...at least not in the way we expect.
Yesterday I had a chance to communicate with the magazine buyer at a Christian retail chain that had stopped carrying HM Magazine about 3-4 years ago. I sent him a heartfelt letter asking him to reconsider their decision. It was a bummer that I'd never really been told why HM Magazine was dropped from their system, but now I'd get the chance. I prayed about the letter and put it in God's hands. I expected the best.
The reply I received wasn't quite what I expected, though. I was given the reasons why they'd dropped it. It was such a relief to finally hear that. Their conclusion was that they were still not interested in reinstating the publication into their system.
I replied back with gratitude and told him I respected their decision and confided that, since I had given it to the Lord, that I rejoiced in their decision.
Now, I do not want to be all-talk, so I am committed to rejoicing over this. I truly placed this matter in the Lord's hands. While the quick solution that I was hoping for did not present itself yesterday, nevertheless I rejoice. The matter is in God's hands now. I did what I could. I put forth my absolute best effort. I shot straight from the heart. I pulled no punches, but I was as tactful as I think I could be, so I have no regrets about how I approached the situation. I'm truly trusting God in this situation, even though my natural instinct is to continue to fight and push and prod and so forth.
Just like forgiving someone that hurt you, sometimes choosing to rejoice is a process. You can rejoice the first time, maybe the second time, but what about the next day? Or the time after that? There will be second thoughts and memories brought up, and opportunities to test your decision/commitment to forgive and/or rejoice. That is where the rubber meets the road sometimes. It's not just a short-term, "Oh, I made a decision at the altar." It's an ongoing lay-your-heart-down-on-the-altar kind of thing.
I didn't say this was fun, but it is tapped into this thing called "joy."
Posted by Doug Van Pelt at April 11, 2008 09:51 AM