December 1, 2023

by Kimberly Hobbs 

EMPOWERING LIVES WITH PURPOSE:
Each day that we open our eyes we have a choice to make for the day. We can either be positive or negative as we step into the hours that await us.
Do any of us think to really focus direct attention on God’s blessings showered on our lives and the wonderful possibilities of living life for Him on that day? Oftentimes our thoughts can immediately return and focus on our troubles and what is far less than what God has for us.
Each day, I must conscientiously choose to be optimistic. I check myself. Trust me, it’s not always easy being a positive person, I do have my moments. I can slip at times and succumb to the pressures that creep in to surround me. On those days, they end up wasted. Deep inside, I know it’s the choice I made by my negative thinking or attitude.
I was reading in Philippians about the apostle Paul who, although physically imprisoned, chose to wake up spiritually “free” each day.
Paul consistently chose to show gratitude over grumbling. He chose to be joyful over being depressed. He chose to trust God over doubting himself.
There may have been a reason God kept Paul in prison. I do not know for certain but it is there that Paul wrote the letters which gave us lessons, encouragement, and warnings. He gave us reasons to praise God through our storms. Paul could have chosen to sit in prison and rot away in self-pity, depression, and pessimism and if he did, you and I would not have some of the most life-changing accounts of his life from which to learn.
Today, let’s all try to choose joy in our attitudes, in our health, in our lives, and in all the relationships around us as well as the health of those we love.
“Don’t worry about anything, and but in everything, through prayer and petition with Thanksgiving, present your request to God.” (Philippians 4:6).
(Taken from my book, “Fuel for Life” by
Kimberly Hobbs). I needed to read this for myself today, remembering full well God’s promises to me. I pray it touches you too. Have a blessed day.