Be of Good Cheer – Redux

Here’s something I shared last year that seems appropriate for the needs of the moment:

While working for his former employer, a Christian friend of mine had an extremely high pressure job. One Wednesday evening, I asked him how he was doing. He responded, “This day has been a long week.”

Have you ever had a day like that—a day when it seemed as though nothing was going right? Like the homeowner in Maui I read about. He was told by the fire investigators that the cause of the blaze which destroyed his home was a short in the newly installed fire prevention alarm system. He responded, “This is even worse than last year, when someone broke in and stole my new security system!”

Perhaps you experienced the frustration that comes when, no matter how hard you tried, you just could not seem to make yourself understood. Like the man who spoke frantically to someone at the doctor’s office, “My wife is pregnant and her contractions are only two minutes apart!” The voice on the other end replied, “Is this her first child?” Without missing a beat, he shouted, “No! This is her husband!”

Life is that way, isn’t it? Sometimes it seems as though we just can not catch a break. We experience misfortune and are misunderstood. When we are caught in the whirlwind of the events, they are not comical, either. Often, the circumstances are momentous challenges to our faith and faithfulness. Make no mistake about it, in life we will experience some tremendous disappointments and heart-jarring hurts. It is at these times that we are faced with a crucial decision. How will we respond?

Ultimately, we have two choices. We will either choose to get better or to get bitter. The road of bitterness is dark and lonely. The road of betterness, though, is well lit and secure. For it is on this road we meet our Savior and hear His encouraging words, “In the world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” In Christ we are triumphant, indeed! As we continue our shared journey into the heart of God, let’s be of good cheer!!

© Bill Williams, August 22, 2005