Most of us have, likely, at one time or another, entertained the thought of how a day might be lived if we knew it was our last day on earth. Would it be spent quietly with friends and family? Or would it be used to do something adventurous and daring? Traveling? Reading? How could one possibly choose?
It's a safe bet most of us wouldn't go to work or school or attend to the often mundane tasks which consume many hours of each day. (I might update my status on Facebook, but I probably wouldn't check out everyone else's posts....sorry.) After some pondering, the question then usually becomes: If we would do things differently, then why aren't we living each day, right now, as if it is our last?
Of course, the answer is, for most of us, today is not our last day, and if it is, few of us know it. We will wake up tomorrow with bills to pay and a number of other practical pursuits demanding our attention. Few of us have the luxury of complete freedom to do as we wish.
One afternoon last week, as I drove to do some work-related errands, I contemplated what else I might prefer to be doing. After ruling out the impossible -- starring in a show on Broadway or living on a remote island somewhere in the northern hemisphere -- I decided what I do on a day-to-day basis is perfectly fine. I have part-time, low-stress jobs I enjoy, and I work with people I like. I am grateful I am able to freely seek God's kingdom and offer some small measures of service and help to others along the way.
Whenever my last day does arrive, I vow to have no regrets. I won't regret what I've done, even though I have made mistakes and missed opportunities to do what is best. Neither will I regret what I have not been able to accomplish, even though there is always something else to achieve.
Ultimately, when we think of living each day to its fullest, it is, perhaps, not what we do which matters most, but it is how we go about doing it: sharing love, joy, kindness and treating others as we wish to be treated. I won't spend my life longing to be somewhere else or doing something grand by the world's standards. I want to appreciate right where I am and what I have, and I believe that's how to make the most of each day.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Increasing in Faith
Faith is an interesting thing. It is central to any belief system, and we know we are to "increase in faith," but how we go about doing that and what grown-up faith looks like can be a bit difficult to define or describe. Even the definition, as given in one place in scripture, seems almost vague: "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1)
Growing in faith does not mean we get better at asking God for things until we eventually work our way up to getting everything we ask for. God is not a magic genie, bottled up in Heaven, waiting for us to release him so he can grant us three wishes. Perhaps we do grow in faith by asking for things and realizing if we don't get what we ask for there is quite likely something better for us than what we initially wanted or thought we needed. (Humans are notorious for thinking we know what is best going into every situation, but evidently that is not always the case, since we so often hear the phrase "hindsight is 20/20," which is often applied when we're right in the middle of dealing with the consequences of getting what we thought we wanted.)
It would seem a mature faith might not be about asking for material things at all, but about developing a relationship of trust, whereby we are ready to face problems without worrying about the worst-case scenario outcome. Fear and fretting are enemies of faith, and Jesus repeatedly told his followers not to give in to anxiety. Have you ever solved anything by worry alone? I don't know anyone who has. No one knows what tomorrow will bring for any of us, but the key is not to fear the unknown.
The Message Bible translates Hebrews 11:1 in this way, "The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It's our handle on what we can't see." Believers have a foundation on which we can rely, one which will not allow our world to crumble or our lives to fall apart. My dad was a carpenter, and many times I heard him say the two most important things when building a house were plenty of insulation and steel in the concrete. That may be about as good of a definition of faith as I know.
Growing in faith does not mean we get better at asking God for things until we eventually work our way up to getting everything we ask for. God is not a magic genie, bottled up in Heaven, waiting for us to release him so he can grant us three wishes. Perhaps we do grow in faith by asking for things and realizing if we don't get what we ask for there is quite likely something better for us than what we initially wanted or thought we needed. (Humans are notorious for thinking we know what is best going into every situation, but evidently that is not always the case, since we so often hear the phrase "hindsight is 20/20," which is often applied when we're right in the middle of dealing with the consequences of getting what we thought we wanted.)
It would seem a mature faith might not be about asking for material things at all, but about developing a relationship of trust, whereby we are ready to face problems without worrying about the worst-case scenario outcome. Fear and fretting are enemies of faith, and Jesus repeatedly told his followers not to give in to anxiety. Have you ever solved anything by worry alone? I don't know anyone who has. No one knows what tomorrow will bring for any of us, but the key is not to fear the unknown.
The Message Bible translates Hebrews 11:1 in this way, "The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It's our handle on what we can't see." Believers have a foundation on which we can rely, one which will not allow our world to crumble or our lives to fall apart. My dad was a carpenter, and many times I heard him say the two most important things when building a house were plenty of insulation and steel in the concrete. That may be about as good of a definition of faith as I know.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Steadfast and Unwavering
With spiritual maturity should come a steadfast approach to life. Believers are not meant to be in a constant state of turmoil and despair. We should not be agitated and upset every time some small thing doesn't go our way. Instead, we should be "rooted and grounded in love," (see Ephesians 3:17) a state of being which leads to less stress and lower blood pressure, generally better spiritual, mental, physical and emotional health.
When we are not burdened with the mindset of needing to have a frantic response to the most mundane problem, life is much more pleasant and rewarding. Why do we choose to give in to turmoil? Most everyone knows, at least from past experience, if not current standing, how exhausting real-life melodrama is, and, additionally, how draining it is be around individuals who seem to always be living on the edge of disaster.
Those of us who claim to have Jesus as our example, can look to his life and see a quiet resolve in his attitude and approach. Yes, he did have moments of impatience and did not shy away from confrontation when a situation warranted a strong response. But complaining and frustration about the minor inconveniences of everyday life are not the pattern we see in the life of Jesus. And I try to remember that when I'm standing in line a little too long for my liking, and the person in front of me has three different orders and two forms of payment.
The reason I need to relax when I'm the one at the back of the line is because I've been the person holding up the line, and that's just how life goes.That's the give and take of it. I never try to intentionally ruin anyone's day with my actions, and I need to remember other people aren't trying to ruin mine, either. If we could all be better about giving others the benefit of the doubt, if we would extend more mercy and grace, if we could try to understand other points of view, even when we don't agree, the world would be a much calmer place.
Remember, "the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy." (James 3:17) Let us seek to have that kind of steadfast wisdom.
When we are not burdened with the mindset of needing to have a frantic response to the most mundane problem, life is much more pleasant and rewarding. Why do we choose to give in to turmoil? Most everyone knows, at least from past experience, if not current standing, how exhausting real-life melodrama is, and, additionally, how draining it is be around individuals who seem to always be living on the edge of disaster.
Those of us who claim to have Jesus as our example, can look to his life and see a quiet resolve in his attitude and approach. Yes, he did have moments of impatience and did not shy away from confrontation when a situation warranted a strong response. But complaining and frustration about the minor inconveniences of everyday life are not the pattern we see in the life of Jesus. And I try to remember that when I'm standing in line a little too long for my liking, and the person in front of me has three different orders and two forms of payment.
The reason I need to relax when I'm the one at the back of the line is because I've been the person holding up the line, and that's just how life goes.That's the give and take of it. I never try to intentionally ruin anyone's day with my actions, and I need to remember other people aren't trying to ruin mine, either. If we could all be better about giving others the benefit of the doubt, if we would extend more mercy and grace, if we could try to understand other points of view, even when we don't agree, the world would be a much calmer place.
Remember, "the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy." (James 3:17) Let us seek to have that kind of steadfast wisdom.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
One Step at a Time
Big mistakes most often are the end result of a series of smaller mistakes and poor decisions. A bank robber, for example, is usually not someone who walks into his bank to make a deposit into his Christmas Club account and decides while he's there to ask the teller to hand over all the money in the drawer. I think it's reasonable to say, in most cases, a thief is someone whose thought process leads him to believe, for whatever reason, honesty may not be the best policy, and eventually, once he has opened the door to dwelling on what may seem like an easy solution to his problems, he becomes convinced committing a crime is either justified or that he won't get caught.
I'm hoping no one reading this is contemplating a life of crime, but I know there are those who have reached places in life where they would rather not be and wondered how they got where they are. Barring outside interference from tragic events or circumstances beyond our control, all of us have arrived at where we are in life, for better or worse, one step at a time. Dysfunctional relationships, poor health and unhappiness don't just happen overnight. Those are the kinds of things which gradually take shape over the course of weeks, months and years and are based on the choices we make. Even though we're not bank robbers, our choices do catch up with us.
The good news is, life is not a one-way street. We're not trapped by our poor decisions, and thankfully, it's never too late to turn around and take steps to start over. Relationships can be mended by commitment to working, unselfishly, on what has gone wrong. Health can be improved by eating right and becoming more active and less stressed. Happiness is a choice to change poor attitudes. I never want to trivialize any bad situation anyone is going through, but I do want to encourage all of us to look within for solutions, to the love of God which resides in believers, rather than looking to others to fix our problems.
Scripture often talks about the "putting on" of positive qualities and the "putting away" of negative traits. Just like we get dressed for the day, one piece of clothing at a time, we put on good decisions, one on top of another, as we work toward a fulfilled and productive life.
I'm hoping no one reading this is contemplating a life of crime, but I know there are those who have reached places in life where they would rather not be and wondered how they got where they are. Barring outside interference from tragic events or circumstances beyond our control, all of us have arrived at where we are in life, for better or worse, one step at a time. Dysfunctional relationships, poor health and unhappiness don't just happen overnight. Those are the kinds of things which gradually take shape over the course of weeks, months and years and are based on the choices we make. Even though we're not bank robbers, our choices do catch up with us.
The good news is, life is not a one-way street. We're not trapped by our poor decisions, and thankfully, it's never too late to turn around and take steps to start over. Relationships can be mended by commitment to working, unselfishly, on what has gone wrong. Health can be improved by eating right and becoming more active and less stressed. Happiness is a choice to change poor attitudes. I never want to trivialize any bad situation anyone is going through, but I do want to encourage all of us to look within for solutions, to the love of God which resides in believers, rather than looking to others to fix our problems.
Scripture often talks about the "putting on" of positive qualities and the "putting away" of negative traits. Just like we get dressed for the day, one piece of clothing at a time, we put on good decisions, one on top of another, as we work toward a fulfilled and productive life.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Now, the Rainbow
A few weeks ago, I referenced "rainbows and kitties" as positive attitude promoters. I wrote about our kitten shortly thereafter, and now, as if on cue, a rainbow has appeared to give inspiration. Just a few evenings ago, there was a stunning arc in the sky, perhaps the most complete-looking display of color in a rainbow I ever remember seeing.
Even though there is a perfectly rational, scientific explanation for the occurrence of rainbows, there is something special about them, too. The prophet Ezekiel, in an attempt to describe his "vision of divine glory," said, "As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord...." (Ezekiel 1:28)
Of course going back even further in biblical comment, we read of the mention of a rainbow in the book of Genesis, following the Flood. Recorded in chapter 9, God said to Noah, "I establish My covenant with you; and all flesh shall never again be cut off by the water of the flood, neither shall there again be a flood to destroy the earth." God said, "This is the sign of the covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all successive generations; I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth. It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud, and I will remember My covenant....When the bow is in the cloud, then I will look upon it, to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature..." (verses 11-16)
The heavens are filled with wonder and breathtaking beauty. The stars and planets, the sun rising and setting, clouds and the phases of the moon often have me looking upward, contemplating the vast universe and how everyone on earth is in this life together. Wherever we are, whatever our social standing, race or creed, we are loved and we are connected to each other. But especially when I see a rainbow, I like considering that God is looking at it, too, remembering his covenant, thinking of all of us, his children.
Even though there is a perfectly rational, scientific explanation for the occurrence of rainbows, there is something special about them, too. The prophet Ezekiel, in an attempt to describe his "vision of divine glory," said, "As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord...." (Ezekiel 1:28)
Of course going back even further in biblical comment, we read of the mention of a rainbow in the book of Genesis, following the Flood. Recorded in chapter 9, God said to Noah, "I establish My covenant with you; and all flesh shall never again be cut off by the water of the flood, neither shall there again be a flood to destroy the earth." God said, "This is the sign of the covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all successive generations; I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth. It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud, and I will remember My covenant....When the bow is in the cloud, then I will look upon it, to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature..." (verses 11-16)
The heavens are filled with wonder and breathtaking beauty. The stars and planets, the sun rising and setting, clouds and the phases of the moon often have me looking upward, contemplating the vast universe and how everyone on earth is in this life together. Wherever we are, whatever our social standing, race or creed, we are loved and we are connected to each other. But especially when I see a rainbow, I like considering that God is looking at it, too, remembering his covenant, thinking of all of us, his children.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Having One of Those Days
As I was rather carelessly placing a small, lop-sided stack of papers and books in the front seat of my car the other evening, an acquaintance of mine walked by, and the stack spilled out of the car onto the sidewalk, falling into a mixed up mess. "Having one of those days?" she asked. I thought it was an odd question, as she had not seen me at any other point in the day and had no idea how things had been going for me. Even though I found her comment to be slightly vexatious, I tried not to sound rude when I replied, "No, I just dropped some papers. That's all."
She was only making conversation, but I did think of how often I've heard people comment in exasperation, "it's just been one of those days," meaning something went wrong at the beginning of the day and then everything they did after that went downhill. However, there is no reason for one bad incident to bring on another bad incident, unless we begin to focus on irritations. Then annoyances can, and often do, gain control of our attitude, and attitude is what determines what kind of day we have. Don't buy into Murphy's law "if anything can go wrong, it will." (No one is really certain who Murphy was, and his "law" certainly isn't a law at all.)
It is possible to ruin an entire day by merely thinking it was spoiled from the start. It is also possible to have a productive day by not giving credence and power to minor aggravations. It's the same for "waking up in a bad mood." If our disposition is sour, it doesn't mean we have to stay in a bad humor. We are in control of our moods and attitudes; our moods are not in control of us.
The further problem with allowing bad moments to ruin our whole day, is we will be in danger of letting bad days pile up on top of each other until bad days, rather than good, rule our lives. Lamentations 3:22-23 reminds us, "The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness." Maybe we should think of having "one of those days" in a new light, a day filled with God's lovingkindness, no matter how many minor inconveniences come our way.
She was only making conversation, but I did think of how often I've heard people comment in exasperation, "it's just been one of those days," meaning something went wrong at the beginning of the day and then everything they did after that went downhill. However, there is no reason for one bad incident to bring on another bad incident, unless we begin to focus on irritations. Then annoyances can, and often do, gain control of our attitude, and attitude is what determines what kind of day we have. Don't buy into Murphy's law "if anything can go wrong, it will." (No one is really certain who Murphy was, and his "law" certainly isn't a law at all.)
It is possible to ruin an entire day by merely thinking it was spoiled from the start. It is also possible to have a productive day by not giving credence and power to minor aggravations. It's the same for "waking up in a bad mood." If our disposition is sour, it doesn't mean we have to stay in a bad humor. We are in control of our moods and attitudes; our moods are not in control of us.
The further problem with allowing bad moments to ruin our whole day, is we will be in danger of letting bad days pile up on top of each other until bad days, rather than good, rule our lives. Lamentations 3:22-23 reminds us, "The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness." Maybe we should think of having "one of those days" in a new light, a day filled with God's lovingkindness, no matter how many minor inconveniences come our way.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
The Happiness Habit
My effort to remain optimistic has been challenged many times over the past week as I have encountered an abundance of situations which appeared to be engineered to feed my cynicism. With bad news and nonsense running rampant, it seems to be so much easier to complain than it is to "keep on the sunny side." But I know it doesn't have to be that way. Since I am, in all honesty, quite happy with my life, I have few valid reasons to complain. For many of us, myself included, expressing dissatisfaction at a moment's notice is more of a habit than anything else.
Even when something unfortunate befalls us or an obstacle lands in our path, an old stand-by piece of advice from my days of motivational speaking does hold true: We can't control what happens to us in life, but we can control how we react to what happens to us. (This is one problem with optimism, for me; I tend to rely on trite comments when trying be cheerful. I've evidently managed to convince myself crankiness somehow fuels creativity.)
Dissatisfaction with the status quo is not necessarily a bad thing. Complaining about a wrong situation to those who can do something about it can be an effective means of changing that situation for the better. However, complaining to everyone other than those who can address an issue, or complaining without offering solutions, is not so effective. In addition, complaining about traffic, the weather or how others choose to dress or wear their hair, for instance, is not productive. Making incessant, negative comments about things we can't change only serves to bring more negativity into our lives and the lives of everyone around us.
Seek joy and set aside griping. Only complain about circumstances we can do something about, and then, only fuss if it leads to action and positive change. As believers, when we try to achieve these kinds of attitudes it is a worthy goal. It's a good way to demonstrate we are casting aside worry and walking in faith. If we want to spread the Good News, let's ditch the complaining and develop the happiness habit. (I'll try to work on profound comments another time. Platitudes will have to do for now.)
Oh, and have a nice day. : )
Even when something unfortunate befalls us or an obstacle lands in our path, an old stand-by piece of advice from my days of motivational speaking does hold true: We can't control what happens to us in life, but we can control how we react to what happens to us. (This is one problem with optimism, for me; I tend to rely on trite comments when trying be cheerful. I've evidently managed to convince myself crankiness somehow fuels creativity.)
Dissatisfaction with the status quo is not necessarily a bad thing. Complaining about a wrong situation to those who can do something about it can be an effective means of changing that situation for the better. However, complaining to everyone other than those who can address an issue, or complaining without offering solutions, is not so effective. In addition, complaining about traffic, the weather or how others choose to dress or wear their hair, for instance, is not productive. Making incessant, negative comments about things we can't change only serves to bring more negativity into our lives and the lives of everyone around us.
Seek joy and set aside griping. Only complain about circumstances we can do something about, and then, only fuss if it leads to action and positive change. As believers, when we try to achieve these kinds of attitudes it is a worthy goal. It's a good way to demonstrate we are casting aside worry and walking in faith. If we want to spread the Good News, let's ditch the complaining and develop the happiness habit. (I'll try to work on profound comments another time. Platitudes will have to do for now.)
Oh, and have a nice day. : )
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