself and how you respond to your circumstances.
Dig deep in your heart, mind, and soul. When life tries to bring you down, look around and see how much there is to be thankful for. See how much God has given to you. Most importantly he gave his son so that we could overcome this life and experience life to the full with Him.
So, with Psalm 108 in mind, here’s 108 things that I’m thankful for: (more…)
Johnny and Joseph
- ew.com
Can you believe that this decade is almost over? It’s been ten years now since the Y2K problem sparked mass hysteria across the world, and a lot has changed in the past decade. Quite frankly, it’s tough to remember all that’s happened in the past ten years, especially in the rapidly changing realm of pop culture, which is why this cover story in Entertainment Weekly is so interesting to me.
Articles ranking the top movies, football games, albums, books, and so on of the past decade have been all over the place in recent weeks. Entertainment Weekly joined in the fun, devoting a recent issue to the best of the decade which included a ranking of the top 15 entertainers of the past 10 years.
People like Oprah, JJ Abrams, Steve Jobs, Jon Stewart, Meryl Streep, and Tina Fey all made the list. Johnny Depp, as you can see, made the cover. Depp’s decade has been particularly fascinating. (more…)
