Maintaining Perspective in Life

To be truly honest, I often struggle with being an over-achiever and a bit of a perfectionist!  Because of this, I tend to worry about MANY things -- am I working hard enough to achieve my goals?  Do people like me?  Can I do better?  Have I done enough?  This quite often results in me going about my day worrying about things -- things that I may or may not be able to control.  I know this is a struggle in my life, and I wrestle with this daily.  But a few weeks ago I heard a story at church that has given me a new perspective that I am trying to live by.  The story goes like this:

A middle-class family in New York had a beautiful painting on their wall. It hung over their sofa for many many years, but one day it was knocked off the wall by the kids. It ended up behind the sofa and was kept there for many years... The painting was eventually replaced by a new wall hanging. After some time, the family decided to have the painting appraised to see what it was worth. It turned out it was an original Michaelangelo worth $300 million!!
                                                                                (told by Tim Day, the Meeting House)

 
Often in our lives we struggle with worry/anxiety, depression/sadness, anger/rage, or other emotions or struggles.  Perhaps we have family situations which are difficult, we have financial struggles, emotional battles, or have days where we feel like failures!  We can easily get ourselves buried under our situations or feelings, and we may feel like we want to fall!  But God has given us 'michaelangelos' in our lives!  We have families that love us, friends or co-workers who brighten our days, we live in the abundant nation of Canada, we have warm homes, clean water, more than enough food, and above all the God of this universe loves us unconditionally!  Enough that he came into this world and sacrificed everything to give us freedom and joy!

So, why do we overwhelm ourselves with our situations and emotions, and 'bury' ourselves with these things?  Instead, choose to live in the joy and freedom you've been given!  Cast aside the things that drag you down!  Today, take some time to look for God's 'michaelangelo' gifts in your life...