What do you do when life happens? Just when you think things are going well for you in life, it happens. Something doesn’t go your way. How do you respond? What is your response?
If you’re like most people, it’s anger, frustration, disappointment, sadness and a myriad of other emotions. But what if you knew it was supposed to be that way? What would you think then? Would you be accepting of this?
What do you do when life happens?
Life is always happening for us. Let me say that again. Life is always happening for YOU. It is the corresponding nature of life. We can’t always understand why bad things happen but if we can look at them as a gift, it lessens our burden. We have to trust that a greater intelligence is at work. It’s helpful to accept this to be true.
We have all heard the serenity prayer, right? Let’s look at it again and really focus on the words:
“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”
~Renihold Niebuhr
Begin and end with gratitude
This is a great saying/prayer. It is the essence of fully trusting and accepting. We correlate the serenity prayer with AA, yes, but it is essential for ALL of us to know it, believe it and trust it. Surrender is the word here. Embrace the meaning of surrender and let go.
One area that we can look at is our limiting beliefs. We all have them. They start from our painful childhood stories or any version of something we heard or learned as young children. They become beliefs in our mind. What we believe becomes our decisions and that affects our lives.
Change your beliefs, change your life.
If you think something is too hard, it will be. If you think you’re not good enough, you will be right. If you believe money is hard to make, you will be broke. If you believe your addiction or habit it too hard to break, it will be hard to break. Get it?
Your brain will always give you an answer to prove you’re right. It’s a goal-achieving machine. So if you want to change your habits, you need to make the decision that you will do it. Find evidence that you CAN do it. Write down how life is happening for you. Can you see how our decisions are our beliefs and vice versa?
Whenever we self-sabotage, we are keeping ourselves not only stuck but safe. Weird concept, right? Think about it. We don’t like to be uncomfortable. It takes courage and action to change something. That is just one reason why people don’t want to change. “It’s too hard”, they say. It’s only hard if you believe it to be hard.
What is rock bottom?
For most people, it takes a “rock bottom” or something bad to happen before they are willing to change. It’s human nature. “Why fix something if it ain’t broken.” This is false thinking. No matter what is happening in your life, if it doesn’t feel good or it’s not serving you in a positive way, it’s time to make a decision.
Bad things do happen. It’s part of being human and learning life lessons. It’s not about the “stuff” as it is more about the gift behind it. When we can shift our minds to believing all things happen for a reason, it changes our reaction.
Wherever you find yourself, know this; you’re not alone. Discovering your limiting beliefs and what’s holding you hostage to your past is just one area that can change. You’re not being punished or singled out, but rather experiencing growth for your life.
Mastin Kipp, the author of the book, Claim Your Power, says this:
“We have far more power in our choices than we have previously given ourselves credit for. Choice is the fundamental power of your life. When you wake up to the choices that you are making, you begin to claim your power.”
It may not seem possible or easy to do but it is. We all possess the power within to be whatever we want to be, including YOU. Don’t give up on believing that.
If you want guidance on what this looks like for you, I’d be honored to walk alongside you.
