LIFE HAPPENS. . .

“Life doesn’t happen to you, it happens for you,” you may have heard. Two innocuous little words…”to” and “for.” What difference can the distinction between them possibly make?

 Turns out, quite a lot.

 When we approach our day with a “life is happening TO me” mindset, then we’re apt to feel like life at its core is adversarial, like this day is a boxing ring and I’m in it with “life.” And “life” is a lot bigger! We have to be fearful and on the defensive. We have to keep our heads down and our guard up. 

 But if we approach this day thinking, “Life is happening FOR me” then we see life as a companion or coach--maybe even as friend or teacher. We don’t need to be afraid. We’re not its latest victim. We can feel supported, invited in, encouraged. We can deal with the present moment perceptively, positively and proactively. 

 Making this mental shift from “to” to “for” takes a bit of a leap. (Haven’t we all been taught to be wary of life? Too wary, I think--and at  great personal and collective cost.) It’s like attempting to hop onto a swiftly spinning merry-go-round. Our minds continue to spin in the direction they’ve been going for a long, long time. So, they easily throw off any new idea that tries to latch on to them. But it’s not impossible.

Neither of these two choices is the “right” one. There is truth to both of them. But whichever one we choose to be the predominant one becomes our modus operandi and so unconsciously exerts tremendous power and influence over our decisions, our days and their short and long-term outcomes.

Let’s not just read this and move on to what’s next on today’s to do list. Let’s bring it home, applying it to the  circumstances shaping our lives right now. Then the truth of it will begin to seep into our souls at a level that might actually stick. 

That’s where inner transformation (read: life) really happens.

“I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10b)

TODAY.

LET’S GIVE THE WORLD & OURSELVES A GIFT.

LET’S TAKE TIME TO THINK ABOUT WHAT WE BELIEVE...AND WHY.