I don’t know about you, but I tend to find that more times than not, it is easier for my first reaction to a situation to default to the negative. I am not proud to admit that to you, but that simple fact is true. It’s just one of the things on my personal “list” that I work very hard at overcoming.
So, I was doing a bit of research and came across this creed. It may be familiar to you, but I will truthfully admit that I had not seen it in a very long time. Or, if I had, I just don’t remember seeing it at all. But in the spirit of keeping things positive, see what you think. The Optimist Creed:
Promise Yourself
… To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind;
… To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet;
… To make all your friends feel that there is something in them;
… To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true;
… To think only the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best;
… To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own;
… To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future;
… To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile;
… To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others;
… To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear; and too happy to permit the presence of trouble;
… To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words, but in great deeds;
… To live in the faith that the whole world is on your side so long as you are true to the best that is in you.
– Christian D. Larson “The Optimist Creed”
Best,
S.
I am sorry, but that sounds like a lot of high-minded drivel. “To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind” sounds like Buddhism’s efforts at Nirvana. How exactly does one do that while genuinely caring and showing love for the hurting people around us the way Jesus calls us to do? Not that I succeed at obedience there, either, but I am trying!
Of course, my comment is negative! But truly, the only thing we have to be optimistic about is the fact that God is in ultimate control of our world, and that Jesus is coming back for His children and then to judge the whole earth.