"It is what it is" - But should we leave it that way?

 “It is what it is.”

So often we throw up our hands as we speak that very phrase over our circumstances. It’s this attitude of giving up on doing the ordinary things extraordinarily. It’s this belief that somehow our lot in life is to not know joy or thrive in the daily problems that arise. It’s this feeling that we can never rise above the circumstances that are constantly threatening to overwhelm us.  

Too often, I find myself wondering if it's true. Could it be that we really are supposed to just accept that we can’t rise above mediocrity? Could it be that it’s impossible to thrive in places that make it difficult to merely survive? Could it really be true that there is no hope to have joy –even excitement- in facing the things that challenge us?

One glance at Christians around the world, a few minutes of listening to the stories of the persecuted ones who wake up wondering if they will live another day, and maybe, just maybe we will stop and realize it is possible.  

Psalm 40: 8 says this, “I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart.”  

Oh Christian, (I speak this to myself as much as to anyone else), do you think God’s promises apply to everyone’s situation but yours?  It is possible to have joy where God put you, despite all that rises up against you. It's possible to thrive where most barely survive.

The beginning of Psalm 40 speaks to this too.  


“I waited patiently,” the psalmist began. Let’s repeat that phrase: “I waited patiently.” For what? What are we waiting for, my friends? Or are we even waiting? Are we trying in our own strength –really, with all the limited strength we have- to just survive another day? Are we grasping for other things, or people, or food, or some other crutch when there is Someone far, far greater to wait for? Who is this Somone? "I waited patiently for the Lord." 


“I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God...” (Psalm 40:1-3) 


Do most not wait patiently for help from God? It would seem so, for they do not have it. They are still in their pits of despair, never knowing that God can set their feet on solid ground and steady them as they walk along.


But you, dear child of God, must test God’s promise. Wait for Him and no one else. If He could lift David out of His deepest pit, can’t He do the same for you? Oh, why do you doubt?

Don’t look at those around you who have not proved God’s promises! Look up at the eternal One who does not lie.

Can He not give you a new song to sing and cause you to have joy in doing His will? Then wait patiently for Him to help you! Stop grasping at other things and like Jacob, cry out, “I will not let You go, until You bless me!”  


Here is why we must do this, my friends: “Many will see what He has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the Lord.”  (Ps 40:3b)


Don’t you think there is a reason it says those who see it will be amazed? They thought it wasn’t possible. But when they see you walking steadily on solid ground because HE put you there, singing a new song and having joy in His will, they too will put their trust in Him.  


But you must be willing to be the only one who trusts Him now. You must be willing to step out in faith on what He has promised and prove for yourself that He meant what He said.

You must be willing to look to Him alone for help, though others say there is no hope anywhere.

He desires to prove that it’s not meant to stay as it is –merely a fight for survival- but rather a show of His power and intimate love despite the odds, for He is able. He is able to lift you above the waves, to make the ordinary moments extraordinary, to cause our daily challenges to be moments of awe, simply because He is in them steadying you as you walk along.  

Wait patiently for your Father to help you, and He will. You are not beyond the reach of His promises.

 “My eyes are always on the Lord, for He rescues me from the traps of my enemies.” (Psalm 25: 15) 

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