Your First Response to Bad News

“Pray that I learn whatever it is God wants me to learn in this situation….His faith directed him to search for whatever lesson, change, or growth that was behind the loss….See problems as windows to the face of God, and stand at that window until God shows the light that illuminates our hearts….In the end, a new man…more alive inside…more open to experience.”  –Cloud/Townsend (God Will Make a Way)

What a mature view of our dark days and bad news! The first question when we get hit needs to be “What can I learn from this?” instead of “Why me?” It will temper our negative reaction and make us into spiritual scientists, trying to cull the principles in the problem facing us, to make us into better Christians.  God knocks loudly on our heart’s door during pain, trying to get our attention, to keep our focus on His perspective, not the circumstances nor our negative funk.  And I think the funk lasts much shorter if we “get good” at this very difficult new habit of putting on God’s glasses as soon as life deals us a blow.