12Apr16

Philippians 4:8
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

I have known many people in my life. Many different types of people. But, the ones that I have the most trouble with are the people that you could put in the middle of the most beautiful field of flowers, on the perfect sunny day, and they would complain about the dirt under their feet. These people always find the negative in every situation. Some of us call them "Debbie Downers." But, I don't think that's fair (mostly because my mom's name is Debi). What really bugs me about these people is that if you are around them for any period of time... you become them. You start to think like them. You start to see the dirt instead of the field of flowers you are standing in. It takes effort to change your perception back to seeing the beauty around you.

In the Army we call this, "hunting the good stuff." The Bible thought of this long before the Army existed. God knows that we have a tendency to see the negative in situations, that our default mode is dark, that it takes effort to see the good stuff. We have to be intentional about what we are allowing our thoughts to dwell on. Of course your situation is going to suck if all you can see is the painful parts!

One of the things I like to do when I start to lose sight of the good things in my day to day life is to actually write it down. I make a list right before I go to bed of only the good stuff. I don't write down the bad things because I don't WANT to remember that. I don't want my life to be defined by negative experiences every day. Instead I want my life to be punctuated by the great things God brings my way every single day. I want to think about these things. What are you thinking about? What thoughts are you allowing to drive your day?