ONE Thing

Matthew 6:34 says, "Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of it's own." Normally you hear this scripture in the context of "worrying," but I just realized it can be applied to "change."

We all have something we want to change about ourselves in our lives. Some of us have little things we need to work on and some of us have BIG things we desperately need to change. In the area of motherhood, I desire to be the best I can be. Sometimes it can get a little discouraging after hearing a speaker or reading a book and discovering 20 things you need to change about yourself. This cannot be done overnight. Think about it: It took 20+ years for you to get the way you are, so it's going to take a little time to undo the damage. Change is hard.

One wise woman said it like this, "Don't take what you hear from a speaker or a book and go home to try and change everything about yourself in a day. Take ONE thing and work on it for a few weeks. If you do the first, you will be overwhelmed because you are trying to change yourself in your own strength and will feel like a failure. If you do the second, you can depend on Christ day by day and will succeed. Even a little change will make you feel confident."

This way of viewing life can be applied to any season you are in. I think about it like this: What is the ONE thing I can work on right now? I need to work on my response. It is so easy for me to get in the habit of yelling out of frustration rather than being quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger.

So in regards to Matt 6:34, I can't change anything in the past or worry about the future. Positive change can only be made in the present. Focus on TODAY. With God's help, we can steadily make the changes we desperately desire.

Lord help me TODAY to be "quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires" James 1:19