Entry #29 - Lesson on Change

No one is going to change you except you. You have to choose to change, or else it won't ever happen. Even God won't force you to change, because at the end of the day it's your decision. You're a human, you have free will, and you have the decision to either become a good person or a bad person every day. Some decisions are small in scale, other decisions are small scaled decisions that stack up to become a very big decision.

Maybe something happens outside of your control, and it negatively affects you and causes you to have a reaction. Your reaction might be from you at that moment, but it doesn't define who you are for life.You have the choice to get angry or to remain calm. You can figure out healthy ways to respond and find a solution. You have options, and no one is going to choose those options for you, except you. There's material out there to help you make better decisions, but even searching for that requires you to act. If you want to change, but then you just carry on with your life with no mindfulness towards change, then you won't change.

That's part of the reason why people pray, meditate, read self-help books. They're seeking new ways to improve something in their lives and change it. The first step is to realize what we want to improve and then we must step in that direction of trying to improve ourselves by using healthy methods that can help us get there. As a Christian, I love to pray and ask God for advice. Though I might not hear an audible voice telling me exactly what to do, I believe God will point me in the direction by using the Bible, books, situations and people that will help me outwardly and also by the Holy Spirit who will help me inwardly.

I also like to meditate. Meditation isn't something you should be scared of. With ignorance, it's easy to garner feelings of fear in what we don't know or are too afraid to try to understand. Meditation is meant to help you focus on being mindful, being in the present and learning to control yourself before reacting to the world. God told us to not worry and focus on the present, so I see no conflict between God's words and actually putting that in practice.

Other people might do other things and if it helps, then that's valid. Don't judge their path to goodness because it doesn't look exactly like yours. There's nothing wrong with sharing the good news of whatever helped you in your life, just don't push it down their throats if they don't want it. If you feel like you genuinely know what's best for them, then that's great. I would still suggest praying for them instead of attempting to change them yourself because again: at the end of the day if they don't want it, it's their choice, and you have to respect that.

As you learn what you grow from, be aware of this growth and that you're trying to become the best version of yourself and realize that is incredibly noteworthy. You're trying to take the higher path, the narrow gate. You're striving to be more like the Creator. Furthermore, you're becoming more aware that you were created in the image and likeness of God and you were meant for greatness, to reflect greatness. You weren't meant to remain in negativity or to allow evil traits of darkness to bring you down, but instead, you're choosing to rise above that and choose the higher road. Be happy knowing who you are, where you're going, and your plan to grow and learn. As you grow and learn, then someday you'll naturally be put in positions to help other people also grow, and the cycle of life continues.