Science says we need at least 4 basic elements to survive:
Water
Air
Food
Light
And look what the Bible tells us about Jesus:
I am the living water.
I am the breath of life.
I am the bread of life.
I am the light of the world.
Science was right, we need Jesus to live.
SOMETIMES WE NEED TO THANK GOD FOR:
• The prayers that weren't answered the way we hoped - but protected us anyway.
• The endings that hurt, but made room for healing.
• The redirections that saved us from settling.
• The discomfort that taught us discernment.
• The waiting that taught us trust instead of control.
• The clarity that came after the confusion.
• The grace that met us even when we were disappointed in ourselves.
• The reminders that we are still chosen, even when we stumble.
• The peace that returned slowly, but stayed.
• The growth that happened quietly, without applause.
• The letting go that felt like loss, until it didn't.
• The protection we only understood in hindsight.
• The way he never stopped working, even when we thought nothing was happening.
• The future he is still preparing, even when we can't see it yet.
Car ahead of me. Sign in the back window:
“Learning stick. Sorry for any delay.”
I stayed patient. Slow shifts. Jerky starts. No problem.
Then it hit me: Would I have been this patient without the sign?
No.
If I hadn’t known they were learning, I would’ve been cursing them by the second stoplight. Tailgating. Honking. Treating them like an obstacle instead of a person.
That sign bought them grace I wouldn’t have given otherwise.
Here’s what wrecked me:
Most people don’t wear signs.
You won’t see:
• “Going through a divorce”
• “Lost a child last year”
• “Fighting depression”
• “Just got the cancer diagnosis”
• “Barely holding it together”
Everyone you meet is carrying something you can’t see.
The guy who cut you off? Maybe rushing to the hospital.
The cashier moving slow? Maybe grieving.
The coworker who snapped? Maybe drowning.
“Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2, KJV).
You don’t know what they’re carrying.
Choose patience anyway.
Choose grace anyway.
Choose love anyway.
Even when there’s no sign telling you to.
I’m learning this the hard way. There’s weight I’m carrying nobody sees. And I’m realizing how much grace I need from people who don’t know my story.
Everyone is fighting a battle you know nothing about.
Be kind. Always.
—TBM