He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom and broke away their chains. Psalm 107:14

I have to be on the road a lot.

Sometimes, I get into a town late at night and settle into my hotel room without having had the opportunity of seeing much of the community where I'm staying.

That was the situation last month. In the morning I looked out my hotel room and things seemed drab and depressing. The entire town looked gloomy and dirty. That's what I thought until I walked out the hotel door. I was amazed to find the town wasn't bad at all. Indeed, the day itself was bright and beautiful.

About the only filthy thing in that town was the window of my room.

You may have noticed that many people make the same mistake when it comes to life.

They think that the world the Lord provided is gloomy and dirty. They think that life itself is drab and depressing. Although that can be the case, oftentimes, it is only our outlook which is gloomy.

If we step beyond the immediate room of our problems, we can be surprised to find things aren't quite so dismal.

Indeed, life can be quite nice. After all, the Lord still causes the sun to shine, and the grass to grow, and the Savior still wishes to save our souls.

We need to look at all His gifts without the dirt that seems to cloud our vision. To that end, our loving God provides assistance and direction. That's why today I encourage you to let His Son and the joy of living shine within your heart -- and enjoy.

And if that shining is already there, share it with somebody who's still caught in a gloomy room.


From a devotion originally written for "By the Way"



THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, open our eyes that we may see Your Son and Your love for us. Help us to show that love to others. In the Redeemer's Name I pray it. Amen.

In Christ I remain His servant and yours,

Today's Bible Readings: 2 Kings 19-21    Galatians 5

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