Where does your fulfillment come from? Through a nightly routine with her daughter, this mother realized the importance of what we focus our thoughts on. Read the blog to learn how one small change made a big difference.
Every night at bedtime my daughter and I share our highs and lows of the day. It’s a special routine that a close friend told me about and I loved the idea. I adopted it right away and started with my daughter that very night. She picked it right up, and to my surprise, reminded me to do it on nights I forgot. She would say, “Mom, can we please do our highs and lows?” We would each share one high and one low from our day. It seemed like a beautiful way to hear how her day went and also a good opportunity for some teachable moments.
After walking out of her bedroom one night, it dawned on me that this new routine - while in good intention - focused on circumstances. I was suddenly convicted. The realization that I was teaching my daughter to focus on what circumstances made her happy and sad during her day hit me like a ton of bricks. I was convicted because I am a Christian, and I am not called to circumstantial living. As a Christian, I am called to a new identity and focus that centers on God’s goodness and his eternal kingdom, regardless of my earthly circumstances.
Colossians 3:2 tells us, “Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.”
This world often tells us that happiness comes from circumstances, or that we must constantly gain in order to be fulfilled. Yet, God’s Word is in complete contradiction. As Christians, we are to “Seek the kingdom of God above all else…and he will give us everything we need.” (Matthew 6:33)
When we look to circumstances and earthly gains as the driving force of our fulfillment, we will always come up empty and pining for more. Whether that is another dollar in our paycheck, another vacation, a new car, or more _______ (fill in the blank), nothing this world offers will ever fully satisfy us. So, then how are we to go about our ordinary day-to-day lives? Cultivating a biblical mindset in everyday life begins with a daily, intentional relationship with God at the center, not myself. As well as having an eternal perspective.
{my graphics are inspirational gifts for you}
Minding my matters begins each morning when I wake up. My first words are a whispered and sleepy prayer, “Good morning, Lord! Thank you for this day. This is the day that you have made, and I will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)
I’ll be completely honest, sometimes I am feeling anything but joyful and glad. Yet because I know that my every breath comes from Him, and because I know that I am on this earth for one purpose, which is to love God, love others, and share His word, I intentionally humble myself with that reminder to begin my day and set my perspective. (Deuteronomy 30:20, 6:5-9, Leviticus 19:18, Matthew 22:37-40, 28:18-20)
I’d love to say I then jump out of bed with a huge smile and pep in my step, but the reality is more like a sleep walk into the kitchen for my coffee, while squinting angrily at the bright lights my husband has turned on. Oh, how quickly circumstances can try to steal our perspective! As we go through the matters and circumstances of our daily lives, it is important to remember that God is greater than them all. Our highs and our lows pale in comparison to His omnipotent power and goodness and the promise of eternal glory with Him.
Recently my family went through what seemed like a month of bad news - sickness, car troubles, tensions, you name it - we were dealing with it. In a sense, we were living out that phrase, “When it rains, it pours”. Yet, during that time, my husband and I were both reminded that this world is not our home.
2 Corinthians 4:17-18 says, “For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long…so we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.”
There is no doubt we will have circumstances that just plain stink in our earthly lives, but as Christians, we must trust and abide in the truth of God’s word: “Here on earth, you will have many trials. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). When life gets tough and fear, pain, and pity creep in, we have a choice as to what we focus on. Will you focus on the circumstance or focus on the Creator?
When I worry, the focus is on me. When I trust, the focus is on Jesus.
My daughter and I still do our highs and lows. But we’ve added a third component: “Thank you, God, that you are greater than any of that!”
Our mind is a muscle that must be exercised with the truth consistently and intentionally. I am grateful for all the times that God reminds me of this through the sweet bedtime routine with my daughter.
Remember that phrase “Don’t sweat the small stuff…and it’s all small stuff”? In a daily, intentional walk with Jesus, the matters of this world truly are “small stuff” when we have our minds set on a Heavenly Father who already knows the outcome of our stories, and who has an eternal kingdom waiting for us to enter into.
{my graphics are inspirational gifts for you}
The next time you feel circumstances creeping into your perspective, remember, you have a choice as to what you focus on. Is your focus on Jesus, who is the same yesterday, today and forever? (Hebrews 13:8) Or is it on the highs and lows of your circumstances, which are constantly changing from peak to valley?
Proverbs 3:5-6 says,
Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do and He will show you which path to take.
As you cultivate a biblical mindset in your everyday, ordinary life - with God at the center - you will experience a peace and freedom beyond comprehension that is only available to those whose minds are firmly rooted in God.
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Editor's Note:
This guest blog is by Lucy Longworth. © 2023 Lucy Longworth. All Rights Reserved.
Jennifer C. Stone-Sexton © 2023 Freedom to Flourish, LLC
All graphics created by Jennifer C. Stone-Sexton © 2023 Freedom to Flourish, LLC
All Rights Reserved.
All Scripture quotations are from:
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.