When I can hardly bring myself to face the day, I start looking for wonderful things to happen.
I didn’t use to be that way, of course. If I really didn’t want to go somewhere, or I didn’t feel like diving into an obligation, I would stay home, or I would defer the task. If I felt like I couldn’t face the day, I wouldn’t face the day.
Then I started noticing a trend about those days that I faced anyway — the days when I didn’t want to go somewhere, but I went, or went through with something I didn’t want to do: More often than not, something unexpectedly cool happened.
I would meet an old friend I had not seen in a long time. The pastor would preach on a topic that spoke straight to my heart. That project I was skeptical about would turn out just fine, maybe even earn an accolade or two. Oh, and you’ve heard me talk about a woman, Mary, who gave me a hug after church one day and soon after lifted me out of my grief? Oh man, I really didn’t want to go to church that morning!
There is a force in this world that makes us lie to ourselves — I don’t mind calling it Satan, the Father of Lies — and when we’re about to have an amazing experience that may even change our lives, it whispers to us: “I really don’t feel like doing this, I really don’t want to go there, I really don’t want to be here …”
It happened enough times that now I recognize the symptoms, and when I find myself really not wanting to, my attitude adjusts almost instantly and I start anticipating something wonderful. Maybe my life doesn’t change dramatically, but I’m glad I faced the day and went through with it, every time.
Yes, here we are, another Monday. I suspect I know how you feel; we’ve all been there. I’m here to tell you that if you feel like you can’t face what this day has in store for you, this day may have something incredibly grand in store for you.
