April 22, 2020

Good day to all
This morning I woke up to the reality that our local weatherman had gotten the weather forecast correct. As I sat having my morning coffee watching the rain my first thought was that I would have to put off putting the second coat of paint on our backyard project for a day or two.  My family teases me regularly about how well (Not!) I make adjustments to laid out plans.  I had a scheduled plan for the project that now required that I adjust. All this is to say that I was not overly thrilled at seeing the rain this morning. 

Then I began to consider how happy the trees on the hill, the flowers Pam has planted, and our lawn were at the rain. What I saw as a nuisance, they saw as a blessing.  My thoughts then turned to the comments by several meteorologists that rain was much needed  in our region. Suddenly, having to put off painting for a day or two was a small hiccup and I was able to see the rain through grateful eyes. It all came down to the perspective I chose to embrace.

When it comes to perspectives, how we choose to look at things will always impact our mood, our thoughts, and our heart.  All I had to do this morning was look for what to be grateful for rather than what to be upset about.  My thoughts then went to other things I should be grateful for. I am going to quote from a puritan prayer titled "Comforts". In part of the prayer, we read:

Streams upon streams of love overflow my path.
Thou has made me out of nothing,
         hast recalled me from a far country,
         hast translated me from ignorance to knowledge,
                                       from darkness to light,
                                       from death to life,
                                       from misery to peace,
                                       from folly to wisdom,
                                       from error to truth,
                                       from sin to victory.
Thanks be to thee for my high and holy calling.
I bless thee for ministering angels,
                   for the comfort of thy Word,
                   for the ordinances of thy church,
                   for the teachings of thy Spirit,
                   for thy holy sacraments,
                   for the communion of saints,
                   for Christian fellowship,
                   for the recorded annals of holy lives,
                   for examples sweet to allure,
                   for beacons sad to deter. 
Let us look at the rain today and rejoice while we think of the things we have been blessed with.
Have a wonderful day,
Vic