It was a number of years ago when I first heard that word and that phrase – “the dichotomies of life” used by Pastor T.D. Jakes. Not sure why, but that phrase stuck in my head. The older I got the more real that terminology became to me.
Life is full of surprises. It’s a roller coaster with hills and valleys and loops. Oftentimes I don’t know whether to rejoice or cry. Social media seems to contribute to this emotional roller coaster. At any given moment someone is celebrating a marriage, birth or life victory. At that same moment another friend is going through crisis, sickness and even death. On one hand you’re liking posts and congratulating. On the other, you’re heart is breaking and you’re praying.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”
That’s another saying that seems to sum up life real well. Read the rest of that classic intro to Charles Dicken’s A Tale of Two Cities and you’ll wonder how he knew about this present age so well:
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way—in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.
I vanished soon after working up the guts to start this blog because life got crowded and strange. No sooner did I give a sigh of relief when something else blew in out of no where. I was mentally exhausted. Curling in a ball and hibernating until things settled seemed like the only way to maintain sanity.
There was lots of driving, crying, praying. There were late nights and supportive hugs. There were hospital visits, sickness, tests and surgery. There was death and the painstaking aftermath that followed. There was rejection and disappointment. But there were also victories. Lights at the end of dark tunnels. Sighs of relief. Praises to God. And an overwhelming awareness of gratitude.
Finding Gratitude
I penned a blog for company I do work for called, Finding Gratitude in What Could Have Been. This weird time in my life not only had me grateful for what I had, but what I didn’t have. No matter where we are in life, things could always be worse. Instead of complaining about the stuff we go through we could praise God for being saved from an even worse state. It’s a matter of perspective – where we don’t get so self-absorbed as to hoard all the superlatives for our own situations.
Even in the ups and downs of life we have reason to be thankful. It’s in the “what could have been” that jolts us back to the words of Paul: “I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content.” Content when it’s not perfect. Content when it works out, but you would have rather not go through it at all. Content when it doesn’t really change, but at least it didn’t get worse.
We came through something in 2017. “Through” being the key word. And I’m encouraged, determined and grateful. That’s not to say that discouragement is never far away – always seeking to sway my perspective to one of negativity.
The goal when dealing with the dichotomies of life is to remain consistent. Consistent in faith. Consistent in believing. Consistent with a positive attitude. Sure, we’ll fail. We’re human. And being consistent is something we’re not really good at. Except coffee. I’m pretty consistent with my morning coffee. But if you fail, bounce back. Get back on the consistent track. You’ll find that as you go through the ups and downs of life you’ll be stronger, wiser, more stable. You’ll tap into that “peace that passes all understanding” and be a bedrock for those around you.
Photo credit: Pixabay
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