Today's
quotation:
Whether
or not we realize it each of us has within the ability to
set some
kind of example for people. Knowing this, would you rather
be the one known for being the one who encouraged others,
or the
one who inadvertently discouraged those around you?
Josh
Hinds
|
Today's
Meditation:
Are
you a role model? Yes, you are. We all are,
actually. The major difference between the so-called
"good" role models, though, and the
"bad" ones is that the good ones have made a
conscious decision to be role models. They have
decided that they are going to live in such a way as to be
examples of love and kindness and helpfulness, as well as
strong morals and ethics. They know that others see
them all the time, and they've decided just what they want
others to see.
And
they haven't decided to model these qualities for their
own gain. Instead, they know that if they can show
others the positive effects of leading positive lives,
then others can decide to emulate them and make their own
lives much more positive and fulfilling.
If
someone--and especially a young person who is still
learning many of the basic aspects of life--sees me
constantly complaining and being negative, he or she gets
the idea that life is something to complain about, and
that person very often will look for things that reinforce
this idea. This person very likely could become
someone who complains and focuses on the negative side of
life. Likewise if I constantly criticize others, or
if I say that life is unfair, or if I gossip or break the
law or hurt others--I'm setting an example. And all
of these things can be very discouraging for the people
who are watching me because I'm a part of their lives.
I
would much rather know that I've tried to model the
positive, that I've been loving and encouraging, and that
others think positively when they see my model. If I
am to be that way, I have to make a conscious decision to
be so, and I have to stick to it. Otherwise, who
knows what I teach others?
|
For further
thought:
Be
such a person, and live such a life, that if every person
were
such as you, and every life a life like yours,
this earth would be
God's Paradise.
Phillips
Brooks |