Morning has broken

It's early Monday morning, the day - the week - is full of hope and expectation. You've had a great weekend spent with you're other half indulging in your favourite things, having mini adventures, making memories.  Sunday is a highlight. Two great sermons, an afternoon and evening with most of the family, a walk ending with a dirty but happy dog and a good night's sleep (not to mention Everton crushing Liverpool 2-0).

You are ready. Ready for the world and all it can throw at you, ready to rise above trivial things, to spread hope and light where-ever you go.  This is a week for changing things, changing lives, changing the world!

And then you pour milk on your cereal and it comes out of the jug in lumps. Reality hits, hope turns to despair, fantasy to reality, magnificence to mundane, sublime to ridiculous.

Why is it that when we are flying highest we are so easily shot down? It happens so often in life and maybe especially in our spiritual walk.  Everything is going really well and then something happens.  It can be as little as a misplaced word from a loved one or a mistake of our own but the effect can be devastating.

We need to try and guard against these things. Slow steady improvement is what we need not exponential emotional highs.  Sounds thoroughly boring I know but it's true.  We need to work with the Holy Spirit to build our lives with bricks, not straw, so that it will last (1Corinthians 3:10-15).  The highs and lows will always be there of course but the fall will be less severe and the recovery a lot quicker if we are well supported by God, His word and His people.