I already had puffy, swollen eyelids from blinking back tears all morning, so it didn’t take much.

I started out this morning having a bad day.

Oh, I try not to have those…

but sometimes, I do. 

Its not about circumstances… I don’t usually let the state of temporary things get me down. 

I know I’m blessed with a great job, near-perfect children, and amazing friends and family, and a VH1 Male Model of the Year who sometimes lets me pretend to be his girlfriend.

Sometimes I feel like God’s favorite child, because the pieces of my life have fallen into place just so…

So no, my bad day wasn’t about circumstances.

The tears I was blinking back were over messes I’ve made… it was a self-inflicted bad day, with a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach over …

ME.

I’ve been mean and hateful.

I’ve been cruel, rude, and vicious.

And as much as I’d LOVE to believe my life’s mission is ONLY about sweetly caring for the widows and orphans, and that my heart contains only what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely and admirable…

I’ll be honest: there’s ugliness in there too.

Self-centered, self-absorbed, self-righteous … UGLINESS.

But that’s what makes God’s abundant grace to a hateful sinner like me so much more beautiful.

I mess up often… more than I’d really like to admit.  By accident, and sometimes…

by (gulp) my own choice.

And God always, always pulls me from the miry clay I find myself wallowing around in time and time again, and gives me a brand new day.

I love You Lord with all my heart
You’ve given me a brand new start
And I just want to sing this song to You
It goes like this the fourth the fifth
The minor fall the major lift
My heart and soul are praising
Hallelujah

(chorus)
Hallelujah, hallelujah
Hallelujah, hallelujah

(verse 2)
I know that You’re the God above
You’re filling me with grace and love
And I just want to say thank You to You
You pulled me from the miry clay
You’ve given me a brand new day
Now all that I can say is
Hallelujah