Thirty Nine Life-Lessons in 39 Years

Today I turn thirty-nine. When I was nineteen, I used to wonder about the future. I used to imagine how it would feel to be thirty. But what happened between nineteen to thirty nine were beyond imaginations. Last night I wrote down several lessons I have learned throughout my life and at the end of point 39, I stepped back and smiled, "Oh, this life, so precious, so full, so beautiful indeed", my heart whispered.

Thirty-nine life lessons in thirty nine years:

1. Family comes first.
    After God.
    Before dreams, career, money, power and fame.

2. Listen to your parents.
    They know so much more than you.

3. Giving birth to a child means giving birth to yourself.

4. Your children will automatically copy you .
    So be the person that you want them to be.

5. As much as you love your children,
    always remember that God loves them more.

6. Listened children listen.

7. Spending time and energy
    raising your children is still the greatest investment.

8. Validate feelings. Stop ignoring them.

9. Prayer is more powerful than worry.

10. You can be alone but not lonely.

11. Your heart can break into million pieces
      But it can also be mended again 
      into a stronger heart.

12. Death of a loved one sucks.
      The pain is indescribable 
      but you can go through grief
      and come out stronger that you can imagine.

13. It’s okay to cry when you are sad
      but it’s also okay to laugh when you’re still half sad.

14. A journey of grief is like
      walking into the valley of the shadow of death.
      You may feel like experiencing death
      but then you are awaken by life itself.

15. Life begins today.

16. At night when you lay in bed,
      recall three good things of the day,
      give thanks to God and go to sleep.
      I bet you won’t hit the snooze button the next day.

17. Giving is not easy when you live in lack,
      but lack is only a state of mind.
      So give anyway,
      even when you feel like
      you don’t have anything to give
      because you are that something.

18. You are enough.
      Stop searching out and start looking in.
      God has placed everything you need in you.

19. You are created uniquely,
       Stop comparing yourself to others,
       it will never make you appreciate yourself
       and your amazing Creator.

20. God is always good even when you see nothing good.

21. Whatever dream you have, it’s yours to keep.
       Hard work and perseverance is required.

22. There’s bravery in you.
       Walk with your head held high.
       God is your bravery.

23. You are created to conquer any challenges.
       Sometimes quick, sometimes a bit longer,
       But you will conquer.

24. Everything in life needs time and nurturing to grow,
      including yourself.

25. Forgiveness is indeed a decision
       to walk out from your own prison.

26. You may be disappointed
       but choose to move forward
       and see the beauty behind
       any setback and disappointment.

27. The truth says
      "you are precious,
       you are never forgotten,
       you are not forsaken"
      The liar says
      "you are nobody,
       you are forgotten,
       you are not as good as the others"
       Choose wisely.

28. To mainain any relationships,
       first you must maintain the relationship within you.

29. In order to grow,
      you need to be willing to listen
      to the people whom you seek as leaders or mentors
      because for some reasons,
      they can see a bit farther than you.

30. Don’t overanalyze,
    be brave and take risk.
      You only live once.

31. It’s okay to ask questions
      And it’s okay not to find the answers.
      Some matters are better left as mysteries. 

32. Most of the time,
      the answers of your prayers are different
      than any of your imaginations.

33. To know what you really want in life is
      a journey of searching deep within.

34. Living life in full color is a heart attitude.

35. You can be someone’s answered prayer.
      Be willing to say yes
      when God ask you to do something
      (even when it doesn't make sense.)

36. You can find joy even when your eyes are closed.

37. It’s better to do what you can do today
      than worrying about tomorrow.

38. Sometimes we need to watch and wait patiently
      for someone, for something to grow and bloom.

39. Life is hard but we can do hard things.
      Loving others is hard
      Marriage is hard
      Raising kids is hard
      Building career is hard
      Serving people is hard
      Pursuing dream is hard
      Staying on course is hard

      This is how we were created to be
      We can do all things 
     through Christ 
     who gives us strength.

Can you relate to any of these thirty nine life-lessons? 
Send me a message and let me know which one, 
I would love to know your story.




Felecia