Stepping from darkness into the glorious light

CINDY TRANE CHRISTESON

“Your morning thoughts may determine your conduct for the day.

Optimistic thoughts will make your day bright and productive, while

pessimistic thinking will make it dull and wasteful. Face each day

cheerfully, smilingly and courageously, and it will naturally follow

that your work will be a real pleasure and progress will be a

delightful accomplishment.”

-- William M. Peck

“Cindy, I haven’t seen you for awhile. How are you and how is your

family?” a woman asked me recently.

I filled her in on what was new, but I was most anxious to hear

from her. The last time we had seen each other, she had been

suffering from serious back pain.

In fact, the last time we’d talked, she said she had missed

several days of work due to her condition. She had asked me to pray

for her and said she was going to go to a chiropractor she had heard

good things about.

I hadn’t seen her since then, so I asked her how she was feeling.

Her eyes lit up. She told me her back was much better, and that she

was thankful for a good chiropractor.

We talked a while longer and I asked her about work. She said it

was very busy, and even though she went to bed tired each night, she

was thankful to have a job.

“God is so good to me Cindy, and he knows just how to answer

prayers,” she said.

I was happy to hear she was doing well, but it seemed like she

wanted to tell me more. I commented that she seemed to be glowing,

and that her eyes sparkled.

Then her eyes really lit up. She hugged me and said, “Cindy, I am

just so thankful, for everything. God is so good to me.”

She told me she had talked to an elderly woman in a wheelchair and

the woman had remarked about how much she loved God and how much he

had blessed her.

“Cindy, I had been complaining more and more and I felt like I was

sliding into a dark hole,” she said. “It was like my world was black,

with no color. Then I started to list all the things I had to be

thankful for and the darkness lightened.

“The more I thanked God, the brighter my life became, and now

instead of things being so black, I see things in color. I began to

praise him, and he helped me see blessings everywhere I look. When I

look outside, I see the beauty of the green trees. I look up and see

the beautiful blue sky, and I am amazed. I look at my family and

friends, and I realize how blessed I am.”

“Now my biggest problem is that I cry whenever I talk about the

changes.”

I told her it was a great problem to have, and that I was so glad

to hear such positive things from her.

I thought about her when I looked outside recently and it was a

gray morning. I began to thank God for some of the many blessings in

my life. I, too, noticed that a brighter inside makes the outside

lighter.

And you can quote me on that.

* CINDY TRANE CHRISTESON is a Newport Beach resident who speaks

frequently to parenting groups. She may be reached via e-mail at

[email protected] or through the mail at 537 Newport Center Drive,

Box 505, Newport Beach, CA 92660.