I watched as cars began lining up on the street in front of our house. The day we had waited for was finally here. A day of celebration. Between all the bad in the world right now, this was the glimmer of good.
But sometimes it's not that easy to see the good. Sometimes the cars don't come in droves to line up for a party. Sometimes the good is smashed between tragedy and heartache and it takes days, months, years to see how anything good could come from such devastation.
I've been in both situations, and like you, I'd pick pain-free celebrating every single time. I'm no dummy. But there is a distinct difference in the beauty of heartache colliding with laughter. It's a sacred joy, one that comes far beneath the surface of a smile or grin. It's looking yourself in the mirror and knowing that despite the pain, you have purpose and reason and a future. It comes from the truth that God is the source of true joy and celebration. And when you have him, the pain of celebrating, the pain of laughter, the pain of first joy after sorrow, though buried deep within you, surfaces like a slow blooming rose.
Causing all those who pass by to stop and gaze at its beauty.
Truly God makes all things beautiful, in his time. Ecclesiastes 3:11