Though this blog slot is for Single Women, what I’m writing about today is something all women struggle with from time to time. And that is being able to “Enjoy the everyday beauty in life”.
When I say, “The everyday beauty,” I’m referring to the fact that with each day we are gifted there is something beautiful about it or in it, if we look. Problem is we can go days without seeing any beauty.
By nature it is difficult to live in the moment and not worry about tomorrow. And I say this because in the Old Testament, God tried to teach the Israelites to trust Him each day by giving them manna on a daily bases. The instruction was to take only what you needed for that day (and an extra portion for the Sabbath) of course there were those who needed to make sure tomorrow was taken care of, so they took extra when they were instructed not to. As always there are consequences to be had for our disobedience and so not only did they still have to collect their portion the next day, they had a real mess to clean up on what they had called themselves stashing away. In the New Testament, Jesus tells us in the “Model Prayer” to ask the Father to give us this day (today) our daily bread. (Matthew 6:11) He also tells us in the “Sermon on the Mount” that God knows what we have need of, therefore stop worrying about tomorrow. So this is why I say that it is hard for our human nature to live in the moment because it has been a problem since the beginning of time. The truth is it started in the Garden. Eve just couldn’t be satisfied with the everyday beauty of her life and thus came the “Fall”.
I would have to say that in this day and time, it is harder then ever to focus on being in today. That part of us that wants to work it all out and have things in a neat little package is bombarded and inflated on a daily bases to strive for more. So when we are busy trying to get more, and be more, we usually end up not having the time as the old saying goes, “To stop and smell the roses!”
As single women we are often drawn to looking at the lives of others (the grass is greener thing) and finding discontentment because it provokes feelings that our lives are lacking or we are missing out. Take marriage for instance. If you have been a bridesmaid yet never a bride and each year more and more of the people you know are getting married, and it seems like God has forgotten you….after awhile you stop “Enjoying the everyday beauty in life”. Why? Because your focus is on what you want, what you think you should have, why God doesn’t love you as much, why is life so hard, why me and the list goes on. Everything you have or do would be sooo much better if you had a husband to share it with. There is no truth in this thinking, but again it is the MO (motive of operation) that our enemy has used for years to dupe us. He told Eve that God was holding out on her. He continues to tell us the same thing and like Eve, we continue to fall for that same old line.
The everyday beauty in life is usually not the big things. Most often they are the things we take for granted. The neighborhood I live in (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA) has a great beauty about it; in fact there are tour buses that come to show off the gardens in the spring and early summer. The area I take my 2 mile walk in is absolutely gorgeous, and I’m very excited that soon I will get to smell the honeysuckle and much more. Every morning I get to walk I try to savor what each individual block has to offer me, but it wasn’t always like that. I have been walking in this neighborhood for 16 years, and I can remember a time in my life when I walked without noticing anything. Why? Because I was too preoccupied with tomorrow or distracted within that day. I would walk right pass all the beautiful front gardens and well kept homes oblivious to their charm and splendor. I didn’t necessarily enjoy how good the sun felt after a long winter. I hardly noticed how quiet the city was early in the morning or in the early afternoon. I ignored the fact that the Holy Spirit was with me, and there was an opportunity to talk to God versus grumbling in my spirit because “I didn’t have what I wanted.”
The truth is…..there is not a man on this earth girls who can make you appreciate God. And it is God who has given us life and the everyday beauty in it, is something we must choose to see. But I also want to note that “married” women suffer from the same issue of “not enjoying the everyday beauty of life” too. This is something that is common amongst women in general. Again, Eve fell for it and so do we as women across the board.
How do we stop letting our days go by without enjoying the beauty in them? By making a decision to look for the good no matter what! Hebrews 11:6, tells us that we must believe that God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. When we seek to see Him in each day that we are given, there is a great reward in that. For one, it gives us a heart of thanksgiving. It helps us to focus more on Him rather then the things that are not so perfect around us. We complain less in our spirits, and hope has the lead versus doubt. Joy triumphs over sadness, and most of all……others (non-believers) begin to see there is something different about us. Something that sparks their curiosity? “What is it about her, why is it when we approach her with a complaint about another people she has a positive flip to the situation?” “I know that she has had a rough time of things, yet she always seems to be humming every time I walk past her desk.” We all have family and friends who are not saved and for them to know that things may not be ideal in your life, yet, you seem to always enjoy living, speaks volumes to them as far as God, and how great He is.
No one has a perfect life, but we usually find what we look for. So if we look for “trouble” then that is what we find. But if we look for “what is good” well…….
The beauty in your day may be as simple has sipping a good cup of coffee as you watch the sun rise. Or it could be that though you are in pain, you are still able to function on your own, and the freedom of not having to wait for someone to do for you is beautiful. On the other hand you might be dependent on someone else, but the beauty is, that someone loves you and takes very good care of you. It could be the birds singing outside your window this morning that woke you to a sunshine filled day. We all have different lives and it is up to us to see the beauty in each day.
Contrary to what the world projects and others say, there is a special beauty in the life of single people. Why? Because we are given the opportunity to serve God in a way that others cannot. If I were married, I would not have been able to have the ministry that I do. I could not have taken women into my home the way I have. It would not have been prudent for my husband. Even now, the schedule I keep and the things I do would not work for most married women. The point I am trying to make, is that we must strive to live in the now. What is good about now? What beauty is there in my today? Because tomorrow really is not promised to any of us, and to put your life on hold because you are waiting for something else, is not a wise thing to do at all.
My dear sisters, I pray that I have encouraged you to strive to enjoy every day that you open your eyes. That you begin to see the glass half full with more to come. That you will be so busy seeking the beauty in your life that you won’t have time to envy others or be discontent with what you have or don’t have.
Learning how to ENJOY THE EVERYDAY BEAUTY OF YOUR LIFE, takes commitment and work. So get to it!! LOL!!!
Blessings & Hugs
Ponnie
I'll be back with more on Wednesday, May 12th!
Thursday’s Blog: more humor from Cheryl, “Diary of Homeschool Mom”
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