First things first

"A human being is only interesting if he's in contact with himself. I learned you have to trust yourself, be what you are, and do what you ought to do the way you should do it. You have got to discover you, what you do, and trust it."

I hear a lot from different things how trust is so important in relationships- romantic relationships, friendships, with your family, etc...but do you trust yourself? If you can't trust yourself, be prepared that you are going to have heck of a time trusting others.

When you first and foremost trust God that He is in control and you trust Him with your life- the good, the bad, and the ugly, all that is His has now become yours- you can have that assurance and confidence that, with His guidance, encouragement, and love you can be what you are meant to be, and do things like no one else will do, because you are differnet. Embrace God, so you can fully embrace all you are supposed to be, so then you can embrace others.

Cool Quote

At our Thanksgiving Service for the residents at my work, the Chaplain read something from a book by author, Max Lucado- just thought I'd share it with all of you, hope it encourages you.

"God loves you simply because He has chosen to do so.
He loves you when you don't feel very lovely.
He loves you when no one else loves you.
Others may ignore you or leave you,
But God will love you.
Always.
No matter what."

I will post again on Friday, taking a break on Turkey Day

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, remember what's it's all about; life that is, and take the time to appreciate it.

Thankfulness

"Gratitude is born in hearts that take time to count up past mercies."
Charles Jefferson

A friend of mine was having a bad day and being pretty grumpy and she just had this notion that she needed to sit down and literally write down all that she was thankful for, to change her attitude. Well the first few things, were pretty surfacy and obvious, and her attitude did not change. By page 3 of filled thanks, her persepctive and attitude had done a 180 degree turn.

I tried that the other night. sitting out on my patio, bundled up, cause it was just a little chilly, and had my journal out and being out there was just going to be between me and God. I took a break from all my other worries or thoughts and just thanked Him for everything- everything he's done and given, and all that he has been to me. I tell you what, you try that, and you can't help but feel an amazing gratitude towards God. It is a very humbling and eye-opening exercise.

So thanks God, for EVERYTHING you give and dor for me every day, but more importantly, who you are to me- you have ALWAYS been there, and are always there. Thank you Lord. Thank you.

Try it...just see what happens. If it doesn't happen right away, keep thanking until it does, because it just means your heart hasn't caught up with your mind yet!

Hope

"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence."

When you don't know what else to do or say, all you have is hope. But that hope is not a weak or timid hope. It is the strength and confidence that will get you through when you know you have done your best.

Hope is the expectation of future certainty. God will see you through anything, and when you don't think you can make it, He will carry you.

It's all about attitude, because even if you don't "succeed" at what you were trying to achieve or things don't go as planned, if you still have your hope and confidence, you have not lost the game. A friend reminded me this week to be confident. Sometimes we just need that little reminder.

From the Skillet song:

You Are my Hope
You are my strength
You're everything, everything I need
You are my hope, you are my life
You are my hope.

Thank you God that you are my hope.

Remember

"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. "

Be there for each other...Don't let distance, difference, or busyness get in the way.
Be willing...be available...be fun...be listening to the unspoken.
Reach out...and don't be offended if your hand isn't taken right away, just be there.

Don't forget to tell your friends how much you appreciate them, even if you do or don't see them often. Remember how much they mean to you.

Yes, you will get on each other's nerves sometimes, you will go too far, you will push buttons. But don't forget to forgive. Because you will also be the first to be there for anything, to share in the laughs, and tears, the available ear, the unlimited hugs, and of course prayers. In the end, we know what really matters, so let us move forward and as it says in James 5, let's make the effort of working on these much needed relationships, so we may be complete and filled with joy and peace.

...Remember what it's all about

1 Cor. 13:

Love never gives up,
Love cares more for others than for self,
Love is not jealous and does not want what it doesn't have,
Love doesn't strut,
Love does not demand its own way,
Is not irritable, and does not force itself on others,
It keeps no record of when it has been wronged,
Isn't always "me first",
Doesn't fly off the handle,
It is never glad about injustice but is glad whenever the truth wins out,
Love trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Love is patient,
It never gives up, never loses faith,
Is always hopeful, and
It endures through every circumstance.

Thanks

"If you fill your heart with regrets of yesterday and the worries of tomorrow, you have no today to be thankful for." -Unknown

Lord, help me be thankful of today, this day that you have given me.

Noncomformity

"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

There are a few people in my life, a rare few that are an absolute inspiration to me in that they are who they are, no excuses. What you see is what you get, and they don't mince words. They will tell it like it is and they stay true to who they are, without wavering.

You know who else was like that was Jesus. He never felt like he had to answer to anyone or prove anything, except to the Father. He stayed true to himself no matter what anyone said or did to Him. He never made excuses for why he was a certain way, He just was who He was. He was not insecure. He was confident, and I think that is one of the mysteries that drew people to Him. They were curious about Him. There had never been anyone like Him before. And now, we get the awesome privelege that everything that Christ had/has, we can also have. Because when we have accepted Him, we receive all of that- it gets put into us!

My prayer is that I would allow everything that God has imparted into me, to be expressed freely and securely. Lord, may it not be my pride or ego that gets in the way, but put your security and confidence in me that I can do and be anything that is deep in my heart. That no fear of man or what people will think of me would ever hold me back.

My early New Year's Resolution is that starting today, and I will take it day by day (I know it doesn't happen automatically) I will not care what other people think about who I am. If I am misunderstood, which I hate to be, the fact is, sometimes, I will be, and that's ok, because I have nothing to prove. We are all judged, everyday, by what we look like, act like, what we do and say, and if someone thinks something about me that is totally off the wall, or they say something that is totally off the charts, what's done is done. I am who I am, no excuses. I speak this resolution or revolution rather, in faith, so hopefully 1-6 months from now, this will not just be a pipe dream or wishful thinking on my part, but a reality that I am living...living true to myself and God. It is easier for me to put thoughts down in written words than to say it, and it can be pretty therapeutic. This blog started to be for other people, anyone who wanted to read it. But I know part of it is just for me.

Thanks for taking the time to read this :)

Poem for the day

My friend Cindy posted this poem and it is awesome so I thought I would share with y'all. (you like that, y'all?)

Anyway, hope it makes your day as it did mine.

"Portrait of a Friend"

I can't give solutions to all of life's problems, doubts,
or fears. But I can listen to you, and together we will
search for answers.

I can't change your past with all it's heartache and pain,
nor the future with its untold stories.
But I can be there now when you need me to care.

I can't keep your feet from stumbling.
I can only offer my hand that you may grasp it and not fall.

Your joys, triumphs, successes, and happiness are not mine;
Yet I can share in your laughter.

Your decisions in life are not mine to make, nor to judge;
I can only support you, encourage you,
and help you when you ask.

I can't prevent you from falling away from friendship,
from your values, from me.
I can only pray for you, talk to you and wait for you.

I can't give you boundaries which I have determined for you,
But I can give you the room to change, room to grow,
room to be yourself.

I can't keep your heart from breaking and hurting,
But I can cry with you and help you pick up the pieces
and put them back in place.

I can't tell you who you are.
I can only love you and be your friend.
--Unknown

All That Remains- 1st audio post

The slow song is a worship song, my friend Jaclyn just wrote, these are the words- awesome song!

When you speak, I am listening
When you move, I'll respond to you
When you ask, I'll surrender all of my life

Holy Spirit, fan into this flame
I want to live with your spirit in me
Burn away all of the dross
Till all that remains is you

I say more of you and less of me
Copyright Jaclyn Moolman 2005

The next audio blog the upbeat one is a new song I am working on called Superman. Here are the words:

Will you be my superman, will you take me by the hand
You don't have to jump tall buildings to impress me
You don't have to wear underwear on the top of your clothes to impress me
You just gotta take me to the place where your mercy and grace
overflows with a thousand souls praising you
where every knee will bow every tongue confess that your holiness
is worth the rest of my life given to you

Will you be my superman, will you take me by the hand

You don't have to catch speeding bullets in your teeth to impress me
You don't have to fly in the sky like a bird or plane to impress me
You just gotta take me to the heights where your glory and praise
is filling my life it's all around me, it's overflowing.
Copyright Jacque Reynolds 2005

This should help you understand the words!

Perserverance

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

I remember hearing that phrase, "when the going gets tough, the tough get going." I think that can sound kind of callous though, as if we are mahcines that can automatically turn our thinking from being discouraged or down when situations around us suck, to an energized, inspired being. That doesn't always work because our emotions are involved. Sometimes we run into a wall and no matter what we do, that wall seems to stay up, staring back at us. So what do we do?

Someone once told me, no matter what happens to you, and the situation you are in, you are never stuck. There is always a choice. There is always something you can do about it. Imagine starting your day with the attitude and confidence that nothing anyone says or does, or what the day brings is going to shake you. You are going to have a great day. Start your day with that attitude, and don't let anyone or anything take it away from you. It's like what Eleanor Roosevelt once said, "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." and that is so true. This verse has always been a help to me, when I lose perspective and try and get through things on my own, without God's strength, and guidance. It's puts everything back in place. He's got everything under control, and taken care of. I am just along for the ride.

Romans 5:3 (NLT)
We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us--they help us learn to endure. And endurance develops strength of character in us, and character strengthens our hope, our confident expectation of salvation. And this expectation will not disappoint us. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

Forgiveness

"To err is human; to forgive, infrequent. " - Franklin Adams

Holding onto something is always actually harder to do than to just let it go. The same is true with unforgiveness. It takes more work on my part to dwell on it, feed off it, and to labor on it. Whereas, if I surrender it and say, well whatever, what's done is done, another day another dollar, and let it go, now I don't have so much work to do. Now, even though you forgive, it doesn't mean things always go back to being the same. That takes time. Sometimes there will be a reconciliation, and sometimes not. I think once people have been hurt they are guarded, or at least more guarded than they were before and it takes a while before they will let that perosn in again. Sometimes time and space is all that is needed. But the most important part is forgiveness. If you stay in unforgiveness, you get stuck. Stuck in life, in your heart, stuck emotionally. It's no fun for anyone and too much of a burden that you were never meant to carry. So today let down your burdens, there's someone to give you rest.

Give

"Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully."

Imagine the outcome if this statement was put into application. Just think about how many people you could impact and change if you did that to for everyone you met in one day.
Giving people a little more of your time, a little bit better customer service, a smile you normally don't give them. Going that tiny extra mile, for everyone you come across in one day- don't you think you would feel a little more satisfied and joyful inside yourself- knowing you were perhaps a better person today than yesterday.
Imagine how you would feel if you were given a little more than you expected in a day, how special you would feel, how someone really made your day...you could make someone else feel that exact same way...we have so much power to impact other people's lives for the better...or for the worse.

There's something inside all of us

"I have a right to my anger, and I don't want anybody telling me I shouldn't be, that it's not nice to be, and that something's wrong with me because I get angry." -Maxine Waters

What is it in us that sometimes makes us want to hurt others? We have all done it, we have all said something to someone, knowing deep inside that what we say is going to either make them angry or hurt them. Why do we do that?

I think sometimes, people, including myself don't let themselves feel angry, they're afraid of it. Afriad they may hold on to it too long, or feel like they shouldn't feel angry, like it's not ok.

God can't deal with a feeling or a situation that we don't acknowledge, and he can't deal with a feeling we wish we had. He can only deal with and heal what we do acknowledge and what we are really feeling. He is not fake. He's real.

That's where I'm at today.

Love defined

"I tell you, the more I think, the more I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people." -Vincent Van Gogh

What a quote- I've never thought of loving people as an art, but when you think about it, it's pretty true. Art is something that needs a lot of care, gentleness patience, and practice, if that art is going to be worth something. And sometimes, it takes even more of an art to love people when they are doing or being something other than lovely! It takes an art to look and see past their "junk" and see the best in them. But that's how God sees us, hence the quote at the very tope of my blog. whenever I am confused about the right way to treat someone or if I am at my end with someone, I read this verse and it always brings me back to the true guide in how to love people.

1 Corinthians 13:

Love never gives up,
Love cares more for others than for self,
Love is not jealous and does not want what it doesn't have,
Love doesn't strut,
Love does not demand its own way,
Is not irritable, and does not force itself on others,
It keeps no record of when it has been wronged,
Isn't always "me first",
Doesn't fly off the handle,
It is never glad about injustice but is glad whenever the truth wins out,
Love trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Love puts up with anything,
It never gives up, never loses faith,
Is always hopeful, and
It endures through every circumstance.

Integrity

The vision of a champion is someone who is bent over, drenched in sweat, at the point of exhaustion when no one else is watching.

This metaphor refers to the integrity of a sport's player, but really the truth in this statment could also be applicable anywhere in life. When I am at work, the job God has provided and entrusted to me to do the best job I know how to do, not just once in a while, but every day...even when the boss and management is not watching, am I consistent? Do I work just as hard? even if I know no recognition will come from it, am I still willing to go that extra mile for my residents, in my daily workload?

Or in my prayer and worship life...am I willing to pray and worship just as hard and fervently at home alone in my room, or in my garage with my guitar, as I do on Sunday mornings in front of my congregation, pastors, and other Christian friends?

Is my integrity consistent? Is yours? If it is not, than it really isn't integrity at all, but merely the appearance of what you want others and yourself to believe.

In the end, you have nothing to prove to anyone...you don't have to explain yourself or answer to ANYONE...except God. Wow, now right there, that takes a lot of pressure off me, that I tend to put on myself way too often. Now if only I could remember that on a daily, sometimes hourly basis!