I’m a sap for old movies. They hold a place of sweet memories for me. Last evening, the Hallmark channel replayed one of my favorites, “Pollyanna.” I always loved Hayley Mills (mostly because of her other movie, “Parent Trap” where identical twins discover each other at camp and play some interesting tricks on their parents. I particularly liked that one since I am an identical twin.) Last night, Hayley was the beautiful Pollyanna with the hair, and especially the beautiful ribbons I wished I had as a child.

I adore this movie as much now as I did then because of its underlying themes. In the movie, her father taught her an attitude in the form of the “glad game” where you take a bad situation and you put a spin on it, seeing the circumstance in a new light and finding the good in it. In the movie, when the doll that her father ordered her for Christmas comes as a set of crutches, her dad says, “well, at least we don’t need these.” After Pollyanna is orphaned and goes to live with her aunt, Pollyanna’s charm and sweet perspective touch many lives. The “glad game” is so contagious the entire gloomy town becomes happier. Pollyanna’s own faith is challenged when she loses the use of her legs in an accident. Her father’s important lesson armors her to deal with life’s challenges.

We all have days when our trials seem so much bigger than our God, which is simply not true. Without trying to sound too Pollyanna-ish, there is something to that theory of counting our blessings, and turning our circumstances around in our minds. Yesterday was one of those days when I got bogged down by the sadness of so many difficult things challenging those whom I am close to. Watching the movie last night was a medicine to put things back into perspective. I needed a dose of the “glad game.”

Whatever trial you are facing, could you find comfort in knowing that God has a blessing in direct proportion to its size waiting for you on the other side of that trial? Could you appreciate that God is working it through and is closer to you than the very air you breathe? I received a prayer in an email today that had these words of power and comfort: “For God has not given unto you the spirit of fear, but of power (there is power in the words that you speak) of love, and a sound and well-balanced mind. No more worrying, for worrying ties the hands of God. Rejoice and go before Him, in worship, thanking Him for doing a new thing.” I believe the “glad game” is no game at all.

I’m a sap for old movies. They hold a place of sweet memories for me. Last evening, the Hallmark channel replayed one of my favorites, “Pollyanna.” I always loved Hayley Mills (mostly because of her other movie, “Parent Trap” where identical twins discover each other at camp and play some interesting tricks on their parents. I particularly liked that one since I am an identical twin.) Last night, Hayley was the beautiful Pollyanna with the hair, and especially the beautiful ribbons I wished I had as a child.

I adore this movie as much now as I did then because of its underlying themes. In the movie, her father taught her an attitude in the form of the “glad game” where you take a bad situation and you put a spin on it, seeing the circumstance in a new light and finding the good in it. In the movie, when the doll that her father ordered her for Christmas comes as a set of crutches, her dad says, “well, at least we don’t need these.” After Pollyanna is orphaned and goes to live with her aunt, Pollyanna’s charm and sweet perspective touch many lives. The “glad game” is so contagious the entire gloomy town becomes happier. Pollyanna’s own faith is challenged when she loses the use of her legs in an accident. Her father’s important lesson armors her to deal with life’s challenges.

We all have days when our trials seem so much bigger than our God, which is simply not true. Without trying to sound too Pollyanna-ish, there is something to that theory of counting our blessings, and turning our circumstances around in our minds. Yesterday was one of those days when I got bogged down by the sadness of so many difficult things challenging those whom I am close to. Watching the movie last night was a medicine to put things back into perspective. I needed a dose of the “glad game.”

Whatever trial you are facing, could you find comfort in knowing that God has a blessing in direct proportion to its size waiting for you on the other side of that trial? Could you appreciate that God is working it through and is closer to you than the very air you breathe? I received a prayer in an email today that had these words of power and comfort: “For God has not given unto you the spirit of fear, but of power (there is power in the words that you speak) of love, and a sound and well-balanced mind. No more worrying, for worrying ties the hands of God. Rejoice and go before Him, in worship, thanking Him for doing a new thing.” I believe the “glad game” is no game at all.