Practice Makes, Well, Better!

Ok, so practice doesn't always make perfect.  That's ok.  Perfection is rarely required in life.  Yet I think so often as adults, if we don't master something the first time we attempt it, we throw up our hands and exclaim, "I don't know why I don't get this!"

I don't know about other parents out there, but my son did not successfully walk his first attempt.  I didn't tell him he was a failure or not to bother trying again.  Rather, I encouraged him.  I held his hand and walked along side him.  I showed him how to do it.  And every time he fell, I told him to try again.   And when he took a step or two, I cheered for him.

Why then do we adults not assume that some things that we were raised to do would come without effort?  Without practice?  Some people make friends easily.  Some people don't.  Some people have a Pollyanna-ish disposition and see sunshine and rainbows and happiness everywhere.  Some people don't.  The point is not to get frustrated and say, "why am I not happy?"  Rather, LEARN to be happy.  Love is a choice.  Happiness is a choice.  You may look around and see many positive things in your life, yet still feel unhappy.  I don't know why.  I don't have a magical answer.

But maybe, just maybe, you were not TAUGHT how to be happy.  Maybe it wasn't encouraged.  Maybe life just sucked so much that happiness was not even on the radar.  But if you can learn a skill, a job, to ride a bike, to have discipline, to be kind, to have a mouth filter; why can't happiness and joy also be learned?

Practice joy.  CHOOSE to find one thing each day to be happy about.  Write it down.  I've heard it takes 21 days to make a habit.  Commit to doing it for a month.  If you aren't more content, more joyful, happier, more at peace, what have you really lost?  Nothing.  But possibly, you'll find a little more silver and a little less gray in the clouds of life.  And maybe, just maybe, you'll see that joy and strength and peace come from the Ultimate Dad, who's trying to give you good things.  Who's trying to make you happy.  Who's trying desperately to put things in your path so you'll notice Him.