Keeping the Banana in the Peeling

Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.

Psalm 34:8 NIV

My one-year-old grandson recently displayed an interesting attitude while eating a banana. He likes for me to peel it a bit and hold it in the peeling. Then every time he passes by, he takes a big bite.

Woe is me if that banana breaks off and falls out of the peeling. He refuses to eat it – even gags on it. Now, it is the same banana he was just eating and enjoying, but out of the peeling he rejects it.

Are we not all like that sometimes? Life can be going along pretty well and then all of the sudden we get a feeling of dissatisfaction. Instead of enjoying the sweet taste of our blessings, we pout just like children. If only this would or would not happen, if only nothing ever changed, if only our banana had not fallen out of the peeling! We refuse to let the blessings overshadow a conceived inconvenience.

It seems the least little thing can get us all discombobulated. What can we do when this kind of negativity starts creeping in?

Guess what? If I stick the banana back in the peeling and hold on to it really tightly, my grandson will happily eat it again. He focuses back on the goodness of the banana.

That’s what we should do also. Focus on the blessings God has so generously given us and not on any unexpected bothers we may experience in life. We still have to navigate through those disruptions, but keeping God’s big picture in mind we can continue on the path he has for us without developing a bad attitude. We can allow him to hold our banana and be in charge.

Now, that’s a blessing right there in itself. We can trust in him to put things back together for us. We can once again experience the sweetness of our relationship with him.

Lord, thank you for the blessings of your goodness and sweet refuge. Help us to keep our attitudes in tune with you.

Susan Partida