Whenever my girls go to spend the night with grandparents, I am thinking this is going to be good, I can use the break!  I mean let’s be honest, they asked a thousand questions and usually with just one word like:  “Why?”, “How?” or “Where?” as in “Where are we going?”  They have loud toys or like to listen to their music loud and if they are the opposite sex, then that creates another set of issues that we don’t even have time to talk about!

While I enjoy my girls going to spend the night, I also can’t stand it, because after about thirty minutes, I am missing them!  I miss the things they say, the expressions on their faces and the crazy things they say!  I miss getting to love them and be loved by them.  When they are gone, it makes me realize how valuable every minute of everyday we get to spend together is!

It’s not just about me missing them.  I am better when I am with them and they are better when they are with me.  God gave them to me and me to them; and He did this on purpose – so that we all could live more fulfilling lives!  Next time the noise from the toys starts to get on your last nerve or the music is just a little too loud, take a moment to think about how you will miss it when it is gone.  Instead of dreading it, jump in there with them and create a memory for you and for them – you will be glad you did!

Habits, we all have them, some are good and some are bad.  There are several questions we need to ask concerning habits.  These questions can help us to get a good start on some goals for the new year:  1) What are our habits?  2.) Which ones are good and which ones are bad?  3) How do we get rid of the ones that are doing us harm?  4) What do we replace them with?  5) When will we get started?  Galatians 4:7 says that we are no longer slaves, but children of the Most High God.  We are children with power to live different, better and more fulfilling lives.  We must be willing to do our part, so let’s get started!

WHAT ARE OUR HABITS?  Take a few moments to actually think about your habits, both good and bad.  Think of as many habits as you can and jot them all down.  You may want to ask people around you that you trust to also help you to see what maybe you can’t see.  Once you have your habit list, then you can move to the next step!

WHAT IS GOOD AND WHAT IS BAD?  This is where you have to take your list and put every habit on the scales to see what it weighs.  It will be easy to distinguish the difference between some, but a lot of our habits walk a very fine line and this is where you will have to do some real soul-searching.  Determine the good from the bad and make a decision about habits that you need to change or get rid of!

GET RID OF THE BAD BY REPLACING IT WITH GOOD!  Steps 3 & 4 actually work hand in hand!  We all have bad habits.  If we want to make life more fulfilling, then we have to learn to replace our old bad habits of reaction with new good habits of purpose!  Once you decide in your mind that you are going to do this, the heart will ultimately follow and you will find yourself living a very different life!

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING ON?  You know what you need to do!  You’ve been knowing what you need to do for a while.  Even if it is just working on one wrong bad habit at a time, then get it done – you will be glad you did!

William James said:  “The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can altar his life by altering his attitude.”  This can be true in a positive way or in a negative way and each individual makes the choice for themselves.

I’ve noticed that when I get bad news, have to face challenges or deal with difficult people, that I often react with a predetermined and predefined reaction.  It is a reaction that I have relied upon for years.  I am not really sure why I rely so heavily upon it, because it rarely does for me, what I need for it to do.

When things are not going the way that I think they should, I am tempted to blow things out of proportion and overreact by focusing on the negative.  This does not move me forward into success, but often actually does just the opposite and renders me immobilized by little things that should have no control over great big me.

I allow these “little things” to irritate and frustrate me and then actually get even more upset when they get in the way of me getting what I want or think I deserve.  This focusing on the negative does not help, it actually hinders in just about every way imaginable.

When you make everything a big deal, then nothing gets the big deal attention that it needs and very little will change, especially in the positive way that you were hoping.  When your life reached this level of frustration it is actually very easy to believe that the cards of life are stacked against you.

This wrong relation to life robs us of the real living that we were created for.  Stop right now and think about how you do this.  Think about what you can do, to change this wrong direction in this very moment.  Now claim more and more of these little moments of victory and watch as your Creator does something amazing in your life by bringing you healing that you did not even know that you needed.

There is a great big amazing life in store for you.  Don’t miss it, grab it, love it and live it – you will be glad you did!