What A Wonderful World!

"I love that God gave me eyes to see His beauty in everything and everyone, especially when it’s the unexpected. But it’s a decision, every day, to walk in that, and to keep my eyes open." Jared N. Miller

Anyone who receives a personal email from me will see this quote after my signature. I pray it helps to instill a desire to look at the day in a brighter and more optimistic slant. Our world needs that. In a big way. That statement packs a lot of maturity for a young guy who has had a lot of struggles in his life. It is a quote every Christian needs to memorize.

I get weary of all the continual emails “informing” me of the gloom and doom that is going to befall this world we live in (and befall ME if I don’t pass it on!) I know everyone gets those same emails. Just so you know, I don’t want to sign every petition that is going around. It is always outdated and sometimes even bogus anyway. I don’t want to know what religious segment of our society is going to murder us all and I don’t want to know who is burning another American flag.

It isn’t that I am cold hearted. I have been accused of being sensitive to a fault. But we have far too much access to world news these days and quite honestly I am very happy to take an “ostrich-with-it’s-head-in-the-sand” view on all the rape, pillage and violence in this world. I refuse to listen to all the news channels on radio and TV more than about once a week. In that short time-span I can get the gist of anything important I might be missing in the current news. Beyond that, I do not want to be informed about what politician is in bed with whom, what starlet is in rehab……..again……..and who in Nashville was raped or robbed or burned down something or someone……….again.

I have this theory that if I take seriously creating a haven of peace and joy in my own home, carry that attitude and effort into my neighborhood and community and my centers of influence, I will do more good in helping the world I live in become a better place. Wasting time reading emails about how the Muslims are taking over and how I should boycott the gas stations and not shop at Wal-Mart is just not in my schedule book anymore.

I do care about the world at large and I do many philanthropic endeavors. But I would appreciate it if people would stop sending me all the junk going over the Internet that is gloom and doom and fear producing. In all honesty, I am pretty sure the Bible states clearly that Christians are told to go out and spread JOY and Good Tidings …………..and NOT fear and trepidation.

This morning I heard ole’ Sachmo………..Louis Armstrong………..crooning on the computer, words that made me smile and should be a mantra for all Christians. Not intended to be a hymn, yet, it seemed that it brought blessings to my ears…………………………

I see trees of green, red roses too
I see them bloom for me and you
And I think to myself what a wonderful world.

I see skies of blue and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself what a wonderful world.

The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people going by
I see friends shaking hands saying how do you do
They're really saying I love you.

I hear babies cry, I watch them grow
they’ll learn much more than I'll never know

And I think to myself what a wonderful world
Yes I think to myself what a wonderful world.

 

I had to think how so many miss the beauty of our wonderful world because they are so consumed with the bad news running rampant. I know I am a glass-half-full kind of person and that I can’t expect everyone to feel the same way. But I can ask those who choose to see the glass half empty………that the world is going to Hell in a hand basket………….to keep their emails to themselves and not to send them my way. I CAN choose not to be around them. I CAN choose to walk away from their pessimistic attitudes towards life. It’s ironic that most of the people who seem to spread these “words of cheer” tend to be the ones also convinced there are no jobs to be had and have continual ailments, lawsuits, and other injustices done to them.

 

Maybe there is a lot of truth in the scripture from Proverbs 12:25, “An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.” Jared’s quote on choosing to see beauty in each day is one worth remembering. As for me and my house……………we choose to speak (and read) joy and peace into our days………….not emails that say the sky is falling!

 

PS. I do enjoy getting personal emails, but if I am on your email list for gloom and doom and forecasts for a dim future, please remove my name. Put me on your no-call list……..and I pray you learn to see beauty in your day!