Perspective

God is giving me a big dose of perspective this year.  He has used the following two news reports, among other things, to remind me that .... you know what, I don't really have it that bad.  Yes, things are rough and have been for a while.  The recession is NOT OVER, despite what they'd like you to believe.  Things are NOT IMPROVING and I truly believe we are in a downward spiral.






Add to that the news just received yesterday that R. C. Sproul, Jr.'s wife, Denise, has gone home to be with the Lord after battling cancer, leaving eight children without their mother.  And there is the continual influx of prayer requests from family and friends regarding health issues, concerns with children, and various other difficulties.

It would be easy to go to one extreme or the other.........

                   to either dull my senses with an attempt to buy more, decorate more, do more...

                   or to sink into despair and thus ignore the Hope that only comes
                            through Christ and the incredible gift we have been
                            given through the Father's amazing generosity and love.

For me, it is usually a combination of these two, if that is possible.  I am often so overwhelmed at the enormity of the need and also frustrated by my lack of resources and not knowing how to best help, that I tend to just...well, put it out of my mind, look the other way, ignore it and go on with my own life.

Instead, I feel God instructing me to have the proper perspective.

First of all, I need to be thankful.

• I could be dissatisfied (and honestly often am), with the little 2-bedroom flat in a city and neighborhood I don't want to be in, the small bedrooms, the drafty windows that cause a spike in the heating costs this time of year, the tub faucet that continues to leak, etc., etc., etc.  INSTEAD, I should be grateful that I have a home, graciously provided rent-free by family that keeps us safe and warm and dry.
• I could grumble at the fact that a change in hubby's job situation means he'll go from 3 weeks vacation to 1 week vacation this year and that he didn't get an increase in pay.  INSTEAD, I should be grateful that he has a job and that insurance will take effect in a week or two instead of the regular 3 month waiting period and that he will now have paid sick days (which he's never had before).
• I could rail at the clutter the kids leave, the messes they don't clean up, the chores that never end...INSTEAD, I should be grateful for every moment of fun and play and creativity that those messes signify, every crumb of abundant food that is dropped on the floor, every plate piled in the sink that indicates a full belly, the pile of laundry caused from an (over)abundance of clothes.
• I could be frazzled at the pile of gifts still to wrap and the gifts still to hand-craft in this final week, and I could be dissatisfied that I couldn't get everyone what I really wanted to get them.  INSTEAD, I should be grateful that God has given me deals to take advantage of (yay, coupons! and Swagbucks! [grin]) and free shipping and creative ideas shared by other bloggers for "made with love" gifts and just enough money from craft fair sales to get just enough.

And I can be especially grateful for children who are excited when they can pick dollar store gifts for each other and just as graciously receive dollar store gifts.  (And for the seven year old who lugged this big log in the house and has been "whittling" it on my living room floor, attempting to make a gift for me while, um, making a big mess.)

And I am just as grateful when these children receive a monetary gift from a neighbor and, as mom thinks, "Oh, dad's working late, we can order pizza for dinner tonight," they holler, "Yay!  Put it in the Mexico mission trip jar."

Second, I need to take action...some action, thoughtful action, even small action.  Because God doesn't expect me to fix the world's problems, He just expects me to "bloom where I'm planted" and impact the lives of those He has brought me into contact with.

So, I will:

• continue (resume what I'd started but let slip in all the busyness of late) my gratefulness journal, taking time to notice and be thankful for all the wonderful blessings God has given me.
• have the kids take the mug with some chocolates that we plan to give our elderly neighbor to him, and do a little extra, inviting him to come over on the 30th, when we're having some other friends over for soup and game night.
• order our passports for the Mexico house-building trip, even though we have still not raised the money needed, and trust God to provide for what He has put on our hearts to do.
• pray that God will continue to help me see the needs of those around me and give me wisdom on how best to meet those needs.

I want to just encourage you.  Is there someone you can reach out to in a special way, even in this last week before Christmas?  Is there a college student not able to go home for the holidays?  Is there a neighbor struggling and out of work?  Is there a senior member of your church who will be lonely and without family?  Does a particular gift in the World Vision or Samaritan's Purse catalogs excite you?  Do you feel led to help us build a home for a family living in a shack in Mexico?

But please, don't do it because I've guilted you into it or because you bought a $$$$ gift for your husband or kids this year.  Don't do it and then just move on with all the excessiveness and self-centeredness that permeates our culture this time of year.  Do it with prayer and out of a sincere love for the lost and lonely, and because God is pleased when we selflessly give in His name and for His glory.  Do it to be a light that leads others to The Light!