I don’t believe in it and I don’t recommend it. ‘Normal’ is a lame way to think. It presupposes there’s a baseline, a zeroed-out way of living that demands nothing, promotes nothing and accomplishes little. Worse yet, it gives false but convenient excuses for the lazy to become amazingly proficient at sloth.
‘Normal’ gives the impression we’re all the same. Totally interchangeable. One-size-fits-all. Unremarkable. I can do your job, you can do mine, nobody’s special, ain’t no samwich when she’s gone. Like that.
It’s even found its mediocral way into popular novels. A paragraph from a best-selling author started out like this . . .
“Normal was king. Status just went right on quoing.” Some would say that slouches hand-in-hand with the current hand-out mentality of far too many people who’ve become lazy in body, mind and spirit. They’d be right.
‘Normal’ has become the high bar.
The theme song for the ‘Up With Mediocrity’ crowd is LOW RIDER.
Whining DVDs are hot sellers.
It’s become popular to demand nothing from oneself while demanding everything from others. Oh, yes. The drive to coast for life’s remainder is pushy, its philosophy widespread and tantalizing.
There’s only one problem with that.
It’s a huge lie.
Pour yourself a refill while I ‘splain.
It’s not about whether it’s easy or tough. It’s about whether it’s worth it.
Today is fresh and new. It’s alive, vibrating and filled to the brim with unlived great possibilities. There’s never, ever been another day like today. There’ll never, ever be another one just like it. In all Time, today is totally unique.
To waste today trying to be as normal as possible would be the crime of the century!
You are here! You are! You, too, are totally unique in all God’s created order! There never has been nor ever will again be anybody just like you. God made exactly ONE of you.
Are you getting this?
YOU have the unparalleled opportunity to showcase for THIS 24 hours the ONLY YOU that God EVER HAS OR EVER WILL CREATE. You have a life others can see, experiences they know about and observe how you respond to them. They know things haven’t been all that spiffy for you. In other words, you have the chance, the stage to act out right in front of them just how blessed and wonder-filled you are every day God lets you live! YOU do!
You have work. You have love. You have faith in a God Who IS. And you have the amazing ability to affect every person you meet today.
Almost every one of them will shuffle past, barely making eye contact, and will mutter, “Owzitgoan?”
You have THAT MANY CHANCES to make THEIR day spark and pop as your happy, positive outlook shorts out their worn, old, frayed and afraid way of looking at things and people.
Hey! Before this you’ve allowed their moody, plodding, gripey negativity affect YOUR attitude.
Right?
Well, starting now, return the favor. PERMANENTLY.
“Oooh, they’re not gonna like that. Hunh-UH.”
So? They came to work with a sour attitude. Brought it with ’em. Practice Defensive ‘Tuding.
This may shock you. Not everyone has to agree with you for your life to make a positive difference. Some will disagree with you because they don’t like you. Some will because they’re basically disagreeable anyway. You have permission to be okay with that.
The approval of others is not necessary for you to be a strong, positive force for Excellence today. You just need to decide to do it.
Keep this in mind. The way to identify a real winner, a person worth hanging with and following is that envious and often spiteful people are lined up against him. Remember Winston Churchill once said, “So you have enemies, eh? Good! That means you’ve tried to do something in your life.”
Status-quo, ‘Normal’ thinking is sludgy, slow-moving. It’s Group-Think at its laziest. If you wait around until you’re popular before deciding to hit the path toward personal and spiritual excellence, those same people will be plodding past your gravesite, nodding and saying, “Tried to tell ‘im it wouldn’t work.”
No. With respect and profound love, they’re the ones who won’t work. The only real ‘power’ they ever had over you is your reaction to their words and actions. Remember how frustrated you used to get at their lackluster habits? Well, quit. Focus on your positive efforts and learn to ignore and overlook their intentional negative ones. Outwardly, at least. No reaction, no power.
Some of them will never fit into your life no matter how much you care about them and wish them to. Love them but leave them alone. Let them go on as they wish. Letting their opinion of you matter too much can make you want to give up.
Giving up never stops the chances of things getting worse. What giving up does is all but guarantee that things will never get better. Better think about that before you give others’ opinions about you too much say in your daily living. It doesn’t matter who they once were. It doesn’t matter who they are. It doesn’t matter who they think they are. Let them go.
Your responsibility for this fresh, unlived, bursting-at-the-seams day lies before you.
On your path to personal, spiritual excellence you’re going to step on the toes of those standing around being critical of your efforts. They won’t like that. They won’t like you. Some may even resent you.
You have permission to be okay with that.
You’re intent on being and doing the right things. Even when you try to make things right, there are always those who find ways to make it seem wrong anyway. Get it through your head: they don’t like you because you’re showing a mirror to their own souls. They don’t like what they see. It’s simpler (in their minds) to criticize and poke at you than make the necessary changes in their own lives. Quit trying to please them. Love them–but quit trying to please them.
The eyes are useless when the mind is blind. Sometimes that blindness is self-induced. Yeah. A choice.
Sure, there’s something you can do about it.
Today is fresh and new. It’s alive, vibrating and filled to the brim with unlived great possibilities. There’s never, ever been another day like today. There’ll never, ever be another one just like it. In all Time, today is totally unique.
To waste today trying to be as normal as possible would be the crime of the century!
You are here! You are! You, too, are totally unique in all God’s created order! There never has been nor ever will again be anybody just like you. God made exactly ONE of you.
Are you getting this?
YOU have the unparalleled opportunity to showcase for THIS 24 hours the ONLY YOU that God EVER HAS OR EVER WILL CREATE.
You have work. You have love. You have faith in a God Who IS. And you have the amazing ability to affect every person you meet today.
Almost every one of them will shuffle past, barely making eye contact, and will mutter, “Owzitgoan?”
You have THAT MANY CHANCES to make THEIR day spark and pop as your happy, positive outlook shorts out their worn, old, frayed and afraid way of looking at things and people.
Hey! Before this you’ve allowed their moody, plodding, gripey negativity affect YOUR attitude.
Right?
Well, starting now, return the favor. PERMANENTLY.
Uh–wait. Didn’t you just say that already?
Yup. Did. Glad you picked up on it. I want this to sink in. Going and growing toward personal and spiritual excellence is not an experiment for a week, a month or a quarter. It’s a lifetime goal!
Make it a permanent part of every living day to shine and sparkle in the lives of those you’re around. Let them see and experience the effects of a great attitude; of strong, growing faith in God and the effects of His grace in your life; and of deep gratitude for all that you are and have.
They’re smart enough to know your life’s no more perfect than you are. But if you provide them every day with the antidote to ‘Normal’, they have to admit it exists, now, don’t they? If you let them see you in the daily quest to look up instead of down, to smile instead of frown, to be positive and constantly working to excel, they’ll have to accept that it’s possible. They’ll be looking at your life that proves it.
It’s up to them whether they do anything about it. Just as it was with you.
Keep stretching yourself! Keep climbing! Keep reaching for excellence in whatever God’s placed before you to be and do! If you do that, you’ll have no problem having what others see as a successful life.
Remember this: it’s amazing how far you are willing to go and how hard you are willing to work when someone believes in you.
That would be me.
And I do!
Loving you,
Dan
© August 2013