Throughout our lives, we develop our own definition of normal. We grow to associate ourselves and our personal experiences with "normalcy" and "good" and anything else is "bad" or "weird".
While in Japan, I was thrown into a sea of things that were completely from everything I knew as "normal". I've always realized that good or bad is a meaning we assign and not one inherent to any situation or idea, but this concept was underscored while roaming through the streets of Tokyo, unable to read signs, watching people bow to one another, and seeing vending machines everywhere. The kneejerk reaction is "Whoa, this is weird." but the reality is that it's different.
Noting the difference between "weird" and "different" creates a paradigm shift that empowers us to take our tinted glasses off and see the world more objectively. Doing so prevents us from suffering needlessly in situations where we have the power to assign a meaning to a situation instead of feeling victimized by the circumstances in our lives.
Consider this next time you find yourself in the middle of a seemingly unpleasant situation. Rather than jump to the conclusion that the situation is "bad", take a second to evaluate the potential upsides and then test the assumption that the situation is negative. Ask yourself, "What if this is a good situation, working to my advantage?" and operate from a place of knowing that God has you in the palm of His hand and that everything is happening in divine order and divine timing.
Later.
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