{"id":1836,"date":"2020-06-07T12:46:18","date_gmt":"2020-06-07T12:46:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/?p=1836"},"modified":"2020-06-07T12:46:18","modified_gmt":"2020-06-07T12:46:18","slug":"moving-from-bitter-to-blessed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/2020\/06\/moving-from-bitter-to-blessed.html","title":{"rendered":"Moving from Bitter to Blessed"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"blessed\"<\/a>
Photo by Andre Furtado from Pexels<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Life is hard.\u00a0 And it is hard for everyone<\/em>.\u00a0 No one goes through life without difficulty.\u00a0 Some of those difficulties we bring on ourselves.\u00a0 Others are inflicted on us.\u00a0 And yet, some people go through life being bitter while others go through life feeling blessed.<\/p>\n

For example, I know a pastor who immigrated to the United States from India.\u00a0 He came to this country with $10 in his pocket.\u00a0 Unfortunately, during his career, he experienced racism at the different churches where he served.\u00a0 And yet, he has a beautiful spirit.\u00a0 He loves all people.\u00a0 Life is joyful for him, and he feels blessed to serve God.<\/p>\n

By contrast, I know another person who has had every privilege.\u00a0 He is white and had wealthy parents.\u00a0 Life, as a result, has given him immense opportunities.\u00a0 But the inevitable bumps along the road have turned him into a bitter person.\u00a0 He goes through life angry and does not have a generous spirit.<\/p>\n

Realize that our socio-economic position is not what leads us to feel bitter or blessed in life.\u00a0 Nor is it the severity of the trials that we endure.\u00a0 (Trust me, there will always be someone out there who has had it worse than you.)\u00a0 Rather, it is our response<\/em> to those trials that leads us to feel bitter or blessed.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, we all can move from \u201cbitter to<\/em> blessed.\u201d\u00a0 Consider the approaches below to transform your attitude from bitter to blessed and see how happy your life can be.<\/p>\n

1. Use Your Suffering to Become More Compassionate<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Some people respond to the difficulties of life by becoming negative and bitter.\u00a0 Others become incredibly compassionate.\u00a0 Their own suffering leads them to be kinder, gentler and more understanding toward others.\u00a0 And that gives their suffering value.<\/p>\n

In my own life, I cannot make sense of the difficult experiences I have endured.\u00a0 Nevertheless, I believe that those experiences have had value.\u00a0 They weren\u2019t pointless.\u00a0 Those experiences are what have made me a more compassionate person.\u00a0 I feel the suffering of others more deeply because I myself have suffered.<\/p>\n

If you want to move from bitter to blessed, you need to transform your suffering into compassion.\u00a0 Otherwise, your suffering will be random and meaningless.\u00a0 When your difficult experiences lead you to be a better, more compassionate person, they have value.\u00a0 And then you are truly blessed.<\/p>\n

2. Become a Gentler, Quieter Person<\/strong><\/h3>\n

I always find it ironic that people who have suffered from violence become violent individuals.\u00a0 It should be just the opposite.\u00a0 We should want to steer clear of the behavior that we abhor.<\/p>\n

We go from bitter to blessed when, in spite of our experiences, we choose to be peaceful rather than aggressive.\u00a0 That is hard.\u00a0 It takes self-control.<\/p>\n

But ultimately, it is our choice as to how we respond to life\u2019s experiences.\u00a0 We certainly can choose to be like everyone else.\u00a0 We can choose to be noisy, angry, hostile and aggressive, due to the negative things that we have endured.<\/p>\n

Or, we can choose to be high quality individuals.\u00a0 We can make the choice to be kind, gentle and respectful toward others, no matter what has happened to us in the past.\u00a0 Blessed people conduct themselves with utmost civility and decency, regardless of whatever negative experiences they have had.<\/p>\n

3. Acknowledge Your Courage<\/strong><\/h3>\n

If you have been through a difficult experience and have come out on the other side, you have courage.\u00a0 Period.\u00a0 You may not have gone through the experience perfectly.\u00a0 There may be things that you wish you had done differently.\u00a0 That is natural.\u00a0 But the bottom line is that if you got through a bad experience, you are a courageous person.\u00a0 Celebrate that!<\/p>\n

Instead of focusing on the unfairness of the experience, instead, focus on your strength. \u00a0Realize that you are tough.\u00a0 You now know that the hardships of life cannot break you.<\/p>\n

Courage and mental fortitude are not inconsequential qualities.\u00a0 There are lots of people who do not possess those qualities.\u00a0 Instead, they fall apart when life gets a little tough.<\/p>\n

In fact, I\u2019ve known people who simply cannot manage life.\u00a0 They throw temper tantrums when life doesn\u2019t go their way.\u00a0 Others have mid-life crises, or they flake out on their responsibilities when life gets a little bit too hard.<\/p>\n

If you simply get through life, with all of its challenges, continue to meet your responsibilities and operate in a kind manner, then give yourself a pat on the back!\u00a0 You are a lot farther along than many of the folks out there.\u00a0 Feel blessed because you are courageous<\/em>!<\/p>\n

4. Help Others<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The fastest cure for bitterness is to help others.\u00a0 As bad as you think you have it, someone else has it worse.\u00a0 Help that person.<\/p>\n

Bitter people do not help others.\u00a0 Just the opposite.\u00a0 They insult others.\u00a0 They behave cruelly toward others.\u00a0 And if you act that way toward other people, you will stay bitter.<\/p>\n

To move from bitter to blessed, you need to stop feeling sorry for yourself.\u00a0 You instead need to use your experiences to build up your empathy and compassion for the suffering others.\u00a0 And then you need to put that empathy and compassion into action by easing their pain.<\/p>\n

As soon as we help others, we give meaning to our suffering.\u00a0 Your suffering isn\u2019t pointless if it leads you to help another person or an animal (or the earth!).\u00a0 When our suffering leads us to be kinder, gentler and more helpful than we would be otherwise, we give it value.<\/p>\n

Moving from being bitter to feeling blessed is not easy.\u00a0 We have to change the way we think about our most difficult experiences.\u00a0 But if we change how we view those experiences, that can lead us down a path of being truly blessed and happy.<\/p>\n

Email: meerabelle@meerabelledey.com<\/p>\n

If you would like to receive my Free E-Book, “The Confidence Course,” and sign up for my weekly newsletter, go to meerabelledey.com<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Life is hard.\u00a0 And it is hard for everyone.\u00a0 No one goes through life without difficulty.\u00a0 Some of those difficulties we bring on ourselves.\u00a0 Others are inflicted on us.\u00a0 And yet, some people go through life being bitter while others go through life feeling blessed. For example, I know a pastor who immigrated to the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":593,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nMoving from Bitter to Blessed - Your Morning Cup of Inspiration<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Don't allow the difficult experiences of life to leave you feeling bitter and depressed. 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