How to love the life you choose

Thursday, May 23, 2019


What is the difference between the life you get and the life you choose? One is given, the other, gathered. The life you get is given by God. He formed you, He knew your life's purpose. He made you the way you are with intentionality. There were no accidents: God is brilliant in His creation.

The life you choose is gathered by you. Gathering is the act of bringing together in one group. When you gather, you collect every life circumstance that comes your way and you do something with it. You and I know there are things in life we don't choose. I didn't choose to be robbed the first day I arrived in this country for college. I had $200 dollars so I was left with $100. I gathered  that experience. I chose to rise up from despair and get a job. My mother was right: God has more to give than the devil can steal.

How do you love the life you choose? I believe you need to start by investigating the positive things happening, despite the hardships. Having your money stolen is no fun. I thought about the potential I had to earn money. I looked for a job and I found a good one.

Because we are alive, difficult situations will come our way. We can choose to pout. We can also love the life we choose.


Be grateful • being grateful is better than being hateful. True gratitude comes from a heart surrendered to God. My friend, you can write a thousand pages on your gratitude journal but unless that attitude comes from a surrendered heart, it will not work long-term.

Serve others • the purpose is not to get distracted by the things we dislike about our lives. The goal is to be like Jesus. He said He came to serve. Serving others opens the eyes to the very nature of God. He is generous and good. We must be like Him.

Eternal self • eternal beings forget they are eternal. I know I do. I try to think about my life in light of eternity. I often think about my situation through that perspective. Will this issue really matter in light of eternity?

Take action • Once you have a chance to think about what happened to you, take action. Taking action assures you that you have the power to bring about change. Action is the a physical demonstration that your situation is temporary. The change it brings will build your character.

God created you with a purpose in mind. He gave you life. It is up to you to love the life you choose.

If you are going through a difficult situation, please know that I empathize with you. Please know that it is important to feel your feelings. I am also responsible for reminding you that you have the power to bring about change. You will get back up again. You will be strong again. Things will change. Don't give up on loving the life you choose.