Making The Best Of It

-Years ago, a person at church made the comment that,
if he were in my place, he would just make the best of it. I admit that I
got really annoyed. I thought, "it is not so easy when you are the one that
is going through it" Over that years, one thing that I have learned is that
none of us really understands what another person is is going through until
we are in the same situation. Anyway, as I was reflecting on this, it dawned
on me that he was right-at least, partly. If I don't try to make the best of
the hand that I have been dealt, I will end up having a permanent pity
party. At present, I do have too many times of self-pity but, at least, they
are not permanent! I started thinking of ways that I can make the best of a
difficult situation.

Maybe the most important thing is to simply be thankful. Be thankful for
what I do have. Eyes that see, ears that hear, a mind that works, a warm
place to be in, plenty of food, people that care for me, a wonderful country
to live in. The list could go on and on. And, to top it all, a God that
loves me and will do what is best for me.

I can also try not to murmur and complain. Have you noticed that it seems to
come naturally for people to complain? With my myriad of aches and pains, it
is tempting to always complaining to somebody about something. But I try not
to, at least not too often, for a couple of reasons. First, I know that
always talking about minor ailments would keep me thinking about myself. And
that, I am sure, would just lead to depression. The other reason is that,
too often I have to listen to other people complaining about what are, to
me, minor ailments. I admit that I find it annoying so I am determined not
to do that to other people. Something that I complain about too much is the
food in this place. Most of the time, it is ok but the same thing cooked the
same way over and over and over and over gets pretty monotonous. I need to
remind myself more often about all the people in this world who would be
overjoyed to get this food.

Making the best of things means getting pleasure from little things instead
of always looking at the major things that I can't be part of. Things like
minor trips or outings. But I bet I enjoy them just as much as other people
do major trips. After years of eating hospital food, it gives me a lot of
pleasure to get other food, be it homemade or take-out. I am so happy to get
a Tim Horton's coffee. Of course, I always delight  in visitors and,
sometimes being read to. One thing that I enjoy is watching little kids.
Because communication is so difficult for me, it is hard to take part in
conversations. However, I don't have to be able to communicate to enjoy
little kids playing. It is not my intent to enumerate all the "small"
pleasures I have.  Just to make the point that it helps to make the best of
things if I enjoy what I can enjoy and leave other things to other people.

Another way that I can make the best of my current situation is by being
PATIENT. The word that we all love so much. In this fast-paced society,
patience doesn't seem to be an attribute that is popular. However, it does
seem to be big with God. It goes more smoothly for me if, instead of always
nagging God with "when, when, when", I just relax and let God do His thing
in His time. That, though, is easier said than done.

Hand in hand with patience goes contentment. A calm, peaceful mind at all
times. I know that I would be making the best of things if I could be
contented all time. I do have times of contentment with my lot in life,
knowing that God has it all under control, but there are also too many times
when I feel agitated. Sometimes I don't even know why. Let's just say that
my level of contentment still needs some work.

There are probably more ways that I can make the best of my present
circumstances but the last one I want to mention is controlling my wayward
thoughts. This is relatively easy when I am using my computer and can read,
write or even watch tv (I have tv on my computer). Those things distract me
from my own thoughts. When I am resting in bed in the afternoon, my thoughts
tend to wander a bit more. But I always have Christian music so, as long as
I keep my mind on the lyrics, I can usually keep my thoughts under control.
The time I really struggle is when I am lying in bed with no music on. Maybe
I can't sleep or I wake up really early.  Even if I start praising or
meditating on the Bible, it is usually not long before my thoughts are
running helter-skelter again.

So, my conclusion is this. Because, temporarily, I am in a situation that is
not a whole lot of fun, it is important for me to do whatever I can to make
the best of it or it will be even more difficult for me.