And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
Romans 8:28 NLT
Optimism offers us the ability to maintain a positive state of mind in the face of the challenges life throws up. It also generates the momentum we need as we traverse life’s darker seasons. This is not to be confused with blind optimism, when we ignore the facts and imagine some bright and better future, in a vain attempt to negotiate our present reality. Optimism is our commitment to seek out the positives, rather than sink beneath the weight of the very real negatives confronting us.
When my eyesight began to deteriorate, I found reading difficult. Hence my first spectacles were for reading. I immediately encountered a problem. Arriving at a station and seeking to find a train (long before the days of smartphones with their useful apps), I struggled to locate my reading glasses. More than once, the time I took finding these meant I missed my train. My optician suggested varifocals – what a revelation!
Optimism is, for me, like learning to look at life through the appropriate lens. There are things I don’t like or want, but cannot easily change. I have to adjust to them or constantly trip and tumble my way through life. Pragmatic positivity means learning to transcend, not ignore, life’s pitfalls. We avoid becoming consumed within the limitations cast by the darkness of our own despair
Don’t get me wrong. Optimism is never intended to act as an antidote to sadness. The challenges of life are real. What optimism can do is enable us to focus upon the presence of God deep within the experience itself, a presence St Paul speaks of as core to every one of life’s eventualities. This is why it is important in all my periods of calm that I take time to develop my understanding and deepen my friendship with God.
QUESTION
What’s your perspective on all that life is serving up right now?
PRAYER
May I focus and see you at work, God, in all circumstances.