Do you have problems? Are there challenges you are facing that you wish were not there? If you answered yes, and I suspect we all did, take heart. There is good news in the land today.
Your problems today can be the source of your power tomorrow!
Let me share with you a formula I learned long ago. This is ancient wisdom that applies perfectly to today. In fact, we need it more today than ever before.
Problems produce patience
Patience produces persistence
Persistence produces character
Character produces hope
Hope produces power
We all suffer from living in today’s hyper-connected world. Being so connected can make the world’s problems feel like our problems too due to the explosion of the never-ending news cycle.
Consider this …
- Recent research showed that you are bombarded with the equivalent of 174 newspapers worth of news every day! That’s 174 entire newspapers coming at you every day!
- Even more startling – in 1986 that figure was 40.
Information overload is everywhere. We heard bad news on our televisions, our radios and, now, on our phones.
It is estimated that 91% of all adults on the earth have a cell phone now.
Now wonder we are stressed!
No wonder our hope is fading.
And hope is the key. Hope produces power.
John Maxwell said the following, and I believe it’s 100% true.
“Where there is hope in the future there is power in the present.”
So you see, problems can produce hope, which in turn produces power in the present.
But the process is not automatic!
If we want power to come from our problems we have a role to play. We need to do our part and put our focus on hope.
I believe there are three ways to do this.
1 – Make your wish list
Make a list of all the things you want to be, you want to do and you want to have.
This is the time to dream. The time to reach for the stars. Don’t let anything hold you back from writing down what you really want out of life.
It does not matter what your age is or what you current circumstances are. You have the right, actually the privilege, of dreaming, and dreaming big.
Only you will see this list. So make it your own.
Your wish list will inspire you to hope for the future. And inspiration is the fuel on which hope runs.
Remember, all great human accomplishment began with a dream.
2 – Have a written goals program
First, we all have goals. Everyone has goals. But there is a huge difference between having goals and having a written goals program.
Your goals will put action into your hopes. Only by taking action can you make your dreams a reality. But unfocused action wastes time and energy.
A written goals program will create the focus you need to achieve your dreams.
If you don’t have written goals now, today is the day to start! If you don’t know how, consider what I use, the Zig Ziglar Goal Planning system.
3 – List, and regularly review, your accomplishments
Some will say “what accomplishments?” Others will know they have accomplished important things but have never thought of writing them down.
Here is my experience in life.
- Life is going to present me with plenty of negatives and opportunities to be negative.
- It is my responsibility to fight against the negative by feeding my mind positive information.
- The best defense is a good offense. Starting every day with a positive chases away many of the negatives that might take hold in our minds.
You have accomplishments. Write them down and keep them close. Read and review them often and be encouraged that you have done important things, and will do important things again. Even today!
Writing and reviewing your accomplishments will provide that steady, everyday inspiration you need to keep going in the hard times.
This is essential for staying motivated and making your dreams a reality.
Problems happen to us all. Even the Bible says “The rain falls on the just and the unjust.”
We can’t stop problems happening but we can control the end result of the problem by our actions.
- Only you can dream.
- Only you can foster hope.
- Only you can make the plan.
- Only you can change your future based on your actions today.
Got problems? Me too.
Now let’s translate those into hope and produce the power you need to day to do the things you need to do today to change your future forever.
YOU can do it!
