Perspective

The view of my backyard today

I hate this snow. Okay, not really. But I’m definitely sick of it. My husband keeps telling me, “Stop complaining about it!” To which I respond, “Who’s complaining? I’m just being honest.”

Such a small thing.

And this morning when my daughter’s crying because I put her hair up first - "without curling it, mom!” And I get upset and yell back at her, "I was going to curl it, just after I’d put it up!”

I get so frustrated. Over nothing.

This morning during my quiet time I read Romans 1:21 that talks about the wrath of God and explains, “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

They neither glorified him or gave thanks.

How often this could be said of my life.

How often I let little things take away my ability to glorify God or give thanks to him.

Last night Kyle came home from our church community service group at Place Of Hope, a local homeless shelter, where every week we’ve been going and doing some sort of work that they need done, painting and the like. He tells me they had a good night, but that there were more homeless people there tonight than the other times they've been there. He tells me about the women and children who were there for the night, sleeping on makeshift beds. And then he asks, “What will they do tomorrow? Where will they go?” He shakes his head and quietly states, “We have nothing to complain about.”

I know he’s right. It's a world full of awfulness and anger. Everywhere. Even for those of us who say we know God, how do we keep ourselves from becoming bitter, from focusing on the wrong things?

Which is so often my problem. How do I keep my heart from becoming foolish and darkened?

I must glorify him.

And I must give thanks.