The Inspirational Email I Sent To Myself.
This literally is an email I sent to myself. As such, I have left it more or less unedited. I’ve only made a few statements ALL CAPS, or bold for emphasis. I share it here because I find this kind of mental exercise very helpful in my daily effort to stay positive. Maybe it will help you too.
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There is often a perception that there are things standing in the way of the life you want to be living. Not enough time. Not enough money. Not enough resources. Too many responsibilities. The list could go on and on.
What you MUST do is destroy that perception. That perception only leads to an attitude of waiting until things are right to do what you want to be doing. Perhaps there is too little money or other resources. Perhaps there are too many responsibilities. The facts of the situation are the facts. What you MUST do is assess whether those facts can be changed. Assess whether you can work within those facts and take small steps towards the life you want to be living.
The worst thing you can do is wait around for things to change. Things don’t change if they don’t have to. Sometimes they do, sure. But many things won’t change if you don’t change them. If you don’t like something try to change it into something you like better. Do not be a victim. Be an agent of change.
If you want more time to do certain activities, look at your life and find time when you are doing things that don’t mean much to you. Replace those activities with what you want to be doing. Small steps towards your goal are all that is necessary.
If you wait you become a victim. You live in the mentality that you are not in control and that you are powerless to change your life. Sure, there are things that are not in your control. There is a measure of powerlessness in all of our lives. But do not give that more attention than it needs. Do not make the assumption that you cannot change things. Try first and let the results speak for themselves. If you truly are powerless in certain areas, then you need not give those areas any thought at all. Rather focus on what you CAN do. DO what you CAN do. Don’t worry about the rest.
God, who has blessed all men richly, says repeatedly, do not worry, do not despair, have courage, be strong and very courageous. Those are the kinds of things you say to people when you expect them to go out and DO some things. Those are motivational words! Those aren’t words that you say to someone so that they will sit in fear and worry and frustration. Those are words of liberation and agency! Those are words that release us from the responsibility to act out of fear. Are you afraid to sit still and relax? Don’t be. Go ahead and sit still and relax. Are you afraid to make a change in your life? Don’t be. Go ahead and make the change.
None of this means that you can stop using your common sense. It doesn’t mean you can do whatever, whenever and expect everything to be great. But it means that using the gifts and good sense God gave us, we can freely take the reigns and steer. We can make decisions. We can take action. We can live fully and we can attempt everything that we have on our hearts.
God is in control. We cannot steal the power from Him. We cannot direct the ship unless He allows it. So by all means do your best and take action in the faith that He will NOT let you go. You are His. He wants you to succeed. He wants you to have Joy. He wants you to experience life fully.
All of this is to say simply, DO NOT WAIT FOR YOUR LIFE TO CHANGE BEFORE YOU START TO ENJOY IT. IF YOU DON’T LIKE YOUR LIFE MAKE SOME CHANGES TO BRING IT IN LINE WITH YOUR DESIRE.
