It Is What It Is

“It is what it is.”

That phrase has been popping up in recent weeks – during a phone conversation with my son, and in a committee meeting, and from another place or two I can’t remember... until my curiosity was piqued. Where was this new cliché coming from? Was it a line from a sitcom? A hit song? A celebrity one-liner?

I asked the internet. On USA Today’s website, writer Gary Mihoces, called it “The Sports Quote of 2004,” used “to sum up troubles of all sorts and send an instant message that it’s time to move on.” He says the origin of the phrase is uncertain, but it’s been around for years: John Barlow, former lyricist for the Grateful Dead, wrote a song by that title, and President Bush quoted it in response to discouraging early exit polls on the day he was re-elected. And it has been used to explain various losses and sudden reversals and even unexpected successes in the world of sports. “It is what it is.”

A Christian blog by Doy Moyer points out the wisdom in that phrase. “The solution is not denial. We should learn to admit reality, then work with it as it is.” I agree. The daydreaming I did as a kid didn’t change anything. Better to learn to work with reality, even when, as Pastor Ben said Sunday, the phone call comes from the doctor or the spouse leaves or the son looks you in the eye and rejects everything he has been taught. Best to say, “It is what it is”...

...as long as we truly recognize “what it is” (because reality for the Christian is far different than for the unbeliever): It’s something God’s got under control. Something He has a plan for. Something He’ll walk us through, offering us what we need when we need it. Something that won’t last forever. And something He’ll make more than worth our while.

Factor God into the biggest challenge facing you today. Recognize Him for Who He is and look long and hard at His power and His faithfulness and His grasp of every detail and His persistent love and His inexplicable mercy. When you sit down to worry about your problem, factor Him in. When you have a decision to make about it, factor Him in. When you’re talking to others about it, factor Him in. Make Him the biggest part of the reality you are struggling with (because He really is greater than it is). Factor Him in...

Then say, “It is what it is.”