Praise Him for All He Has Done!

“I will tell of the LORD’s unfailing love. I will praise the LORD for all he has done. I will rejoice in his great goodness…” – Isaiah 63:7

The birth of a baby. We celebrate it, showering mother and baby alike with gifts and congratulations. We anticipate. Dream. Prepare. Mother shops for baby clothes and imagines her little princess all dressed up like a little doll … aw, how cute! Father pictures himself playing ball with his son … atta boy! The nursery is painted pink or blue, or perhaps a pale shade of yellow which could go either way. The crib is up to standards. The diapers are ready. Any day now. Tick tock goes the clock.

The day comes. It’s a boy! It’s a girl! Family is there and pictures are shared. It’s a day to remember.

Or is it?

We have a funny way of looking at things sometimes.

When baby is smiling and happy, looking so cute in those brand new outfits, and so peaceful asleep in the crib, we remember…God is good! He has brought us the blessing we so anticipated!

When baby is crying, though, and we’ve had little sleep … when the spit-up misses the cloth and lands on mommy’s church dress instead, and daddy has traded in his evening TV sports shows for bottle feedings and burping … oh my, we are exhausted! Where is God? We don’t care. Just give us a place and some peace, to rest our weary heads! It is in this moment that we remember…

This bundle of “joy” began with a whole lot of pain. And we’re not sure it’s over yet.

That’s right. Pain. It’s the very thing we hate that often signals the beginning of new life.

Pain. It’s the very thing we hate that often signals the beginning of new life.

In the midst of labor, a woman experiences the worst pain she will probably feel her entire life. Yet, on the other side of it is a love she will never have experienced before. So it is for many other things in life.

Teens struggle in search of their identity, painfully learning lessons the hard way, until they reach a point as young adults where they find purpose for their lives. Addicts have to hit bottom before they are ready to climb out of the pit of despair, into a new life of freedom. Illness may take hold of us with an icy, near-death grip, before we find healing. Grief over the loss of a loved one takes us to new depths of emotional pain until one day, holding the very hand of God, we realize there is still hope … for Jesus has conquered the grave … of seeing our loved one again. And in the meantime, we begin again.

Just as a baby must leave the comfort of his mother’s womb, we must leave the familiarity of the past in order to experience the newness of today. And just like his mother, laboring for the birth of her child, we must hold onto the truth that while the pain may seem to last forever, in the end, it will be worth it.

We may not like it, but pain is often what puts life in perspective. How can we be grateful for a pain-free life if we have never known what it is to feel pain? Be honest. How often, when life is good, have you wondered if it’s as good as it gets? Envy creeps in. Perhaps good isn’t good enough. Until it’s bad. Or we see someone else in a situation worse than ours. It’s then we realize…life really is good, when we look at it through the eyes of gratitude.

A year ago, when I began this blog, I was in grief. I had lost my father and my health. I felt the pain and fought not to wallow in it. Today, I see that pain was the beginning of something beautiful. Not just the opportunity to encourage others, by sharing my journey, but of a transforming attitude adjustment that God needed to work in me. Today, I see it. I lost my father…and grew closer to my mother. I lost my health…but by the grace of God and some great medical support, found it again. And in the midst of it all, I found my faith stronger than ever. Today, I am grateful. For the big things. For the little. And for everything in between.

Through the pain, I learned to trust. God is good. All the time. I will praise the Lord for all He has done!

What do you have to praise God for today? Are you focused on the pain, or the new beginning that God is bringing to your life? If the pain is past, share the gratitude for what you have today…yes, even if life isn’t just perfect. If you are still in pain, hold onto hope. Trust that God will lead you through it. You may not see it now, but what He has planned for you will be worth waiting for.

Praise Him for All He Has Done! originally appeared on Spring Sight blog, by Linda W. Perkins.  Get even more encouragement by following me on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter.

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