A very wise friend once said to me: “I Choose joy, it’s a choice.”. This is wisdom that will forever be dear to my heart.

A few months ago I wrote a blog post about time. I went through a few ways I found more time in my life by cleaning up and organizing my house in different ways. If you didn’t read it, you can find it here. Since that post there have been some remarks made about me that really hurt. Now that time has passed, I’m not at all upset about them, but they did spark me to write this blog post about choices.

Miss Priss. Mrs. Perfect. Know it all. Annoying. Doesn’t know what it’s like to work. Has it all. Spoiled. Oblivious. Out of touch. Arrogant. Stuck up. Rude. and the list goes on… These are all things that could have really torn me apart and taken me down. I wanted to crawl into a hole and never come back out because I felt so completely judged and ripped apart; I didn’t want to ever feel that way again. I didn’t write that post to make others feel worse about their own situation or life, or brag about my own life. I simply wrote it because I was excited I overcame an obstacle I was faced with, and I wanted to share the success as an encouragement to others. This is when I was reminded again that sometimes people aren’t happy when you are happy. That there are people that revel in the failure of others. That not everyone wants the best for other people. I know this because I have been there myself.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10

“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

There was a time in my life when I sat and sulked at the success and good fortune of my peers because I felt like I was getting the short end of the stick. I felt left out and lonely. What about me? When will it be MY TURN? It was very hard for me to be happy for people who were doing well because I felt like that was the joy that I deserved, not them. I was selfish. I was unhappy. I was a mess. Then it all changed. Not overnight, but over a few years time, it all changed.

What is the secret you ask? It is simple: place your hand under your chin, palm face up and gently lift your chin with the tips of your fingers. Keep lifting until your neck has straightened and your chin is as high up as you can get it. Now, point your eyes to the ceiling. This is what changed. my. life. This  sounds like a pretty silly thing to go around doing. Pointing your chin up and eyes on the ceiling? What on Earth will that do for you other than give you a kink in your neck? It will change your perspective. It is a reality check. For me, it is a reminder to keep my eyes on the Lord and not on myself. Obviously this action of physically redirecting our focus is not something we can do all day long (which, if you’re anything like me… you need to be redirected quite often!!), but it is a good visual reminder to use.

Now, this is when the choices I mentioned in the very beginning of this post come into play. Redirecting your focus is a CHOICE you have to make. This was something that for me took a lot of practice. Choice, after choice, after choice. It was a “one foot in front of the other” kind of change (aren’t they all that way?!). You don’t just wake up one day and suddenly feel happy for everyone else around you. It doesn’t just happen overnight and boom you’re cured of your bitter nature! Hooray! Sorry, but it’s just not like that. I can say that all the hard work and choices do pay off in the end. Your load gets lighter and life becomes more enjoyable. I started to enjoy building relationships more and caring about comparing less.

I believe that happiness is not based on circumstance, but a choice we make. You have a choice to make: either change your focus, or not. When we have our eyes on our self it makes for a pretty shallow depth of field for the rest of the world around us. By the grace of God I am a changed person, and you can be too. It is a choice that you can make. A choice to place your joy, not in your surroundings, circumstances, or possessions, but in Jesus Christ. John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

** Post originally from December 11, 2013 from AVeryAireyLife