I’m sitting at my desk looking out my huge window on a very dreary day. It’s not storming, it’s overcast. It’s not pouring rain, it’s a light drizzle. It’s not dark but it’s not light either. It’s gray. It’s one of those days when your interests and emotions are not stirred in the least.
Bright sunshine always makes me long to get out in it, walk or garden or jump on the motorcycle. Raging storms always send me into action repairing damage, bolstering up, hunkering down. But days like today – they are uninspiring. I don’t know what I want to do.
Life is so like that, isn’t it? There are good days when I want to shout and sing. I have more energy than I can harness. I want to have fun, accomplish things, be with people, sweep – anything that means movement. There are stormy days of crisis when I have no choice but to jump to action. I find myself forced into fighting back, pushing through, climbing out.
But many of my days are like today, just days when nothing happens to fuel my fire. I don’t want to make plans for lunch. I don’t want to think about the evening activities. There’s just nothing that sounds appealing when surrounded by gray. Even writing is hard because so much of my inspiration comes from my environment and no one wants a scene depicting a day with no extremes. I would call this a not bad, not good, middle of the road, no reason to get excited about anything day.
Here’s the scary thing about blah days. On bright and beautiful days I am inspired to pick up my cross and follow Him. In the midst of a big storm I am committed to pick up my cross and follow Him. But on gray days, like everything else, I don’t want to pick up anything or follow anyone.
I wonder if David’s day was gray when he let his army go to war without him and in his listlessness found himself pacing his roof top. I wonder if gray days were the ones where Solomon looked beyond the borders and saw more color in foreign women. Scary thoughts.
A gray day plan is critical if I am to keep myself on the narrow road, fully focused on moving forward and not sideways, or worse yet, standing still.
1) Find purpose in every day. I must choose actions even on gray days that lead me forward. Reach out to someone, pray about something, focus on a scripture, clean something, write something – do something I can look back on and feel good about. Prov 16:3 Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed. Prov 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.
2) In a world of overstimulation, remember that God calls me to commit and to be diligent every day no matter the weather. Col 3:23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as if working for the Lord and not for men.
3) Give thanks even when it’s not exciting. 1 Thess 5:18 Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
4) Remember glorious sunshine of past days that set my feet to dancing. And remember raging storms that strengthened my grip on His mighty hand. I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds.
In case you’re interested, my plan for lunch today includes my umbrella, my sweater and my Bible.
