Think of your least favorite household chore. No matter how big or how small, whenever you have to do it, it's just dreadful. Personally, mine is either picking up sticks (mowing the lawn with branches in the way doesn't quite work) or folding socks.
Overall, it's my least favorite thing to do. My mom knows full well I hate it, so I'm 99% sure she assigns me this task every time. Collecting all the mismatched socks, matching them, and folding them is just so tedious it's almost unbearable.
What's almost worse than folding socks is knowing you're going to have to do it and the negativity that goes with it. Life is just like folding socks. If you have a negative attitude about doing the things you know you're going to have to do anyway, it just makes it that much worse. Having a negative attitude doesn't fix anything, but instead makes the tolerable things so much worse.
When things aren't going your way, has being negative ever helped? More often than not, negativity brings you lower and sets you in a lower place than when you started. Getting down about the general negativity in your life doesn't help either. James 1:2-4 says, "Consider it pure joy, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." Facing a difficult situation with a positive attitude, knowing you are going to grow from the situation should be joyous in itself. Although it's easier to feel bad for yourself, keeping a positive attitude and developing perseverance for events in the future is half of the challenge.
Sometimes, developing perseverance is one of the best things you can do for yourself. Negativity is like a cough; once one person shows negativity, everyone else starts to catch it. No matter the situation, always keeping a smile on your face no matter the situation and just remembering how it feels to be the bigger person will get you further in your personal journey than being negative. Testing your faith and pushing yourself to be the BEST YOU you can be brings so much more to the table and creates a better environment for you to thrive in. Setting yourself up for success is half the battle, and keeping a smile on your face no matter the situation is your best weapon. Take on each day, one day at a time, one challenge at a time, and at the end of the day you'll be closer to the positive person you want to be. Fold your socks and get it done, but find a way to make it fun. Life is just too short for anything else.
