Why is it important to focus on the present than the future

 

Why is it important to focus on the present than the future

Do you have the faintest idea why it is important to focus on the present than the future.  In this blog post we are going to take a critical look at why you should live in the moment if you want to have constant flow of peace and harmony in life.

Living in the present moment actually means putting the bulk of your attention in the moment and letting go of the regrets of the past and the worries of the future. 

Many people suffer from avoidable ailments which could have easily been sidestepped if they are acutely aware of the simple hack of living and enjoying life in the now. 

Read: 5 Reasons to Keep Going when Times are Hard

Although, in the world today we have many events going on which can cause the average person to fret. Events like the war in Ukraine, terrorism in many parts of the world, the recent earthquake in Turkey which claimed many lives, and in the recent past the outbreak of the Ebola and Covid-19 virus.

 You would agree with me that unless you are superhuman the tendency to panic and fret should be a real concern to you. But, should it necessarily affect your peace and well-being? Yes, unless you have what it takes to rise above the political and economic issues, as well as the environmental and natural disasters.

However, the scripture hinted on a way to cope with these issues when it says: Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. And again the scripture says here: Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Read: What is the Fastest Way to Build Rapport?

In this article I am going to look at:

• Why living in the moment is important.
• How to be better at living in the moment
• How life is much better when you are living in the moment and
• Living in the moment is a gift.

Relax and enjoy the ride as I look at all these in this blog post: why is it important to focus on the present than the future.

If you learn the skill of embracing the present, it would be one of the greatest services you have given to yourself in this incarnation.  

Why Living In the Moment is Important

There are a number of reasons why living in the moment is important and should be cherished.

Read: What Makes Your Life A Success?

Health and Well-being Preservation

When I was in the second year of University, I couldn’t pay tuition, but as students we usually find a way to beat the system so that we can at least sit for semester examinations pending when the fees would be liquidated.

Not that I was sympathetic to this illegality, I had to conform when a student who was an adept to this introduced me to how it was done.

However, I had just been inducted when a new Vice Chancellor took over the reins of the University. And they found out that students had discovered a loophole in the system which they were taking advantage of.

A circular was subsequently released giving all defaulting students just one month to pay up or seized forthwith to be students of the University. This circular sent my world tumbling down. I became sick due to my inability to sleep as I was always thinking of what would become of my life when I was rusticated from the University.

I was virtually living in the future, always worried of what would happen to me after the one month elapsed. I skipped all my classes because if I wasn’t going to be a student what is the need of attending those classes?

The worries, lack of sleep turned me into an emotional wreck and I started living with migraine constantly. However, I got tired of my life and what I was going through, by a stroke of fate, I just decided to let go and accept the worst that could happen. When I did I started taking everyday as it came, no time traveling to the future. I noticed the migraine disappeared and peace and calm overtook my entire being.

With my attention in the moment and living everyday as a gift, I began to attend classes again. Then something happened that surprised me. The one month ultimatum ended and the University didn’t act or do anything. It was as though they forgot there was an existing circular. Till date nothing happened, nobody was expelled. Shortly after this, things worked out perfectly well, money came in and I cleared the tuition.

But, I learned a valuable lesson. The best way to maintain good health is to forget about all your worries and embrace what the universe or life has provided in the present moment.

Read: How to stop being frustrated with yourself

Happiness Personified

People who have made it a point to live in the moment are always happy. Why is this so? Because they are free from the regrets and sorrows of the past and also from the worries of the possibility of world war 3 happening or of robots and machines taking their jobs.

They know that the past is gone and they can harvest the lessons learned to live happily in the moment. And that the future is empty, it’s formless. It’s our present thoughts and actions that create our future. Armed with this awareness they put the bulk of their attention in the present. 

You can see that one of the sources of true happiness is to be content in the moment. Another aspect to this is to determine what you watch and listen to on television and radio. These media are a source of negative news. They beamed negativity everyday into our living rooms. If you absorb the contents into your being, it’s only natural for happiness to take flight from your life.

High Success Rate in life

Concentration and the ability to focus is one of the keys to success in life. We live in a world where distractions are everywhere. These distractions can scatter your energies resulting in your inability to achieve set goals. 

When your attention is in the past or future, you tend to gravitate to either the past or lose focus by always dwelling in the future. Energy they say flows where attention goes. 

To succeed you have to do the work that is required for success today, right now rather than wait for a future date. Hence, the statement procrastination is a thief of time.

Read: Discover the Secrets to Take Charge of your Life and Living your Best Life Yet

How To Be Better At Living In The Moment.

To be better at living in the moment boils down to practice. That deliberate and intentional effort to want to enjoy the calmness and harmony the present brings.

However, there are certain things you can do everyday to put yourself in that state daily.

• Prayer and Meditation

To me one of the easiest ways to get better at living in the moment is through prayer and meditation.

Prayer is a means of addressing the originator of life, God or infinite intelligence. When you pray you tell God your concerns, pour out your fears and ask for an abundance of IT blessings in your life. Doing this regularly can put you at ease and in harmony with the spirit of life. 

Meditation is the quickest way to align yourself with universal energy. When you meditate you develop the propensity of mindfulness and always living in the moment. Doing meditation everyday can make you better able to live in the moment.

• Practice Daily Affirmation

The practice of Affirmation which is the repetition of powerfu positivel words daily is one way to get better at living in the moment. You can also put the affirmations in places where you can see it regularly, for example on your computer screen, bathroom mirror where you shave daily or even at your wardrobe door. The idea is to place it in places where you can see it often to serve as a reminder to you.

• Create a Vision Board

A vision board has two-fold benefits of helping you manifest your fondest desires as well as putting you in sync with the moment.

A vision board is a board where you cut and paste pictures of anything that reminds you of what you wish to attract and manifest in your world. For example if I want to attract a certain house or car, I can get a picture of a replica of the house or car and paste it on the vision board. Everyday I can picture myself living in that house or driving in that car. It is an easy way to enter into the desired state for manifestation to take place.

Using the vision board you can also find peace and harmony in the moment.

• True and Absolute Surrender

This is another way to get better at living in the moment. What do you Surrender to? To a higher power or God if you like. 

When you surrender your fears, worries and concerns to God, something is lifted up from you and you become relaxed instantly. I will explain this with another of my story which I have shared so many times before.

Read: Unleash your Inner Strength: Turn Fear into Power with these Game Changing Tips.

One time, I went back to the town where I grew up and spent my formative years in life for my high school reunion. This town is noted and recognized for its high rate of crime.

As it usually is with every reunion, you meet old friends from like 25 years ago. The pomp and enjoyment made me stay in the hotel premises where the reunion was held. Unbeknownst to me, time was far spent. When I was ready to leave there was no cab anywhere. I waited for another hour to no avail, this was when I knew I was in for a serious deal.

What was I to do? Some of my old classmates who were still residing in the town had left earlier, while those who came in from outside town like myself are lodging in that hotel while those staying in other hotels had left as well. Panic set in and I started feeling a combination of frustration and anger.

However, I caught myself just in time and decided to surrender the situation to God and a higher power. This is where things began to get interesting. After I surrendered I completely calmed down and started thinking of the possibilities I had.

That was when I decided to walk a distance of about 2km to a major car park hoping I could still find someone to take me to where I would stay. Since walking seems the best option I decided to try my luck trekking in the pitch dark road. After doing 1km the ugly happened, two armed guys attacked from the nearby bush and tried to rob me of my phone and money.

However, what happened next surprised me till date. The robbers suddenly changed their minds and asked me to leave immediately before they had a change of mind.

To cut the story short, I was spared and reached my destination safely. What do you think happened to make the armed guys leave me alone? I suspected my calmness which came from the act of surrendering formed a protective shield around me.

I was calmed and really present at that moment and wasn’t bothered by how I would get to my hotel.

You can learn to use the power of surrendering to God to help you leave in the moment.

Read: LIVING LIFE ON THE EDGE: WHY IT’S IMPORTANT TO STEP OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE

• Journaling

Do you have a journal where you make entries of your goals, plans and adventures? I think you should start journaling, it can help you get better at living in the moment. Journaling has many advantages which you can explore to make your life easier and better*

Living In The Moment is a Gift.

Yes, one of the greatest gifts of life is the gift of living in the present moment. Why is it important to focus on the present than the future, because the present is a gift. Someone said living in the moment means living in the present because the present is a gift.

When I lived in the present in the University the universe gave me the gift of good health, happiness and paved the way to pay tuition. Similarly, I was given the gift of life when two armed guys attempted to rob me when I went for my high school reunion.

You can have and experience greater benefits than I if you embrace the principle of living in the present moment in your life.

And perhaps you will discover that life is much better when you are living in the present.

Perhaps, it is appropriate to end this piece with Oprah Winfrey quotes

“Living in the moment brings you a sense of reverence for all of life’s blessings.”

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