Every Day a Friday: How to Be Happier 7 Days a Week (11 page)

Because Matt almost lost his vision, being able to see normally has taken on a whole new meaning for him. He will never again take his eyesight for granted. He will be forever grateful for the gift of sight.

How things changed for Matt when he thought he might lose something as “routine” and “normal” as vision. You and I should never take for granted what God has given us. If you can see, if you can hear, if you can walk, if you’ve got good health, family, friends, and a good job, learn to appreciate each of those gifts.

Don’t you dare go around complaining about all that’s wrong. Change your focus. I understand you may not have your health, but you do have
your family. You can be grateful for that. You may not be able to walk, but you can see. Thank God for your sight. You may not have a job right now, but your mind works, your arms work, your legs work. We all have something to be grateful for.

Keep the right point of view. If you have a hard time getting to sleep at night, think about all the homeless people without beds. If you are stuck in traffic, think about all the people who can’t afford cars. If you have a bad day at the office, think about all those who are unemployed. If you have to walk three blocks to church, thank God that you are healthy and able to walk. If your hair is turning gray, be grateful it’s not turning loose!

Being grateful is a key to staying happy. That’s why King David said, “I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth” (Psalm 34:1
AMP
). Notice how often he will praise the Lord? Continually! David knew a secret. You can’t praise and complain at the same time.

If you’re constantly thanking God for what He’s done and praising Him for His blessings while meditating on His goodness, you won’t have time to focus on what’s wrong or to complain about what you don’t have.

We all are tested every day. In your difficult times, when somebody is rude to you, when you go through a disappointment, when you get a negative report, when your child acts up, what will you say?

“Poor old me. I can’t believe this is happening”? Or will you say, “Father, I want to thank You that I’m more than a conqueror. No weapon formed against me will prosper. You always cause me to triumph. I want to thank You that I’m not only making it through, but I’m making it through better off than I was before.”

The Scripture says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “In everything give thanks” (
NKJV
). It doesn’t say to give thanks for everything. We don’t thank God for our troubles, for sickness or accidents. But we do thank Him for the trouble we’re coming out of. We thank Him in the difficulty He’s turning around. We thank Him for bringing us increase and promotion in a slow economy.

Any time you have an opportunity to complain, let that be a reminder to give God praise. Just turn it around and thank Him for working in your life. Remember, complaining only delays better days. But when you praise, God steps in to fight your battles for you!

I read recently that more than a million people die every single week. Think about it. You made it another week! You’re better off than a million people. You can thank God that you’re alive.

The article also said that if you have a roof over your head, you are better off than 75 percent of the world’s population. And if you have fifteen dollars to your name, you are in the top 8 percent of the world’s wealthiest people—fifteen dollars!

Keep the right perspective. I read a poem that said, “I am thankful for the taxes I pay each year because that means I have a job. I am thankful for the mess I have to clean up after the party because that means friends have surrounded me. I am thankful for the lawn that needs mowing, the windows that need cleaning, and the gutters that need repair because they mean I have a home. I am thankful for sore muscles and for weariness at the end of the day because it all means I was able to work hard. I am thankful for the lady behind me in church who sings off-key because that means I can hear. And I am thankful for the alarm that goes off early in the morning because that means I’m still alive.” It’s all in your perspective!

Twenty years from now we will look back and remember these as the good old days. Let me encourage you to enjoy the moment. Make memories with those you love. Take time for the people God has given you. Look around at all the incredible blessings He’s placed in your life.

Moses prayed to God: “Teach us to number our days” (Psalm 90:12
NKJV
). He was saying, “God, help us to realize that every day is a gift. Help us to deal with stress and everyday challenges while still appreciating the gift of each and every day.”

Let me ask you: If you had only an hour to live, who would you call? What would you say? And what are you waiting for?

Don’t take for granted the people God has put in your life. They won’t always be here. You and I will not always be here. Yet sometimes we act and live as if we’re invincible. But life is like a vapor. We’re here one moment and gone the next. I heard somebody put it like this: “We forget how fragile life is. We wait for Thanksgiving to give thanks. We wait for Christmas to give gifts. We wait for Valentine’s Day to show love to those we hold dear. We say to ourselves,
Today is just an ordinary day.
So we wait, and while we wait the clock ticks. Precious moments pass by. But in reality there is no such thing as an ordinary day.”

Every day is a gift, unique and irreplaceable. Its hours may be used or misused, invested or wasted. God, teach us to number our days.

My prayer is that you will keep the right perspective, focusing on the good, not taking things for granted, and recognizing that every day is unique and irreplaceable. Slow down and appreciate what God has given you. Be thankful for the simple things, even the fact that you can scratch your own itch. Hug your children every day. Take time for the people you love. Find some reason to be grateful.

Look at what’s right, not what’s wrong. Remember, the seeds of discouragement cannot take root in a grateful heart. If you’ll keep the right perspective and like David continually give praise, God promises that when you praise you’ll be raised. He’ll pour out His blessings and favor!

N
ot long ago, a reporter asked me what I thought about two men he named. I said I didn’t know who they were and I had never heard of them. The reporter laughed and laughed. He thought that was so funny.

“Well, who are they?” I asked.

“They are your two most outspoken critics,” he said. “They’re always talking about you.”

He couldn’t believe that I had never heard of them. But I’ve learned this principle: I don’t waste time engaging in conflicts that don’t matter to me. I’ve learned that the critics cannot keep me from my destiny. What they say about me doesn’t define who I am.

Whatever your critics say about you has no bearing on your worth. You are a child of the Most High God. The Creator of the universe breathed life into you. You have seeds of greatness on the inside. You’ve been crowned with favor. God has already equipped and empowered you with everything you need. Don’t waste your valuable time trying to play up to people, trying to win over all your critics, or trying to prove to someone that you’re important.

Accept the fact that some people will never celebrate you. They will never recognize your gifts. That’s okay. Don’t be distracted. God has already lined up the right people to celebrate you, the right people who will cheer you on and help you fulfill your destiny.

If you want to live in victory, you have to be very careful with your time
and attention. You have to know what thoughts to ignore, what comments to ignore, and, I say this respectfully, what people to ignore.

If someone at work is always on your nerves, making sarcastic comments, you could try to straighten them out, but you’d be wasting valuable time and energy that could be spent pursuing your dreams. Don’t be distracted. Ignore such people.

If a family member never gives you any credit, either you can let that upset and frustrate you or you can dismiss it and say, “No big deal. I don’t need their approval. I have almighty God’s approval.”

You don’t have to straighten people out. You don’t have to pay somebody back. You don’t have to be offended because of what someone said. You can ignore it and live happily. I’m convinced we would enjoy life a whole lot more if we would get good at knowing what to ignore.

According to Mark 3:1–5, Jesus was in the temple on a Sabbath, the day of rest, when He saw a man with a withered hand. Jesus simply said, “Stretch out your hand” (v. 5
NIV
), and immediately the man was healed. The religious leaders, the Pharisees, were there and they didn’t like Jesus. They didn’t understand Him. They got together and said, “Yes, Jesus did do something good. He did heal a man. But you know what? He did it on the wrong day. He shouldn’t have been working on the Sabbath.”

Like those Pharisees, some will condemn you no matter what you do. Even if you changed and did everything they asked of you, they would still find fault. You could buy them new Cadillacs and hand them the car keys. They would say, “You know what? We really want Lexuses.”

Let me pass on a secret to save you heartache and pain: Ignore your critics. You don’t need their approval. Stay on the high road. The more they talk, the more God will bless you. They may try to take you down. God will take you up.

I talked about this with a minister friend who has been around a long time and is well respected.

“If you had it to do over again, what would you change? What would you do differently?” I asked him.

Without missing a beat he said, “I would ignore a lot more. I wouldn’t respond to every critic. I wouldn’t waste time arguing about things that didn’t matter. I wouldn’t spend so much energy trying to make everybody understand me and make everybody accept me.”

I believe many of us would see our lives rise to higher levels if we just ignored our critics.

Many years ago a young man named Saul was chosen to be the next king of Israel (see 1 Samuel 10). The prophet Samuel blessed him and called him up in front of the people and said, “He will be our next king.”

Most of those present were very excited and they congratulated Saul. But when he returned home, many longtime friends ridiculed him.

“Saul is not our king. He’s not a leader. He doesn’t have what it takes.”

They were actually jealous of Saul. They were so insecure, so intimidated, they had to try to push Saul down so they would look bigger.

Remember this phrase: “When people belittle you, they are being little themselves.” Small-minded people won’t celebrate you. Small-minded people will be jealous. They will gossip to make you look bad.

But they are not going where God is taking you. My friend, you are called to be an eagle. You are called to soar, to do great things. But we all have some crows squawking at us, some chickens pecking at us, some hawks attacking us. They are trying to bait us into conflict. Don’t get drawn into those battles.

You have an advantage. You’re an eagle. You can fly at heights to which no other birds can soar.

Crows love to pester eagles. The eagle is much larger, but the crow is more agile so it can turn and maneuver more quickly. At times the crow will come up behind the eagle and dive-bomb the big bird. But the eagle knows this secret: It can fly at altitudes that the crow cannot fly, as high as twenty thousand feet.

So instead of bothering with the pesky crow and its squawking, the eagle simply rises higher and higher and eventually the crow is left behind.

Do the same when someone is pestering you out of jealousy or spite. Soar above. Leave them behind.

God hears what your critics say, and if you stay in faith, He will make it up to you. Use your energy to improve your skills, to be the best that you can be. And God will bring others across your path who will celebrate and encourage you.

Saul could have easily lost his focus and wasted time defending himself. Many had contempt for the new king: “They despised [Saul], and brought him no presents” (1 Samuel 10:27
NKJV
).

What did he do?

Saul ignored them. One translation says, “Saul paid them no mind” (v. 27 The Message).

Follow Saul’s wise approach. Pay no mind to jealous people or those who try to bring you down. They don’t control your destiny; God does. They are simply distractions. Just stay focused and do what God has called you to do.

After all, when you come to the end of your life, you won’t have to give an account of it to your critics. Instead, you’ll stand before almighty God, the Creator of the universe. You will hold your head high and say, “God, I did my best. I ran my race. I finished my course. I became who You created me to be.”