The Bottom Line

Ever stop and wonder why so many people struggle with depression and sadness...even suicide during the holidays? I can't imagine how this must grieve God to know that what is and should always be such a wonderful and truly liberating day that brought a lost a dying world hope has become so commercialized that it brings people to such hopelessness.

I have to admit that I am one of those people who struggle with depression and anxiety this time of year. I have Jesus therefore I do have hope and help and grace for my ailment. But what about those strangers we run into everyday that have lost a child, or lost it all in a bankruptcy or just don’t feel like they have anything to live for? I hate to even admit this but I actually snapped back a very ugly comment to a lady in Walmart because she smarted off to me over some grapes! I confess that I did not show the love of Christ to her at all. I reacted out of pure selfish frustration due to my circumstances.
I started to think about that after I got home and cooled off. Although what she said and did to me was uncalled for and downright ugly, what if she was one of those hopeless people struggling with thoughts of ending her life? What if that was my one shot at changing someone’s life for the better I actually asked God for that morning and I blew it? Could I have exuded the Jesus she desperately needed to meet and allowed God to use me to change her life forever and I selfishly choose to defend myself instead? I don't want to miss that kind of an opportunity ever again, but reality and honesty bring me to admit I probably will. If we are all honest most of us would have to admit that we think more about ourselves and our situations than anything or anyone else and will miss opportunities to show love all the time because we are all selfish people. We say "if only my situation was different I could be different"....what ever happen to tapping into the faith we already have ans trusting it will be different.....no more excuses!

Isn't the whole reason for this Christmas holiday love? It all started because of God's amazing and immeasurable perfect love for us. I am not foolish enough to think that any of us can actually love another human being with that kind of "perfect love" but are we not supposed to at least try? What would happen if we found some other way to show others we love them without using our credit cards or spending money we don’t have? Better yet, what would happen if we simply took every opportunity to give in other ways? Give up the closest parking space at the mall just to bless someone else. Or how about allowing the person behind you in line at the grocery store or department store to go first just because, or pay for the coffee order at Starbucks for the car behind you in the drive through.......I'm not talking about big huge things here. I can't tell you how much it means to me when someone lets me go first at the grocery store because I have a baby in the cart who really wants to go home!

The bottom line is.... you never know truly what someone else is going through or how great or horribly lonely their life is. Your smile or your "flying the bird" could make or break someone at any given moment. It sounds like a cliche and maybe it is, but someone else does actually have it worse than you!

I challenge anyone who is reading this......if anyone even cares what I have to say to try and bless not just one person each day but every person. Imagine that Jesus is sitting right next to you and act that way because he is. When you start to think about your situation remember someone else has just lost a son at way too early of an age and is having to try and celebrate their first Christmas without him. Someone has lost a job, lost a baby, almost lost a marriage, and is loosing their home to bankruptcy all in the last 6 months. A mother somewhere is hiding from her children the bruises and scars of abuse from a spouse because she thinks she has no other option. Someone who is god and honest and loves God right now is fighting cancer with everything in them and will not win the battle. Someone is alone on their couch feeling hopeless and lost and wondering if the world will miss them tomorrow when they are gone......... Instead of asking God to fix your problem and make things easier for you ask him to help that other person instead...even if you don't know who they are.

The bottom lines is you could be the one who God chooses to use to change some one's life. Are you willing to accept the challenge?