As we continue to make our way into the new year, it is very easy to look back at all of the bad things that have happened to us, family, and friends. We may even blame God for not working things out in our favor. It is human nature to want to lay blame because somehow that gives us closure. If we have no one to blame, the issue tends to stick around until we find some way to deal with it.
Sometimes however, there is no one and nothing to blame. Life happens and there are some things in life to which we will never have the answer. When these problems arise, we must decide if we will let them affect us by allowing them to hang around for the rest of our lives, or if we will gain control and make the decision to move on with what we have left.
I am not saying we should forget. There are some things we cannot and should not forget because if we do, the issue may repeat itself. We should not forget whole groups of people who are murdered in cold blood. We should not forget the loss of a loved one. We should not forget the loss of a dream or hope. We should not forget an unanswered prayer. We should remember though, that we are still alive. Dreams and hopes change. We can keep positive memories of loved ones in our hearts. And we can learn to live, in a positive and uplifting way, with our unanswered prayer.
Life is all about choices. We can choose to live the best life possible. We can choose what kind of life we would like to live. We can choose to look back at the bad things or choose to forge ahead and choose the good things?
'His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!”
10 He replied, “You are talking like a foolish[b] woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said. Job 2:9-10 NIV.
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Cliques
I am so glad Jesus did not have a cliquey attitude towards people. He spoke with, cared about, and loved everyone he came in contact with; even when they did not feel the same way about him.
In one of my morning devotions this week, the story of Zacchaeus was discussed in the context of 'making it right', which was the title of the devotional. The author discussed how Zacchaeus repented of his sins upon meeting Jesus, and promising to make things right. But as I read the devotional, it occurred to me that although others grumbled at what nerve Jesus had for sitting down for dinner with a known thief, Jesus did not care.
'And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. And behold, there was a man name Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus, who he was, and could not, for the press, because he was little in stature. And he ran before, and climbed, up into a sycamore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus make haste, and come down; for today I must abide at thy house. And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully. And when they saw it they murmured saying, that he was gone to be a guest with a man that is a sinner.'-Luke 19:1-7.
You see, Jesus did not care what others thought, He was about Kingdom Business. He wants as many people as possible to be with him in Heaven so what people think here on Earth does not matter. Jesus knew who his core group was, his disciples. Those were the people with whom he shared living space, ate breakfast, lunch and dinner; shared deep discussions. Jesus knew the difference between the people with whom he had deeper relationships and the people with whom he had to interact in order to heal their hearts. He spoke with people of 'ill-repute' (the woman at the well), people who did not fit in (the woman with the issue of blood), Zacchaeus (tax collector who skimmed then pocketed the difference), and the list goes on.
Jesus could not attend church and sit in the same pew on the same side of the church every Sunday, talking only to the people whom he knew and looking the other way when strangers sat nearby. He did not run people through a battery of tests before accepting them, but used discernment. He knew when to shake the dust off of his shoes and keep walking. He used common sense.
No one gets along or is loved by everyone, but as Christians, we must allow ourselves to be approachable and when lead, we must cultivate the ability to approach anyone. This is definitely harder for some of us to do than others, but I believe as reserved as some of us are, people can sense that we will respond positively when approached. That is the Christian attitude and way of life. Let's work on it.
In one of my morning devotions this week, the story of Zacchaeus was discussed in the context of 'making it right', which was the title of the devotional. The author discussed how Zacchaeus repented of his sins upon meeting Jesus, and promising to make things right. But as I read the devotional, it occurred to me that although others grumbled at what nerve Jesus had for sitting down for dinner with a known thief, Jesus did not care.
'And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. And behold, there was a man name Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus, who he was, and could not, for the press, because he was little in stature. And he ran before, and climbed, up into a sycamore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus make haste, and come down; for today I must abide at thy house. And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully. And when they saw it they murmured saying, that he was gone to be a guest with a man that is a sinner.'-Luke 19:1-7.
You see, Jesus did not care what others thought, He was about Kingdom Business. He wants as many people as possible to be with him in Heaven so what people think here on Earth does not matter. Jesus knew who his core group was, his disciples. Those were the people with whom he shared living space, ate breakfast, lunch and dinner; shared deep discussions. Jesus knew the difference between the people with whom he had deeper relationships and the people with whom he had to interact in order to heal their hearts. He spoke with people of 'ill-repute' (the woman at the well), people who did not fit in (the woman with the issue of blood), Zacchaeus (tax collector who skimmed then pocketed the difference), and the list goes on.
Jesus could not attend church and sit in the same pew on the same side of the church every Sunday, talking only to the people whom he knew and looking the other way when strangers sat nearby. He did not run people through a battery of tests before accepting them, but used discernment. He knew when to shake the dust off of his shoes and keep walking. He used common sense.
No one gets along or is loved by everyone, but as Christians, we must allow ourselves to be approachable and when lead, we must cultivate the ability to approach anyone. This is definitely harder for some of us to do than others, but I believe as reserved as some of us are, people can sense that we will respond positively when approached. That is the Christian attitude and way of life. Let's work on it.
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Fodder
For many years I prayed for healing. I hoped and prayed, knowing God would heal me, assuming He was taking so long because I am apparently a 'late bloomer.' Every good thing that has happened in my life has happened later in my life than most people. Life is like that for many of us. So when the healing did not happen, I was initially alright, but then things began to go downhill. I had to step out of myself and my normal way of dealing with pain, to get things under control. But in the middle of all of those years, and even now, I have had to deal with fodder. What is fodder? Fodder= fod·der noun.
For the purpose of this post, I will use meanings one and two, but I will modify meaning number two since I do not believe human beings should be considered fodder. Although I consider myself to have a sense of humor, I am not a comedian, so meaning number three is out.
So, I, like everyone else I am sure, has had to deal with foot-in-mouth syndrome. Fortunately, for those of us who may be prone to this syndrome, we know we have the syndrome and we work on it instead of making excuses for why we can't change. After all, if we do not admit our weaknesses as well as your strengths, our weaknesses can run and potentially ruin your life. It does not have to be that way. At any rate, that is another subject for another day.
Fodder. Many of us have secret hurts and unanswered prayers that we will have to deal with for the rest of our lives. We do not usually discuss this things with strangers or even with acquaintances. Our family members and close friends probably know, and those are the people to whom we turn. But some things are evident to strangers, co-workers, acquaintances, others. And although these things are evident, some people have decided that they would 'go there'. These people have decided for their own reasons: pride, jealousy, envy, low self-esteem, to allow fodder to come out of their mouths. This is usually done in an effort to make themselves seem or feel bigger, due to their own struggle, realized or un-realized, of the before mentioned nouns.
You see, when people--Christians and non-Christians--struggle with these issues, they will take it out on the person standing closest to them. We must decide how to deal with the fodder that comes out of these people's mouths. We can allow the fodder to set us up for a daily fight. We can become bitter towards people in general, or we can use the fodder to help others and ourselves. I have decided to do just that. I have decided that whenever someone comes down with foot-in-mouth syndrome at my expense, or they allow fodder to come out of their mouth because of pride, jealousy, envy, or low self-esteem, I will use what they say in my next book, in a positive and tasteful way.
For those of you who do not write, I would suggest taking fodder and turning it around for the positive. Do not allow fodder and foot-in-mouth disease to take you to a negative place. It's not worth it to you or to those around you. I would also pray for these people, because usually it is a handful of repeat offenders, so you know who they are. And remember that we are all human. Any of us can succumb to foot-in-mouth disease. We all make mistakes. I am referring though, to people who usually know exactly what they are doing.
Be wise about who you spend time with, remain positive, pray for these people, and turn fodder into something positive. If this helps, remember that when animals eat fodder, it does not kill them, it is for their good and for ours, in the end.
1. coarse food for livestock, composed of entire plants, including leaves, stalks, and grain, of such forages as corn and sorghum. 2. people considered as readily available and of little value: cannon fodder. 3. raw material: fodder for a comedian's routine. (Dictionary.com).
So, I, like everyone else I am sure, has had to deal with foot-in-mouth syndrome. Fortunately, for those of us who may be prone to this syndrome, we know we have the syndrome and we work on it instead of making excuses for why we can't change. After all, if we do not admit our weaknesses as well as your strengths, our weaknesses can run and potentially ruin your life. It does not have to be that way. At any rate, that is another subject for another day.
Fodder. Many of us have secret hurts and unanswered prayers that we will have to deal with for the rest of our lives. We do not usually discuss this things with strangers or even with acquaintances. Our family members and close friends probably know, and those are the people to whom we turn. But some things are evident to strangers, co-workers, acquaintances, others. And although these things are evident, some people have decided that they would 'go there'. These people have decided for their own reasons: pride, jealousy, envy, low self-esteem, to allow fodder to come out of their mouths. This is usually done in an effort to make themselves seem or feel bigger, due to their own struggle, realized or un-realized, of the before mentioned nouns.
You see, when people--Christians and non-Christians--struggle with these issues, they will take it out on the person standing closest to them. We must decide how to deal with the fodder that comes out of these people's mouths. We can allow the fodder to set us up for a daily fight. We can become bitter towards people in general, or we can use the fodder to help others and ourselves. I have decided to do just that. I have decided that whenever someone comes down with foot-in-mouth syndrome at my expense, or they allow fodder to come out of their mouth because of pride, jealousy, envy, or low self-esteem, I will use what they say in my next book, in a positive and tasteful way.
For those of you who do not write, I would suggest taking fodder and turning it around for the positive. Do not allow fodder and foot-in-mouth disease to take you to a negative place. It's not worth it to you or to those around you. I would also pray for these people, because usually it is a handful of repeat offenders, so you know who they are. And remember that we are all human. Any of us can succumb to foot-in-mouth disease. We all make mistakes. I am referring though, to people who usually know exactly what they are doing.
Be wise about who you spend time with, remain positive, pray for these people, and turn fodder into something positive. If this helps, remember that when animals eat fodder, it does not kill them, it is for their good and for ours, in the end.
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