It’s perhaps the most difficult year many of us have faced. We compare our lot in life to others, and we struggle to find the good in this year of perfect vision. Yes, in 2020.
For some, the good is found in politics, equality, vaccine, or stimulus. Others see the negatives of lost careers, homes, finances, isolation, and health. Between the stretch of these two worlds are many of us. You know, those of us who are not overly blessed, or persecuted. That middle line between being above or below the ground.
Headlines, this morning, one billionaire has caught up to another. Okay. I’m happy for them, but I’m not sure they owe me anything to make my lot in life easier. Why do so many expect them to take care of us?
I work hard to find the good in my life every day. It may difficult at times. Yet, my perspective is one of the positive viewpoints. Looking for the up when all about us is down. Finding that escape valve at just the right time to prevent the pot from boiling over.
I’m interested in finding the positive, no matter the negative situation. I’ve not had close deaths of anyone due to the C-19, but I’ve known many people who have succumbed. Equally, I know many more who have survived.
Today
There was a song of my distant past telling me to “…stop and smell the roses…” along the everyday path of life. Where you are headed might not be the best experience. Yet, along the way, you can fill in the cracks of experience with positive outlooks.
Perhaps it’s all about attitude and perspective. I’m famous for that!
I traveled to Israel (first trip) without my bride. She was concerned about the politics of the area, and I don’t blame her. Yet, I met some great folks in the tour group, saw some ancient sites I yearned to enjoy and found the “me time” every single day. Get tired of the crowd? Find a place to stop and watch the people. Struggle with the noise and constant chatter? Where’re my Bose headsets? If you don’t have any, some cheap earplugs work just fine!
A familiar tune has been haunting me the past week or so. I learned it only after working in prison ministry back in the ’80s, yet, it’s much older than that. 1911, to be exact.
Farther along, we’ll know all about it.
Farther along, we’ll understand why.
Cheer up my brother, live in the sunshine.
We’ll understand it, all by and by.
Sometimes We Understand Much Later
I read a study of vaccines. From the first opportunity of immunizing against smallpox, it was nearly 200 years before we experienced the last recorded case. 1796 was the first attempt. 1972 was the last time we vaccinated against the disease.
The chickenpox disease goes all the way back to the 1600s, but a vaccine wasn’t developed for several centuries. It was perfected only recently.
Sometimes, the “fix” comes much later than the disease, and for some of the worst diseases, we are still waiting. [Source] Could it be C-19 will be eradicated soon? Maybe. Equally, it could be decades! After all, our Flu vaccine is very imperfect every year.
Why does it take so long for good things to happen in the midst of the bad? That’s life. Yet, through the years of my life, I keep searching for the “good” things that surround me every day. Why? A solution may not occur in my lifetime. I refuse to let that little factoid define my outlook!
“You don't have to understand the world. You just have to find your own way around in it.” ~Albert Einstein Share on XA Spiritual Thought
Sin is the disease of the day. Yet, we can ask for forgiveness, and God wipes it off the book and out of his existence.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
(Psalms 103:11-12 NKJV)
But sin still exists. We will never eradicate it in our times. Not will it go away until that special day of the future arrives.
Some say sin is an “offence”, and others describe it as “missing the mark”. Regardless, sin will prevent us from that future we either yearn for, or fear.
What say you? Will you live in constant fear of the disease? Sin. Pox. COVID. Or, will you turn it over to He who can forgive it, and “live/love” for the good?
Enjoyed reading this.