Same Facts. Different Focus.

Today I turn 60.

And milestone birthdays have a way of making you stop and look at your life a little differently.

The facts are the facts.

I'm 60. My mom isn't here to celebrate this birthday with me. I've lost people I love, friendships I thought would last, businesses I believed in, money I wish I hadn't spent, and plans I was pretty sure were going to work.

I could look at those facts and think, Wow. I've lost a lot.

Or I could look at the very same facts and think, Wow. God has brought me through a lot.

Same facts. Different focus.

That's the power of the script we're running in our minds.

We can't rewrite what happened. We can't make people stay. We can't undo a disappointment or go back and make a different decision.

But we can decide what we're going to do with the story from here.

At 60, I could focus on what's behind me, or I can ask, God, what do You have for me now?

I can count what I've lost, or I can recognize everything I've gained.

Wisdom. Experience. Faith. Perspective. (A whole lot of lessons I probably could have learned the easier way. 😂)

Romans 12:2 tells us to "be transformed by the renewing of your mind."

Maybe that's where transformation really begins.

Not when all the facts change.

When our focus does.

So how do we shift our focus?

Start by noticing the script you're running. What are you repeatedly telling yourself about your situation?

Then separate the fact from the story. Maybe the fact is, This didn't work out. The story might be, Nothing ever works out for me. Those aren't the same thing.

Next, ask yourself a better question. Instead of Why is this happening to me? try, What can God do with this? What can I learn here? What is still possible? What is mine to do next?

And finally, choose where you're going to put your attention. You don't have to deny what's hard to recognize what's good. Both can be true.

That's renewing your mind. Not pretending. Not positive thinking. Choosing not to let one difficult fact write the entire story.

So today, I'm not rewriting the facts.

I'm rewriting the script I'm telling myself about them.

I'm 60. God has been faithful. I'm still here.

And He's not finished writing my story.

Same facts. Different focus.

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Who Told You That?

Recognizing the voices shaping the way you see yourself. Sometimes we believe something for so long that we stop asking …