When You Get Stuck... Be Proactive, Not Reactive.

I have been learning and having many conversations with others lately about not settling in bad circumstances that surround you. If you are unhappy with a current situation, you don't always have to be a victim, and for sure don't look in the rear-view mirror at the bad things in the past to keep you frozen in the present. There was a time when I was so frozen in time by looking in the rear-view mirror that I stopped looking in the direction I was headed. This stalled me, paralyzing me from making decisions and even put me in great depression. I was not taking action; I was merely sitting in my misery, waiting for life to happen to me. I would cry out to God and ask Him to bring things to me... what I was failing to do is get out there and discover things that could be potential doors He was opening! Then I became angry enough at myself and at my current situation, I knew I had to do something and though I had asked the Lord many times to remove the hurt and the thorns I was still feeling, I couldn't feel any relief... then I felt Him encouraging me to take a leap of faith and DO something myself, and He would help me with the rest. It wasn't easy, but that's when my life took a turn: I went from REACTIVE to my past and current situations to PROACTIVE. I decided what I wanted and went for it.

That's when I learned something. Sometimes the answer is just a matter of getting up from the spot you're in and just moving a few feet away from it, figuratively. Many times, we beg God to take care of our problems for us. While we can still ask Him for His help (and that we should absolutely do), sometimes He wants us to take a step on our own. It's a leap of faith so we can trust Him for what He can do. The beauty in this is He made us as individuals with choices to find our paths and I believe He likes to see us use the gifts He's given to us to take care of ourselves. It's a matter of responsibility and constructive behavior. If we stay stuck in the mud, we can hurt ourselves even more. Here is what I read recently in an email I receive once a day called "The Daily Verse":

"No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made." ~Mark 2:21
Sometimes you just have to let go of yesterday and focus on today and what's ahead. If you're trying to make the patterns of the past work with the present, consider that incorporating new material might require new methodology so that you don't do substantial damage.

My point exactly. Don't settle, and no rear-view mirrors to keep you stuck, please. And strategy in life is key. Ask Him to help you with strategy in your life's direction. Where do you want to go and how do you get there? Now let's go out there and create our lives. :)