Check Yo Self Before Ya Wreck Yo Self

It's crazy how easily you can get knocked off track in life. Maybe sometimes it's just a little bump, other times you might completely fall off the wagon, and a lot of times you don't even realize it's happening until after it does. I've been a victim of all three. How do you prevent this? Self-reflection. Spend some time at the end of each day or week and just reflect on it. Are you okay with the choices you made? Did things happen as you wanted them to? If not, why didn't they? I like to call it "Checking Yourself". And I have found that by doing this, you can prevent yourself from ending up somewhere you didn't intend on being. And this week, after some self reflection, I have found that here lately, I have started to lose focus, that I have let life fog up what's most important to me.

I haven't been to church in over four weeks. Granted, one week I was in the hospital and another I was out of town but the other two weeks, I either stayed up too late the night before or just decided to sleep in. The excuse I've given myself is that I'm just overwhelmed, and stressed right now with everything that's going on. But that's no excuse. Every day, each of us faces our own battles. That is life. And that should not be used as an excuse not to do something. If we wait for the moment in life when all circumstances are just right before we do something, then that something will never happen because that day will never come. There will never be a day when everything is perfect. Even when life is pretty close to perfect, there will still be a trial or tribulation, no matter how big or small, that we will have to face, so why use it as an excuse?

The thing that I find funny is why do we make excuses not to do something that we know will just better ourselves? Have you ever worked out and afterword’s said, “I wish I didn't do that.” Same with church. Have you ever gone and then afterwards said, “I wish I didn't do that?” I don't know about you but I never have. With both instances, after I leave, I feel motivated, refreshed, mentally and/or physically, and leave with a sense of clarity. So why would I ever make an excuse not to do those things?

Here's my conclusion: it's easy to find an excuse when your minds not right, when you let yourself get distracted , when you let life fog up what’s most important to you. You are in control of your life and the choices you make. I am in control of my life and the choices I make. No one or nothing else is.

So for me, my self-reflection this week ended with a reminder. A reminder to stop focusing on the things that don't add value or benefit to my life, and focus only on the things that do. 

In the words of Ice Cube, check yo self before you wreck yo self.