A Beautiful Mess

How is it that I can be living in such beauty, yet feel so lost and alone? How can I look out my window and see a gorgeous sunrise almost every morning, find peace and quiet when sitting on my sun porch, 

and at the same time ache and hurt and feel sad? I walk from our breathtaking views of the lake into a messy living room and my outlook on life turns instantly from joy to downtrodden. 

Emotions can be so confusing sometimes. What I see with my eyes and hear with my ears can be so different from how I am feeling.

Aren't you glad that this isn't how God looks at each of us?....He sees such beauty, in each of us, in spite of the mess of our sinfulness and of the unwise choices we make. He takes all the ugliness we have, that is so evident every day of our lives, and turns it into something so beautiful. He sees the beauty He created in us, even though we know we have sinned and disappointed Him many times over.

I am so glad our Lord doesn't let emotions or circumstances affect how He looks at us! He not only forgives. He forgets our sin and ugliness that we so often can't seem to let go of. He wipes the slate clean!

I could learn a lot from looking at the ugly things in my life through color-tinted glasses. If I could see, instead of a messy room, an actual lakehouse of our own, where everything will find it's place, in time. If. instead of seeing my circumstances as negative and depressing, as I lately have, I could look at those things as opportunities to serve God. Oh, how my life would change! For some reason, that's not how I end up feeling, though. I take my eyes off of God for just a minute, and my mind wonders to the negative side of things. It's a constant battle of not letting our emotions and circumstances rule our outlook on life. 

I had been faithful for almost a year in writing down a gratitude list every week. Once we got busy with moving, I cut out writing things on my list, as well as staying up on my prayer life and I even spent less time in the Word. Of course, that's when things started to go downhill for me, emotionally. Not only did I strip those things out of my daily activities, but I began to get an attitude that I really didn't want to take the time to include them again in my life. I got stubborn and selfish in my thoughts. I wanted to feel good about life, but not put anything spiritually into it. I still struggle at times with trying to not let my stubbornness win over.  I am once again making an effort to make time for God and let Him work in my heart and my life each day. I am starting my gratitude list back up, too.

We really all are a "Beautiful Mess", aren't we? Truly, we're a work in progress. I am so thankful that God is so loving and forgiving!

I'm praying that throughout this week, you may see the beauty, in spite of the mess you may be seeing or experiencing.

Counting my gifts with the September Joy Dare:
3 gifts summer:
916. late evening sunsets
917. Fishing at dawn/sunset.
918. Fresh pan-fried bluegill!

3 gifts cut
919. A freshly cut lawn.
920. Fresh, cut-up vegetables from the garden.
921. Cutting up old cardboard moving boxes and putting things in their places.

3 gifts yellow
922. fresh corn on the cob
923. Yellow mum in full bloom

924. The sun's reflection on the water, as it rises in the sky.

A gift cool, warm, sun-soaked
925. Cool - the air after a rain storm.
926. Warm - the sun, shining through my porch windows.
927. Sun-soaked - early picked vegetables, ripening in the sun.

 Linking over at these blog parties:

 Sharing His Beauty (Beauty In His Grip) 
Multitude on Mondays (A Holy Experience) 

Heart Reflected(State of the Heart)
 On Your Heart Tuesdays(A Pause in the Path)

Word Filled Wednesday(Internet Cafe')
Gathering at the Grace Cafe'(Reflections of His Grace)