ManageYourEmotionsBook8.5x5.5_RevJULY.indd

Find a need and meet it. “Whatever your hand finds to do” (Ecclesiastes 9:10a). Stop gazing into the mirror and start looking out the window.There’s a great big world out there with countless jobs to be done and opportunities to be discovered. Consider first what can be done for others. Nothing beats the blahs like jumping in and assisting those in need. Help out at your local food bank, volunteer in the schools, or serve as a greeter in your church. I see an elderly man walking through my subdivision nearly every day picking up trash. He’s beautifying the area, getting good exercise, and punching boredom in the face. Think also about what you can do for yourself – not just what you have to do but what you’d like to do. Join a book club, take an online course, cook fun meals, or start a garden. My son-in-law’s father, retired from the Navy, builds model airplanes and attends gatherings with others who do. I’m preaching to myself here knowing that retirement is just a few short years away. Learning to speak Spanish and how to play the saxophone are on my bucket list. It remains to be seen if that gets done. Proceed with passion. “Do it with all your might” (Ecclesi- astes 9:10b). I don’t recall ever meeting a fervent, passionate person who complained about the dullness and monotony of life, especially as it pertains to matters of the faith. Paul writes: “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Colossians 3:17). By the authority and according the will of His Son, we should passionately seek to please God in all we do. If you think this means performing flawlessly, think again. There are going to be those times when we just can’t muster up the strength to do life. Paul, who certainly had those times, acknowl- edged: “When I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10). He could make such a statement because Jesus had promised him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

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