A dear friend gave me this poem on Sunday. She liked it and thought I would, too. She was right, I like it - a lot! If you read it quickly, you might miss the important stuff. So I am going to go over it again, really slow and add a little to it. It has a great message if you take time to really think about it.
What is your life? A burden? A joy? A hardship? A journey?
⦁ Life is an Opportunity - Benefit from it! If you wake up each morning then you have another opportunity to make that day count. You can use each day anyway you want, but if you waste it, you can't get it back. There is not a bank of unused days where you can make a withdrawal when you need one. When you go to sleep that night, whatever you did with your day is done and can not be undone. Every day is an opportunity to be all you can be in whatever circumstances you are in. Make the most of it and benefit from it.
What are some of the benefits you can enjoy by making the most of your days? You gain quite a lot actually:
- Satisfaction in the accomplishments of the day.
- A boost to your self-esteem in knowing that you were able to do more with your day than you thought.
- Added years to your life. If you stay active and engaged in life, you will be adding years to your life by keeping your mind and body in motion.
- You will be healthier. If stay engaged in your life and active, you won't have time to feel "sorry for yourself" for your age, health, or circumstances. You will find that you may even forget how old you are and feel a lot younger. If you sit around waiting to die, you are lowering your good hormones and peptide hormones called endorphins leading to more illness and depression.
- Your quality of life will improve. If you stay involved with others, you will find that you will be happier, healthier, and feel younger.
- Many, many more benefits...unlimited!
Enjoy and Learn!
⦁ Life is Beauty - Admire it! Life is a beautiful thing. The world around us is a beautiful place. If you fail each day to see the beauty of life and the world we live in, you have lost an incredible opportunity that you can not get back. Look at your life - no matter what your circumstances you are beautiful. God made you in His image, you are beautiful because God is beautiful. Look at your heart, is it beautiful? If not, then work on it. The earth is full of beautiful things, birds that sing, varieties of flowers and trees and other plants, the clouds in the sky are never the same - they are constantly changing and full of beauty. Think about all the varieties of birds...life is beauty and to take it for granted is a waste. Try to find at least one beautiful thing each day to admire. (You'll find more than one if you just take time to look!)
⦁ Life is a Challenge - Meet it! If you played sports you know that it doesn't matter if you think you can really win or not, you don't ever go out to play with the attitude of losing - not ever! You always go out with the hope of winning. If you win, you succeeded. If you lose, you still succeed! How? Because you rose to the challenge and met it. You didn't sit out and say, we can't win so I'm not playing this time. You got in the game and played your heart out until it was over. Who wants to watch a football game with one team sitting on the sidelines waiting for the game to be over because they just knew they would lost? No one! That's life, too. We don't always win, we don't always lose, but if we sit on the sidelines we can't even say we met the challenge of life. There is satisfaction is meeting a challenge whether you win or lose. If your health is bad, rise up and meet the challenge to try to get healthier and be as active as you can. Don't sit on the sidelines of your own life!
⦁ Life is a Duty - Complete it! To win a game of football, you have to finish the game. You can't get ahead by a few points and then say, it's over in the middle of the third quarter. The game is not over and the winner is not a winner until both teams finish the game. We all have a "duty" to live our lives as productive, happy, and spiritual as we can. We must live all the way to the end of our life if we hope to reap the rewards of our life.
⦁ Life is a game - Play it! It may not seem like a game at times, but if you really put it all in perspective, life is a lot like a game. We are faced with challenges, choices, and then we either win or lose based on our choices. Don't sit on the sidelines and watch everyone else play the game of life, get in the game. Be proactive. If you have a challenge, think about all the choices you have and the possible outcomes and then make your move. Don't close you eyes and make choices by spinning a bottle, tossing a coin, or worse, let someone else make your decisions. If you fail to make your own decisions, someone will be happy to do it for you - but you may not like their choices.
⦁ Life is a blessing - Be thankful for it! I have witnessed people who are so busy earning a living or dealing with things that could actually wait till another time, that they forget to live the life they have been given. Life is about living. Yes, we have to make money to provide for ourselves and our families, but we should never forget the personal connections we share. If you put work ahead of family and friends, you will find yourself a lonely person one day. Be thankful everyday that you woke up in the morning and have been given another day to show love to the people you love and receive love from the people who love you. Be thankful for every day that you are breathing and living. As long as you are breathing, you are not done!
Think on these things "...whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if these be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Philippians 4:8.
You only get one life. You only get one chance to experience and explore all the world has to offer. Life is a gift, no matter what your circumstances are. You life could be an encouragement to someone else who has the same circumstances as you. You could be an example to someone of how to live a good life.
Do you appreciate the life you have been given or do you complain every morning when the alarm goes off? Think about those who can't hear that alarm because they are in the ground. Do you play the game of life and are you thankful for the blessing of life? If you are dealing with a difficult illness or situation in your life, but you have found a way to stay positive and engaged? Please share it. You may help another in that same place in their life.
XOXO
What is your life? A burden? A joy? A hardship? A journey?
⦁ Life is an Opportunity - Benefit from it! If you wake up each morning then you have another opportunity to make that day count. You can use each day anyway you want, but if you waste it, you can't get it back. There is not a bank of unused days where you can make a withdrawal when you need one. When you go to sleep that night, whatever you did with your day is done and can not be undone. Every day is an opportunity to be all you can be in whatever circumstances you are in. Make the most of it and benefit from it.
What are some of the benefits you can enjoy by making the most of your days? You gain quite a lot actually:
- Satisfaction in the accomplishments of the day.
- A boost to your self-esteem in knowing that you were able to do more with your day than you thought.
- Added years to your life. If you stay active and engaged in life, you will be adding years to your life by keeping your mind and body in motion.
- You will be healthier. If stay engaged in your life and active, you won't have time to feel "sorry for yourself" for your age, health, or circumstances. You will find that you may even forget how old you are and feel a lot younger. If you sit around waiting to die, you are lowering your good hormones and peptide hormones called endorphins leading to more illness and depression.
- Your quality of life will improve. If you stay involved with others, you will find that you will be happier, healthier, and feel younger.
- Many, many more benefits...unlimited!
Enjoy and Learn!
⦁ Life is Beauty - Admire it! Life is a beautiful thing. The world around us is a beautiful place. If you fail each day to see the beauty of life and the world we live in, you have lost an incredible opportunity that you can not get back. Look at your life - no matter what your circumstances you are beautiful. God made you in His image, you are beautiful because God is beautiful. Look at your heart, is it beautiful? If not, then work on it. The earth is full of beautiful things, birds that sing, varieties of flowers and trees and other plants, the clouds in the sky are never the same - they are constantly changing and full of beauty. Think about all the varieties of birds...life is beauty and to take it for granted is a waste. Try to find at least one beautiful thing each day to admire. (You'll find more than one if you just take time to look!)
⦁ Life is a Challenge - Meet it! If you played sports you know that it doesn't matter if you think you can really win or not, you don't ever go out to play with the attitude of losing - not ever! You always go out with the hope of winning. If you win, you succeeded. If you lose, you still succeed! How? Because you rose to the challenge and met it. You didn't sit out and say, we can't win so I'm not playing this time. You got in the game and played your heart out until it was over. Who wants to watch a football game with one team sitting on the sidelines waiting for the game to be over because they just knew they would lost? No one! That's life, too. We don't always win, we don't always lose, but if we sit on the sidelines we can't even say we met the challenge of life. There is satisfaction is meeting a challenge whether you win or lose. If your health is bad, rise up and meet the challenge to try to get healthier and be as active as you can. Don't sit on the sidelines of your own life!
⦁ Life is a Duty - Complete it! To win a game of football, you have to finish the game. You can't get ahead by a few points and then say, it's over in the middle of the third quarter. The game is not over and the winner is not a winner until both teams finish the game. We all have a "duty" to live our lives as productive, happy, and spiritual as we can. We must live all the way to the end of our life if we hope to reap the rewards of our life.
⦁ Life is a game - Play it! It may not seem like a game at times, but if you really put it all in perspective, life is a lot like a game. We are faced with challenges, choices, and then we either win or lose based on our choices. Don't sit on the sidelines and watch everyone else play the game of life, get in the game. Be proactive. If you have a challenge, think about all the choices you have and the possible outcomes and then make your move. Don't close you eyes and make choices by spinning a bottle, tossing a coin, or worse, let someone else make your decisions. If you fail to make your own decisions, someone will be happy to do it for you - but you may not like their choices.
⦁ Life is a blessing - Be thankful for it! I have witnessed people who are so busy earning a living or dealing with things that could actually wait till another time, that they forget to live the life they have been given. Life is about living. Yes, we have to make money to provide for ourselves and our families, but we should never forget the personal connections we share. If you put work ahead of family and friends, you will find yourself a lonely person one day. Be thankful everyday that you woke up in the morning and have been given another day to show love to the people you love and receive love from the people who love you. Be thankful for every day that you are breathing and living. As long as you are breathing, you are not done!
Think on these things "...whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if these be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Philippians 4:8.
You only get one life. You only get one chance to experience and explore all the world has to offer. Life is a gift, no matter what your circumstances are. You life could be an encouragement to someone else who has the same circumstances as you. You could be an example to someone of how to live a good life.
Do you appreciate the life you have been given or do you complain every morning when the alarm goes off? Think about those who can't hear that alarm because they are in the ground. Do you play the game of life and are you thankful for the blessing of life? If you are dealing with a difficult illness or situation in your life, but you have found a way to stay positive and engaged? Please share it. You may help another in that same place in their life.
XOXO
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