When always being positive before Calamity isn't enough…


It’s no secret that life deals you hands of ups and downs, all the time. It’s not our decision; it’s going to happen anyway, but what is there to do when we go through those things that seem to have no end? How is it even possible to have a positive outlook when “stuck” is all that we seem to have? Well, whenever we ask that question to someone, our answer is always, “Pray about it,” “Give it to God”, or, “Things will get better.” All of this is true. We are supposed to pray that things get better while going through the storm, but just praying about some things getting better is not all it takes to make it better. Yes, it’s true.

While praying, we shouldn’t just ask for God to make things better. He helps those that help themselves. A lot of times, changes in the way we put our prayers may be what we should consider. We should start asking God to show us the way to make things better. Too many of us ask, “God, please make this better”, then sit on our rump and wait for the better to come. Is that right, though? In some cases, yes. In cases where we have no control over our situation, that may work, but we still have work to do, even in that situation. The work is to have faith that all will be better. Having faith through difficult times is hard work, especially when the hard times make us feel as if we have hit rock bottom! I mean, how can one lose their home, their car, their spouse and children, and their employment, and have faith that it will get better? Well, there are several more homes out there, several more vehicles, there’s always hope for reconciliation in marriages, and no matter what people are trying to make us think about there being no jobs available, there’s always available employment. During those times, it’s hard to even think that way, but that’s the power of mind control. As I always say: you control your mind; don’t LET it control you.

Our mistake is that we always see the bad, and it takes control of our hope. Think about it: the bad is normally what happens first, and us having hope that things will get better for what happened happens second, which means that the bad showed up first. If we practiced on having faith, no matter what happens in life, then that means that faith will be there first. Get it?

We have to practice on having faith at all times; that’s the key. If we begin to wake up every morning and have faith that whatever the day brings, we will make it through successfully, we would then handle all situations gracefully when they occur. Terrible situations do happen, this we know. How often do we sit and realize that though? Many people tell us to always think positive, but in my opinion, that’s only beneficial with positive emotions. It may keep you in a good mood, but when you only plan for positive outcomes in all situations, when the bad happens, we are affected devastatingly. Now, I’m not saying all of this to try to get people to think more of the bad, but always remember that everything is not perfect. Facing that fact takes off some of the negative affect of depression and the feeling of “let down” when things don’t go the way we hoped.

When things happen in our life, we have to remember that everything, the bad and the good, happens to us because each person, thing, place, or situation are all steps in our journey. We have to get rid of the “Why me?” question. We have to get rid of the feeling that things will never change, or that we can’t deal with it. Remember, if we couldn’t handle it, it wouldn’t happen. That’s the truth. While going through, it helps to replay what has happened to you before, that you made it out of. That helps to regain focus. It serves as a reminder that things will happen, and just like we are happy about the things that are good, we can also be happy about the bad things, because we know how to remind ourselves that we can handle it. Or, in current slang, “We got this!”