Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
–Philippians 4:4-6
I was watching a fantastic documentary on Abraham Lincoln a few years ago. I was amazed as I heard about how Lincoln faced such great sorrow at the death of his son while he was President of the United States. He mourned for months, even exhuming his son’s body so that he could look upon his face again.
But one day, Lincoln determined that he couldn’t continue to live in the past and the sorrows of his life. And when he came to this realization, he said, “We can choose in life to be happy or miserable. It is our own decision. I choose the former.”
Yes, we have the power to choose in life to be happy or miserable. To rejoice is a choice we make! And as believers, we must get out of the bondage of the brokenness of the past and find God’s healing in the strength and the power of His Spirit.
So how do we do that? We look at life through the perspective that today’s sufferings are temporary and are nothing compared to the blessings we’ll receive in eternity. That’s the only way we’ll get past our past and live with the joy and purpose God desires for us!
DON’T LIVE YOUR LIFE IN LIGHT OF PAST PAIN. MAKE THE CHOICE TO REJOICE BY FOCUSING ON THE BLESSINGS THAT ARE YOURS IN CHRIST.
