Tag: happiness

Do You Want to Feel More Peace Love and Happiness, and Have a Healthy Life?

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Christmas is a happy time but also a sad time for many. It’s about family, and when that family bond has cracks, then it can be hard.

My dad recently passed away, so this Christmas has not been that great. I never mentioned it before; I guess I didn’t want to write it down or speak it aloud.

It was never an easy relationship as my parent split up 20 years ago, another subject I rarely talk about but I have decided that its time to stop holding onto things and release them in 2019.

I hold too many feelings within, if I had a flaw that would be it. I think of others before myself, putting me at the back of the line.

The problem with that is the fact that over time it wears you down until it gets to the point you lose yourself, and once that happens, it’s tough to find yourself again.

My dad was a deeply religious man, but he held a lot of un-forgiveness in his heart. I tried for years to advise him to change and to see things from my perspective, but he never did.

I have no regrets; I stuck with him through thick and thin. No matter how much he hurt me I never walked away.

I saw a man in pain; I saw a man that lost his way, I saw a man that had thrown everything away. I saw first hand what holding onto un-forgiveness’ can do to a person.

I watched my dad’s health erode over the years and in the end, COPD take him from a 14 stone (200 pounds) energetic, vibrant man to a seven stone (100 pounds) skeleton in the matter of a year.

It’s hard for me to write this, but if my words help one person, then they have fulfilled their purpose. Holding negativity on the inside of you for most of your life will kill your spirit, and rob you of your happiness. You can lose family, friends and most importantly, your peace of mind.

When you talk about forgiveness most people look the other way, it’s something that no one wants to face.

But forgive we must if we are to see a brighter tomorrow.

Take a walk outside and close your eyes. Feel the wind cleanse your spirit, making you brand new.

From today only let love flow through your heart, and I promise you peace joy and happiness will enter your life.

Wishing you, family and friends the most amazing year of your life.

How To Feel Love and Be Happy — Free Ebook

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Many problems that we face come from our relationship with others; often started over trivial matters.

Someone speaks to us in a particular tone. Rather than thinking they may be under stress we can take it personally, shutting them out of our lives, telling others of how much they hurt us by what they said or done.

Unrest of any kind can lead to unhappiness and pain. Life can be complicated; we can feel misunderstood, taken for granted, or hurt.

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The problem arises when we let these feelings consume our spirit. We can become critical and judgemental of others, and ourselves. We can become defensive, distant, unwilling to connect with people the way we once did.

Don’t allow bitterness, stubbornness or un-forgiveness extinguish the light of God that’s within your heart.

Feelings of negativity can separate us from His love.

Many people are unhappy because they have allowed negativity to cloud their vision. Living this way can be stressful, frustrating and can damage your relationships, your health and your faith.

When you focus on negativity, it’s almost impossible to see the positives in your life.

If someone hurt you, and you hurt him or her back, it may seem like payback, but it only adds more negativity to the world.

What you give out you will get back in return.

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Many people focus on their needs instead of focusing on what they can do for others. The result is they are never fulfilled.

Throughout my life, my outlook has been one of happiness with a deep love for everyone. For the longest time, I took this attitude for granted. Recently, however, I decided to encapsulate the reasons behind my philosophy.

The result is my new book, How to Feel Love and Be Happy.

I would like to share with you the ways to live a life of harmony and happiness, which will give you a great feeling of love in your life.

You can download my book free today on Amazon, click on the image below.

Thank you.

 

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How to Fulfil Your Dreams, Be Happy, and Overcome Your Fears

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I would like to start with a quote from Marianne Williamson.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world.

There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Although this quote has always inspired me it’s the first part that can be confusing. Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

Most people tend to believe that they fear not being adequate, that they fear not being good enough, that they fear failure, that they fear not measuring up to others.

When in actual fact there real fear is that they fear their magnificence.

They fear that they could change the world. They fear that they really do have the power to create a life of real meaning. They are afraid to experience their power to create a life of such impact. So they hide behind a false fear… a fear that they are inadequate and they don’t even try to create a life that they enjoy.

The amount of times that I have asked myself who am I to step forward and say this or do that. Who am I to approach that person? Who am I to inspire others to their greatness?

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Consider how often have you asked yourself these type of questions?

How often have you not done what you wanted to do, to “fit in? To be accepted? To be liked?

Your doing this didn’t serve anyone, least of all yourself.

The funny thing is that when you stop fearing your greatness… when you embrace your God given power, and courageously and boldly step forward into the world declaring your life with confidence (shining your light) you will bring forth the divine power that lives within you.

It is within us all.

When you embrace the fact that you are a child of God with a unique purpose, you will receive a power so great and achieve much more than you ever dreamed of!

And when you embrace your POWER, unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. You inspire others to their greatness! This power is our true fear … and living it is our purpose.

Have a good week.

Rev J Martin

5 Common Habits of Unhappy People

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Most of our un-happiness comes from our own thinking, behaviour and habits. Today I would like to share 5 of the most destructive habits that can create un-happiness in your life.

After each habit I will go over some ways that can help you overcome some of the habits and live a better life.

Negative Friends

If you are surrounded with people that have little or no faith this will start to affect you in the long-term. Who we socialize with, what we read, watch and listen to, has a massive effect on how we feel and think.

It becomes a lot harder to be happier if you let yourself be influenced by negative voices. Voices that tell you that life will always be the way it is, that its better you learn to be happy where you are. Voices that watch life from a negative limited perspective.

How to overcome this habit:

Replace those negative voices with more positive ones. Surround yourself with new people to see the difference it can make. All your old friends will be exactly where you leave them if you ever want to return. This alone can be like a whole new world opening up.

Spend time with positive people, listen to inspiring music and read motivational books, watch movies and TV-shows that make you laugh and think about life in a new way.

What I found very helpful was starting out small. For example, listen to an inspiring audiobook on YouTube while eating breakfast in the morning, rather than listening to the news that is filled with negativity.

Getting Stuck in the Past and Future

Spending much of your time in the past, reliving old painful memories, conflicts, missed opportunities can hurt a lot. Spending your time in the future and imagining how things could go wrong at work, in your relationships and with your health can lead to a lot of un-happiness. Life is about living in the present.

How to overcome this habit:

It is pretty much impossible not to think about the past or the future. And it is of course important to plan for tomorrow and next year and to try to learn from your past, but to dwell on those things rarely helps.

What I found to be very helpful is to focus on what I can do today. I do out a timetable each day of all the things that I need to do. Constantly working towards my bigger longterm goals. If I do find myself thinking of the past or future too much I recite a short prayer to centre my thoughts.

Worry and doubt all stem from dwelling on the past or thinking about the future.

What I find very helpful is going for a walk in nature, or changing my surroundings by visiting a friend or relative. Being at home is the worst place to be if there is something troubling you.

Comparing Yourself To Others

One very common and destructive habit is to compare yourself to other people. People compare cars, houses, jobs, relationships, social popularity and so on. The list can be endless. All this does is create a lot of negative feelings.

How to overcome this habit:

Compare yourself to yourself. Instead of comparing yourself to other people create the habit of comparing yourself to yourself.

See how much you have grown, what you have achieved and what progress you have made towards your goals. Doing this has the benefit of creating gratitude, appreciation and kindness towards yourself as you observe what you have achieved, the obstacles you have overcome and the good stuff you have done.

When we judge ourselves we tend to judge others also. Luke 6:37 “do not judge, and you will not be judged.” Try to only focus on the positives in yourself and those around you. When we judge it’s usually because we have unrealistic expectations of others and ourselves.

By letting this all go and just accepting who you are faults and all, you will be instantly happier and have better relationships with others.

Focusing on the Negative Details in Life

Most people focus on the dark clouds rather than the silver lining. When you look at the negative aspects of a situation that is a sure way to make yourself unhappy. You can even drag down the mood for everyone around you.

How to overcome this habit:

Overcoming this habit can be difficult. Something that has worked for me is to look for the good in the situation, it can be hard to see but it is always there. If things didn’t work out for you, maybe its not the right time, or a better opportunity is around the corner.

What can easily happen if your not careful is you can be so buried in self-pity that you miss out on the reason that you had the setback. For example, you attend an interview and don’t get the job. You take the rejection personally, thinking you haven’t got what it takes and don’t even look for another job when the perfect one is waiting for you.

Overcomplicating Life

Life at times can be complicated but more often than not we can be the ones that make it so. This ultimately creates stress and unhappiness. The world is becoming more complex but that doesn’t stop us from making some new habits to make it easier.

How to overcome this habit:

Splitting your focus and having your attention all over the place is certain to lead to unhappiness. Concentrate on one thing at a time. Have a to-do-list of 4-5 important things that need completed throughout the day.

Work on the first until it is complete then move on to the next. This simple strategy saves time, and will triple your productivity. Plus, at the end of the day you will feel happy.

Another thing that can overcomplicate life is having too much stuff. A solution can be to ask yourself: have I used this in the past year? If not then give it away. This can create so much space within your home. A cluttered living space reflects a cluttered mind.

Relationships can be the most complicated thing in life. What has helped me greatly in this department is communication. Reading minds is impossible. Minimise unnecessary conflicts, misunderstandings and negativity.

When stressed, worried or lost in a problem, breathe with your belly for two minutes and just focus on the air going in and out. This will calm your body and mind.

Then you can start focusing on doing what is most important for you again.

Thanks for reading. Have a good week.
Rev J Martin

Power Of Words

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YES I CAN

Words have a great impact on your world. They inform you, educate you and have the power to make you buy one product over the next.

What if you could harness this power.

I have already written a short book on the subject but would like to expand on the topic today as over the last week it has come to my attention that we all need a reminder from time to time.

I know a man that says, I always seem to miss the bus, or it is pulling away as I arrive. His daughter, on the other hand, says, I always seem to arrive just before the bus comes or when it is pulling into the station.

Each of them has made a separate law for themselves. One for success and one for failure.

This is a simple example that may lead to missing a plane from time to time, but often people through their words create many limiting laws for themselves, restricting what they can achieve in life.

I never remember.

I can’t learn anything new.

I don’t have the time to read.

I haven’t got enough education to do that.

If you say any of these things or anything similar you are not alone. It is estimated that by the time a child is 18 years old, it has been told that they can’t or don’t do that, 147000 times.

It is not surprising then as adults we take a negative view on life; avoiding trying anything new. The good news is you can change it all today by harnessing the power of your words.

When faced with a new task or challenge; turn I never, I can’t; I don’t, I haven’t, too – I always, I can, I will, I have.

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Do not be fooled my the simplicity of changing these words. Simple changes like this in your language can have a massive impact on your life and those around you.

Now changing language is only the first step, you must then put in the ground work of speaking these words of faith regularly; it will change your outlook, which in turn will change your life.

First Steps

This week, make a conscious effort to monitor whenever you say something negative about yourself or towards another; at the end of the week, you will have a list of the words or phrases that may be limiting your life or damaging your relationships.

The next step is to speak the opposite purposely. Example: I will never learn this, too, With practice, I will learn this

Many things we say have almost become a habit, they just roll off the tongue without thought. To break any habit at first may be hard but the fruits of your efforts will be very rewarding.

If you have the habit of saying, I haven’t got the time, make the time. As you would not miss a doctor’s appointment, set an appointment for yourself – to visit an old friend, to read a book or attend the gym.

James 3:2
If anyone can control his tongue, it proves that he has perfect control over himself in every other way.

Thanks for reading, enjoy your Sunday and week ahead.

Rev J Martin

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More Happiness; Less Stress.

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I came across a book on gratitude, which has actually changed my life, and I was a very grateful person, to begin with.

We all have problems; they come to us all. Some are physical, others are emotional, and sometimes even spiritual ones arise.

We like to be in control of any change in our lives, but it doesn’t always work out that way; life evolves at an alarming rate. With all the pressure, stress and worry, we can easily get caught up in it, not seeing a way out.

“I would be very grateful if things would just work out the way I want.” Then it works out, and we are thankful for a fleeting moment.

In the book, it made reference to Matthew 13:12. “Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away.”

Many people have said to me, this passage sounds unjust, as it seems to be saying the rich will get richer and the poor will get poorer. For me, Jesus is talking about knowledge of the kingdom of heaven, but gratitude fits very well.

“Whoever has gratitude will be given more, and he will have abundance. Whoever does not have gratitude, even what he has will be taken away.”

We live in a society of MORE, everyone wants MORE, they want to lose more weight, they want more holidays, they want more money, then they will be happy. In their search for more, they are missing a vital ingredient – Gratitude.

The art of being grateful for what we already have.

When you are grateful for your job, even if it’s not perfect, your view on it will change, meaning you will enjoy it more.

When you are grateful for the relationships in your life, even if some of them are not perfect, you will begin to look at the positive aspects of them, and the appreciation for them will grow.

When you are grateful for the money you have, no matter how little, you will find, this simple change of focus makes a huge difference in how rich you feel.

The flipside is when you are not grateful, you will find that you will only look at the negative things in your job, in your relationships, you will complain about the lack of money, meaning you will not even get the enjoyment out of the little you have.

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What You Focus On Grows.

It was recommended to write down 10 things each morning that you were grateful for. I thought to myself after a few days this is going to be difficult, but what I found was, during the day new ideas kept popping into my head. It became clear to me, very quickly, there was so much in my life to be grateful for.

My list started with the Internet because it is the reason I am connecting to you today. My family for giving me a solid foundation of faith. My senses so I can experience the world in all its glory. It actually alarmed me the number of things that I took for granted.

If you mentioned being thankful for your sight to anyone that has sight they would not really appreciate what you mean. Take it away from them for even an hour, and their life would come to a stand still.

Throughout the week my list started to include the simple pleasures of life, coffee, food, clothes, nature. Then I began to realise the number of people that contributed to provide service to me throughout the week. Thousands of farmers, manufacturers, packers, delivery drivers. All essential people to my survival, but all of which, until recently – I took for granted.

Happy Person That I Am

The more I was grateful, the happier I became. There was so much in my life that I took for granted; I simply did not realise how rich and successful I really was. I have absolutely no excuse to complain about anything. In today’s high standard of living, I haven’t got much, but I am still richer than half the people on this planet.

Some people might say, all this grateful stuff is not going to make my life any better, so what if I can walk, so what if I can talk, feel, hear, see, everyone can do these things? What am I gaining by being thankful for what I already have, it seems pointless?

You will find that these same people are not entirely happy; they will constantly be depressed and stressed. No matter how much money they have, they will still have a void in their life. They will spend all the money they have, maybe even more than they have, with the illusion that MORE will fill the void, but they will still be unhappy stressed and depressed. They will still say that gratitude is a waste of time.

When you think, I don’t like my job, I’m not happy in my relationship, I haven’t got enough money, my life’s a mess, I cant pay my bills, no one appreciates me, I haven’t got enough time, then you attract more of these experiences.

Learn to turn it around to:

I’m grateful for my job. I’m grateful for the relationships that make me happy; I’m thankful for the money I have, I’m grateful for my life. I’m grateful that I am able to use service’s before I need to pay for them. I’m thankful for the people that do appreciate me.

True happiness and fulfilment come from being thankful for what you already have. When you are grateful, even the smallest increase in any of these things feels like a gift.

Much of what we take for granted living in the west, people in other parts of the world dream about.

True riches come from gratitude. Try it just for today, and you will see the difference that it makes.

Have a good weekend.

Rev J Martin

 

How to Win Friends and Influence People.

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Many people down through the years have recommended that I read a book called, ‘How to win friends and influence people’.

The title never really appealed to me.

Recently, I received a voucher for a bookstore, which happened to be doing a promotion on the book, so I bought it. As it turned out; it was not what I expected at all. As the saying goes, don’t judge a book by its cover.

The first thing I found very surprising was the fact that it was written in 1937. Secondly, that it contained some principles that were just as relevant in human relations.  One chapter stood out above all others, which I will focus on today.

The chapter was called, ‘If you want to gather honey, don’t kick over the beehive.’ It talked about the fact you should never criticise someone, as you never know what they have
been through.

The author used many stories to demonstrate this point, but the ones that had the deepest impact on me involved Abraham Lincoln.

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When Mrs Lincoln and others spoke harshly about southern people. Lincoln replied, “Don’t criticise them, they are just what we would be under similar circumstances.

A very inspirational view.

Another example.

During the American civil war in fighting the Battle of Gettysburg. The enemy got cornered by a swollen river. They were trapped, surrounded on all sides.

Hearing this, Lincoln telegraphed his orders to his General, ‘Attack immediately,’ and not wait to have a council of war.

What did the General do?

He did the exact opposite of what he was told. He hesitated. He procrastinated. He called a council of war. He refused point blank to attack. Within a week, the waters receded, and the enemy escaped.

Lincoln was furious. They had the enemy at their weakest point. The war could have been over in a matter of days, but the general called up all his troops for a meeting.

In bitter disappointment at his general, Lincoln sat down and wrote a letter, and at this time a letter coming from Lincoln was the severest rebuke.

What do you think the general did when he read the letter?

The general never seen the letter. Lincoln never mailed it. It was found among his papers when he died.

It was said, that Lincoln never mailed the letter because he saw it from the Generals perspective. If he had seen as much blood, if he had listened to the screams and shrieks of the wounded and dying for weeks; maybe he would not have been so anxious to attack.

Rather than criticise, he put himself in the general’s boots.

It reminded me of how quickly we often jump to a conclusion and judge or criticise without much thought where the other person is coming from.

How To Apply

When we find ourselves annoyed of upset at what someone said or done, it is important to rather than take offence to take a step back and look at the situation.

This is easier said than done.

This requires a strength of character as it is human nature to defend what we think is correct. It’s in these moments that our faith is tested.

Do we show love and understanding, or not. It’s in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped. Be shaped by Love.

Enjoy your weekend.
Rev J Martin

Is being Happy & Stress-free worth feeling uncomfortable for a short time.

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happy-streess-free

Do you find yourself, avoiding new situations because they make you uncomfortable?

It’s normal to feel uncertain before you face a new challenge, but stepping outside our comfort zone is the only time we grow.

Why would you want to do something uncomfortable?

We go out of our way to get away from stress and doing anything that makes us feel uncomfortable, but there is a difference between the discomfort of trying something new and stressful feelings.

At one time you were afraid to drive. Now you enjoy it. You may not have liked eating vegetables when you were younger, but now you couldn’t live without them. You were once afraid of applying for that first big job, but now that you have a career you enjoy, you wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. We all do things that at one time we were afraid to do.

Good things in life come to those who take risks, those who step outside their comfort zones in the knowing that with God anything is possible.

Matthew 9:29
Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you.”

Faith is stepping out into the unknown with the knowing that all will be ok. Successful people in all walks of life, take risks. They feel fear, but they do not let it push them back. Their faith in succeeding drive’s them forward

If you avoid new experiences, you are missing out on the best that life has to offer. The longer that you wait, procrastinate, or cower in fear, the more “comfortable” you get with how things are, and that’s not a very good place to be.

Before we go any further, ask yourself if you are happy?

Are you happy in your current state or do you ever dream of doing something else, something more?

Do you think about reaching out to other people, starting a new hobby, eating healthier, or even going for a new job?

If the answer is yes, then you have already decided this is something you want to do. Now it’s just a matter of making up your mind to overcome your fears.

Once people get settled into a routine, it can be difficult to break. Most people are running on a sort of “autopilot,” it takes them from point A to point B with little to no thought, but this is not what God created you for.

When we are young – we are fearless. Young children will pull an iron off the iron-board on top of themselves because they want to know where the lead is coming from.

We are told repeatedly growing up, don’t do this, don’t do that, so we stop exploring life. It gets to a point where we are afraid to try anything new; we get into a routine; we enter the comfort zone.

It takes no thought to stay in a comfort zone, for this reason, many people take up permanent residency.

Getting out of a comfort zone starts with deciding to take action.

Decide that it’s time to do something new. Decide to do something you have been afraid to do in the past. Take up a new hobby. Visit a new place — Decide to break the routine.

“But I’m Scared!”

You are not alone, many people are afraid to take that first step and take action. The idea of making a significant change may even lead to feelings of deep anxiety and self-doubt.

The first step to overcoming the fear of the unknown is to learn to take baby steps. If you fear to look for a new job. Start with writing out a C.V. /Resume. If you would love to lose weight but can’t find the time to go to a gym. Park 10 minutes from work – over a week that is nearly two hours of walking.

Some Helpful Advice

Two things that will help you get started are a list of goals (including those that make you uncomfortable or scare you) and a reliable buddy system.

Write the list of targets that you want to accomplish first. Things that you have always wanted to do but have been afraid to attempt.

Next, enlist the aid of a friend to help you accomplish those goals. Naturally, it’s easy to give up when you are the only one trying. A friend can provide that emotional support you need.

To conquer your fears once and for all and start living the life you dream of; take decisive action. Make up your mind that you can do anything, that you will be successful in whatever you decide to do.

What’s the worst that can happen?

Typically it won’t be as bad as you think. Doing things that make you feel uncomfortable or scared, eventually get easier to do. You may even wonder why you were so afraid in the first place.

Realise your true potential by stretching yourself. God created you to achieve great things. Don’t let fear hold you back.

Enjoy your week.
Rev J Martin

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17 Ways To Be A Lot Happier In 2017

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2016 has had its ups and downs, full of personal heartache, sickness, and a little slice of success.

New doors are opening in front of me, and although scared what may be on the other side, I’m also confident, when I walk through them; a new world awaits.

Within the year, I’ve learned new lessons about what happiness means, and how you can attain it, which I would like to share with you today.

Here are my 17 ways to be a lot happier in 2017.

 

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1 – Take Good Care Of Yourself

Unless you are running at 100%, you can not truly help others. You must first look after your mental, physical, emotional and spiritual health. Only then, can the Spirit of God flow through you into everything you do.

 

2 – Stop Trying To Change Others

It very rarely happens. The older we get, the more set in our ways we become. You can’t change others; you just can’t. Be the change you want to see in others, which ties in with number 3.

 

3 – Work On Yourself

This might sound a little selfish at first, but you will quickly realize how challenging it is to change your bad habits, which will make point 2 a lot clearer.

 

4 – Take Your Time

When you slow your life down and realize it is not a race, you begin to enjoy it more. When we are always running after others, or ourselves, we miss out on all the good things.

A beautiful sunrise or sunset, birds chirping, and the soothing sound of a stream.

 

5 – Surround Yourself With Good People

The people that you surround yourself with, has a massive impact on your life. It can seem good to help negative people, but if you are not careful, negative people can affect your spirit.

Make sure you are surrounded with good people, people that encourage you and help you grow. People that can keep an eye on you when your life gets out of balance.

2017 is a year for growth. Cut out all the dead weight – all those that are holding you back.

 

6 – Trust Gods Timing

In life, we want everything on our timetable, but I have found life has its own timetable. The more you fight the natural speed of things, the more you will be stress, depressed or anxious.

Learn to surrender in 2017.

 

7- Be Mindful Of What You Consume

Food, friendships, media, etc. Get rid of everything that does not support you, and help you become a healthier version of yourself.

 

8 – Forgive, Even When You Have Been Wronged.

Forgive yourself and others quickly. Forgiveness is one of Jesus central messages and one of the most important ones.

When you forgive, you do not forgive their behavior. You are not saying what they did was right. You are simply releasing the infection, emptying out the toxins, so they can no longer poison your life.

 

9 – Look For The Silver Lining

Even at the worst moment, there is a lesson to be learned. There is always a reason things don’t work out, or happen in the way we expect, but often we need to look hard for it.

 

10 – It’s Not Always About You

Sometimes how someone treats you is a reflection of how they feel about themselves. Their actions or words reveal the condition of their own heart.

Learn not to take things personally. Instead, pray for that person.

I forgive you for not being who I want you to be, I forgive you and set you free.

 

11 – Don’t Be A Doormat

Have enough respect to walk away from the people that misuse or mistreat you. People respond better to you when you are assertive and ask for what you deserve.

 

12 – Apologize

If you are in the wrong, be big enough to admit it.

 

13 – Understand That Everyone Has His Or Her Own Perception

We all view things differently. How you look or feel about a situation can be completely different than the next person. Example, one person looks at the glass half empty, the other looks at the glass half full.

 

14 – Put Down The Phone, and enjoy what is happening around you.

I recently visited a beautiful waterfall. As the sun came out from behind the clouds, the way the light bounced off it was breathtaking. Everyone took out their phones, and so did I.

As the water was spraying everywhere getting a good shot was near to impossible. Before I got one, the sun had gone.

Lesson learned.

 

15 – Realize Social Media Is Not Reality

Don’t buy into the hype. Everyone is human, with ups and downs in life.

Facebook, etc. are excellent ways to connect with people, but I often see others trying so hard to impress, trying to portray a perfect life, only posting exciting cool things.

You can easily feel that you are missing out on something, but you’re not.

 

16- Never Assume Someone Knows How You Feel

People cannot read your mind. If someone has hurt you, get it out in the open. In many cases, when I have done this I realized that I took what was said the wrong way entirely.

Issues cannot be resolved without communication.

 

17 – Stay On Your Own Path

Most of us think that we are qualified to tell others how they should or shouldn’t be living their lives; even if we have zero experience in the matter.

Unless asked for advice, plus have firsthand experience, I have found it’s better to let others make their own mistakes, as they grow wiser and stronger.

Wishing you all a Happy New Year!

Rev J Martin

 

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