I wish I was more like my hat

Written by Cody Poinsett

​So, before coming to Kenya, everyone was telling me how hot the Kenyan sun would be and how I needed to be careful to not get too badly sunburned. Now, being the fair-skinned redhead that I am, I really needed no warning. I’m pretty sure I could get sunburned in the middle of the night, standing in a blizzard, at the North Pole. So, I know the procedure here. Wear a hat, put on sunscreen (preferably SPF 400), and try and stay out of direct sunlight as much as possible. So, there was no way that I would spend 5 weeks in Kenya without bringing a reliable hat. When I left the States, my hat looked brand new. It was only a few months old, had been taken care of, and was in really good shape. Now, two weeks into my time in Kenya, it is stained, faded, and smelling pretty bad. However, no matter how old it gets or how bad it looks, it still serves the same purpose just as well. It still keeps the sun off of my face the same way that it did on the day that it came off the shelf.

I think sometimes our lives can go through the same seasons that my hat has gone through. Sometimes things are great and easy and we don’t fade or get stains. Then, other times, we go from feeling brand new to completely useless in the blink of an eye. Life is hard. It hurts. It wears us out, but no matter how bad we may be feeling, we still have the opportunity to serve the same purpose as we do in the good times.

But how can we serve that purpose if we don’t even know what our purpose is? Well, let me tell you a secret… We all serve the same purpose. We, along with the rest of creation, were created to give glory to God. Now, obviously we can all do that in different ways, but ultimately our purpose is to glorify God in all of our actions. Whether we are having a good or bad day is irrelevant, it doesn’t matter if we are in the prime of life or on our deathbeds, we are here to serve God no matter our current situation.

If I’m being completely honest, today, I’m feeling a lot like my hat looks. We are two weeks into our time in Kenya, and I am tired, frustrated, and confused. Really confused. But I still have the opportunity to glorify God in my exhaustion. I can serve Him in my frustrations. I can talk to Him through my confusion. But that’s really hard to do, and I’m really weak. I want to be able to glorify God in everything that I do, but I fail almost constantly. I wish it was as easy for me to glorify God right now as it is when I’m feeling great about life, but that’s just not the case.

So, I feel like I have to fight for it. I think that I have to battle through my struggles on my own. Unfortunately, that’s a fight I lose a lot. But here is the best news yet: it’s a battle that I don’t have to fight alone. You see, I serve an eternal, omniscient, omnibenevolent, perfect God who is fighting with me and for me. And guess what? He’s already  won. So, I don’t have to fight anymore. I get to find my rest and my peace in Him and His love. The hard days will still come, but not for long. These days will be over before we know it, and then we will get to revel in the victory of the One True King for the rest of eternity.

I want to be more like my hat. I want to serve my purpose no matter how bruised and beaten I feel. I want to glorify God on the days that it doesn't come easily.