The Dark Days

    Some days are just dark. The weather around you could be sunny, stormy, drizzly, cloudy, or snowy. It could be the most perfect day full of beauty and sound and potential; but, for you, it’s just dark. When you open your eyes and the first thing you see floating above your head is a thundercloud, you have two options.
    You can either ask why…
    Why is today so off, so wrong? Why do I feel this way? Why don’t I understand myself? Why doesn’t how I feel match what I know? Why doesn’t who I think I am today match who I know I am in Christ? Why would God give me a day like this? Why am I facing the same struggles over again? Why can’t I see the sunshine? Why is today so dark? Why? Why? Why?
     …or…
    You can give thanks, and praise.
    Give thanks because it’s the highest form of thinking and we are told to do so in ALL circumstances. Give thanks because of the love you know radiates from your savior. Give thanks because grace still reigns even when it seems like the day is raining on you. Praise God because he made the day and we were made to rejoice and be glad in it. Praise God because when you feel surrounded in darkness, he is ever-present, weaving strands of light into every moment.
    So I give thanks in the dark days. I give thanks for the bedazzled bits of raindrops that shine on my windowsill in the lamplight. I give thanks for the curious questions of kindergarteners. I give thanks for the river of hugs from five year olds who love so freely. I give thanks for fresh breezes that bring moments of clarity. I give thanks for warm soup and pumpkin spice lattes that fend off the autumn chill. I give thanks for big, comfy sweaters. I give thanks for friends who listen and laugh when you’re crying and can’t see. I give thanks for the endless streams of encouragement that flow from the mouths of strangers. I give thanks for the moments of silence where I can think; more importantly, where I can listen to the voice of my sweet Savior. I give thanks for the quiet moments where his Presence surrounds me in stillness and I know that He is God. I give thanks for God’s word that forms my foundation when the ground around me is made of lies like sifting sand. I give thanks for Truth that shines like the north star, guiding me through the darkness into His marvelous light. I give thanks for the dark days because they make the rest of the days shine with a brilliant radiance, overflow with abundant joy, and bubble with immeasurable gratitude.
    So the next time you wake up to that pesky cloud of confusion, that vacuum of lies, that pit of feelings, you have two choices. Step into the darkness and swirl it around with your whys, or give thanks and praise the God above who gave you another day. It’s filled with graces hidden to the thankless eye. I dare you to just name one gift and see how God opens your eyes to the thread of light that becomes a beacon of brilliance.

Verses to Help Endure the Day:

Hebrews 10:23
    “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 
    “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
1 Peter 2:9
    “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”
Psalm 118: 24
    “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
Psalm 37:7
    “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;”
Psalm 46:10
    “Be still, and know that I am God.”