Did you hear the story about the kids who played a trick on their granddad? While he was sleeping, they smeared a little Limburger cheese on his mustache. When he woke, his face soured as he sniffed at the air. Something was wrong.
He hurried into the dining room and sniffed. Then he winced.
He raced to the kitchen. Once again, he tested the air. “Blech!”
His wife saw the look of distain on his face. “What’s wrong.”
The poor man shook his head, sadly. “The world stinks!”
Quite a few people (even Christians) are like this. They view the world through the window of pessimism. You may say, We have a right to be that way. Look at all that’s going on in our miserable world.
I’ll admit, I recently confessed to my church that I struggle with Limburger Cheese Syndrome. You know what they say–Some see the glass as half full. Some see it as half empty. I tend to see a hole in the glass. Not only that, the water inside is bug infested. Not too good.
Hey, maybe the average person can cry out, “The world stinks!”, then give in to a pessimistic personality. But should a Christian?
There’s a Bible verse everyone has probably heard, but do we listen to it? Psalm 118:24– “This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.”
This alone should be enough to lift us from the depths of the world smells like Limburger cheese attitude.
What does it tell us?
1. The Day is a Creation of God! Who else can say they’ve made the day? No one. In every way, it is His creation. From the rotating earth, to the sunlit sky (or the rain cloud filled sky) All was formed by Him. This specific day. Right now. The people you meet. The opportunities He’ll give you. The lessons you’ll learn. All from Him.
You know the old song, He’s got the whole world in His Hands. . . Do you believe it?
2. We are Given a Purpose. “We will rejoice and be glad in it.” The world does not see Jesus, descending from the clouds. He doesn’t appear to them, miraculously, in their living rooms. The world, primarily sees Jesus in His people; in Christians. They see Jesus in the way His people react to situations, trials and troubles. How do they see Jesus in you?
Let me tell you- God is dealing with me. Sometimes my attitude is not too good. This is usually a result of me focusing on the Limburger cheese that’s smeared under my nose, and not on the God who loves me, and is in control.
It’s time to wipe the cheese off, and smell the sweet love of God everywhere. Truly, This is the Day He has made! Rejoice!