Be of Good Cheer!“Be of good cheer!” “Be of good heart!” “Have confidence!” “Fear ye not!” So said Our Lord on various occasions.
And the Apostle admonishes us not to be anxious about our affairs, but to trust in the loving kindness of God, “Casting all your care upon Him; for He hath care of you” (1 Peter v.7).
Don’t brood over what is past; forget it!
Be not too eager and anxious in the present.
Do your best; leave the rest to God, your good Father in heaven; keep your peace.
Don’t worry about the future. What is the use of doing so? When you see trouble, blessing may really be in store for you. Hope for the best. Accept what happens philosophically. Always act with a pure intention and with deliberation.
The author of “The Art of Being Happy” says:
“A great secret for preserving peace of heart is to do nothing with over eagerness, but to act always calmly without trouble or disquiet. We are not asked to do much, but to do well.
At the Last Day God will not examine if we have performed a multitude of works, but if we have sanctified our souls in doing them. Now the means of sanctifying ourselves is to do everything for God and to do perfectly whatever we have to do.
The works that have as their motive vanity or selfishness make us neither better nor happier, and we shall receive no reward for them.”
Cultivate a cheerful temper. Says the Wise Man in the Book Proverbs: “A joyful mind maketh age flourish: a sorrowful spirit drieth up the bones” (Prov. xvii.22).
Look at the bright side of things.
“Two men looked out through their prison bars;
The one saw mud, and the other stars.” – Stevenson
“A poet,” writes Father Russell, “was gazing one day at a beautiful rose-tree, ‘What a pity’, said he, ‘that these roses have thorns!’
A man who was passing by said to him: ‘Let us rather thank our good God for having allowed these thorns to have roses.’
Ah! how ought we also to thank Him for so many joys that He grants to us in spite of our sins, instead of complaining about the slight troubles that He sends us!”
Topic: Be Cheerful (Read 446 times)