What a difference a day can make. In just one day you can go from being filled with despair to being filled with excitement about your positive possibilities. In just one day, you can set yourself solidly on a course toward the achievement of your most treasured desires.
One day is plenty of time to make a major difference in your life and in the lives of those around you. One day, filled with positive thoughts and decisive, effective actions can have an impact that reaches far into the future.
And when that one day is over, there is another one, filled with just as many opportunities, right behind it. When you live one day to the fullest, it's amazing what a difference you can make. When you string together day after day after day of positive, effective thoughts and actions, the result is nothing short of miraculous.
What a difference a day can make. Imagine what a whole lifetime of them can accomplish!
~Copyright Ralph S. Marston, Jr. Used by permission.
You know, I've come to many conclusions in the last two weeks. But mainly, I've been convicted of many things personally. I know who I was, who I am, who I want to be and who I am becoming. I know that I know things and that I need to have more confidence in what I know.
I have never felt comfortable being miserable or self-deprecating or negative. I am one of those people who likes to serve people in their homes (not letting any of my guests touch a dish or help clean up) - but I haven't done so recently. I have never been a person to not ask to help when I'm over someone else's house (which I haven't done much lately). I have always tried to appreciate things but haven't done much of that lately either. And I've talked and learned things about people that I should never have. It's not wrong to know things but it is to know things that that person never told you personally. It starts the gossip ball rolling; and I hate that I've been the instigator of that lately. I know someone that has really convicted me of that by thier actions. They don't want to know. The fact that someone needs prayer is all they need to know. They don't want to know the specifics because that person has not confided in them - and that is what perpetuates gossip. And this is fact; it does. And I've always known that but I've forgotten it for awhile. While I'm not necessarily regretting getting to know certain things about the people I know, it's a whole other thing to tell other people when I know it will lead to other people thinking so badly of that person - instead of praying for them. And that has happened with one particular person I know. It's harder for me to pray for someone that I see has deceived me by saying one thing but living a totally different way. However, I'm not supposed to have that attitude. I'm supposed to pray for them even harder and lift them up. But, instead, I find myself wanting to protect other people from them. I should be sending people to them to encourage them and lift them up more in prayer so they find a better way of life. I was not doing that. But now, after seeing this person briefly in church yesterday, I am convicted to pray for them harder and to see them as God sees them: a beautiful child of God who needs just as much prayer as I do. I am so not perfect and so not ever going to be. I'm no better than them; no matter what they do outside of church. I'm just as wretched. And who's to say that they aren't better than me?! Maybe there are issues that I have that are worse than theirs. Have I ever really thought of it that way before? I think that I have a little bit but not really all the ways that I need to.
Today, at least, my eyes are opened to a lot of things: possibilities, people and positivity. What I need to remember is that God did not create me to be negative. He created me, specifically, in a way that people think something is wrong if I'm not smiling. That's the attitude that I've always had but I just never have realized it. People have always seen me as a very positive person.
Though today is a very hard day for this country (and those countries that were also effected; the twin towers were an "international" institution), the world is still turning. No matter what side you take there are two really good things about what happened: a very evil man is out of power and going to pay for his crimes; and we, as Americans, finally realize that there is more to the world than the USA - that these terrorists are real, unpredictable and something that even we have to deal with. Our eyes are opened - and I'm proud be called an American because we have not backed down from the challenge. It is not in us to do so. Our ancestors would be turning over in their graves if we gave up. Though I hate war and that we have lost so many men and women (I know a lot of people personally who are affected; friends whose husbands or wives are now serving), I know that they feel pride for defending our freedoms - even if they don't agree with this war. And that's so eye-opening.
And I need to remember that and support them; not complain or spit upon thier service because they are doing what I am too cowardly to do - give my life for my country and, more importantly, the people of my country. That is true sacrifice and I am humbled by it.
So I need to live my life everyday as best as I can because somebody is fighting for me to sit here, write this, work and enjoy life without the threat of dying from enemy fire, bombs or a war in my backyard. They are keeping it away from me. I can never forget that because I don't deserve it.
God bless them and bring them home safely - if at all possible.
No comments:
Post a Comment