The funeral was harrowing. An energetic young mother of two little girls, struck down by cancer. I have no idea how her husband was able to stand at the front and speak. Trying desperately to hold himself together, he recounted how his wife had a four-word motto she lived by – “Find joy in everything.” When she got the terminal diagnosis more than two years ago, she resolved to still live by those words. The testimonies of her friends and family that day proved how amazingly well she’d managed this.
I feel deeply challenged by her example. As I look at my work week ahead, I can see one or two interesting meetings, but quite a lot of mundane planning and reporting. If I’m honest, I’m feeling that I’d love an exciting new challenge. Others have it much worse: some are stressed and overwhelmed by the weight of their current workload; some frustrated by difficult colleagues causing unnecessary tension; others weighed down by financial or family concerns at home … I realized at the funeral that I need to change my perspective. As the Bible clearly commands: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say rejoice” (Phil 4:4).
Pause and Reflect: How might you “find joy in everything” in your work this week?
- How can you be more thankful?
- How can you be more compassionate?
- How can you maintain an eternal perspective?
- How can minor difficulty or serious suffering be turned into an opportunity?
