I Refuse to Let Anything Get Me Down

From September 7, 2011

I refuse to let anything get me down.

It’s so easy, when things go the slightest bit wrong - or even just the slightest bit against your expectations - to immediately get discouraged about it.  And that’s definitely a trap.  For me, when I started getting angry/bitter/upset over one thing not going right, I start dwelling on everything that hasn’t gone right - things that have absolutely nothing to do with the matter at hand, that I thought I was over.  And then I’m down and discouraged, feeling this dark cloud of emotion weighing down on me and goes from a mood to this long term funk.

And that’s just not good.  And I’ve been there before, and I’m at the point where it’s just like “No more.”  I’m going to take the hits in stride and not just hope for the best, but know that the best will come of it.  And really, it’s nothing of me - my sometimes overly emotional, and definitely flawed self.  No, it all stems from Jesus.

Faith is so multi-faceted, and this certainly is an aspect of it.  When things go bad, knowing that it’s temporary, and that God will see you through it.  Romans 8:28 - “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good for those who are called according to his purpose.”  Philippians 4:19 - “And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

Boom.  That’s it.  Greatest insurance policy ever.  We live in an imperfect world - things are going to go wrong.  And we are imperfect beings with often times expectations that don’t play out the way we want them to.  But ultimately, it’s God who is in absolute control, and He’s looking out for His sheep, you know?  And that’s something I’ve been drilling in my mind, since before I moved out to California - I feel like God was helping to really build up my faith in Him and really get to know His ways.  And it was for a reason, because I’ve already hit some bumps, and I know maybe even just six months ago, I would’ve began to unraveled at this, but I am standing strong in my Lord, and He’s keeping me together.  I refuse to fall prey to those negative thoughts - to let things going wrong get me down.  I told myself when I first came out here - if nothing else, I refuse to let go of my faith and trust in God.  I’ve been focused on that more than anything - I won’t underestimate Him.  I won’t let anxiety, fear or anything else weaken my grasp on faith.

And having that mindset has really helped.  Because I feel the temptation of slipping into a sort of subtle despair as things keep on coming up specifically with this car I bought.  And I potentially am about to have to put a lot of necessary money into it, but you know what - it’s fine.  God’s gonna make it work out.  And He gonna take care of all of my needs.  So the money I need is always gonna be there, no matter how much I have to spend on this car.  And He’s going to make this work out in the long run.  I might have feelings of slight regret when purchasing this car now (as much as I sort of do really love it, it’s having so many issues that start to override that), I know that God will make it work so that purchasing this car will turn out to be a good thing.

On another side of refusing to let things get me down, I gotta also realize how blessed I am, even inspite of things going wrong.  Yes, my car failed its smog test and I’m might have to drop half a grand on it tomorrow, but at least it has been running.  So many people don’t have cars.  So many people have cars even worse off than mine.  So the fact that I have a car right now is a blessing in itself.

And that perspective keeps me hopeful, keeps my spirits up, keeps me strong in the Lord.  Because I have so much to be grateful for.  In fact, the unfortunate truth is that I have so much more to be grateful for than most people do :/  So will I really have the audacity to sit here and depress myself into a slump over the small issues in my life when I’m well fed, completely loved, and am living out a dream I’ve had for six years?  No.  I’m going to fully trust in my Lord, know that He’s going to make everything turn out okay, and smile at the blessings I have in my life.

That’s all.