“Instead of hiding out in a dark motel room or being alone in my house, I’m free in the world to live life fully with family, friends and purpose.”

On awakening let us think about the twenty-four hours ahead. We consider our plans for the day. Before we begin, we ask God to direct our thinking, especially asking that it be divorced from self-pity, dishonest or self-seeking motives.

Getting stuck in a rut of criticizing others, the world around us and being critical of ourselves is far easier than adopting a grateful attitude. Of course, we can stay stuck and ignore our blessings. We can choose to be critical, or we can choose to feel grateful. Why would we? It's all up to us. Today, I ask God to help me make a list of all my blessings; and to keep my focus on them rather than be critical and focus on all the imperfections in the world.

Remember that the first quality of greatness is service. In a way, God is the greatest servant of all, because He is always waiting for us to call on Him to help us in all good endeavors. His strength is always available to us, but we must ask it of Him through our own free will. It is entirely a free gift, but we must sincerely seek for it. A life of service is the finest life we can live. We are here on earth to serve others. That is the beginning and the end of our real worth. I pray that I may cooperate with God in all good things. I pray that I may serve God and others and so lead a useful and happy life.