Now You Get To,..
A few years ago some dear friends bought a beautiful home.
It was about a hundred years old, but had been left vacant for about a decade and needed a lot of work. I remember visiting them on the day they closed on the property, and touring the backyard, which at one time had been very grand. It had a trellis, and the makings of some wonderful plantings, however it all been overtaken by weeds and 10 years worth of neglect.
"I'm so excited to get started on this garden! " My friend said, " I get to rip out all this stuff, I get to pick out new plants, I get to redo this entire area! "
Fast forward 2 years, after the family had welcomed twins into their lives, and spent a lot of time and money redoing the house. One night we sat on the back deck enjoying a socially distant cocktail. "Take a look at this garden, " my friend said, " I haven't had any time to put into it, now I've got to rip up old plantings, I've got to reconstruct a fence, It's exhausting to think of how much work back here I have ahead of me! "
It's funny how my friends attitude had changed from "I get to! " to "I've got to."
And that little vowel can make all the difference.
Instead of " I've got to take out the trash." We might say, "I get to live in a neighborhood where the trash is picked up regularly."
Instead of, "I've got to write that big check to pay off my taxes." We might say, "I get to help pay for the salaries of important workers who provide essential services for my health and safety."
Instead of, "I've got to say my prayers, get to church, or read that book I've been meaning to crack open." We might say, "I get to invest in one of the most important areas of my life."
There are a few things in life we can change.
Our attitudes are one of them.
In finding ways to look at things not as burdens or obligations, but as blessed opportunities may be one of the most surefire ways to feel better about the situations we're in and the God who, though invisible, is with us every step of the way.
