A wonderful gift to give...

Nothing worth doing is completed in our lifetime;
Therefore, we are saved by hope.
Nothing true, beautiful or good makes complete sense in any immediate context of history;
Therefore, we are saved by faith.
Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone;
Therefore, we are saved by love.
No virtuous act is quite as virtuous from the standpoint of our friend as from our own;
Therefore, we are saved by the final form of love which is forgiveness.

REINHOLD NIEBUHR

What a great feeling it is to be forgiven! When we know we have messed up and, in repentence, we come before our Father, ask for forgiveness and He does not deny it.
This is truly amazing and undeserved. Don't we all wish it was as easy for us to do the same? Instead, we struggle...trying our best to "forgive", but making sure we don't forget. I'm guilty of this myself...
Forgiveness sets us free, whether we give it or recive it, allowing us to move on. Isn't this one of the greatest gifts we can give ourselves and others...the opportunity to move on? I know the relieve this brings to the heart..I've been forgiven. I pray that I can get better at this forgiveness thing, that I don't deny anyone this amazing gift and that I'm forgiven by those I may hurt...again and again.

No matter what...

Everything works out in the end. If it hasn't worked out, it's not the end.

-Unknown

As we read in His word "everything works together for good, to those who love the Lord..." Powerful promise, isn't it? It's full of hope, it tells you "you'll be just fine, no matter what comes your way". Seems like our job is to simply believe it...to trust that whatever situation we're in, will eventually have a good outcome. The kind of outcome that makes you look back in time and say "I get it, that's why...thank you God". What a sense of piece this brings!

Naked...

Is it my turn to get naked?
There's so much I could talk about, but I'll focus on two things right now which I've delt with all my life...fear and insecurity. I even hate the actual words, the way they sound, because i wish they didn't exist. I face fear every day, no vacation, no break, it's constant, it just shows up in different forms and insecurity is no different. This is really a constant battle, some days I win and some days I loose, but it doesn't stop..at least it hasn't in 32 years. These are two of our enemy's favorite weapons. He uses fear to paralize us, to keep us from moving, from trying, from daring. Fear cuts our wings to keep us from flying...and insecurity? Insecurity tells you that you were never going to be able to fly anayway...so sad, but so real.
So what do I do? Well, I do the only thing that really helps me, I hold on to my Father's hand and He gets me through...each day, each time I face fear or feel insecure He helps me through. Except for those days when I somehow think that I can handle it on my own...that's when I loose.
I do wish I was less fearfull and more secure, that would be great. The question is, would I want to hold on to His hand anymore if I didn't face these giants? Are these things here to remind me of how much I need Him to make it through each day? Are they here to keep me coming back to my Father and Creator and asking, "God, would you help me today? I can't do it alone"? If that's the case, then I'll keep on. I'll keep on asking and I'm happy to know that He'll keep on helping. His hand will always be there for me to hold on to.
You can do the same...trust me, His hand is big enough for all of us.

Thank God for Mercy!

The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.
-William James

It's so challenging at times though, isn't it...the whole "knowing what to overlook" thing? It is for me anyway, so if you have mastered this art, you're definitely someone I respect and admire...someone I would like to learn from. For the rest of us, this continues to be an area of growth. Sometimes, instead of overlooking the bad in those around us, we, sadly, overlook the good by fixing our eyes on little things, which, seen through the magnifying glass of our own insecurities, are too big to ignore. Something that seems to help is going back and seeing the whole thing again looking through the minimizing glass of Mercy...you'd be surprised how different things can look when you switch glasses.

How many times have others had to do this switch in order to be able to put up with me?...no need to answer that... Thank God for Mercy!!!

I must agree...

A boss creates fear, a leader confidence.

Russell H. Ewin

Tell a person they are brave and you help them become so.

Thomas Carlyle




Are we leading right?

In Stevie's words...

"Ability may get you to the top, but it takes character to keep you
there."
~ Stevie Wonder

Sounds like character is somehow important, right? The crazy thing is how character is developed...usually by enduring trials, facing fears, exercising tolerance.....should I go on?

It's great to see how God places us in different scenarios, not always comfortable to our skin, with the intention of developing our character. As hard as this whole process can get, He's just doing us a favor, if you think about it. After all, what's the point of "getting to the top" if you can't stay there?

Almost had it...

I guess by now you all have figured that this is not an everyday thing for me...pretty obvious. Now, yesterday I was home early, I sat down and said "let's blog a little". I actually liked what I had for you guys and for those that prefer to read more than two lines (you know who you are), let me tell you, you would have been proud. Then I decided to do spell check and somehow, can't seem to figure out how...I deleted EVERYTHING!!! After trying to go back to recover my masterpiece and failing beautifully at it, I paused...took a deep breath and turned off my computer. I'm sure that the inspiration will come again...and when it does, you all better be OK with misspellings.

Can't keep this one to myself...

Talk happiness; talk faith; talk health. Say you are well, and God shall hear your words and make them true.

-Ella Wheeler-Wilcox

Yes, I do believe that we eat from the fruits of our lips. Don't you all thing that the world would be a much better place to live if we all trained ourselves to speak positive? Think about it...

I decided to join...

So I thought I would give this whole blog thing a try. Hope you guys don't regret insisting...I'll keep them short, well...I'll try my best.