A Lesson of Light
4 1/2 months. It’s a long time to live and a short time to learn.
Finding motivation to continue this journey can be a real challenge while obstacles in my rear view mirror appear larger than they may actually. I battle with fear - sword in hand - sustaining cuts and bruises in the midst of the raging war.
Psalm 23 has a unique verse: “You serve me a six-course dinner
right in front of my enemies.” (verse 5 in The Message Paraphrase)
Explosive devices are hurled at me by my enemy who wishes to cut me down as I attempt to rebound from my Valentine’s Day massacre and I am tempted to stop in despair… or at least take a detour.
I remember the boldness of David, who used the metaphor of feasting at the Table DURING the ongoing battle. This war doesn’t stop simply because I’m weary, hungry and in need of sustenance. The need to be refreshed happens WHILE the conflict is occurring.
The power of the mind, when energized from a corrected attitude, is the key to survival on this battlefield. Even one tiny step forward may determine the entire journey.
After painstaking attempts to make its light shine consistent and brilliantly, Thomas Edison, inventor of the incandescent light bulb said, ‘I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways it won’t work.’
This shift in thinking made all the difference to him as he struggled to find the correct combination of glass, wire and energy.
We are no different. I am no different.
Challenged beyond my human ability to withstand this assault on mind and body, I am forced to consider how this story will be seen in the light of eternity. Will I find peace and tranquility in the middle of this full frontal offensive or will I capitulate, waving the white flag.
How we view ourselves in the midst of the personal, turbulent aggression for our very soul will determine the outcome and our destiny.
Like Edison’s principled conclusion, bruises and lacerations are part of the process we call ‘living’ and I will never cede ground to the forces of darkness, though my visage is gaunt and my complexion wearied.
As Winston Churchill noted, ‘If you’re going through hell…keep going!’
This emotional shift in thinking empowers us all to make positive choices which fuel our mental engine for full-throttle living in spite of our circumstances. Steel sharpens steel and God must believe that the base metal which lies beneath is worth honing.
Later in life, reflecting on his own frustrations as an inventor, Thomas Edison stated, ‘Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.’
Failure is not a ‘forever’ pedigree. Giving up is.