The Most Basic Principle of Living Your Best Life Now - Essay Example

Amidst the busy schedules of people, unending struggles to survive in a highly competitive world, financial and familial troubles; despair, helplessness and hopelessness can lurk in. Thankfully, beside every insurmountable obstacle, there is a little way of escape which is always provided. Similarly, during times of depression and oppression, there are always words of hope and encouragement that are whispered from the mouth of God. Surely, the God who looks at us does not appear anymore on burning bushes or speak with thunder and lightning but He raises up prophets who speak his words of encouragement as eloquently as God Himself would do. Throughout history, this I have observed, that there is not a time when God leaves the people without a person to inspire them. Centuries in the Old Testament testify of the goodness of God through the inspirational lives of Noah, Moses, Joshua, Deborah, Gideon, Samuel, David, Solomon, Hosea, Job and many more. The New Testament speaks about how God raised the very person who dispersed the apostles to become a passionate follower of Jesus, uniting the Jews with the gentiles. History tells us about John Wesley, Martin Luther and the more recent Christian models who are being used to speak forth the blessings of God such as Billy Graham, Joel Osteen and Joyce Meyer. In our world today, such eloquent speakers are needed to energize and strengthen people to continue in living the best lives they can ever have because we pilgrimage on this earth but once. Therefore, in the principles of living that will be discussed here, time will be of a great essence. As they say, time is gold; it cannot be bought and will never be brought back. Henceforth, to begin with, let us consider the value of time while we live our lives. When time passes, we lose many chances. Therefore, the most basic principle of living is to realize that time is essential and should not thus be wasted. In the following discussions, the five principles will be portrayed through the acronym TIME and will end with an S which could be considered the plural of time, suggesting that the principle is not only applicable to modern people but for future generations as well. 1. Think Positive The global economy is increasingly sloping downhill, wars and famines are rampant, political figures are humiliated and disrespected, the educational system is questionable, teenagers are having unwanted pregnancies and divorces are increasing in number each month. These circumstances are exasperating. In addition to such, there are always news about robberies, killings, and other crimes in almost every corner of the world. Who would want to continue to live in such an environment? Everything that is seen on television and even in one’s neighborhood seems to be all negative. Perhaps there would be a handful of people who would be able to courageously face all the tribulations mentioned above. Nevertheless, with the increase in population, where would people go in order to escape such troubles? There seems to be no other remedy for this but to face the situation with strength and courage and in the midst of all the negative happenings, the only weapon that could destroy such antagonistic events is to think positively. Philosophers often suggest people to think positively because they believe that there is power in thinking. Napoleon Hill (1963) believes that the mind can work wonders especially when positive thoughts are repeatedly meditated and therefore proposes autosuggestion as a means to strengthen one’s positive thinking. Since repetition is important, a person should always remind himself of his assets and not the liabilities, consider his strengths and not the weaknesses, ponder about the good things in life and not the bad. Along the process, one’s convictions about himself will be strengthened therefore, it is important to entertain positive thoughts only and refuse to think about negative events. As Ella Wilcox (1980) also suggested, an individual should fill his mind with the right thoughts. It is not enough that one meditates and thinks about his circumstances but should choose his thoughts as well and in choosing, one should select those which are good. Furthermore, Wilcox believes that one’s thoughts reflect one’s self as stated in Proverbs 23:7 (The Bible), “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he”. Thoughts somehow mold a person because the things people think can be likened to seeds which are watered and fertilized with daily pondering. When such thoughts grow, they are embedded in the heart. Eventually, when the seeds grow in the heart, they bear fruit and are manifested as actions, attributes or characteristics. Constant meditation can also lead a person to form a strong belief system that is free from doubts which could destroy an individual’s focus. As James 1:8 (The Bible) says, “A double-minded man is unstable in all he does.” As such, one could not attain contentment because of doubts that he will not be able to perform well, or he may not be able to put his full energy on the task at hand. Consequently, a person will not live his life to the fullest. 2. Industriousness Perhaps among the most miserable people in the world are those who do not work. There is something about working. It makes someone feel needed and worthy of what he eats, drinks and the things he enjoys in life. When a person eats and drinks without working, he may simply feel happy for having things at hand but will not have that joy and fulfillment others feel about what they enjoy after working hard for it. God says to the indolent in Proverbs 6:6 (The Bible), “Go to the ant, you sluggard!” Ants always move around. They are always busy and they are perhaps the most joyous animals on earth because even in times of trials, they are always able to find something to eat. They are able to survive the coldest winters and the stormy weathers because they always have food in store. The reason why industriousness becomes a principle for living a good life is because in this world, people have needs. Moreover, the very reason why autosuggestion is encouraged is not only for a person to have positive thoughts but also to mobilize one’s self. Things may start with dreaming and planning and when the dreams and plans are strongly founded in the mind, it must continue to doing. Hill (1963) and Eastman (1997) believe in the power of imagination. They impel people to act upon the plans they scheme because even though a person makes thinking positively his way of life if he is not able to make things come to pass, the thinking becomes useless. Positive thoughts bring about ideas that help a person to creatively acquire wealth. Living a good life does not start and end in positive thinking. Rather, it is what propels a man to make his desires a reality. There is a good reason why Proverbs 6:10 (The Bible) warns about laziness. A little slumber and a little folding of the hands encourage indolence and therefore, poverty. Being in want makes people unhappy and unable to appreciate the good life but being well-provided makes life joyful. A poor man who works with all the strength that he has is contented with what he has. Perhaps he even is proud about his little achievements because there is something grand in making a living. the poor man may not have everything he wants but he is able to provide everything he needs and will not be in misery. On the contrary, there are rich people who are not satisfied with their life at all because they have been born with the silver spoon and are not trained to work. They depend on the availability of their assets, eating well and living well but they do not have the satisfaction the industrious poor man enjoys. Therefore, they resort to things they think would make them happy such as wines, women and gambling. This is a commonly observed fact, that sinful acts and crimes often result from wants and wants are born from laziness. Therefore, it could be said that a man who keeps himself busy is a productive person who is able to be contented about his life. 3. Man of Discipline Thirdly, in order for a person to live well, he should become a man of discipline. Kent Hughes (1991) emphasizes on being a disciplined person but he differentiates being a spiritually disciplined and a legalist. The author mentions that a legalist “will do things to gain merit with God” but a spiritually disciplined person “do things because he loves God and wants to please Him”. Henceforth, a man should be spiritually disciplined, acting on the principles of God and not of man. As it is said, “bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to some” (1 Timothy 4:8). First, this verse defines further the work or industriousness that was discussed earlier. Working should not just be about being busy because indeed, there are those who work a lot and become dissatisfied about what they are doing. Such performance results to burn out, with the person thinking that he is over-worked but underpaid or even unrecognized. However, when a person works as a spiritually disciplined man, things will be put in check not only in gaining spiritual rewards in heaven but also in gaining material things needed in this world. This spiritual discipline is termed by Dag Heward-Mills (2003) as ‘controlling one’s carnal instincts’. Paul is one great example in godly discipline. 4. Earnest Visionary 5. Sound Principles Read More