God Speaking

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)

When I was a little girl I was given a book of poems, by A.A. Milne. Of course he is far better known for his charming characters in the Winnie-The-Pooh series, now made famous by Disney, but he also wrote delightful poems that were such fun to read out aloud. The King’s Breakfast was one of my favorites and it was so satisfying to chant along with the King, the Queen and the Dairymaid and of course we all agreed with the king, “we do like a little butter with our bread.” Of all those off beat toys of Christopher Robin’s who come to life in Milne’s stories, I must admit I love Winnie the Pooh the best and was delighted to find in my mail box on the computer a sweet little cartoon featuring Winnie the Pooh and Piglet. Winnie is asking Piglet, “What day is it?” and Piglet replies, “Today” and Winnie replies with a huge smile, “My favorite day!”

After I smiled I suddenly realized what incredible truths lay in that answer. Too often we are consumed with either what has happened in the past or what may happen in the future, to enjoy the day. Too often we allow the day to be filled with apprehension or with such busyness we hardly notice it passing. Too often we forget to give thanks that we have been granted this new day by the Heavenly Father and forget to rejoice with him during it. What a wonderful lesson we could learn from that sweet Teddy Bear if we could greet each morning with his wonderful exclamation, “My favorite day!”

Worry of any sort from finances/ health/ work related/ relationships can effectively spoil our day. Jesus has a long section in his Sermon on the Mount, devoted to banishing worry from our lives. (Matthew 6:28– 34) He ends this section with encouraging us to take one day at a time.

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:34)

When Jesus was teaching his disciples how to pray he was very specific that our needs for “the day” would be met if we asked our Father for them.

“Give us each day our daily bread.” (Luke 11:3)

This does not just mean, food, it means whatever we need to help us cope for what lies ahead. We may need a big dose of confidence. We may need to be filled with energy for a tiring task. We may need to be fortified with courage to deal with a difficult situation. We may need to be nourished by his love to survive a time of grief.

This also means we need to come to our Heavenly Father daily so he can provide for the day that lies ahead. All we need is his assurance that he will supply whatever is needed so we can then confidently say, “My favorite day is about to start.” We get this confidence by turning to his word.

One of the verses that I go back to time and time again is found in Lamentations and reminds us to seek him daily for an outpouring of love to start the day.

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22 – 23)

Winnie the Pooh was quite wise for a Bear with no brain!