Attitude Determines Altitude

No, I haven't been to Venice any time recently. I just like the picture.

Recently a friend of mine, Josh, put up the title of this post on his facebook. "Attitude determines Altitude".

The times when you are on a mountain in life and when it's all going fantastically you can actually still be emotionally somewhere down in the valley. The converse is also true. It's at this moment where I am having one of the biggest challenges of my life that I realise that it is all about my attitude. We can't choose our trials. We can't even dictate the decisions or actions of those closest to us. Yet, we can choose how we react to it.

I am determined to stand a little taller, love a little more, become a little better.
There are always lows in life.
Will we be beaten by them?
Will we let them determine our course so that we have to walk in the valley for years?

I have to echo the words of the EFY song from this year: "Come to the Mountain of the Lord". We can stand in holy places even if life knocks us back. We can get angry with God or angry with others or we can trust that our Heavenly Father does love us and will support us in every trial that we go through. We can be dragged along in the whirlwinds and earthquakes of some parts of the world; or we can go to our spiritual Venice.

So, thank you Josh for reminding me in a small way of these simple truths.
It's great to have friends who are constantly inspiring and I am fortunate to know many people of that calibre.

Remember to count your blessings.
As a plaque that my sister brought me says:

"When it rains, look for rainbows. 

When it's dark, look for stars." 

 Each day is a miracle and a gift.

The miracle wasn't that the blind man's eyes were healed- the miracle was that he had eyes in the first place.

I'm grateful for friends.
I'm grateful for prayer.
I'm grateful for my brother being safely home.
I'm grateful for a wonderful family.
I'm grateful for nature.
I'm grateful for Shakespeare.
I'm grateful for food.
I'm grateful for skype.
I'm grateful for smells.
I'm grateful for the many ways we stay in touch.
I'm grateful for music.

LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL. I HAVE MY HANDS ON A MIRACLE.