Your Perspective?
“The difference between stumbling blocks and stepping stones is how you use them.”
~ Unknown
“Fake it til you make it.” “A negative mind will never give you a positive outlook.” “Is the glass half-empty or half-full?” There are so many slogans that speak to us about the need to have a positive outlook on life. Today’s quote is merely another reminder of that necessity. “The difference between stumbling blocks and stepping stones is how you use them.” Life will always throw “stumbling blocks” at us. If our attitude is a negative one, that is exactly how we will view them.
However, if our attitude is a positive, upbeat one, we will not see stumbling blocks. We will see stepping stones. The stumbling blocks to some will be the instruments by which we excel. We will use the challenges that come with them and overcome them. They will help to make us better people, stronger people, wiser people.
We have all experienced setbacks in our lives. We all know people who have not weathered setbacks well. They may have become bitter or jaded. They may have quit trying to do good or to improve. They may have found themselves mired in their own misery. I am aware that I am using the word “they” to keep it safe for us. The better word would probably be “we” because there are most likely times we have become those bitter, jaded, mired people.
What pulled us out of that negativity? Was it our own decision? Was it the intervention of loved one, family, or friends? Was it God speaking to us through another or through an experience? We always felt so much better when we set the negative behind us and moved on again, haven’t we?
Today will have stumbling blocks or opportunities thrown at us. They are one and the same reality. It is merely our perspective of them that will determine whether they impact us for good or for ill. The way to place them in proper perspective is through a well-grounded spiritual life. Prayer, contemplation, and service always help to keep us focused. Prayer, contemplation, and service can help us to turn stumbling blocks into stepping stones.
Start the day off right. Talk to God. Ask Him to center you. Ask Him to give you wisdom so that you can perceive the nature of all that you encounter this day.
FAITH ACTION: Ask God to give you a good, positive attitude so that you can approach any stumbling blocks with confidence and turn them into stepping stones.