A Firm Foundation

Self Correct

I didn’t have the best morning recently.  I woke up late and then just wasn’t feeling it this morning.  I still put on my sweats and headed to the track. I sat in the car for five minutes, part of the time contemplating whether to go back home. I got my mind right, walked as I prayed and did my three miles.

Sometimes we have to access our own attitudes, self correct before bleeding in other people.

One of the saddest situations occurs when people are hurt by those who themselves have been hurt, yet never took adequate time to be healed. I am not referring to physical hurt or healing, rather scars that we don’t notice until a disagreement or verbal altercation occurs. The emotional scars that resulted from a bad relationship or unresolved conflict.

The ability to perform what I call self correcting comes with maturity. See there was a time when I did not have the mental and emotional capacity to recognize or admit my the need for correcting. Thanks be to God, I have grown in this area.  I can now put myself into “time out.” I can recognize when I am thinking or about to post something that is not fruitful or productive.  Believe me, if my keyboard could talk, it would tell you that I’ve deleted far more than I’ve posted on social media.

I am reminded of the scripture that says, as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.  There are times when we have to cancel the negative thoughts that come into our own minds.  We must cancel doubt, cancel fear and cancel depression as they seek to come against us.  Canceling these things ourselves helps us to avoid situations where someone else has to correct us.  It’s true, God will direct us, if only we put Him first in our lives.

If you want favor with both God and man, and a reputation for good judgment and common sense, then trust the Lord completely; don’t ever trust yourself.  In everything you do, put God first, and he will direct you and crown your efforts with success. Proverbs 3:5-6

A Firm Foundation Blog: By Teraleen Campbell
A Firm Foundation

Focus On Your Race

Our society increasingly seems to be fixated and consumed with what others are doing.  When we watch others consistently, the inevitable comparison begin.

We begin to compare their car versus our car; their style versus our style, their life versus yours. This behavior has become more prevalent in this digital age. But there are a few things that comparing ourselves to others causes us to forget.

  1. We forget how blessed we are through all of life’s up and downs.
  2. We forget that have our own destiny.

In essence, we each have our own race to run.

I admittedly am an over analyzer.  The saying, “my _____ is better than yours” never resonated with me because I am not fond of the ongoing comparisons.

These comparisons have driven us to become a society that is never satisfied, with what it has or who they are.  This is dangerous.

Paul instructs us to lay aside weights, but also to run the race that has been set before us.

But here’s the thing and the key to Paul’s words of instruction – you cannot run my race, and I cannot run yours.  God has given each of us our own race, so why compare someone else’s with ours?

That which is best to and/or for me may not be best to and/or for you. With that in mind, it is best to remember what the Lord has already done in your life.

Yes, there certainly have been times when I have felt as though life has passed me by. There have also been times when Satan has magnified the accomplishments of others in an attempt to incite the spirit of envy.

But that’s when I remember the words of the Apostle Paul. The race is not given to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but He that endures until the end…

As David wrote, the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord.

Focus on Winning

You cannot win your life’s race while constantly comparing the way that I am running mine.  During last year’s Summer Olympics, a photo was posted online of swimmer Ryan Lochte looking over at his greatest rival, Michael Phelps in the middle of their swimming race. Phelps won. The message accompanying the Meme was that winners focus on winning, while losers focus on winners.

You lose ground when you focus on the person in the next lane.

I won’t go as far as to call Lochte a loser because he has won several Olympic medals as well. However my takeaway is that you waste time looking at others rather than focusing on what is ahead of you.  Winners do not waste time focusing on the other lane because their eyes are on the finish line.  My goal in this life is to stay in my lane and run my race and out of yours.

Paul also shared the best rationale for running your own race – you are guaranteed to win!  But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! While I may not achieve my victory at the same time that you get yours, if we keep the right mindset, we can still celebrate together.