Has depression got you down, especially while we’re in the midst of the biggest holiday season of the year, with Christmas and New Year’s coming up in a couple of weeks or so? Let us talk about how this holiday season can bring on depression and grief, but we won’t stop there. We can give you proven principles to help snap you out of it, so you too can have unspeakable joy!
First, take control by being reminded that our God sent his Son for sinners like us, and he has given us this chance to be, do and have whatever it is we desire, especially peace. The word “peace” appears 429 times in 400 verses in the Bible.
The Bible teaches that Jesus came to bring peace to troubled hearts. The concept of “peace” in the Bible has multiple meanings, including:
Spiritual peace: Peace with God
Relational peace: Peace with others
Emotional peace: Peace within ourselves
Wholeness: Total health and welfare
Relationships: Relationships between people, nations, and God with men
Here are some Bible verses that mention peace:
John 16:33: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Matthew 5:9: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”
John 14:27: Christ’s “peace” refers to a hope and reassurance that goes beyond what a fallen world can offer.
John 20:19-29: After his death and resurrection, Jesus used the greeting “peace be with you” three times when he met with his disciples.
However, we must believe, and his angels will be camped all around each of us.
Napoleon Hill discovered over and over again the main principles in his book — those things that make men rich — and he is not speaking of only money.
Here is the complete list of 12 things, in case you missed previous columns. Men are rich, and they will have joy, when they go through life:
– With a positive mental attitude
– Have sound physical health
– You have harmony in human relations
– You have freedom from fear
– You have hope of future achievement
– You have the capacity for applied faith
– You have a willingness to share your blessings with others
– You are engaged in a labor of love
– You have an open mind on all subjects toward all people
And this week, we will close this series with the final three things that make men rich:
10. You have complete self-discipline
11. You have wisdom with which to understand people
12. You have financial security
When one has complete self-discipline, defined as controlled behavior resulting from disciplinary training — self-control. More simply, this tells each of us that we have control over our behavior which results in the good or bad things that happen in our lives.
Either we come home every day from work, eat dinner, sit on the couch and watch television; or we get off work, we go to help someone else in need, maybe you are a tutor for a student. You go to the gym or you take your daily walk; you come home, have your dinner then you take some time to read. You read your Bible, you read a book; you get on your computer and work on the goals you’ve set for your life. You stick to a routine, rather than coming home and shutting down. That is discipline.
The principle known as wisdom with which to understand people is truly powerful. It reminds us how sweet wisdom is, and it lets us know we can have joy and hope. Take a look: “Wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off” (Proverbs 24:14). Scripture also says in Proverbs 4:7, “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.”
We all have financial security and joy when we plan properly and use these 12 things that make men rich correctly. Whatever amount of finances you believe will work for you is yours. You can feel rich when you have organized your finances in such a way as to keep your bills paid; you have, or you’re getting your credit rating strong; you have savings; you have worked on your goal as a businessperson in one form or another, and you’ve actually learned how to accumulate great wealth.
Don’t expect to get wealth and keep it if you have a negative mental attitude about yourself and others. How can you achieve very much when your health is not good, and you expect to become wealthy when you’re not even working in harmony with others? Forget about it! You cannot work against others; you must work with them.
Take some time, review these thought-provoking principles. Finally, just do it! Make that change, have yourself an attitude adjustment, and find unspeakable joy during this holiday season!
Lyndia Grant is a speaker/writer living in the D.C. area. Her radio show, “Think on These Things,” airs Fridays at 6 p.m. on 1340 AM (WYCB), a Radio One station. To reach Grant, visit her website, www.lyndiagrant.com, email lyndiagrantshowdc@gmail.com or call 240-602-6295. Follow her on X @LyndiaGrant and on Facebook.