Life is definitely not always easy. It’s full of challenges, heartache, turmoil and difficulties, but it’s also full of happiness, fulfillment, peace and enjoyment. A person must live through some of the not-so-good or bad times to fully appreciate the good times. Have you ever felt overwhelmed or anxiety ridden or been haunted by sleepless nights? Conversely, have you ever felt peaceful, relaxed and rested? We’ve all lived and felt both. Usually, the quality of our life is directly related to the decisions we’ve made and the results or ramifications of those decisions.
I’ve personally lived through several poor decisions and the results they produced, asking myself how and why? Life is full of such poor decisions, and believe it not, we are all very much alike. It’s just that some folks make better decisions than others, some are more aggressive or conservative than others and sometimes we’re flat out in the right or wrong place at the right or wrong time. I’m sure you can relate to it all. I remember several years ago I had just bought a new Chevy SUV. It was nice and pretty, electric everything. I was in my third week of ownership when someone ran a red light and broadsided me, knocking me into a fire hydrant. So my brand-new SUV was all dented up on the passenger side from being hit and the front was all bashed in from hitting the fire hydrant. It was so damaged, it required towing. The car in front of me wasn’t hit or the car behind me—just me, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I was banged up, bruised and frustrated. To add to my problems, the person who hit me didn’t have insurance. You talk about a bad day! It could have been a whole lot worse, though: what if pedestrians had been on the sidewalk when I jumped the curb and hit the hydrant? That could have been catastrophic, for them and for me. I asked myself, why me? One minute later, and I would have been spared this very painful, aggravating and expensive ordeal. Unfortunately, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. It wasn’t my fault or the result of a poor decision—sometimes bad things just happen. Success, and sometimes survival, requires determination, dedication and perseverance.
As the 2016 Olympics came to conclusion and after spending many hours enjoying the many different events, I realized that out of 11,000 contestants only three athletes won medals in each event. However, all 11,000 contestants went through a weeding-out process in their individual country to qualify. They spent hours, days, months and years training. They traveled to compete with other athletes and were chosen based on their performance to represent their home country. It required physical and mental determination, dedication and perseverance year after year. They excelled in their field ahead of many competitors until they came out at the top, the best and the cream of the crop. They made it to the 2016 Olympics, which in my opinion makes them all winners!
Which reminds me of two Bible scriptures:
• John 3:16: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
• Romans 10:9: If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Regardless of your age, ethnicity, gender, failures or successes, if you read, say and believe these two scriptures, you are a winner! Where you will spend eternity can be determined in the next few moments based on your decision to either accept or reject Jesus Christ as your personal savior.
Anything and everything in life that has value, is good and has positive eternal consequences will take determination, dedication and perseverance.
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