It's odd how birthdays bring back memories... dusty and forgotten. I have been absent from the blogging world for a stint of about three weeks and I have missed it terribly.
Work has been keeping me from writing... and it has been partially on a voluntary basis. I have been busy at work and just life in general.
This past thursday, the 18th, I celebrated my birthday... with this particular celebration, my longing for writing has returned to me....
I pray that I will have time this coming weekend to actually write.... thus producing a much longer and meaningful blog....
Thank you, dear reader for visiting my site, for keeping me from quitting when times got hard. Thank you for your patience, I will hopefully have another blog up soon.
Have a blessed remainder of your weekend.
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Monday, March 18, 2013
What's that old saying? Practice makes perfect...
When I was younger, I was in band. It wasn't by choice... it was the manditory elementary band. I played the clarinet.... not my first choice... it was always in the back of my mind that I sounded like a dying duck when I played. The phrase I heard the most...
I didn't practice... it was my achille's heel. I wanted to be awesome at things, but I had no follow through. Sure, I wanted to (insert skill here)... I just didn't want to take the time to practice to be good at it... I was lazy. Practice is something that we have to do in order to be better at something. There are exceptions to every rule, however, for those of us that aren't prodigies... we have to work at what we love to do.
Footballers don't just lay about until a game... they practice. Actors and musicians have rehearsals. Writers have blogs, journals and other outlets to practice their craft. The list goes on and on.
One of my favorite Jane Austen novels is Pride and Prejudice. One of the characters, Lady Catherine de Bourgh is a laggard whose only accomplishment in life was being born to a wealthy family. In one scene in the novel, during a discussion about playing the piano, Lady Catherine remarks, “If I had ever learnt, I should have been a great proficient.” She has never learned how to play, she simply announces that if she had actually put any effort into it, she would have been amazing.
Isn't this idea of practice relevant in our Christian life? We cannot just expect to acknowledge Jesus during the appropriate times and then go on with our lives as if we are no different than the person next to us. We should be different.
We should be "practicing" every day we are given...
When I pray by myself... I'm simply having a conversation. Just me and God having a chat... there is no pressure, there is no flustered babbling... it is just the two of us (and now that song is in my head), which is what prayer is really all about. God commands us to pray... He knows what I struggle with, but he wants me to talk to him openly about it. He knows what I'm dealing with, but he wants to hear it from me. The same should be true when I pray out loud in front of people... I am not praying for their ears... but God's. My petitions need no eloquent speech to make them worthy of the throne room.
We are told to pray in everything. The good, the bad, the temptation... and I know that... but sometimes... just sometimes...
I would rather pretend that God can't see me making the bad decision or saying something that I will regret later, instead of just handing my anger and frustrations over to God... but I am so very good at worrying and fretting over something silly or opening my mouth and eating my foot. I squirrel things away in the deep places of my heart instead of being open and vulnerable before God. When I do that, I find my prayer life becoming stagnant and awkward. When this happens I stop praying. Not because I don't have anything to say... believe me, I always have plenty to say (just ask my husband)... I have let sin fester in my heart and I am embarrassed to admit it. But 1 John 1:9 reminds me that: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
I must decrease in order for God to increase in my life... His will, not mine be done... that is what I always need to remember. I Thessalonians 5:17 tells us to pray without ceasing. Simply talk to God.
I love reading... I have always loved reading. The rub? I didn't always like reading the Bible. The old Testament confused me, the New Testament covicted me... and well, I wasn't a fan of feeling bad about something stupid I had done. The problem with that? When I told people that I was a Christian, the questions would come at me and I had no answers.
My reading palatte has expanded in the past few years to include some great Apologists of the past and present. I'm slowly beginning to dig into the Bible and really study what it says... work through passages that confuse me... that sort of thing. I can't just open the Bible and expect the meaning and context to just hit me... although sometimes it does blindside me in a wave of "God is awesome" or "Oh, that's what that means". Psalm 119:10-11 reads: With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You. When we are in the word, we are keeping our lives and hearts in tune with God. When we are questioned about our faith, we will know where to turn and not get stuck like I used to.
As we mature in our faith, we should be less inclined to be lazy in our faith... God wants us to chase after Him... to thirst for His goodness. God loves us with a wild and untamable love.
Will your response be to chase after God? If God is our passion, shouldn't we want to know all that we can? 2 Timothy 2:15-16 answers that for us: Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth. But avoid irreverent, empty speech, for this will produce an even greater measure of godlessness.
Lady Catherine’s fantasy allowed her to overlook her own laziness and pretend that she owed her lofty position to intrinsic merit rather than an accident of birth...
Romans 8:17 tells us that we are heirs of God, with an amazing birthright... but this shouldn't make us complacent... after all
Practice makes perfect.
I didn't practice... it was my achille's heel. I wanted to be awesome at things, but I had no follow through. Sure, I wanted to (insert skill here)... I just didn't want to take the time to practice to be good at it... I was lazy. Practice is something that we have to do in order to be better at something. There are exceptions to every rule, however, for those of us that aren't prodigies... we have to work at what we love to do.
Footballers don't just lay about until a game... they practice. Actors and musicians have rehearsals. Writers have blogs, journals and other outlets to practice their craft. The list goes on and on.
One of my favorite Jane Austen novels is Pride and Prejudice. One of the characters, Lady Catherine de Bourgh is a laggard whose only accomplishment in life was being born to a wealthy family. In one scene in the novel, during a discussion about playing the piano, Lady Catherine remarks, “If I had ever learnt, I should have been a great proficient.” She has never learned how to play, she simply announces that if she had actually put any effort into it, she would have been amazing.
So what am I getting at?
Isn't this idea of practice relevant in our Christian life? We cannot just expect to acknowledge Jesus during the appropriate times and then go on with our lives as if we are no different than the person next to us. We should be different.
We should be "practicing" every day we are given...
What should we be practicing?
1. Prayer
When I pray by myself... I'm simply having a conversation. Just me and God having a chat... there is no pressure, there is no flustered babbling... it is just the two of us (and now that song is in my head), which is what prayer is really all about. God commands us to pray... He knows what I struggle with, but he wants me to talk to him openly about it. He knows what I'm dealing with, but he wants to hear it from me. The same should be true when I pray out loud in front of people... I am not praying for their ears... but God's. My petitions need no eloquent speech to make them worthy of the throne room.
We are told to pray in everything. The good, the bad, the temptation... and I know that... but sometimes... just sometimes...
I would rather pretend that God can't see me making the bad decision or saying something that I will regret later, instead of just handing my anger and frustrations over to God... but I am so very good at worrying and fretting over something silly or opening my mouth and eating my foot. I squirrel things away in the deep places of my heart instead of being open and vulnerable before God. When I do that, I find my prayer life becoming stagnant and awkward. When this happens I stop praying. Not because I don't have anything to say... believe me, I always have plenty to say (just ask my husband)... I have let sin fester in my heart and I am embarrassed to admit it. But 1 John 1:9 reminds me that: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
I must decrease in order for God to increase in my life... His will, not mine be done... that is what I always need to remember. I Thessalonians 5:17 tells us to pray without ceasing. Simply talk to God.
2. Read your Bible
I love reading... I have always loved reading. The rub? I didn't always like reading the Bible. The old Testament confused me, the New Testament covicted me... and well, I wasn't a fan of feeling bad about something stupid I had done. The problem with that? When I told people that I was a Christian, the questions would come at me and I had no answers.
My reading palatte has expanded in the past few years to include some great Apologists of the past and present. I'm slowly beginning to dig into the Bible and really study what it says... work through passages that confuse me... that sort of thing. I can't just open the Bible and expect the meaning and context to just hit me... although sometimes it does blindside me in a wave of "God is awesome" or "Oh, that's what that means". Psalm 119:10-11 reads: With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You. When we are in the word, we are keeping our lives and hearts in tune with God. When we are questioned about our faith, we will know where to turn and not get stuck like I used to.
As we mature in our faith, we should be less inclined to be lazy in our faith... God wants us to chase after Him... to thirst for His goodness. God loves us with a wild and untamable love.
Will your response be to chase after God? If God is our passion, shouldn't we want to know all that we can? 2 Timothy 2:15-16 answers that for us: Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth. But avoid irreverent, empty speech, for this will produce an even greater measure of godlessness.
Lady Catherine’s fantasy allowed her to overlook her own laziness and pretend that she owed her lofty position to intrinsic merit rather than an accident of birth...
Romans 8:17 tells us that we are heirs of God, with an amazing birthright... but this shouldn't make us complacent... after all
Practice makes perfect.
Friday, March 15, 2013
God is like a dentist...
When I was younger, I was scared to death of Dentists.
It's not a bad experience that created this phobia, it was simply the pain. I'm not a sissy when it comes to pain, but when it comes to my teeth, I can't handle it.
The culmination of the bad dentist experience is the root canal... it's when the root and pulp are beginning to decay and the dentist has to go in and remove that stuff so that you are not in pain anymore or end up with an abscess (which I've heard are far more painful).
What am I getting at here?
SIN
Stick with me here.
When I was younger, I was diligent about caring for my teeth. I had heard that cavities were bad... that they hurt. I didn't want anything to do with that, so I flossed, I brushed and I took care of my teeth. As I got older, some of the things that I was so diligent at took a sideline. Yes, I brushed my teeth, but I would only floss every other day. Flossing soon stopped altogether, and I would forget to brush my teeth before I went to bed. Then the dreaded first cavity.... (enter the scary music)... I freaked out. I had to be honest with the dentist that I was getting lazy. It was embarrassing.
It changed my behavior for the next few months... after all, I didn't want that experience again. I was diligent in my brushing and flossing.... and soon it changed to what it was before. I wasn't flossing every day, I was forgetting to brush at night.
The next time I went, I found that I had to go to a specialist for a root canal.
YIKES!
I can honestly say, it was pretty painful. Chewing was difficult for a couple of days after the permanent crown was put on. I'm keeping up with brushing and doing the mouthwash thing... but I still only floss when there is something stuck in my teeth. Dentists still scare me, but it's more the thought that I have failed at perfect dental hygiene.
Can you relate?
we go to the dentist on a regular basis, and no matter how many times we come in with cavities, they remove them. They chastise us and remind us of the importance of dental hygiene and we go on with our lives.
Are you still with me?
When I first became a Christian, I was excited to learn more. I loved going to awana and sunday school. As I got older, I would read my Bible, I prayed and listened to worship music... But as time wore on, I would forget something one day and quickly make up the next day... then I was willing to let it slip. I wouldn't read my Bible for a week, or I would not pray as much as I should... that was when I would let sin into my life. A small thing at first... and it would grow. If I let it get too far, it would have consiquences, which would hurt... I'd quickly repent of my sin and go back to reading my Bible and praying and going to church. I was scared of God... I didn't want the spiritual smackdown that I knew was coming.
We all know this cycle... we let one thing slip and then we are willing to compromise in another area of our lives. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that most Christians know what I am talking about... and if you didn't raise your hand... well... I hate to break it to you... we aren't perfect... we've all sinned... but there is not a huge Godly smackdown awaiting us... there is only grace.
In college, things got worse. I didn't go to church except when I was at home. I would sit through chapels and ignore what the speaker would say and I was more interested in boys than I was in my spiritual life. But I was really good at faking it. I could pretend better than most people. I prayed when I was in trouble or needed a little help from on high... After running for a while longer, I found that giving in to sin only makes things worse... it hurst more when you come back to God and ask him to remove those sinful desires from your life. It's painful and there are scars... reminders of what a life of sin can do.
These days, I'm in my Bible almost every morning, working through a verse or passage that has caught my attention. I try to listen to more positive music and my prayer life is more like a conversation than prayer.... something will get stuck occasionally, but I turn to God for help, instead of relying on my own abilities and know how to get me out.
We are all guilty of sin... but the best thing about grace? Romans 8:1 is a reminder that there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.
No matter how many times we messup or fail, God is right there waiting for us when we turn around. Sometimes, we find that he's been carrying us, because we are no longer able to move.
So you see, God is like a dentist. He removes our sin... it will hurt, but he is doing it for our good. The removal of that sin helps us have a healthier spiritual life. It wil save us a lot of pain in the future! Have a wonderful and blessed Friday!
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Use your words...
Words... they are all around us... the are spoken, sung, yelled, whispered and written. They communicate what we need, or they remain unspoken. When combined, they form questions, statements, demands and much more... they form friendships, build bridges... but they can also tear them down. They can build up or destroy... and in their most basic of uses, express.
Words are formed when we mouth our lips and mouths in different movements. Vowels, consonants, diphthongs, emphasis are based on the placement of the tongue. Sometimes when we speak we choose our words to spare the feelings of those around us and other times we fly off the handle and let our tongues express what we should keep silent and in our heads.
James even writes about the tongue... a whole chapter dedicated to this small part of our bodies. We often don't think about it being a big deal... we run our mouths, sometimes letting hurtful things escape and then wonder why the people around us don't want to talk to us.
Ephesians 4:29 reminds us: Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
Building us others [...] that it may benifit those who listen. my sarcastic and sometimes snarky side is ashamed as I write this. I know that I am not perfect, but I can take steps to guarding others from the bile that so readily spits out around certain people. This often comes in the form of me remaining silent in their presence... as the adage goes:
We all utilize the three learning styles, visual, verbal and kinesthetic... or if you're like me, you use all three... but as I watched that scene again this morning, it really drove the point home.
Instead of letting our tongue have power over us, take the time to think before you speak and if necessary, hold your tongue...
We can either use our words to encourage and build up, or we can tear down those around us until we have no one left... James tells us that our tongues weild great power, like a small spark can ignite a forest... our tongues can get us into a world of trouble. He also reminds us that out of our mouths come blessing and cursing and it should not be this way.
Use your words wisely and build up those around you.
Words are formed when we mouth our lips and mouths in different movements. Vowels, consonants, diphthongs, emphasis are based on the placement of the tongue. Sometimes when we speak we choose our words to spare the feelings of those around us and other times we fly off the handle and let our tongues express what we should keep silent and in our heads.
James even writes about the tongue... a whole chapter dedicated to this small part of our bodies. We often don't think about it being a big deal... we run our mouths, sometimes letting hurtful things escape and then wonder why the people around us don't want to talk to us.
Ephesians 4:29 reminds us: Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
Building us others [...] that it may benifit those who listen. my sarcastic and sometimes snarky side is ashamed as I write this. I know that I am not perfect, but I can take steps to guarding others from the bile that so readily spits out around certain people. This often comes in the form of me remaining silent in their presence... as the adage goes:
If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.I used to really like the movie Ella Enchanted, and I still like many of the values that it shares, in one scene Ella is told to hold her tongue... and she literally takes hold of her tongue. Those of you that know the story, know that when she was born, she was given the gift of doing what she was told by her fairy Godmother Lucinda. When her mean step sister finds out the secret, she uses this to her advantage, making Ella do exactly what she wants her to.
We all utilize the three learning styles, visual, verbal and kinesthetic... or if you're like me, you use all three... but as I watched that scene again this morning, it really drove the point home.
Instead of letting our tongue have power over us, take the time to think before you speak and if necessary, hold your tongue...
We can either use our words to encourage and build up, or we can tear down those around us until we have no one left... James tells us that our tongues weild great power, like a small spark can ignite a forest... our tongues can get us into a world of trouble. He also reminds us that out of our mouths come blessing and cursing and it should not be this way.
Use your words wisely and build up those around you.
Monday, February 25, 2013
A revelation 20 years in the making
I'm a Dreamer...
I'm a chaser...
I am strong, I am beautiful
I am one of a kind.
I am priceless...
My thoughts are not the thoughts of the person sitting next to me, and for that I am grateful. I want to be joyful in everything, even when I am not happy. This week marks the last week of the Kite project... and its winding down fast. The high of pursuing a dream has started drifting lazily back to the earth leaving me with the thought "Now What?!"
I didn't finish the goal that I had set for myself, but I am not saddened by this... I am strengthened in the knowledge that I took steps to actually accomplsh it. The past weekend, I got more writing done than I have during entire project.... and I enjoyed myself, which is a big deal...
I've always had an issue with caring too much what someone else thought of me (I've shared in several posts my story and testimony)... until now.
Their opinions shaped my thought process, what I wore, how I did my hair, what I would say.... no more.
There is a song by Britt Nicole that I have fallen in love with and have been listening to it almost non stop for the past few days... the song is called Gold and it is your typical pop song with the catchy hook... the twist is... the lyrics hit home for me... it also reminded me that the only opinion of me that really matters is God's... He is the one who created me to be just the way that I am... why should I change that?
After all, we are created in the image of God... and he doesn't make mistakes.
Psalm 139 is one of my favorite chapters in Psalm... in verse 14 it tells us that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. I don't see anything in there that reads... oops, I messed up.
We are
fearfullyand
wonderfullymade.
Have a great week and always remember that you are priceless, we are worth more than gold!
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Dead on Arrival....
"Dead on arrival at three a.m.
Heaven received the parcel I sent
Embalmed in grandiose poetry
Bloodless, lifeless, and beautifully bound and gagged
Well manicured
The prayer was left...it was not heard
Vainly voiced, unfelt, unheard
This sad routine...lay dead
Dead on arrival at three a.m.
To God such prayers must seem the miracle of modern art
A starving mind strangling a heart that's nearly dry
Whispering barely wishful thoughts
Its lips call prayer..."
So... here's the skinny... I very much dislike having to pray in public... I've always felt that I have to make a big show of it. When people are asked to pray out loud, they transform into Billy Graham and preach a sermon when all they were asked to do was bless the food, which is all well and good... for them.
When I am asked to pray out loud, I am quick with the details and done before God can even bend His head to hear the request. I'm not comfortable praying in front of people and when asked, I stutter, babble and sometimes have to stop and think about what I should say. I don't want to say something stupid in front of other people, let alone God. I want to sound smart and learned... sometimes the genius turn of phrase makes its way to my lips... and I, for a moment revel in my genius... until I realize it is a show and I am a fake.
This past week I was reading The Me I want to Be for my book group, and to my shock and dismay... it was about prayer... the one thing that I feel I am totally not qualified to discuss... and yet, guess who got to lead that discussion... yours truly (oh boy). But as I read a few things became very clear to me (thankfully)...
When I pray by myself... I'm simply having a conversation. Just me and God having a chat... there is no pressure, there is no flustered babbling... it is just the two of us (and now that song is in my head), which is what prayer is really all about. God commands us to pray... He knows what I struggle with, but he wants me to talk to him openly about it. He knows what I'm dealing with, but he wants to hear it from me. The same should be true when I pray out loud in front of people... I am not praying for their ears... but Gods. My petitions need no eloquent speech to make them worthy of the throne room.
We are told to pray in everything. The good, the bad, the temptation... and I know that... but sometimes... just sometimes...
I would rather pretend that God can't see me making the bad decision or saying something that I will regret later, instead of just handing my anger and frustrations over to God... but I am so very good at worrying and fretting over something silly or opening my mouth and eating my foot. I squirrel things away in the deep places of my heart instead of being open and vulnerable before God. When I do that, I find my prayer life becoming stagnant and awkward. When this happens I stop praying. Not because I don't have anything to say... believe me, I always have plenty to say (just ask my husband)... I have let sin fester in my heart and I am embarrassed to admit it. But 1 John 1:9 reminds me that: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Confession is not the only thing that I struggle with...I often find myself preoccupied when I pray.
What I think I should pray about and what I actually pray about are two very different things... and I feel selfish. I feel like God gets sick of hearing me talk about me. Just like the selfish child prays that there toys be broken so no one else can use them... often my motives are selfish. But I often find those are the moments that I am completely real with God... I don't try to hide, I don't try to make it flowery, I just talk... and its messy and vulnerable and mean sometimes... but when I am finished, I feel like I can breathe. We don't have to entertain the gates of heaven with lofty speeches and flowery language... we can simply come to God, as we are... broken, wounded, empty, alone, worried... He is ready to listen.
I must decrease in order for God to increase in my life... His will, not mine be done... that is what I always need to remember.
Heaven received the parcel I sent
Embalmed in grandiose poetry
Bloodless, lifeless, and beautifully bound and gagged
Well manicured
The prayer was left...it was not heard
Vainly voiced, unfelt, unheard
This sad routine...lay dead
Dead on arrival at three a.m.
To God such prayers must seem the miracle of modern art
A starving mind strangling a heart that's nearly dry
Whispering barely wishful thoughts
Its lips call prayer..."
So... here's the skinny... I very much dislike having to pray in public... I've always felt that I have to make a big show of it. When people are asked to pray out loud, they transform into Billy Graham and preach a sermon when all they were asked to do was bless the food, which is all well and good... for them.
When I am asked to pray out loud, I am quick with the details and done before God can even bend His head to hear the request. I'm not comfortable praying in front of people and when asked, I stutter, babble and sometimes have to stop and think about what I should say. I don't want to say something stupid in front of other people, let alone God. I want to sound smart and learned... sometimes the genius turn of phrase makes its way to my lips... and I, for a moment revel in my genius... until I realize it is a show and I am a fake.
This past week I was reading The Me I want to Be for my book group, and to my shock and dismay... it was about prayer... the one thing that I feel I am totally not qualified to discuss... and yet, guess who got to lead that discussion... yours truly (oh boy). But as I read a few things became very clear to me (thankfully)...
When I pray by myself... I'm simply having a conversation. Just me and God having a chat... there is no pressure, there is no flustered babbling... it is just the two of us (and now that song is in my head), which is what prayer is really all about. God commands us to pray... He knows what I struggle with, but he wants me to talk to him openly about it. He knows what I'm dealing with, but he wants to hear it from me. The same should be true when I pray out loud in front of people... I am not praying for their ears... but Gods. My petitions need no eloquent speech to make them worthy of the throne room.
We are told to pray in everything. The good, the bad, the temptation... and I know that... but sometimes... just sometimes...
I would rather pretend that God can't see me making the bad decision or saying something that I will regret later, instead of just handing my anger and frustrations over to God... but I am so very good at worrying and fretting over something silly or opening my mouth and eating my foot. I squirrel things away in the deep places of my heart instead of being open and vulnerable before God. When I do that, I find my prayer life becoming stagnant and awkward. When this happens I stop praying. Not because I don't have anything to say... believe me, I always have plenty to say (just ask my husband)... I have let sin fester in my heart and I am embarrassed to admit it. But 1 John 1:9 reminds me that: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Confession is not the only thing that I struggle with...I often find myself preoccupied when I pray.
What I think I should pray about and what I actually pray about are two very different things... and I feel selfish. I feel like God gets sick of hearing me talk about me. Just like the selfish child prays that there toys be broken so no one else can use them... often my motives are selfish. But I often find those are the moments that I am completely real with God... I don't try to hide, I don't try to make it flowery, I just talk... and its messy and vulnerable and mean sometimes... but when I am finished, I feel like I can breathe. We don't have to entertain the gates of heaven with lofty speeches and flowery language... we can simply come to God, as we are... broken, wounded, empty, alone, worried... He is ready to listen.
I must decrease in order for God to increase in my life... His will, not mine be done... that is what I always need to remember.
Monday, February 4, 2013
Giving Pepe Le Pew the boot...
I'm afraid... my failures sit opposite me and stare me down every time I try to write. I start to sink into the waves of my own self doubt... but I call out for God to save me. Peter had the faith to step out onto the water and go to Jesus... he would have made it too, were it not for the fear that attacked him... Jesus didn't mean for Peter to fail... He was doing great until he started to take in his surroundings, then the fear took hold and he began to sink. Peter became his own worst enemy.
Has this ever happened to you?
God lays something on your heart and, initially, you're psyched to get started. Then as you step out in faith and begin working, you start to notice the things around you, the opinions of others, your past, failures... you lose your focus, and suddenly you're panicking because you've lost focus of God and you start to sink into the sea of self doubt and fear.
The funny thing about our minds is that we can train them, rewire them, if you will... I've been reading The Me I Want to Be with a couple of friends and each week one of us take a chapter... this past week was talking about thoughts, and it really hit home with me... this was the post that I came up with:
There is a skunk infestation somewhere in my inner monologue... I can smell it, everytime I start to write.
And its distracting and its nauseating.... this skunk also brings with it the smell of failure, self doubt and sweaty socks... I think I just described the 49ers locker room after the Super Bowl last night... moving on.
I have good days and bad days... and then the really bad days... smells evoke the struggles, anxieties and failures that I keep stocked in the pantry of my mind. A little something to pull out in case my creativity becomes peckish. Instead of going for something healthy and positive, I go for the junk food... that sweet, overindulgent stuff that leaves you with that nagging feeling of regret and failure afterward.
Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Romans 12:2 reads: Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
I've never been one to take stock in the book the power of positive thinking... but then, it's sold millions of copies and no one has ever written a book called the stink of failure or the stench of loser-dom... so what do I know...
We've all done it... the classic pick a spot on the wall and zone out moment, whether we just need some down time, or to force the problems of the day out of our minds so we can relax... I find in those moments, my thoughts grow stagnent, like water... gunk begins to form at the bottom and glub to the surface as I try to regain my train of thought. Like Sherlock, I am desperate for work and vitality rather than stagnation. So what should occupy our thoughts? I've always found that Philippians 4:8 is a good reminder: Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. When I find myself needing some down time, I grab for my film scores and a good book... usually something that will boost the creativity instead of quell it. Now negativity is another animal altogether... I tend to retreat to the furthest corner of my mind and cower there until the conversation ceases. I let the fear have a foothold and it seems to grow at an alarming rate.
We may not be able to stop the negative thoughts, but we can set our thoughts to let them slide right off us... have you even seen a ducks feathers up close when they are in the water? The water seems to bead up and roll off... the duck may still get wet, but its feathers prevent it from being drenched by the water. Setting our minds will do this for us... we won't be bullet proof, but comments and negativity would not have quite the effect on us.
The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven.John Milton
Our brains are amazing things... each of the neurons firing in your mind make you the awesome creation that you are. It's facinating to me that the neuron paths will actually thicken and strengthen as we use them... others seem to atrophy because of lack of use... The mind shapes the brain... each thought, each idea, they are all shaping our brains... training the neurons to fire, strengthening them. I love the reminder that when we practive hope, love or joy, our mind is actually rewiring our brains.
Positivity is difficult in a world that wants to continually blugeon us with negative ideas and thoughts of ourselves... with a world of airbrushed models and perfect teeth, how can we do anything but listen... there is a voice telling you that you were created to be who you are in this moment. The flawed, messy, sometimes neurotic neat freak that you are... just more God centered and you-ier...
God doesn't want us to fail... in fact he's our biggest fan. When we step out in faith, we need to remember that regardless of what is going on around us, we cannot fail if we keep our focus on God. Throw off fear and self doubt and confidently walk toward the dreams that God has for you.
Has this ever happened to you?
God lays something on your heart and, initially, you're psyched to get started. Then as you step out in faith and begin working, you start to notice the things around you, the opinions of others, your past, failures... you lose your focus, and suddenly you're panicking because you've lost focus of God and you start to sink into the sea of self doubt and fear.
The funny thing about our minds is that we can train them, rewire them, if you will... I've been reading The Me I Want to Be with a couple of friends and each week one of us take a chapter... this past week was talking about thoughts, and it really hit home with me... this was the post that I came up with:
There is a skunk infestation somewhere in my inner monologue... I can smell it, everytime I start to write.
And its distracting and its nauseating.... this skunk also brings with it the smell of failure, self doubt and sweaty socks... I think I just described the 49ers locker room after the Super Bowl last night... moving on.
I have good days and bad days... and then the really bad days... smells evoke the struggles, anxieties and failures that I keep stocked in the pantry of my mind. A little something to pull out in case my creativity becomes peckish. Instead of going for something healthy and positive, I go for the junk food... that sweet, overindulgent stuff that leaves you with that nagging feeling of regret and failure afterward.
Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Romans 12:2 reads: Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
I've never been one to take stock in the book the power of positive thinking... but then, it's sold millions of copies and no one has ever written a book called the stink of failure or the stench of loser-dom... so what do I know...
We've all done it... the classic pick a spot on the wall and zone out moment, whether we just need some down time, or to force the problems of the day out of our minds so we can relax... I find in those moments, my thoughts grow stagnent, like water... gunk begins to form at the bottom and glub to the surface as I try to regain my train of thought. Like Sherlock, I am desperate for work and vitality rather than stagnation. So what should occupy our thoughts? I've always found that Philippians 4:8 is a good reminder: Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. When I find myself needing some down time, I grab for my film scores and a good book... usually something that will boost the creativity instead of quell it. Now negativity is another animal altogether... I tend to retreat to the furthest corner of my mind and cower there until the conversation ceases. I let the fear have a foothold and it seems to grow at an alarming rate.
We may not be able to stop the negative thoughts, but we can set our thoughts to let them slide right off us... have you even seen a ducks feathers up close when they are in the water? The water seems to bead up and roll off... the duck may still get wet, but its feathers prevent it from being drenched by the water. Setting our minds will do this for us... we won't be bullet proof, but comments and negativity would not have quite the effect on us.
The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven.John Milton
Our brains are amazing things... each of the neurons firing in your mind make you the awesome creation that you are. It's facinating to me that the neuron paths will actually thicken and strengthen as we use them... others seem to atrophy because of lack of use... The mind shapes the brain... each thought, each idea, they are all shaping our brains... training the neurons to fire, strengthening them. I love the reminder that when we practive hope, love or joy, our mind is actually rewiring our brains.
Positivity is difficult in a world that wants to continually blugeon us with negative ideas and thoughts of ourselves... with a world of airbrushed models and perfect teeth, how can we do anything but listen... there is a voice telling you that you were created to be who you are in this moment. The flawed, messy, sometimes neurotic neat freak that you are... just more God centered and you-ier...
God doesn't want us to fail... in fact he's our biggest fan. When we step out in faith, we need to remember that regardless of what is going on around us, we cannot fail if we keep our focus on God. Throw off fear and self doubt and confidently walk toward the dreams that God has for you.
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