tonic or toxic

With what sort of people do you surround yourself.  Are they tonic or toxic?  A tonic is something that invigorates while something that is toxic will break other things down. It is important to be with others that invigorate and build us up and finding those people can be a challenge, especially if you are accustomed to toxic people.  If you have always been around toxic people, you may not be aware that not everyone is like that.  There are people in the world who are natural encouragers, people who accept you as you are and are ready to support you emotionally in your challenges.

 I have found one of the best ways to have “tonic” people in your life is to be a tonic to others.  Positive people attract other positive people and negative people gravitate toward other negative people. (Misery loves company you know)  Everyone has down days but we must make the effort to have more up days.  If we wait for some else to come along and lift us out of the dumps, we may be waiting a long time. Proverbs 17:22 informs us; “A cheerful heart does good like a medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”  Distance yourself from the toxic people in your life or better yet begin a movement within your circle of influence, be an encourager and change the perspective of others. If you are already surrounded by tonic people, appreciate them and be a tonic in return. Life IS good!
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