Life Is What You Make It
Life is what you make it.
I think it’s safe to say that 2020 has been a challenging year for many of us. From the lockdowns, to the quarantines, to the loss of life, setbacks and delays, 2020 will definitely receive its own chapter in history books to come. Since the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic, it has been easy for me to focus on everything that is wrong in the world. I focused so much on the loss and the delays and the setbacks, that I frequently found myself battling discouragement and anxiety. Finding joy was very hard, and I would honestly spend many days, wallowing in self-pity, moping around the house. However, after spending time with God, He helped me to realize that moping, and falling into discouragement was only causing me more harm than good. He reminded me that my joy and my peace comes from Him.
Even though I knew that my joy and peace comes from God, a few days ago, I found myself falling back into that same discouraging place. I was sitting on my bed, thinking about every hard thing that I had been facing, when the Holy Spirit reminded me of a simple truth: “Life is what you make it.” When the thought came to my mind, I began to think about what it really meant for my life. After I reflected on it some more and asked God, in that moment, I realized that it is up to me to decide how I want to live my life everyday. I can choose to wake up each day focusing on the bad, and walking around in self-pity, or, I can choose to wake up each day with gratitude, focusing on the good in my life. God reminded me that I can make it my goal each day to pinpoint everything that is wrong in the world, or, I can fix my eyes on things above (Colossians 3:2) and remember that He is still in control. Life is really what you make it.
After I had that revelation, I can say with all honesty, that I have never been happier. I have never felt more joy and peace this year than I do right now. This is because I’ve realized that I had to make a choice. Either I would continue walking through life being discouraged and bitter about what was wrong or what didn’t happen, or, I can see life for all of the beautiful possibilities that it holds. I went for a boat ride earlier today and ended up smiling the entire time. In the moment, I kept remembering that life is what I make it, so I took in everything around me. The water, the sky, the salty air, and even the people. I refused to take anything for granted, and I had so much fun. It’s amazing how much your life can change when you make the decision to choose joy. When I wake up in the morning now, I smile when I see the sunlight. When I go for a drive, I roll the windows down and allow the fresh breeze to cool my skin. When I look up at the sky, I smile at the clouds, because I’ve realized that life is what I make it. I’ve chosen to abandon the lie that I am destined to live a life of discouragement and constant disappointment. God has helped me to realize that life is what I make it, and guess what?
I choose to make it a joyful one. I pray that you do the same. Remember this truth as you go about your day: Life is what you make it.