Positive Living: Embracing the Full Abundant Life God Has Granted Us

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." John 10:10 (ESV)

     Positive living...what does this practice mean to you? Having a good attitude? Not complaining? Always looking on the bright side of life? Relying on hope? Thinking of the best possible outcome in a tough situation instead of thinking the worst? What about when you ponder the idea of a full and abundant life...what ideas come to mind?  Living in the moment. Dreaming big? Trying new things? Living "out loud?" Being adventurous? Embracing every new day? These all might sound cliché, but they are a pretty good start in the right direction when considering what it means to live positively and embrace the full and abundant life God has granted us. Life is such a precious gift. Knowing this fact, it is important that we live our lives to the fullest, and most importantly...live a life that is glorifying to God. In my opinion, this means not wasting time stressing, complaining, and worrying so much. (If you've read my other blog posts...you know this is something I talk about often.) Instead I believe we should cherish moments more...love others and show them we care...have fun and laugh at ourselves! Ultimately, we need to live in such a way that people who are not Christians can look at us and see the difference Christ has made in our lives. When we are joyful despite painful circumstances, hopeful regardless of uncertainty, and loving towards others even if they are not the easiest people to love or may not always show love to us in return, the world will notice that we have something special. That special something is Christ in us, for us, and working through us. Therefore, we should look for ways to be a light to others by allowing God to shine through us into the darkness of this world. That is what I consider living positively and embracing the full abundant life God has granted us.

{Okay, so that's my short and sweet little spiel. Now, I'm going to have a little fun by giving ya'll something funny to watch that goes along with this topic, plus a pretty cool little list of tips for living a more positive, abundant life. Enjoy!}

Jessica's "Daily Affirmation"

     The video above has become an ongoing joke between me and my roommate. We found this little girl's enthusiasm and positivity both funny and adorable! We watch it often for a good laugh and sometimes will quote lines from it to remind ourselves to be positive. "I like my school! I like my hair! I like my whole house! My whole house is great! I can do anything good!" Okay...so it might sound silly, and I'm not saying we should all stand in front of the mirror each morning and recite our lists of "likes" as Jessica has demonstrated...(Though it may make you a YouTube star if you record it. ;) hahaha!)...BUT the point is we should think about things that we are grateful for each day.
     I don't know about you, but I know that sometimes it can be easy to take things for granted. It can also sometimes seem easier to complain and be negative rather than think positively. But why is that? I wonder why we often find reason to complain or think the worst when we have so much to be grateful for and positive about. Take the "simple" things that may seem like a given to most of us, but to many people in this world they are not as easy to come by...food, water, health, shelter, clothing, family, friends, education, work. How about even the fact that we are ALIVE? (Again, life is a gift) For Christians...what about remembering EVERY DAY to be grateful the sacrifice Jesus made for us by dying on the cross in our place, for our sins, so that we may have the gift of salvation and eternal life in Heaven with God forever. THAT is something to always be thankful for...THAT is a reason to always be positive. Even if we had nothing else in life...we have God. That's a really good reason to be happy. We have the blessed assurance that God will never leave us nor forsake us. We have the hope of His many good promises to us. We have the gift of life that He has granted us--a life that He has intended for us to have fun with, embrace it, reach others for Christ, live fully and abundantly, and ultimately bring glory to Him in all that we say and do. Overall...God LOVES us and wants us to have this amazing life that He has written for us in His grand, unfathomable, perfect plan. That being said, there is always a reason to be positive.

{My 10 Tips for Living a More Positive, Abundant Life}

 

1.  Be Thankful and Count Your Blessings, Not Your Problems (As cliché as it sounds...it works)
2. Worry, Stress, and Complain LESS (aka...be POSITIVE. Have a little hope...have faith in God's plan. Put your worries in God's hands. Leave your problems at the cross. Stop trying to control everything and just let the stress go. I know it is harder than it sounds. Trust me. I struggle with it too. But I also know what  a difference it makes when I simply take a deep breath, throw my worries away, and trust that God will take care of me, every little detail, working all things together for my good.)
3. Be HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY (Yea, I really love Duck Dynasty. I just had to throw that one in there. lol. But hey, its true, Jack!)
4. Spend time with God (See my post "Be Still" for more information on quiet time with God.)
5. Serve others (Caring for the needs of others will not only help them and show them God's love, but it will also bring you joy as well. Remember JOY--Jesus, Others, You.) *Suggestions: hold the door for people, write a handwritten note of encouragement to a friend, offer to pray with/for people, serve at a nursing home, etc. 
6. Enjoy the simple things in life...a quiet walk, reading a book, listening to music, etc. Check out my Pinterest board for more ideas: The Simple Life :)
7. Go out in nature! Okay, I know I'm a country girl and I just love being outside, but even if you're not an outdoorsy person take some time to enjoy God's creation. Think about it. God created this amazing, beautiful world for us to enjoy and explore! Wow! For me, I feel close to God when I'm up in the mountains or when I see a beautiful sunset/sunrise sky. The fingerprints of God are everywhere you look. Take the time to just be in awe of God's creation.
8. Love people! God loved us first and has called us to love others. Show your love to your family, your friends, your neighbors, etc. Show God's love to strangers by just being kind and polite...and really show God's love by loving your enemies. Make good friends! Fellowship with other Christians! Tell people you love them, but also SHOW them. That's important.
9. LAUGH!!!!! It's good to laugh! God has a sense of humor too. Don't always be too serious or too hard on yourself. Have fun and enjoy life. That's the way we are meant to live. There is a time for everything...so yes, there are times to be serious, but there are also times to have fun! Even be silly once in awhile. ;)
10. Challenge yourself & try new things. Don't get stuck in a rut or be content with boredom. Be spontaneous sometimes. (But be wise about it too--aka don't do something dangerous just because you want to "live on the edge") Just change it up every now and then. For me this can be something as exploring a new place to hangout on campus...or something as challenging as trying out a new sport (aka color guard)...or even something as thrilling as going zip-lining! There are so many opportunities that God puts in your life. Why not embrace them?

Grace & Peace,
Samantha (The Hat Girl)