| Good morning everyone, Our theme for this month: “Character and integrity” Our Bible verse for today: “Happy are the people whose God is the Lord.” Psalm 144:15 (CSB) Our thought for today: “Your happiness is your responsibility” One of my favorite books regarding personal responsibility is “The Traveler’s Gift” by Andy Andrews. It’s a fictional story about a man named David Ponder who is at the lowest point of his life. Everything has gone wrong. His life is a trainwreck and he can see no way out of his mess. In a dream God takes David on a trip through time. In each era of history David encounters an historical figure who teaches him a vital lesson regarding the personal responsibility each person has to make their own life successful. Out of those encounters David formulates a list of seven decisions that determine personal success. It’s an inspiring story and the lessons it teaches will be helpful for any person. Decision number five on that list was learned from David’s encounter with the young Jewish girl Anne Frank. It was during World War II and Anne and her family were in an extended period of hiding from the Nazis. But despite her perilous situation, Anne left behind a diary which has become famous for its wise insights and its irrepressible joy and happiness. The lesson about personal responsibility that David learned from that encounter is that despite our circumstances, each of us is responsible for our attitude and our happiness. The way he phrased it on his list of seven resolutions is, “Today I will choose to be happy. I am the possessor of a grateful spirit.” As we learned in yesterday’s devotional, an upbeat and joyful disposition is a matter of choice. We can choose to embrace every day as a gift from God, and we can choose to rejoice and be glad in it. I will go so far as to say that your happiness is your responsibility. Godly men and women of character and integrity understand that rejoicing in the Lord and being grateful for our blessings is an essential attitude that must be chosen and cultivated. If we wait for life to give us happiness, we will be waiting a long time and we will spend most of our time dissatisfied and unhappy. I encourage you to choose to be happy. You are personally responsible for your attitude and for your own happiness. Embrace it. Choose joy. Do it for yourself, and do it for those who have to live with you. God bless, Pastor Jim |
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