Tears in a Bottle

I had my first physical therapy appointment for my hand this week since getting my cast removed. At one point, I was asked to grab a handful of little plastic pieces in a fist and drop them one by one into a container using only my index finger and thumb. As I watched the therapist do it as an example, I thought "That looks pretty easy." However, since the fourth and fifth finger on my right hand are not fully able to make a fist, it was very difficult. It was even painful. Something she had made look so easy, took me at least three times longer to complete. 

It got me thinking about other tasks in our life that we try to complete or overcome. We may have seen someone else do the same thing and it looked easy for them. We may feel like we prepared and have a solid plan on how to accomplish the task, so we attack it with confidence only to be faced with failure. Just because someone else has done something and it seemed easy for them, doesn't mean the same thing will be easy for us. Also, because we have a solid plan doesn't make it easy because we need to actually change our thought and behavior patterns that we've become so accustomed to in order to make a change. 

When we look at someone else, from an outsider perspective, we don't know what battles they are actually facing in silence. There are instances when people's problems are out on the surface for the world to see so when they do make a positive change, it's obvious they've accomplished something great. However, there are other instances when an individual fights their battles in silence that no one knows about. When those people win their battle, it can go unnoticed. 

The Bible tells us, though, that nothing happens without God seeing it. Psalm 139:1-3 says, "You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways." (NIV) God cares when we are upset. He sees the tears we cry in the dark. "You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book." Psalm 59:8 (NLT) Never let your story be diminished by someone else's. God is doing great things in all of His children, and I assure you that your efforts are seen.