Friday, February 26, 2010

It's my choice...except when it's not

I currently have two situations that have been receiving a great deal of my attention. One I can affect by my actions and choices, the other is out of my control.


Sadly, there have been days when they have received equal amounts of energy.

But why? Why do we give energy to things we can't change?

Right this minute, for example, I am sitting in a hospital waiting room. Don't want to be here, don't want the need to exist. But it does and I can't change that. I don't even consider wasting energy on "why why why?"

But there ARE times I get myself flipped around. I give energy to an issue that is in God's control, then I whine to God about a different issue I could have changed.

Maybe I am the only one who does that. You never do, right?

My level of physical fitness is under my jurisdiction. There are so many tools to help me be my best: Wii, other CD's, a treadmill, and friends who inspire me. But I still have to make the decisions to use the exercise tools and be wise in my eating. For that reason, God is less than interested when I whine about being overweight.

Whining is NOT good use of energy.

Nor is fretting about something I can't change...a situation of out my control, someone else's behavior and choices, etc.

The Universe has a pulse and a rhythm we can only begin to comprehend. But our part of it, our little place on the planet, our satisfaction in life, is contingent on doing what we can AND accepting/releasing those things beyond our control.

This has all been said before...none of it is new. And yet, we continue to spend time wondering how someone could be cruel to us, how life can be so unfair, how things don't go the way we desired.

And the things we can change, we too often don't.

Here's the deal: God has a part and I have a part. I can't do his part, He won't do my part. Easy enough, right?

"It's all good" is a popular saying. I don't use it because I don't believe it. Cancer, war, earthquakes, AIDS, recession, child abuse - none of these are good. But God is good. And I believe, in time, all things work out for good.

In the meantime, my mantra in situations over which I have no control is this: It is what it is. Not good, not worth wasting energy. It just is.

I'm not always successful, but it is how I am determined to live. Feed the positive energy. Starve the negative emotions. Be inspired by others who do the same, by those who better themselves a little bit each day. Be amazed by people who have turned their lives around in awesome ways.

Try it...you'll be glad you did.

Start with not whining about the snow =) It is what it is.

See you tomorrow...Beth

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

You make some great observations about a deep subject, Beth. I have often thought along the same lines when I catch myself trying to control things that I can't. We tell ourselves not to do it and it works - for a while. Somewhere along the line we start to forget and before we know we are trying to control the untcontolable again.

Like you said, "this has all been said before...none of it is new". But it is so easy to forget.

From a Christian perspective, the first thing that comes to my mind when discussing this subject is the serenity prayer, which you are no doubt familiar with:

"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference."

The "wisdom to know the difference" is the part that often gets me :)

Thanks for sharing your thoughts about a subject I wrestle with as well!