Don’t Let Tomorrow Steal Today’s Joy
By Jenni Schubring, Director of Women’s Ministies
One of the underrated blessings of working at St. Mark Ministries is simply walking from the parking lot to the church doors.
Why?
Because of the flowers. Right now, the mums are breathtaking.
I don’t know much about flowers, but I do know these mums are showing off in the best way. Someone told me their beauty is because of the warm weather. And then—almost in the same breath—they told me it’s “unfortunate,” because the mums won’t last into November.
Isn’t that how it goes? We let what might come steal the joy of what is.
There’s actually a name for this: foreboding joy.
Brené Brown uses that phrase to describe the moment when joy is quickly followed by dread—when we brace for something bad instead of allowing ourselves to enjoy the good. It’s that little voice that says, This is too good to be true.
Sound familiar?
A friend of mine came to my office while I was writing this email. “Oh, foreboding joy—that’s your thing.” She’s right. I talk about it a lot. Probably because I wrestle with it myself. Too often I let the possibility of hard things overshadow the gifts right in front of me.
Where does foreboding joy sneak into your life?
When it does, I go back to Scripture:
“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
—Psalm 118:24
“…do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
—Matthew 6:34
So today, let’s not rush ahead into tomorrow’s worries. Let’s look around at the beauty God has placed in front of us. Let’s rejoice in today.
I, for one, am going to enjoy the mums.