A merry heart
All the days of the afflicted are evil, But he who is of a merry heart has a continual feast.
I’ve been very convicted lately that my attitude toward life, toward pain, toward my family, toward God is SO vitally important, and that I need to keep things in perspective. Yes, I am in pain, but God is healing me AND my light affliction is for but a moment, and is working for me a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Yes, I have occasional trouble - sometimes even tribulation - but Jesus said “be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
In other words, I don’t need to live my life as one afflicted.
I’m a blood-bought child of God. He’s given me the surety of Heaven.
As FFH sings in “One of These Days”:
One of these days I’ll finally be
In a place where there’s no more need
No more pain and no more grief
No more foolish disbelief
And all the joy there will be
When at last we finally see
One of these days
He’s given me love and power and security here on earth. Everywhere I go, He goes with me, I’m never alone. What’s more, He’s given me a family. I can count my blessings and be merry on the worst of days; I can rejoice in the Lord no matter what is going on. As Paul wrote, “I know how to be abased and how to abound” (Phil 4:12).
As I am at home, or as I go around town, I’ve found that a simple smile to someone - no matter how bad I’m feeling - will brighten someone’s spirits. Especially if they weren’t expecting it 
This, in turn, brightens my spirits and truly gives me a “continual feast”.
try it! you might like it!
