Upgraded Perspective....

I have recently made the comment that this past year has been the longest-fastest year of our lives.  


That statement becomes more true with each passing day.  I will be glad to bid farewell to 2011 but I must admit that saying hello to 2012 seems a bit tiring & fearful too!  (There are always lots of unknowns) It really boils down to perspective.  


Will the glass be half full this coming year, half empty, or will we just be thankful that we still have a glass at all?  Only time will tell... I have always been a glass half full kind of person.  I try to see the best in every situation.  The challenging part of 2011 was facing more of those "situations" than I had expected!  Yet through it all, God has been faithful & I have been reminded that He still has a great plan & purpose for our family.  And as I have pondered this morning, God has shown me that it's not always about the water in the glass... it's about the glass itself.  


You see, God is the water & we are the ones limiting the amount we allow him to pour in based on the limits we place on him.  Fear, worry, control or lack thereof... they all are limits that our human selves put on God.


And what about the glass? Do you think our glass always looks the same?  I sure hope not! Many of us start out as plain glasses or even reused Mason jars... but as we allow God to use us & pour into us, our confidence changes.  Even when we feel our glass has fallen & shattered to on the floor, God picks us up & makes us new.  I like to see it as our glass gets an "upgrade".  


When next week arrives, I will have lived 34 years.  And you know, I am pleased... I don't dread it! I am thankful that in that 34 years, God has constantly been changing my glass & filling it with water.  On March the 9th I can honestly say that my glass shattered!


I had nothing left....


All was broken....


And yet as the pieces were on the ground, I remember what it felt like when God picked them up & put them back together again.  Except this time, they didn't look as they had before.  I no longer saw anything like I had before.  I saw with new vision & new perspective.


My glass has been upgraded! Now the obvious question is... Do I think that this upgrade will be the last? Do I think that God is satisfied with the way I look now? That's like asking will there be an ipad3? It's a no brainer.  Of course God has more changes & upgrades to make in our lives... the bigger question is, are you satisfied with where you are?  Are you satisfied with the way your glass looks right now? Or, do you feel old & unused? Maybe you feel shattered & the pieces are still on the floor.  Maybe God wants to turn you into a new masterpiece.


At any rate, I am content saying farewell to good ole' 2011.  It has been a year that has redefined us as individuals & as a family.  And I say hello to 2012.  I know that we have many challenges for this year as well, but I am placing my faith & hope in Jesus.  And I figured, if God was going to form me into a new glass & fill me to overflowing, I would at least be PINK! God loves me that much! 


May your end of 2011 & beginning of 2012 be the most full your glass has ever been!