vindication

Why is it that some days you feel so together and on top of things, and other days it feels like everything is falling apart?? Today's babysitting went so well compared to last week!

What made the difference? Who knows. Contributing factors? Possibly more sleep the night before, prayer, and mental preparation. And a complete adjustment in expectations. I did not expect to just breeze through the morning. I expected challenges. As a result, I met them with much more grace than before.

I wonder how life would be different if we woke up every morning expecting difficulties and struggles in our day. As dismal as that might sound, I am a hopeless optimist who just gets totally blind-sided by problems when they come my way. What would it be like if I had a more realistic outlook?

On one hand I would probably struggle to get out of bed every morning if I expected each day to have troubles. But on the other hand, I might be a little more prepared to take them in stride. I might handle them with more grace.

We (meaning many of us from mainstream American Christianity) seem to expect smooth sailing and rosy paths. From the pulpit (to radio broadcasts to televangelists to pod casts) we hear of God's love, blessings, and good plans for us. And we interpret that to mean an easy life. Somehow we glibly skim over all those passages that talk of suffering, those verses that tell us to expect trials.

I think it's because we have had it so good and so comfortable for so long. A theology of suffering simply doesn't fit into our world view. Sure, we each struggle with this and that, but for the most part, our lives in the US are blessed. We live with relative security and ease. (Anyone who tells you differently has not seen life in other parts of the world.) We have come to expect lives of fulfillment and stability.

I fear the time is coming when we will need to adjust our expectations. We will need to develop some mental toughness and spiritual resilience. I fear that our days of comfort are slipping away.