Proverbs 15:15
“All the days of the afflicted are evil: but he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast.”
“Figures”
Have you ever known someone who feels like nothing ever goes his way? I have a friend who says, “Figures” when something doesn’t go the way he wants or plans. In other words, he feels he should have expected things to go wrong. How defeated is that?
Those who feel like the world is against them, that fate hates them, and that every wish upon a star is doomed to utter failure are not happy people. There are no silver linings, only clouds, and all the glasses are half-empty due to some conspiracy hatched in a neighbor’s mind.
“Praise the Lord, Anyway”
Then there are those people who take what’s handed to them with grace and a smile. They are the ones who end up truly brutalized and mistreated, but find hope in the middle of hurt. Disappointment turns into new opportunities, while loss is left to the wisdom of God.
Those with a merry heart can face a downturn in events, and even though it may hurt, say, “Praise the Lord, anyway!” It doesn’t mean they like having things go wrong, it’s just that they know the Lord gives and takes away, “blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Cart before the Horse
You know the old saying about putting the cart before the horse? Take a look at today’s proverb one more time and see if you can find an out-of-place cart? Shouldn’t being merry follow having the stuff of a feast? Shouldn’t feeling afflicted come after the onset of an evil day?
The real key to this proverb is the way a person approaches life. A person with a “merry heart” can “feast” on a bowl of beans while thanking God he at least has food. An “afflicted” person would complain that his free four-course meal lacked a piece of cake.
Prayer: Father, help me to maintain a merry and thankful heart, even when things aren’t going the way I think they should. You are sovereign and in control of all things. When “bad” things happen because of my mistakes, help me to accept the consequences. When bad things come as the result of no fault of my own, give me grace to endure and the comfort of knowing all things will work together for good.
Caitlin Klem
Chris Jordan
Daniel M. Klem
dawnlizjones
David
Grady Davidson
Jason Sneed
Michael Wilson
Nick
Anthony Baker
Katie Marie
Wally Fry
Proverbial Thought 
August 25th, 2015 at 9:42 am
Reblogged this on The Recovering Legalist and commented:
I don’t claim to have been inspired in the same way those who wrote Scripture were. However, I do believe God does “inspire” us at times to write things under the guidance of the Spirit, things which, when we look back on them, seem like they were written by someone else – and maybe they were.
The post I am reblogging is one such example. As I read it this morning I was convicted in my spirit. God originally led me to write these words a couple of years ago, but now they are being used to minister to me. It’s not strange; it’s not funny; it’s a God thing.
So, in all things praise the Lord anyway!