Positive in crisis? Are you kidding?

This is supposed to be a part of my Reflective Sunday Series and originally entitled: “Thinking of Noble Things” based on the letter of Paul to the Philippians.

I went to church last Sunday. It's not that I am heralding my religiosity to the world, it's simply something that I seldom do in the last 5 years. I have nothing against the church or any Christian affiliation. Admittedly, I simply put-off attending to my spiritual needs. Of course, this can’t go on forever.

Anyway.

The preacher shared a very timely message based from Paul's letter to the Philippians. While the sermon centers on the theme of "Remembrance of the good things about the past, of the present, and the prospect of a better tomorrow," I cannot help myself but reread this short letter again in its entirety, while I was listening (think of multi-tasking even while in church ^^). These three phrases caught my attention:

...for I have learned to be content whatsoever the circumstances 4:11b (NIV)
...I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation 4:12b (NIV)
...if anything is excellent or praiseworthy -think about such things. 4:8c (NIV)

And to me, they echoed back two very important life’s lessons in a nutshell: contentment and positivity.

If you were familiar with the life of Paul as a Missionary, you would probably consider him as the real epitome of trial, hardships, and sufferings. Imprisoned unjustly, shipwrecked, beaten and stoned almost to death, and so on. Virtually all the negative karma in the world was dumped on this guy. In spite of that, he remained steadfast, resilient, and faithful to his calling. Then this letter. These words: I have learned to be content? Think of praiseworthy things? Ey! This guy might be out his mind! He had taken so much beating and probably something was loosened inside his already bald head. Oh boy, this guy must be kidding! How can you possibly put –on a positive instance in circumstances like those?

But Paul did! And he meant every word he said.

Do you know what his secret is?

Other than his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Paul learned how to be contented and positive in any and every situation. He always sees a glass that is half-full, a radiant sun behind the dark clouds, and a light at the end of long and narrow tunnel (although more often, in our lives this light could be that of an incoming train . ^^ ) Oh, fill-in your own metaphor please. His message is clear. Anyone can weather any crisis as long as you know how to adjust, and hope.

Positivity, not positive thinking, is anchored on an optimistic outlook. It is based on reality. That while things or circumstances may not seem favorable, an optimistic person sees something positive in any of these, and can even find something to be thankful for.

Three people were asked about the significance of a glass half filled with water:

The environmental activist opined: "It signifies one of the worst shortages in the world - the lack of clean, drinkable water."
The engineer replied: "You just made the glass too big."
The bar tender observed: "It means that even in a lesser or reduced amount, we must be grateful for what we have, and allows us to live in scarcity."

So, which typifies you?