Recently I traveled to another city for my cousin’s wedding.  Almost everything went well that weekend.  Everyone who was traveling got to the wedding safely and on time.  The wedding was beautiful and the celebration was a joyous occasion for our family.    

But after all the wedding festivities had ended and we were preparing to head back to our home town, we were notified by our airline that our flight along with many of our family members’ flights had been cancelled.  The airline informed us that the earliest flight back home would be 2 days later.  Many of us had left our children back at home, so there was anxiety and fear as to how and when we would be able to get back home to our families.   

After making some calls and searching online, we were able to rebook on another airline.  The return flight would include stops in 2 different cities, plus the need for a rental car to drive the final leg of the trip back home.  It felt like such a mess.  We were light on sleep and tensions were running high.  Every inconvenience seemed to make the situation feel worse and worse.

But as we were traveling back and once we finally made it home, I realized that even with the disruptions, inconvenience, and extra travel expense, we made it back home around the same time we would have originally landed had our flight not been canceled.

And then thoughts of gratitude started to flood my mind…. 

The flight cancellations and delays didn’t happen on our way to the wedding, and so no one missed the wedding and the celebration went off beautifully.

We were able to find flights and a rental car fairly quickly, even though there’s a nationwide shortage of both these days.

We had the resources to be able to pay for the additional expense without having to worry if we could also put food on the table.

I realized that perspective and what I choose to focus on can make the biggest difference.

And the Bible has no shortage of such examples.

The ten Israelite spies saw giants in Canaan and cowered in fear.  But Joshua and Caleb saw the same giants and believed that they could certainly conquer it.

The Israelites saw Goliath as the Philistine giant who couldn’t be defeated.  But David saw an uncircumcised Philistine who dared to defy the armies of the living God….and who he easily took down with a just a sling and a stone.

Elisha’s servant saw the Aramean armies surrounding them, giving them no way of escape.  But Elisha saw the angel armies surrounding them with chariots of fire and knew they would be victorious.

I know that life is not always simple or easy.  And many are going through some really difficult circumstances.  But even in those situations, I hope that you can lift your eyes up just a bit to see what God is doing in the middle of the difficulties.  

There is always something we can find to be grateful for.  And when we start to look at things from the perspective that God is with us and He will see us through, I believe you will find yourself living with more joy and peace than you thought was possible.

~ Vijoy