One can define life as the time between a person’s birth and his/her completion of life, the way that a person lives, the events that occur in his/her life or his/her state of being alive. I regard life as a journey because of its ups and downs and its similarities to a real journey.
A real journey begins and ends. It starts with a thought such as a person’s desire to visit a place, a country or a town. He/she experiences joy when he/she looks at the sceneries—the beautiful mountains, the beaches and enjoy the museums and other places of interest. A real journey has roadblocks and detours.
Like a real journey, one’s life-journey begins and ends and one encounters joys and disappointments. Because one attributes celebrations and accomplishments to successes, one feels joyful during those times. However, in times of sorrow, one gets side-tracked, feels discouraged and hopeless. Like road blocks, sorrows and disappointments are temporary detours that get in the way of our progress. Like a real journey, we must get back on track by taking a different route, by putting those life-issues behind us, by entrusting them to Jesus Christ, our burden-bearer (Exodus 6:6) and by moving forward.
One way to get back on track is through the act of forgiveness.
We can forgive those who have wronged us or disappointed us. Forgiveness helps us to have a new perspective on life. It is the act of forgiving the other person that frees us and allows us to press forward to reach our goals. Forgiving ourselves from anger also opens the door and allows us to have peace and complete freedom. Let me tell you a quick story.
A woman driving a red car responded to my slow driving by blowing her horn consistently as I entered Shaw’s parking lot. When she came out of her car, I wanted to tell her that I did not appreciate her behavior, but I didn’t. The woman and I approached the door of the supermarket at the same time. She bowed, smiled and motioned for me to go in first. At that point, I smiled and attempted to bring up the issue but I could not. If I did, I would have missed the most precious moment of my life– the act of keeping silent and loving life regardless of what it brings. Steve Maraboli said, “The truth is, unless you let go, unless you forgive yourself, unless you forgive the situation, unless you realize that the situation is over, you cannot move forward.”
Another way to get back on track is to have a positive attitude to life.
We should view life for what it is and focus on completing our assignments or achieving our purposes. God has given everyone an opportunity to make a difference in the world he/she lives. God will use you and your situation to make a difference in this world. For example, God uses prisoners to birth prison ministries. Do not look at your circumstances. Look to the God of heaven and earth, and to His Son Jesus Christ, for with God, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). George Bernard Shaw said, “Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
Another way to get back on track is to have compassion for the poor.
During our mountainous challenges dealing with others, we mature inwardly and gain strength, peace, wisdom, patience and hope. We recognize that during our life-journeys, we should not be warring with people, but giving back to those who are in need. The needy includes the lonely, the poor, those who are hungry and naked, the homeless, and the imprisoned. Kurt Vonnegut said, “A purpose of human life, no matter who is controlling it, is to love whoever is around to be loved.”
As we go through life-issues, let us embrace love. Saint Paul, the Apostle, said in 1 Corinthians 13: 7, “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
May God bless you.
Leave a Reply