5 Vital Choices for Life

Life is hectic at times. Stuff happens. Things do not go as planned. Other people’s agendas will inevitably throw you off track. Angry and difficult people will curse you, Oversights you have made will leave you with egg on the face. That’s life. For years I've said that life is what happens when you've made other plans.

When life throws you a curve-ball, you may not be able to control what’s coming at you, but you can control how you respond. It is that critical choice that will make all the difference. Here are five genuine choices that you can make every day that will make your life better in spite of what surprises come your way.

1. Have to wait? Why not meditate?

It happens all the time. You are in a hurry and the line at the bank is taking forever. Your quick run to the grocery store stops cold because the person in the check-out line didn't realize the “10 Items or Less” applied to them. You want to have an important conversation with someone and they keep putting you off for whatever reason. That’s life. Sometimes we have to wait. Yet, how often do we react to these unwanted pauses in our busy schedule with irritation, disgust, or perhaps outright anger. Rather than get angry or frustrated, while you wait chose to meditate. Say a prayer. Focus your thoughts on positive outcomes. Pray a blessing over the person or situation that is contributing to your wait time. Breathe and accept the moment as an opportunity to center yourself and be blessed.


2. It’s a nuisance, not the end of the world. 

Human beings are biologically hard-wired to have a very strong “fight/flight” reflex. When faced with life-threatening danger, the adrenalin dump into the system is designed to protect and prepare our bodies to do whatever it take to ensure survival. This is really effective if we are faced with a very real and imminent danger and immediate threat to our life. Yet, honestly, how many times in your lifetime have you been truly in danger of imminent death? Perhaps a few, but thankfully that is not an everyday reality for the vast majority of humanity. In spite of that fact, many people get so spun up over little things that the body is literally being taught to go into fight/flight mode because the soda machine malfunctioned and kept the money or because we feel the need to get to the red light faster than everyone else on the road at that moment. If things do not go the way you desire, rather than treat it as a potential end to life, shake it off and be honest. It is a nuisance, but not life-threatening. Then act accordingly.


3. Don’t know—don’t go! 

The human mind is an incredible creation with an unrelenting capacity to imagine just about anything. As much as this is one of our greatest strengths, it can also be one of our biggest downfalls; particularly when we don’t know something. When we do not know something (example: “I do not know where my spouse is right now”) the mind is quick to imagine any range of possibilities. Unfortunately, those possibilities are often driven by fears, insecurities, or negative past experiences. Before we know it, rather than simply acknowledging something that we don’t know, we can become emotionally spun out over an imagined reality that is both irrationally negative and probably as far from the truth as possible. It’s a simple rule of life. If you do not know something, don’t go there as if you did. Instead, in life we need to focus on what we know.

4. Be Aware but don’t let worry consume your care.

Worry is perhaps one of the biggest killers in the world. Its negative affect on physiological health, mental health, and relational stability is profound. Worst of all, much of the stuff we worry about is beyond our control anyway. If you can’t control or change the situation, why invest precious emotional, physical, and mental energy into worrying about it. On the other hand, if you can change something, worry is not going to empower you to change a thing. Instead, worry will consume the precious energy you need to address the situation. When faced with a situation over which we are prone to worry, be aware. Look objectively at the situation and prayerfully discern what the options may be, what can and cannot be controlled, and how you are going to be able to positively address the situation. Then, without the burden of worry or fear, act on your awareness rather than give into worry.


5. Always radiate the Attitude of Gratitude. 

In all things, be thankful, express appreciation, and share your gratitude at every opportunity. Take time to thank the people who give you service. Acknowledge the efforts of others in all things. Tune your awareness to recognize the little things people do—especially if they are not done explicitly for you. Life is too short to be consumed by ingratitude and the negativity that accompanies it. Even the simple blessing of smiling and nodding one’s head in a gesture of appreciative acknowledgment of another’s genuine humanity goes a long way.


So. It’s up to you and me. What are we going to choose?

Be blessed and in so doing, be a blessing! May God’s grace and peace go with you. Thanks for reading!

Dining (and Praying) Together

Have you ever noticed that most tables are made for more than one person?

It sounds like a rather redundant question but think about it for a moment. Why are tables generally intended to seat multiple people? The answer is that most people like to eat together, not separate.

Ironically, eating is really an exceptionally individualistic process. I cannot eat a meal for another person. Whatever nourishment I take into my body will no more help another person’s nutrition than if I were to exercise in somebody else’s place and hope they would be the one to lose the weight.

In spite of the fact that we alone are the only ones that can eat for ourselves, we also like to do it most in the company of others. In fact, I think there are few realities more depressing than constantly eating alone.

In Christianity, we share the common meal of the Eucharist. Call it Communion, the Mass, Lord’s Supper, Last Supper, or Lord’s Table, it essentially remains the singular symbol of a sacred meal shared Christ shared in the intimate community of his closest friends. They each ate and drank individually, but did so together. In gathering at that table we do more than remember, we also join together in sacred prayer as one Body of Christ shared in community.

To me, this image takes on even greater significance when I encounter the book of James. “If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,’ and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that?” (James 2:15-16) The primary meaning behind this is that it is not enough to simply have faith and pray for one’s well-being, one needs to take an active role in making a difference with that individual.

This reality became vividly clear to me when a friend said to me today that the difference between praying for someone versus with someone is like eating for someone versus with them. Not that there is anything wrong with praying for people! I do it all the time and have no intention to stop. But think for a moment how easy it is to say on the fly, “Oh, I’m praying for you!” and then pray when it is convenient. Now imagine what a difference it may make for that individual to stop, take their hand, and offer up a heartfelt prayer by the power of the Holy Spirit and actually pray WITH them, rather than simply for them.

Pray! The book of James concludes with one of the most powerful testimonies to prayer in all the Bible. “Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise.   Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord.   The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven.   Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.”  ( James 5:13-16 )

I believe that part of the power of this prayer is not that those remembered in prayer are being prayed for as much as the prayer directly involves them!

As the New Year dawns, prayerfully consider who you can pray with as well as pray for. Perhaps even pray for them to come to a place that you CAN pray with them if that is necessary! It could mean the difference between you eating for them and eating with them!

God bless!