The Good Days and the Hard Days

Yesterday morning, I was talking to the IT guy when I casually put my hand right into my cereal bowl—which was still full of milk.

Yesterday afternoon, the checkout person at the grocery story accused me of stealing because I put bags of items into my cart after scanning them but before paying for them. She probably thought the screaming toddler who wouldn’t sit still was a cover-up for a shoplifting scheme.

It’s amazing how the events of one day can cross the entire map of emotions, from hilarious to humiliating.

Devotional points:

  • Never assume you’re putting your hand onto your coffee mug without checking to make sure it’s not a cereal bowl.

  • Next time you see the mother of a toddler having a hard time at the grocery store, give her a kind word of encouragement or offer to pay for her groceries. Don’t just watch her in the produce aisle and laugh at her.

I was going to write “To the Discouraged” today, but ironically, I couldn’t think of much more to say than what the Little Blue Engine repeats all the way up the mountain:

“I think I can. I think I can. I think I can.”

But maybe, sometimes, that’s all those who are discouraged need to hear—with one small twist:

I think you can.