why not me?

Many of us desire change in our lives. And as humans we can often find ourselves easily lured into the devil’s snare as our impatience and longing for revolution causes us to focus on the negatives and vocalize our dissatisfaction with life and our present circumstances. We may not realize it in those moments of impulsivity when we find ourselves overwhelmed with emotion and seeking confirmation for our feelings, but we are only further imprisoning ourselves. We cannot attain the outcomes that we seek by simply complaining about our present situation and waiting for our miraculous turnaround to come seek out our participation. Life requires us to not only be present but to be ready to deliver on our commitments as well. It takes action to be revolutionary.

Positive thinking is a daily grind. It requires discipline to create a new, habitual way of processing our thoughts, feelings, and perceptions of the world around us. To say that anyone has mastered it would be making a false claim. It’s a lifelong journey. Even the strongest and most resilient minds will be tested with adversity on a regular basis. The true revolutionary thinkers, the professionals in the art of positive thinking differentiate themselves from the masses by the way that they respond to trials and testing. Such individuals have achieved a level of mindfulness that allows them to process everything in a very intimate way. And because of this, they see the opportunity in every adverse situation that they face. Rather than reacting with fear or anxiety that would send most of us running back to comfort, they step forward with quiet confidence, and they take action.

Mindfulness is a wonderful thing. It has played a significant role in my own personal journey to sound mental health. “Being aware” is a very valuable characteristic to possess. In fact, it’s my opinion that as humans it’s the key to our happiness. But it requires an intimacy with oneself that can be difficult for many of us to attain. To be mindful, we must eliminate the distractions and personal vices and habits that have served to protect us from ourselves. Often times, such belongings and behaviors are long established in our lives, and they’re not easy to give up. They provide us with comfort, reassuring us that we will always be able to flip the channel when the show playing out in front us is too painful for our viewing.

The good news is that there is a way to be comfortable and at the same time seek mindfulness. And that’s through faith. We must let go of our need to control all outcomes and also relieve ourselves of the anxious desire to plan our escape route to the nearest exit should things unravel. We need to remember that God is holding us in the palm of His hand. He is not going to give us more than we are able to handle. We have His promise. If we surrender our lives to Him, He will stand by us forever. He will introduce us to ourselves. Through our relationship with Him we will discover our true purpose in life. Our plan will unfold piece by piece. The enemy will be revealed to us as well, but we will not fear. Instead we will continue to take action in FAITH and promote the changes that we so deeply desire in our lives.

The specialists in positive thinking know the enemy well. They are no more immune to the attacks and manipulation of evil than you or I. In fact I would argue that they are seen as marked targets of the devil. Because to the devil, they represent a threat. Imagine if we could all be taught to look temptation in the eye and resist repeatedly with unwavering faith as our backing… Can you envision a world where doubt and fear never limited anyone’s God given talents and abilities? A world where our mantra becomes “why not me? I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” Wow. We would be unstoppable.

I read an interesting devotional the other evening that really provided me with a lot of assurance about the influence and power that we have in conjunction with the known strength our Heavenly father. The teaching reminded me that the devil cannot take action on his own. He must act through channels of the world and the flesh. He carries out his desires to destroy all that is good through people, praying on those whose faith is weak. His plots often take time to bring all of the evil that he desires to pass, but if we take the bait and accept his devious invitations to participate in his plans, we will see that he has the ability to destroy everything around us very quickly. If however we resist the devil and turn to our faith in the Lord, we can overcome evil every single time it rears its ugly head. Because unlike the devil, our God does not rely on the world or the flesh to carry out His desires. He is able to rescue us from the darkness and return us to the light immediately. We must simply turn away from temptation and call upon Him, and He will be there. We have His promise.

As I mentioned earlier, mindfulness is a very powerful resource to acquire. But mindfulness accompanied by faith is even more remarkable. When you become aware of yourself and are able to identify the attacks of the enemy, you can render evil powerless. And that’s a great feeling. Because the devil requires worldly participants to carry out his destructive plan, and you, for one are not going to be in attendance. As a mindful, faith based individual, you will have the ability to see adversity for what it is. Often, it’s merely a manipulative invitation from the devil to direct you off course and lead you back to the darkness. The beauty of it is that you don’t have to go. You can stay where you are, in the light, forever. You must simply resist temptation and step forward in faith. Ignore the threat and remember that you are not alone. You are in the palm of His hand. And He rewards and takes pride in those who act upon faith.

When you’ve rendered evil powerless in your life, it becomes a lot easier to remain in a positive mindset. That does not mean that you won’t be tempted or threatened, because you most certainly will. But if you remain strong in the faith and continue to devote yourself to being mindful, you’ll be able to avoid the majority of the pitfalls that the devil has planned for you. It’s important to remember that he prays on weakness, so you must know where you are vulnerable and pay close attention to those areas in your life. Then continue to move forward with God’s plan for your journey. If you recall, I mentioned earlier that you will receive the road map for your life piece by piece. Personally, I’ve found as I put my own puzzle together each step forward often requires more faith than the one taken before. But that’s all part of the plan, you see. The further off you head on your journey, the closer you grow in your relationship with God. And soon, you realize that the destination doesn’t matter at all. Because you trust that wherever you are going, you’re going with Him, and it doesn’t get any better than that.

Your steps in faith are the key to your freedom. You will open doors in your life that you never even knew existed if you simply let go and allow the Lord to guide your footsteps. Now, letting go does not mean sitting back. The Lord will direct your footsteps, but He wants you to take the action. If He were to do it for you, that wouldn’t require much faith. It’s the steps that we take trusting in Him and His plan despite any fears, doubts, temptations, and resistance that the devil puts in our way that will truly lead us to the life that we’ve always desired. It’s those steps that lead us closer to Him and to His favor. And friends I’m telling you when you’re a friend of God, all things are possible.

So if you’re looking for change in your life, if you want to be revolutionary, you need to focus on building your awareness through faith and taking meaningful action. You need to ignore the masses and trust in God. There will always be critics and naysayers; we’ve all been one at one time or another. Revolutionaries don’t wait for the masses. They don’t sit back and hope for a knock at their door inviting them to participate in life. They take action inspired by their beliefs. You cannot wait for the right moment to engage, or you will wait forever. Believe me, the devil knows every trick in the book to fool you into taking cover. He knows how to keep your body aching and your mind racing. Ignore it. It’s a trap. Do not accept his invitation. Instead, let the temporary discomfort wash over you like a wave on a beach and remain calm, trusting that your God is bigger than your problems. Remember, the devil can only wreak havoc with willing participants, of which you are NOT one. Step forward in faith, and piece by piece your journey will unfold.

You’ll be astonished by what God will do in your life – and someday you’ll pay your positive energy forward, teaching others the mantra… “Why not me? I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”