Capture the Happy of God’s Blessings in Every Day

I am pleased to introduce and feature Jeannie Waters on my website. She is a good friend and wonderful writer. Today, her post reflects the goodness of God and our enjoyment of the simple blessings which surround us each day. I hope you enjoy her work and if so, let her know through your comments below. – Carla

Jeannie writes:

We stared into the darkness of the late spring night, amazed by the view.  

After a late dinner, my husband and I, along with my brothers and their wives, drove up a steep mountain to return to our vacation chalet. The SUV’s headlights guided us through otherwise total darkness. 

Instead of walking inside, we chatted on the driveway and enjoyed the woodsy mountain air. Darkness surrounded us, but the night sky decorated our view with tiny points of happy—a myriad of stars. 

The beauty stunned me. 

“The stars look so bright here. We can’t see them as well at home with the city lights. There’s the Big Dipper. Is that Orion, Ed?” 

“Sure is,” my brother responded, “and the light moving over there may be the International Space Station. Nope, it’s a plane.” 

I glanced in the opposite direction toward the tops of the hemlocks and tulip poplars we’d identified that morning. 

“Hey, look up high over the roof, everybody. There are too many lights over there to be planes. They move like lightning bugs.”

My brother, Carson, turned to look. “I’ve never seen fireflies that high. They hover near the ground.” 

Ed, a resident of the area, replied, “Spring treetop fireflies live in these mountains. This species always flies at that height.”

We marveled at the happy we observed in charcoal darkness.

At bedtime, I thanked God for the quiet of the mountainside and the bright points of happy we’d discovered—mountain air, brilliant stars, and treetop fireflies. We’d spotted these wonders because we paused to observe our surroundings that night away from the city lights. 

My gratitude led to praise, followed by a question of how often I miss the happies, those God-designed blessings He sprinkles across my path each day. Like me, do you long to notice and capture them all? If so, what if we added a little POP to each day to help us embrace all God has for us?

Capture the Happy in Your Day with POP: Pause, Observe, and Praise

Pause

In the quiet, away from city lights, my family saw God’s power displayed on the mountainside. We can notice His work at any time of day, in any location. When we take time from our noisy, busy world and stop striving, we can quietly rest in God’s presence (Psalm 46:10). 

Give yourself permission to pause. Sit with God at a time that works for you. Linger in His Word. Entrust your heart to the Father who says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you” (Psalm 32:8).

Talk with God and listen for His responses. After the prophet Habakkuk poured out his heart to God, he said, “I will take my stand at my watchpost … and look out to see what he will say to me,” (Habakkuk 2:1 English Standard Version). Let’s pause and be quiet enough to listen for God’s words like the prophet did.   

Observe   

Observe God’s creation and search for lessons. What comparisons can you make? Clouds may represent the way God replenishes the earth with rain and our hearts with His truth. Sunlight shining through leaves may lead us to pray for Jesus to shine through us to the lives of others.

Watch for a darting chipmunk, a fragrant flower, or a magnificent sunset. Enjoy a cool breeze or a songbird’s aria. Creation’s beauties testify to God’s power and remind us to look to Him as our Source.

We can also observe the biblical lessons God personalizes for us and the ways He meets our needs. Rejoice in the truth “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3 ESV). As Paul David Tripp wrote in his book, New Morning Mercies: A Daily Gospel Devotional, “No, you don’t know what you’ll face today, but your sovereign Savior does, and his mercies are new and formfitted for what you will face.”

Praise

Praise God for the personal Father-child relationship He offers to all who surrender to Jesus. The Lord welcomes His children into His throne room where we find grace and mercy (Hebrews 4:16).

Let’s praise our Father for the hard lessons we learn. They may involve our need to abandon pride and walk with humility or an awareness of joy despite a difficult experience. Adoration of our heavenly Father follows the discovery we can trust Him instead of our own abilities and recognize His strength in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). 

Notice how biblical lessons apply to daily life. When there’s no close parking place, what if we thanked God for the exercise we’ll get on the walk to the store? Rain may cancel our cookout or daily walk, but praise God, we won’t need to water the grass. He’s worthy of our praise.

When the enemy taunts us with fear, despair, or insecurity, we can pull a verse from our pocket or our memory and offer praise to God for His sovereignty. 

With reminders to POP (Pause, Observe, and Praise), we can anticipate capturing the happy God plans for us today. His joy-filled blessings abound.

Jeannie Waters is an award-winning devotion and article writer and blogger. In 2023 Bold Vision Books will publish the devotional she is writing. A wife, mother, grandmother, and retired educator, she understands how women struggle to live in freedom from life’s crippling stress. Her writing equips women to embrace God’s encouragement, swap their burdens for His gifts, and share their blessings with others. Jeannie enjoys family fun and leading an English Club/Bible study for women learning English. Jeannie invites you to visit her on her Website where she will brighten your day with encouragement.; on her Facebook Page; and on Pinterest.