1. God is #1. Friends and others are #2. I am #3. God will always have priority in my life. In everything I say, everything I think, and everything I do, I make sure that it is pleasing to God and that I may glorify Him through the person I am and that others may feel or see His presence through me. Don’t be concerned about your own self and trying to satisfy your needs and wants, instead, focus on the people around you who might need help or even just a nudge to keep their head up. The reward in serving others is that you are serving God as well. Be a selfless person and pour out your love and life for all the people of this world. Everyone is deserving of love and it takes just one act of love to brighten someone’s day.
2. Make time for the people you love. I’ve always firmly believed that one of the greatest gifts you can give a person is your time. If you genuinely care about and love a person, then you will make time for them. I do not take the excuse that you are “busy” or that you don’t have time for a person because if you don’t have the time, then MAKE the time. It can be a 3 second text message letting someone know that you love them or you’re thinking of them, you can have a quick 5 minute phone call, or you can even arrange for a small food date during the week. Whatever it may be, do what you can and learn how to organize your schedule so you can fit time for the people that love and care about you just as much.
3. Don’t be afraid to be courageous and take a leap of faith. This pretty much applies to almost every area of life. You can’t be scared of the unknown or the unexpected. That is what we live for. We do not know what tomorrow holds but hope for the best and prepare for the worst. God has carefully constructed our life plans and be content in knowing that everything coming your way will only make you a stronger and better person. Don’t be scared of rejection from a person. Don’t be afraid to talk to someone you’ve never talked to before. Don’t be afraid to live out your faith or to share God with those around you. If you like someone, then tell them. If you miss someone, then tell them. If you love someone, then tell them. Why in the world would you want to hold yourself back from being who you are and expressing your personal thoughts and feelings? Why would you want to miss out on everything around because you’re afraid? Take a leap of faith and trust God. You can’t experience life if you can’t step out of your comfort zone. Stand strong and have courage. I promise you that being courageous for even a moment can entirely change your life or someone else’s life forever.
4. Reach out to everyone you can. It doesn’t matter what the person looks like. It doesn’t matter if they are male or female, what race they are, what religion they are, what sexuality they are, what their past is, how they dress, what they like or dislike, or even anything. You reach out to others simply because. I’ve learned in my past 2 mission trips that you don’t need to go to another country or another state to reach out to people. Where you live right now is your mission field. You are no better than the person next to you. Get off your high horse and step down. We are all equal and we are called to be there for one another. There are people around you that are hurting or suffering in silence. There are people out there who have problems that are beyond our own even speculation. There are people who need someone to just even listen to what’s going on. Be the Jesus that someone sees or needs. Extend a helping hand to everyone because you never know who just might need you today.
5. Pray pray pray. Pray and thank God for all the good in your life. Pray and thank God for all the bad in your life. Communication with God is important because we need to honestly sit down and talk to Him about our life. So many people get mad at God for when things go wrong in their life and simply push God to the side. However, when good things are happening, people all of a sudden love God and just want to praise Him for everything. From my perspective, that’s a pretty bad relationship with God. We owe it to God to pray to Him and to thank him for everything because in every single thing that happens in our life, something good ALWAYS comes out of it. I can promise and guarantee you that. Not only that, there is so much power in prayer. We may not necessarily get what we prayed for, but God gives us in return what we need. He answers our prayers in ways unimaginable. Praying strengthens your relationship with God and it definitely gives you peace of mind knowing that God is at work in your life 24/7.
6. Don’t be consumed with hate but instead be filled with love. For me, there is not a single bone in my body where I could possibly hate someone or hold a grudge against them. Even though I’ve been hurt by a lot of people and I’ve been mistreated by friends and even strangers, I appreciate them because they have made me a stronger person. I’ve always lived life with the concept that you should be thankful for the people that hurt you because they taught you a lesson to remember and they reminded you that are you stronger than you think because if you weren’t, then you wouldn’t be here today. We become stronger and better people through our trials and pain. Instead of hating all those people in my past, I’ve shown nothing but love. Why show hatred to the people that God so wonderfully created? I know there are bad people in this world and there are people who have strayed far from God’s path but just love them. Some people don’t even know that love is. I just find it to be true that being consumed with hatred and bitterness will only cause you to be tired and will wear down on your heart. Instead, let go of the past and look forward to the future. Fill yourself with love and love on others so that they may forget the hatred and pain in their own hearts.
7. Always be yourself. Don’t let the influence of other people affect who you are when you’re around your friends or family. Be yourself at all times, not just sometimes. Don’t be a different person at school. Don’t be a different person at church. Don’t be a different person at home. Just be you. You have no one to impress and no one to please except God. Surround yourself with the people and friends that love you and accept you for who you are. You shouldn’t have to change your behaviors or conform to the standards of a group in order to fit in. We are called to stand up and stand out for God. He created you in a way that is nothing short of perfection. Why would you want to change that? Be yourself because no one else can do that.
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