Today I was looking for some thing in my Site Map for my Articles and saw the below article that I wrote in October 2008. The information in the article reminds me of some thing that I need to remember. How I frame my experience in life largely determines how I experience my life.
How are you Framing your Life? Revised
Posted by Second Chance to Live on October 4, 2008
Through my experience I have come to value how I choose to “frame” my experience. What I mean by “frame” has to do with the way that I choose to perceive and define my experience. My experience has taught me that when I frame or assign negativity, defeat or a belief of victimization to my circumstances I internalize a sense of hopelessness and helplessness. When I internalize hopelessness and helplessness, I forget that I have choices.
“Our lives are not determined by what happens to us but how we react to what happens, not by what life brings us but the attitude we bring to life.” Wade Boggs
On the other hand, when I frame or assign a position of empowerment — to each of my circumstances regardless of how they may look — I am emboldened to believe that my circumstances are designed to work together for my good. When I choose to see that my circumstances are designed to work together for my good, my process takes on a different meaning. A feeling of hopelessness and helplessness is traded for a sense of encouragement, motivation and empowerment.. A feeling of anxiety and a need to control is replaced with trust, ease, balance and grace.
In the process of trusting, I become solution oriented because I realize that my circumstances are being done for me, not to me. In the process, I look for lessons that work together for my good. In the process, I see my experience as an opportunity to set me up, not to set me back. In the process, I embrace my circumstances as opportunities to build me up, not to keep me down. In the process, I trade fear for hope. In the process, I gain courage to take the risk of failure to develop new and hidden talents. In the process, I am able to do and accomplish things never dreamed possible.
In the process, I am able to realize that I no longer have to be driven by perfectionism. In the process, I am able to instead pursue excellence while celebrating small successes. In the process, I am able to do the footwork without being emotionally invested in specific outcomes. In the process, I am able to let go. In the process, I am able to trust a loving God with my will and my life. In the process, I am able to replace fear with faith and gratitude. In the process, I able to see that a loving God is and has been doing for me what I can and could not do for myself.
Promises that I gain through a spiritual discipline of the 12 Steps are found listed in a wonderful book, From Survival to Recovery on pages 269-270.
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