THROUGH THE BIBLE IN THREE YEARS
One summer evening during a violent thunderstorm a mother was tucking her small boy into bed.
She was about to turn off the light when he asked with a tremor in his voice, "Mommy, will you sleep with me tonight?"
The mother smiled and gave him a reassuring hug.
"I can't dear," she said. "I have to sleep in Daddy's room."
A long silence was broken at last by his shaky little voice:
"The big sissy."
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________SCRIPTURE____________________________________________________________________
Ps 15:13
A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.
KJV
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_______THOUGHT______________________________________________________________________
Feelings are a part of life. If you are happy, you show it; and if you are sad, it shows too. A "cheerful countenance" is not only a smiling face, but an attitude of desire to accomplish something. Sadness reduces the "spirit" of accomplishment.
Both are decisions! I remember one very sweet lady who was a member of a church I pastored. She had arthritis so bad, it had crippled her severely. Yet she always had the most wonderful disposition. I asked her once how she maintained her humor and great smile. She said, "Every day I wake up and make a conscious decision to be happy. I have everything to be happy about. I have my Lord, His closeness, and assurance of eternal life. Why shouldn't I decide to be happy?"
Feelings are a part of life, but they don't have to RULE the life. I remember when my dad had surgery to change his pacemaker. The old one no longer worked. It was a "dual lead" pacemaker which meant that there were two wires which carried current. One wire went to the heart & one wire went to the atrial artery. The one that went to the atrial artery no longer functioned. The doctor wanted to change the whole thing out. But the wire in the atrial artery had an occlusion which meant it was "grown into" the flesh. Pulling it out would tear the artery and cause a heart attack. The only choice left was to replace the pacemaker with a SINGLE LEAD. That's not going to HELP much.
But was Dad sad? NO! He was disappointed surely. But his determination was to go on with life as God had dictated. He wouldn't let himself become saddened and ruin his disposition. He made a conscious decision.
How about you? When you face difficulties and are overly concerned, do you DETERMINE NOT to be sad?
Feelings are PART of life. But they shouldn't dictate to us how we live!
We should dictate our disposition by a conscious decision<!
Love ya,
Bruce