Lighting The Way

Fall has come to the high desert. I'm in heaven! Cold, apple picking mornings and nippy sweater wearing evening make me thrive. The only thing that is going to be better is when the snow comes. Ah, life is good! Well, most of the time.

Is your life like mine? Everything is going along fine and something pops its ugly head up to destroy your idyllic life. It can be the toilet backing up, finding a late notice in the mail because you forgot to pay a bill on time or forgetting an appointment with the doctor and you now have to wait three more months to get in to see her.

It can be more serious things like your child falling out of a tree and breaking their leg or your husband being put on alert that he may lose his job. Suddenly your wonderful life is fraught with distress. What happened? Life happened, that's what.

There is no escaping life, the good and the bad. The key is how we handle it. We have a wonderful opportunity, especially in the bad times, to be a witness to God's power in our lives. The power to survive, yes, more than survive our ordeals. We can show the power to rejoice in the middle of outrageously difficult times. In doing so, we are a beacon drawing people to Jesus. They know what their lives are like. They need that kind of peace and assurance, too. They need that kind of power. Let's light their way to Jesus by how we handle our difficulties.

Hoping I'm lighting the way, Gloria