Half Empty or Half Full? (January 11, 2009 12:11 PM)
It's hard to believe that we are already almost half way through January of this new year,
or should I say it's not quite half way through? I generally don't make New Years
resolutions and this year is no different, but I started thinking why that was.
What is it about each of us that prompts us to make and try to keep them, or simply not even
make any to begin with. I'm generally a glass half empty thinker, but on occasion
I see things half full. It depends on my outlook or rather how much the particular
matter directly affects me. As a Christian, I believe that God has plans for each
of us and when I am receptive to them things tend to go better than when I try to run the show
myself. What we tend to think and be taught is that God's plans are generally about
growing us to become something that will bring him glory while at the same time prospering us.
That fits in with either our half full or half empty thinking.
What if we were to begin to think in a "glass completely full" mode in that God has already made great plans for each of us and is revealing them to us little by little as we grow. As we seek Him and follow His plan, all those other things that have been covering us like a shell are peeled away to reveal the truly fulfilled person that He desires us to be. His plans are to prosper us and not harm us, but that doesn't mean we will never have any hardship or always understand everything just because we follow His plans. Sometimes when we suffer hardships God's plan is revealed even more than if things had gone perfectly for us. I don't know about you, but for me it is during those times I seem to grow the most, because it's then that I tend to seek Him more. I used to think that since I am supposed to follow God's plans and not mine that it didn't make sense to make New Years resolutions or plans of my own. As I really began to think about it though it became clear that part of the reason I haven't made resolutions is that I had lost hope that things would change in the way I wanted. Each year as I looked at the resolutions I might make, I thought about the possibility of failing more than succeeding. It also became clear that I was looking selfishly at my own plans and not God's. What if instead of resolving to stop a bad habit or lose weight or things that seem impossible for me to accomplish I resolved to do things that would bring me closer to God and then allow his plans for my life to be revealed through the spirit He put in me. Would it really be so hard to spend more time reading the Bible or praying? What if I were to serve others more and use the gifts he has blessed me with instead of doing things he never intended for my life. I have no doubt if I resolved to do this, other good things would follow. Bad habits might begin to fall away. I might not feel the need to eat to satisfy emotional cravings and lose some weight. I might again find more hope and less despair. Half empty, half full or completely full and running over. The choice is ours to make. I wonder which one I'll choose this year? |