It Happens – Devotion 159 – SEEING THE EXTRAORDINARY

It can happen. Most of us struggle to believe it. We have heard about it but can’t take it in because it may not have happened to us. Actually, it is difficult to believe unless we have experienced it firsthand. It is miraculous, yet not your ordinary miracle. If nothing else, it certainly is lifechanging. It can only happen through God’s presence.

I don’t know how God does it, except to say that God has promised us an abundant life. I don’t mean a life filled with things – material goods. I mean a life filled with meaning, purpose, fulfillment, and joy. I mean a life filled with all that really matters. These are the things which make life worth living and help us to get up in the morning, despite the fact it is Monday. These are our motivators to face whatever is in front of us. Knowing that God has this ultimate plan and it is good helps us to take on the tasks of the day.

What is all of this? What is this miracle? What is it that we seek? The Psalmist (recorded at the end of Psalm 30) says it best:

¹¹You have turned my mourning into dancing;
    you have taken off my sackcloth
    and clothed me with joy,
¹²so that my soul may praise you and not be silent.
    O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever.

Imagine taking off all that holds you down and replacing with dancing, joy, praise and thanksgiving. For just a moment, we are relieved of our depression, our loneliness, our sickness, our hurts and our longings. We are given a new coat. We are given something that makes us dance and praise. We are clothed with the joy of the Lord.

It doesn’t happen all the time. Sometimes we must first sit with our grief. There are times when mourning is right. We all go through difficulties and that is okay. But there is also a time that God gives us a new outfit. It is as if the sun shines a little brighter and the air is a little more crisp. Nothing in our life has changed except that God has shown us this abundant life we still get to live. It is a new outlook in an otherwise dreary situation. It is a new, snug feeling of being wrapped in God’s joy. It is trading in where we are for where God wants us to be. And it can be refreshing.

May God trade in your mourning and give you dancing. May he clothe you with joy today. May you live in praise and thanksgiving so that your head is lifted and your eyes see where your help comes from. May you see the abundant life – your abundant life.