The Other Half

The Other Half

The Other Half

I know that there is a lot of rubbish on TV these days but sometimes I hear something which makes me think! I can't remember the programme but last April I heard the following:

Tomorrow is a mystery,
Yesterday is history
and Today is a gift,
that's why we call it 'the present'

I really like that!

As Christians we know that each day is a gift from God. It might not be exactly what we would choose, it might not have all the ingredients of a perfect day, but the very fact of "living" is a gift in itself.

Usually a 'present' comes wrapped - there's more than meets the eye, more to discover. The present itself might be something we've longed for; something exactly right or something we never thought of! Some people are very good at receiving presents. They always make the giver feel appreciated because they respond graciously. Other folk are hopeless - "You shouldn't have bothered." "Is it all right if I change it?" "It's not exactly what I'd have chosen." "Did you get this in the sale?" Remarks like this do not help but I suspect that all of us have responded like this at some time.

But the gift of life, the gift of each day is, for us, a gift from God, our heavenly father. Our response to that must be positive and excited. Anything that happens needs to be accepted with grace. I know that this is not always easy as circumstances and relationships are not always what we would choose. But they are part of life, they are the reality in which we live, so we live in or with them by the grace of God.

Living in the present is challenging. There are certain things which God has planned for me today. It is up to me whether or not I do them. Some I will recognise and do with joy. Some I will see and ignore because I want to do something else, and some I will miss completely because I am engrossed with my own plans! At the end of the day it would be nice to be able to say " I tried, Father, I really tried to get it right today, and I've been amazed at what happened".

And to hear his response - "Well done, just wait until you see what I've wrapped for you for tomorrow."

© Sue Whitehead

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