Altar Call - Opelika-Auburn News
Walter Albritton
February 15, 2009

Twelve choices you must not die without making

Motivational speaker Zig Ziglar has spent his life inspiring people to embrace a positive attitude about life. Attitude makes all the difference. And attitude is a matter of choice.

Choices impact our lives. We can choose to be miserable or happy. We cannot always choose our circumstances but we can choose how we shall react. Fortunately there are many decisions that can enrich your life. Here are some choices you must not die without making:

One, choose to like yourself. Enjoy being you. Never waste a moment wishing you were someone else. Picture yourself as a wonderful person. If someone does not like you, that is their problem.

Two, expect people to like you. Let Zig Ziglar’s "likeability factor" work for you. Zig says people like four things: kindness, optimism, a smile, and people who listen. Practice doing the things that people like and you will have many friends.

Three, be optimistic about the future. Pessimism shrinks life. Optimism enlarges it. Choose to expect the best. When bad things happen, face them with courage but get up every day believing good things are going to happen to you.

Four, live every day with enthusiasm. Pour yourself boldly into what you are doing. Enthusiasm produces the energy to dance, so dance until people start dancing with you.

Five, choose to learn something new every day. Explore the unknown. Exercise your brain. Continue growing until you gasp your last breath. There is so much to learn and old dogs really can learn new tricks.

Six, do not allow disappointment to grind you down. You will have disappointments so accept them. But they need not lead you into despair. Tell despair it is not welcome in your life. You can choose to make your disappointments temporary.

Seven, treasure your relationships more than your stuff. People are more important than things. Be content with what you have. If you have anything you love more than your family and friends, give it away. Things cannot hold your hand when you are hurting.

Eight, choose not to worry. Worry will kill you. Worry never solves a problem. Worry is a thief; it will rob you of joy, peace, health, and contentment. Put your worries in a jar and think about them only once a week – every Thursday at 2:00 o’clock.

Nine, laugh a lot. Laughter is healthy. Life without humor is boring. If you wake up one morning and can’t think of anything funny to laugh about, look in the mirror. What you see staring back at you is bound to make you grin. And don’t ever waste a grin without adding laughter to it.

Ten, choose to be understanding of the mistakes other people make. You make mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes. Give other people a break. That is doing for others what you need for them to do for you. Life would be impossible without understanding.

Eleven, tell the people you love the most that you love them. Speak the words, “I love you,” to those dearest to you. You will be dead one day so while you are alive, make your love known. Your love is your most precious gift so give it while it is day.

Twelve, tell God you love him. Thank him for your blessings. You have them because God loves you. So thank him for loving you. He will smile to hear you express your love for him. And many times you will suddenly feel like someone touched you.

Here are choices that can enrich your life. Be sure you make each one before you die. Choose to begin today! + + +