I AM PRESENT

“For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” Psalm 30:5

I am in this moment and Choosing to be Happy.

Have you ever just stopped everything and chose to be in the present moment? Putting down your devices, pushing all distractions outside the bubble, and just being in the here and now. If you have, you’re probably familiar with mindfulness and if you haven’t I promise its the best thing ever. For my folks who are unfamiliar, Mindfulness is just being fully present and aware of where you are and what you’re doing. It’s noticing every smell, taste, sound, feeling, and sight that is right in your purview and sometimes a little beyond. It’s hearing the hum of the computer battery, smelling the wetness of the ground after a heavy rain, seeing a spider spin her web in the corner, tasting the mint from your toothpaste, feeling the carpet beneath your toes. And when you do that… all the bad things just fade away.

At least for the moment. I often find myself talking to people about the illusion of multitasking. While we’ve convinced ourselves that we can successfully do multiple things at the same time, we can never give our full attention to two things at once. Even if you think you’re watch a program on tv while cooking, when you truly focus in one area you stop focusing in the other. You miss a line, skip a stir of the pot, forget where you were for a second. And while both tasks are completed in the end, the experience has holes. If you think about having a mindful moment, a true moment where you rest your brain by focusing on the here and now, you brain doesn’t have the space to also be anxious, or stressed, or angry or bothered, at least for the moment you’ve chosen to move those emotions outside of the mindful bubble.

I think we fail to realize how much energy we have to invest in holding on to a negative moment until we actually try to replace it with a positive thought. Think about it. If you fall behind on a project at work, can you think of 3 positive things you can focus on instead of the fact that you’re behind? I’ll give you some. You still have time to complete the task. You’re usually on top of things so this one set back won’t be the end of it. You’re job isn’t on the line so even if it’s a little late, you can redeem yourself on the next project. If your job is on the line, this is an opportunity for you to show what you’re made of and fix it. You can ask for help. You can burn the midnight oil. You can and will get this done. Look at that… before I even realized it, I had given you twice as many positive outlooks instead of the one negative. If you’re still thinking about the negative moment… how hard must your brain be trying to hold onto it? Stop letting negative moments prevent your happy thoughts.

Make your being present moments powerful by intentionally focusing your mind on the good. Fill the spaces with affirmations that project positivity instead of negativity. And this is something you can start doing today, without going full mindful. I invite you to find a comfortable space, calm your mind, and just give yourself permission to be, and embrace some positive emotions and actions for your life. Embrace healing. Embrace freedom. Embrace love. Embrace happiness. Embrace possibility. Embrace positivity. Embrace promotion. Embrace elevation. Embrace forgiveness. Embrace worthiness. Embrace endlessness. Embrace godliness. Embrace blessing. Embrace peace. Embrace you.

A mindful moment can be a reset for a moment, a day, or a lifetime.

Today, I leave you with this. God made us a promise. He said “For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” (Psalm 30:5) He has promised us that anger (and other negative emotions) don’t last forever. He’s promised that even in the midst of our sorry, there is happiness waiting to arrive. So be present, my loves. Be present and choose happiness instead of despair. Choose the emotion that brings you joy. I love you, and as always, keep conquering daily.