Today, I woke up without a headache and was grateful. The reason NOT having a headache seemed like such a gift was because yesterday I DID have a headache, almost the entire day, and I felt miserable. Later this afternoon, when I got home from work, my house was clean and cheerfully decorated with all my Christmas regalia; I felt a surge of joy as I plugged in the twinkle lights on the tree and watched it come to life. This scene was even more of a blessing to me today, because over the past few days, with a downcast spirit and the nagging headache, I lived amid an archipelago of Rubbermaid tubs, tissue paper, and fake evergreen needles, struggling to get everything hung and strung.
Having an enlarged perspective really makes a difference, helping me not take so much for granted.
But headaches and downcast spirits are not just about changing my perspective; they help change me. Every difficult day the Lord helps me endure gives me strength for the next difficult day. And as He develops me into someone who looks a little bit like Jesus, then, maybe I can actually be thankful for the headache, not just for the lack of one.
But I also am learning that being thankful for the headache doesn’t mean changing how I feel about headaches. I think it means living in the moment, experiencing the frustration and discouragement of having a mortal body, and offering them to the Lord as a sacrifice. This isn’t a quick fix or an easy answer; owning our pain is hard. But offering them to the Lord gives Him more space to walk with us through it.
I am thankful that yesterday is behind, and today is at hand. But both are preparing me for tomorrow.
I’m sorry to hear about your headache (even if you are trying to embrace it). Pain is also an opportunity for us to share each other’s sorrows… and there’s an unexpected joy in that.