“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our attitudes.” - Charles Swindoll
I know it is a long quote, but I love it. This may not be a verse from the Bible, but I am certain that God uses the simplest of quotes, experiences, thoughts, stories, etc to speak to you and me.
Attitude is something that has gotten the best of me many times in my life. I allow myself to be “bogged down” by the things I face throughout my day, and I find myself focusing on and allowing the negative aspects of my life to overshadow the positive. There are so many positives in my life: I have a wonderful husband, siblings, parents, and friends. I belong to a loving and powerful Savior who cares deeply about every detail of my life. I live in an adorable little farmhouse. I have spent my summer weekends surrounded by family at my favorite place in the world – Beulah Beach. I only have 1 semester left in my college career. I am healthy and blessed in so many ways - the list goes on and on. I need to choose to have a positive attitude throughout my days; one exuding happiness, contentment, and passion.
Right now, Kodi and I are experiencing a stage in our lives where we feel stuck -- trapped in a mundane routine. Kodi has been so exhausted from his job lately. And since we got married, I have focused so much on the day that we move on to “bigger and better things;” being a fifth year senior has been highly discouraging for me lately. And we let those individual circumstances really bring us down as a couple. We realized the other day that we have spent the last two weeks so detached from each other. Our conversations consisted of complaining about the day we had, and the day we face tomorrow. And it sucked us dry of any and all passion. Our love towards each other was barely apparent at times. And even as the Lord has been revealing so many wonderful things to me lately, my bad attitude served as a blockade to His blessings.
This quote has really served as a kick in the gut. It has reminded me that many things will happen in life, planned and unexpected, good and bad, exciting and mundane … I have to choose what attitude I will have toward those things because "happiness is a choice that requires effort at times." And if I can be steer clear of being self-absorbed and caught up in a pity party, and instead choose to glorify God by reacting positively, then my life, Kodi’s life, and the lives of those close to us will reap the benefits. Blessings and joy will be apparent in a transforming way; each day will bring a renewed spirit. That sounds like a worthwhile notion to me!
Okay, so this is kinda random, but I wanted to include it because watching it puts the biggest smile on my face. This little girl has the whole positive attitude thing down pat -- perhaps a little too much! lol Check it out:
Jessica's Daily Affirmation
So please pray for Kodi and me. Pray that our hearts and minds would be overwhelmed by all the ways the Lord has blessed us. Pray that we would take charge of our attitudes and choose to be positive in a way that builds ourselves, each other, and others up. Pray that I stop dwelling on the so-called "bigger and better" things of our future and that I find contentment and joy in the here and now. Because this is an area of my life that the Lord has placed on my heart -- revealing that it needs serious adjusment as I work to fullfil His will for me.
K thanks for reading. Grace and peace♥
Just finished Donald Miller's new book, "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years". You two should check it out. It is all about the elements of a good story and then how we start to live a good story with our own lives.
ReplyDeleteIt was a great book and I would interested in your thoughts on it. You can pick it up at any Barnes and Noble or order it off of Amazon.
His writing is so inviting and the thought this book portrays is a really interesting one. I am making Tera read it and then other people as well.
That was Jeremy by the way!
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