Live the Dream

 Do you know what General Electric, Hewlett Packard, IBM and Microsoft all have in common? They all began during an economic downturn or depression. News reports of doom and gloom could have easily deterred these companies from starting up but instead, they chose to creat their own economy, instead of letting the economy control them. They chose to create an economy in which they would succeed. In challenging times, if we are not careful, we develop a survival mentality. A survival mentality is not a mentality of creativity, however, and certainly not one of positivity. Avoid survival mode and you will avoid hunkering down with everyone else going nowhere fast. 

Joel Osteen in his book It's Your Time, wrote that when we fall prey to a survival mentality "we stop releasing our faith. We stop believing we can rise any higher. We just try to maintain the status quo, to keep our heads above water, to break even." And then I love what he writes next, "But we're not supposed to break even. We're supposed to break through." 

I'll say it again, we're not supposed to break even, we're supposed to break through! We have to start thriving and stop surviving. Isn't it much better to conquer something and have victory over it than it is to simply have survived it? I understand that not all situations are alike and certainly some are much harder than others but even in the worst of circumstances there are survivors and then there are conquerors. 

When others are pulling back, worried and afraid, complaining about the situations at hand, push forward in faith. Don't just believe for the best, expect it. That's what it means to have a thriving mentality. It doesn't matter how high gas gets, how low the stock market plummets or how many employees get laid off, you have the ultimate say in your own future. So act like you're blessed, talk like you're blessed, think like you're blessed, dress like you're blessed, walk like you're blessed, and treat others like you are blessed. And don't dwell on your problems because if you have a poor mouth, you will have a poor life. 

This is your year to thrive!