Day 41 - Issue 24
John 14:1 NLT
'Don’t let your hearts be troubled.'
It’s a challenge preventing ourselves from being troubled by the pressures we encounter in life.
The little details of life have a way of framing all of existence within a negative field of view. Take grocery shopping: there’s the effort of unloading, putting everything away and then doing it all again some days later. Life stretches before me as an endless list of unrewarding tasks. I find a troubled heart leads to a disturbed life. Even as I appeal to God I’m reminded that it’s my responsibility to take charge of my heart. There’s no special heart repair kit available courtesy of the Trinity. So I need to acknowledge my turbulent emotions, my despair, before I project all my negativity into the home and drag others down with me. This is my issue and my responsibility to address it.
I have slowly learned that it is in guarding my heart that I make my way to God. Historically I have enjoyed a good wallow in despair, which can last some time. Sadly, this then affects my whole being and perspective on my life and its surroundings. Once I determine that, troubled though my heart may feel, I can choose to engage with God, setting the distraction of my tedium to one side and searching for God within this apparent monotony. Slowly I have learned to discover Christ in the checkout queue, cleaning the bathroom…within every task I undertake, if I choose to look. I move from a jaundiced view, to a God-centred view far faster than a few years ago.
QUESTION: What things in life disturb or disrupt your joy and trust in God?
PRAYER: Lord, teach me to become fluent in the gospel, applying it to every situation.
