When I was nine, I started obsessing over writing down things people said and quoting them on it. It was so cool to me. I often wondered what it took to be “quoted” and if there was a way for what I said to put online for anyone to see. Being the arrogant 4th grader I was, I thought surely I had better things to say and be quoted on than the quotes I saw (I also did not understand that these were phrases from mass speeches and sermons…I thought people sat down and wrote out a sentence that sounded good and someone liked it and put it online). So leave it to little Bethany to sit down and write out little phrases on paper, make a dash and sign it “Bethany Brewton”. It was so official, fancy, and satisfying to my mind. I saved them in this little box so I could cherish my many quotes. That way if someone were to claim that they said something that I had written, I would have proof that I said it first. One of them probably looked something like this—
“To live is to love and to love is to live” -Bethany Brewton
(please don’t actually quote me on this, it probably was said by someone of great importance…or maybe I did actually say it first…who knows). While the whole thing was very childish, there was actually something huge I took from it and have used in my life over the years. It is a dumb little quote, one that when I wrote, I put no spiritual thought into writing it, however, over the years, I can say it has greatly impacted me spiritually. Three little words somehow stuck more than any of the other things I wrote. Those words were “Live your best”. It sounds kind of silly. You have heard the phrase “do your best!” and “give it your all!”, however, “live your best” puts a different responsibility into doing your best. I believe the word “live” takes the idea of doing your best to a whole new level. How does one even live their best? I cannot count the times I have asked myself the same question. It holds a lot of pressure for three little words. Kind of like “I love you” is more than just a phrase. Love is a verb, therefore “I love you” is more of a lifestyle. That is what I have come to believe about living your best. Being your best, giving your best, loving your best, it is all a lifestyle.
Sometimes I feel we do not really know what our best is or may be. I struggle with living my best when hard circumstances in life seemingly hold me back. I am hard om myself the days my alarm does not wake me up on time, or something I worked hard on could have used a little more work to be better. I feel like no matter what I do, I could do better. I eventually came to the conclusion that I could never really do anything my best because I was never satisfied in claiming something to be of that much importance. HOWEVER…….the more I have learned and grown, the more I realize this is not the idea. We are human. We are imperfect. No matter what we do, we will not be doing it right 100%. That is when I realized I was trying my best. Living your best is a lifestyle, not an idea. Suddenly I realized in those imperfect moments was the best place for faith to shine. Simply trusting God and giving Him everything, is really the greatest and best thing we can do.
In order to live your best, I made some points that I need to be reminded of daily.
Give God you best by giving everything in life to Him
Remember you were made in His image, act like it!
Even in those hard times, trust that God has everything in His control
Show love to others, as Jesus would
Living your best really is risking a lot. You are putting everything on the table really. BUT it is so worth it. The more I trust God, the more I see my life change for the better. I even see the lives around me change for the better.
So why not just jump out and do it?
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