“The window is shattered, they broke in,” was what I heard from Caleb when I called him at 6am this morning. Caleb about to drive to his first day teaching the new school year with students, when he saw glass covering the back seat, and one of our windows smashed in, and car rummaged through. This marks the 8th or 9th time our car has been broken into since me moving to California.
We now never leave any valuables in the car (thanks to them stealing some from another time of someone breaking in), but we have to get our car window replaced and it’s such a terrible and violating feeling. It’s got me thinking today of the temptation to let circumstances steal our joy and peace. I was tempted to have hate in my heart towards the person who did this. But I realized that as soon as I let hate enter my heart, my joy would be taken away, I quickly replaced tempting thoughts of hate with feelings of compassion. What must that person be going through to be so desperate to break into an old car? I started counting our blessings and thanking God that because of God’s goodness, love, grace and redemption: circumstances no longer need to define my peace and joy. Yes, emotions are normal, there is pain in the destructive things in this life. The battle is raging, but the war won. Are there any circumstances in your life today trying to steal your joy? How can you replace hate with love & compassion, and grumbling with gratitude? I’m in the midst of the battle of practicing this myself right now, and love to hear from you!
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