In our modern world we are constantly being bombarded with anything from cheap car insurance discounted holidays two for one offers ,and of course how can we forget a certain furniture shop Who’s sale never seems to end . We are told we must have the latest tv and now we are even told that we must have a gas barbecue !!! whats all that about ? I am a fan of mindfulness which is basically a practice of living in the present moment recognizing that we all have a past (which we are unable to do anything about ) and that the future will look after its self . There is a quote that says “nothing was decided in the past and nothing will be decided in the future “, and when you think about it it’s perfectly true all the decisions ever made were taken in the present moment because that’s all we ever have ,yes we can plan for tonight, tomorrow, next week or even next year but there is no guarantee that we will even make it to the next hour. when we lose sight of this our minds go into overdrive and a little everyday thought can if we are not careful lead us down a spiralling path of negativity for example a simple thought while looking in a travel agents window wishing you could afford the holiday advertised may send you down the path of if only I had more money which leads to you thinking if only I could earn more ,which leads to well you don’t because your not clever enough because you didn’t work hard enough at school even your house is small your stupid you will never be able to afford holidays like this, the mind traps us in to this worrying state . one of my favourite quotes comes from the Dali lama —-man sacrifices his health in order to make money . Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health and then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present .the result being that he does not live in the present or the future he lives as if he is never going to die ,then dies having never really lived. in times of stress and worry I think about this and say to myself ok what’s the worst that can happen here., Or will this problem I am seeing in front of me really matter this time next year ? and in reality it probably wont matter this time next week . Life can be wonderful and exiting offering endless new experiences from travel ,music , books, nature , family and friends, wonderful food and so much more ,and what about the information super highway that is the internet ,all there for us to enjoy. of course life can and will often throw up difficult and challenging times for us all how we see the world and our place in it will determined who we deal with the difficult times. having over recent years turned towards our saviour Jesus Christ that’s for another blog !!! I find comfort in the difficult times in my life knowing that in the end everything will be ok because whatever I may do Jesus. Christ made me and all of us the only offer that matters ,all we have to do is reach out and take it .
g
mikes view 