"The Ability"

This blog is not to anyone in particular, but if you feel it could help you, than it is to you. 

I have heard someone who is near and dear to me use the term …this thing called life.  So I wanted to talk a little about that subject.  We all know that in life we have many ups and downs.  We have many joys and heartaches.  We have all been at our lowest and there have been times where we thought we had it all.

I personally have had moments in my life where I was asking God why he couldn’t have given me a different life, or why do I always get hurt by others, or why I couldn’t have been born rich.  If you were to be really honest, you have probably asked one or more of those questions to God yourself.

I am not sure exactly when it happened, but one day I discovered that my life was going to be exactly how I made it.  In other words if I couldn’t be rich, I could be happy knowing that I could pay my bills.  If I wanted to stop being hurt by others, I had to stop expecting so much of others.  If I didn’t like the life I was living, then I had to do something to change that life.  So that is what I did.

I first took inventory of all that I DO have; my husband, my children, my grandchildren, my health, roof over my head, but most important the ability.  Ability?  Yes, the ability to change the lives of others, the ability to care for others, the ability to visit others, the ability to listen to others, the ability to show love to others, the ability to pray for others, the ability to forgive others.

What really brings happiness to a person is the ability to focus on the difference they can make in the lives of others, even if it is small.  That is what changes you.  So many people are focused on self.  What I want, what I deserve, my rights, what benefits me and others be damned.  Those kinds of people will never be truly happy.  When you wake up each day with a “me” attitude and focus on getting what you want, you will never truly be happy.

When you wake up each morning, and first thank God that you woke up and focus on what can I do today to make a positive difference, your life will have purpose.  When you go to the drive thru and get your breakfast tell the cashier you want to pay for the car behind you, no matter who is driving.  When you see someone walking down the road wave to them and smile.  When you get to work and your boss or coworker comes in, tell them that they look great, or that they smell amazing.  Focus MORE on others, and LESS on yourself.  If you spend each day swimming in the sea of pity, you will never be happy.  If you dwell on all that has been done to you by others, you will be miserable.  If you whine about your terrible childhood, or your failed marriage, you will waste time that you will never get back again. 

Decide what you want out of life.  You can’t take houses, cars, jewelry, money, fake friends, etc., with you when you die.  But what you can leave here are all the memories that others will have of you and what a positive difference you made in their lives.