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When I first
heard Donnie McClurkin's song, "We Fall Down (But We Get Up), I got
goosebumps. The second time I heard it I loved it even more. There
is a Gospel House remix of the song that is simply off the hook.
The reason I felt that this song was so powerful is because the
lyrics are so right on time that it's ridiculous.
Just think about this for a moment:
We Fall Down.
How many times have you done something in your past that you weren't
too happy about?
It could be anything.
Let's say that you are an addicted person. You may be addicted to
drugs, or alcohol or the wrong type of man. Perhaps you are addicted
to stressful jobs that bring you little pay.
It doesn't matter what the circumstances may be. Hey, it doesn't
even have to be that harsh.
Perhaps you have tried to start your own business or create
something in your life where you could make a living doing something
you are passionate about and it failed, so you gave up. It doesn't
really matter. But every time you turn around, you are falling
victim to the same thing over and over again.
Hey, it happens--We Fall Down.
But the good thing about it is We Get Up.
Just because you fell down doesn't mean you have to STAY down.
Get up!
Why are you still sitting there?
We all make mistakes. But the great part about it is that God allows
us an opportunity to learn from our mistakes and move forward. Just
because you fall down today, doesn't mean that tomorrow you must
remain down.
Ever slipped out in public and actually fell down? Jumped up real
quick, didn't you? The next thing you did was looked around and
prayed that nobody saw you. (Just a little side note to
you--SOMEBODY always sees you.)
Just as quickly as you bounced up from a "real" fall, you can bounce
back from a figurative fall.
One thing that I’ve noticed from speaking with a lot of people is
that they understand the We Fall Down part and, generally, when they
do fall down, they simply stay there or let their fall stop them
from moving forward. They have never learned the "BUT We Get Up"
part.
No matter what the circumstances are in your life that might have
tripped you up, no matter what you have been through, no matter what
happened in your past, you can always GET UP and make changes, right
now, that will forever banish or make obsolete, the "bad" things
that caused you to fall in the past.
Don't get me wrong...I hear some very legitimate sounding "excuses"
as to why people "feel" that their life will forever be the way that
it presently may be. I hear things like "I was molested when I was
young." "My mother abandoned me when I was two years old and left me
because she was out chasing the pipe." "I have an addiction. How can
I possibly get a job that pays more than minimum wage." "I don't
have an education. How can I ever expect to get a good job?"
STOP Living In the Past! We all fall down. But remember, "A Saint is
just a sinner who fell down AND got up."
GET UP! Stop living in the past! Your past should be a reference
point, NOT a residence.
But so many of us continuously LIVE in the past. We went out and
bought a "WELCOME" mat and promptly placed it at the door of our
past. We can't break away from it. We wear it as some sort of badge
of honor because we simply won't let it go.
Just because you made a mistake or circumstances led you to do
something that you now regret, doesn't mean that for the rest of
your life you will have to beat yourself up because of it.
Doesn't matter if you made two mistakes or three. Heck, it doesn't
even matter if you made over a million mistakes in your life. What
matters is today, right now.
You know the mistakes that you've made because you have that mistake
as a reference point now and for the rest of your life. But you CAN
change your residence. Move out. Pack your bags and throw away that
"Welcome" mat-- because, right now, you make the decision to change.
You have decided that your life is worth fighting for. You realize
that you are a child of God and, therefore, worthy of all that is
already yours by divine right.
You weren't born for sorrow. You weren't born to be a doormat for
others to wipe their feet on. You weren't born to infect your body
with chemicals that take you outside of yourself. You weren't born
to be used up and then disregarded. You weren't born for any of
that.
You were born to glorify God and live a happy and abundant life. And
if you aren't living that way, it's simply because at some point,
you fell down. But now is the time to get up and start living the
life that you were born to live. And that is a life of purpose.
That's a life of happiness and abundance.
Now, you ask, How do I get out of the past and Get Up? Well, I would
like to say, "it’s simple." But that wouldn't be the truth. There's
nothing "simple" about it. It's a daily process that you must work
on. You have to be committed to making changes in your life. You
have to believe that God has a purpose for you. You MUST have faith.
You have to change your mindset and the things that are presently in
your life. In other words, you will have to work on YOU.
You will have to realize that what happened yesterday, is gone. You
can never get that time back and, therefore, there is nothing you
can do about it. But right in front of you is another minute or
another hour or another day, week, month, year. Those things haven't
happened yet, so you can start to orchestrate your present so that
your future will be more to your liking.
Start by telling yourself, over and over and over and over again,
"My past has no bearing on who I am right this second. And,
therefore, is NOT important. I am here to glorify God. I am God's
child and, therefore, worthy of greatness."
If you take this simple phrase and say it to yourself all day long,
over and over again, you will soon start to notice changes in your
life. All of a sudden, without even thinking about it, you will
start to pack your old baggage from the past and move them to a
closet that you will lock and throw away the key. And when you get
stronger in your faith, you will find yourself selling the whole
house and moving into a completely different neighborhood--one that
is completely different from the hood you used to live in.
I know that when you were young you learned the song, "Ring around
the rosie, a pocket full of posie. Ashes. Ashes. We all fall down."
Nobody got up at the end of that song. Well, that was the old school
way of thinking. I like Donnie McClurkin's song better because his
song leaves you with a feeling of hope.
ACTION POINT: If you find yourself living in the past or letting
past experiences hold you back from bringing new and exciting things
into your life, STOP! Tell yourself, "My past has no bearing on who
I am right this second. And, therefore, is NOT important. I am here
to glorify God. I am God's child and, therefore, worthy of
greatness." Say this to yourself, over and over again. Try it. And
always remember: A Saint is just a sinner who fell down and got up!
© 2005
http://www.dawnfields.com.
Dawn Fields is a motivational speaker, author and spiritual life
coach. Visit the web site for tons of additional information at
http://www.dawnfields.com Be sure to check out her
weekly radio show, Your Life's Purpose Interactive Internet Radio
Show every Thursday at 9 p.m. EST at
http://www.dawnfields.com/radioshow.htm and sign up
for the inspirational and motivational weekly newsletter, Your
Life's Purpose by sending a blank email to
yourlifespurpose-subscribe@topica.com
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