What I Learned on my Vacation - Part 2

Peace is a quiet heart.

Peace comes with your relationship with God.  Relationships with people can be anything but peaceful.

I hate to hear the phrase "Go in Peace" and you might think that odd, but let me tell you a story. I once knew a women who could push all my buttons.  She once was a friend, who held a position of some authority.  But she abused our friendship.  She would work me up to a frenzy, until I was so angry I could not handle it anymore.    Before I would get to the point of hitting her,  I would walk away and she would say - "go in peace" she knew that became an additional button to push on me.  Our relationship became anything but peaceful.  She was mentally abusive and cruel.  We need to get away from people like this.  I finally did.

Around God we have perfect peace.  The more we study and learn the more peaceful we can become.

Now let me tell you a funny story.

After my 3 days in Hershey at the Joyce Meyer Conference I came home with this great peace.  I came to work, which can me sometime be a tense and stressful place to work.  We have a co-worker who makes everyone angry with her lax work ethic.  She comes and goes when she pleases and the rest of us must work 8 to 5 and if you a few minutes late you hear about it.   So on my way to work I prayed to continue the peace I was feeling.  A funny thing happened.  First when the first incident happened I turned and calmly said; "You know I was thinking about this and if this causes so much unrest maybe we should go to the boss and tell him and if he doesn't do anything about it, so be it, but we would at least get it off our chest."   Later, when another incident happened and people were getting a little loud I said, "I won't let this bother me, if she wants to act that way, ok, but I am not going to act that way."

Around 3PM the girls in the office said "OKAY, THAT'S IT - NEXT YEAR YOU STAY HOME AND WE ARE GOING TO HERSHEY TO SEE JOYCE, YOU ARE JUST WAY TO CALM"

So, I have been sharing my thoughts with them and I think it has helped, just a little.  Little baby steps though are the best sometimes, to take.

Luke 5:16 - But He (Jesus) Himself withdrew (in retirement) to the wilderness and prayed.

You see, even Jesus made sure He had alone time.  He ministered to the people, but he also would step away to be alone and pray.  If Jesus could do this, then so can we.  And when I say ALONE, that is without your phone, facebook, TV or your tablet.  Intimate time with God leads to a peaceful mind.

Prayer:

Dear God - I find Peace in Loving you Oh God, I am ready to receive your Grace. Amen

40 days of Lent - Day 40

Today is the 40th day of Lent - since Sunday's don't count

Today's Lenten thought is a day late - I was going to put this on with yesterday but I forgot.

March 30 - Today's reading, John 18: 1-19:42, is a long one.  It is John's account of Jesus' passion.  On this Good Friday you might want to find a time to read it all through slowly. and to sit with this story.

Today is the day before Easter - I can only imagine how lost the disciples felt.  Jesus was dead, and they didn't understand that He was going to return.  This is a quiet time to pray and think about what this Lenten season meant to you.  Tomorrow will be my last entry in this...the 40 days of Lent.

Have a good evening and tomorrow we will rejoice!

40 days of Lent- Let Go

Today's Lenten Thought

March 26 - Getting ready for Easter involves learning to make room for the power of God beyond your capacity to calculate or control.

Making room for the power of God.  It kind of reminds me of the phrase let go - let God. 

Sometimes we have to let go of what we think is best for us or for someone else.  We think that "mother knows best" attitude when in reality it "The Father knows best"

Jesus prayed “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42). We need to let go and let God do what God wills. This submission will lead to peace and joy, even when the way is difficult.

So get ready to make room for the power of God in your life, I know I am trying to.

40 days of Lent - Balance

Happy First day of Spring

Which leads us to today's Lenten Thought:

March 20:  Today is the Spring Equinox, when we have the same amount of darkness and light in the day--a perfect balance.  Think about what's out of balance for you. Pray for the wisdom to put it right.

I am a little out of balance at the moment, but with a hetic life, sometimes it just happens.

Trying to balance home, work and church can get  exhausting.  I will have to pray more on getting balance.  One good thing, I have learned to say no.  I was just actually asked yesterday to organize an event and I said no.  We can only do so much and we need to learn to relax somewhere in amoungst it all. 

Well, this is easier in theory, but like the Lenten Thought says, pray for the wisdom to put it right.

Here are a few other interesting facts about the first day of spring:

• If you were standing on the equator during either the vernal or autumnal equinox, you would see the sun pass directly overhead, the only two times in the year when that is true.
  
• The two equinoxes are also the only times during the year when the sun rises due east and sets due west.
  
• In spring, the Earth’s axis is tilted toward the sun, increasing the number of daylight hours and bringing warmer weather that causes plants to bring forth new growth

Well, Happy first day of Spring everyone.  Enjoy the day!  Spring is here! 

40 days of Lent - When Silence wasn't Golden

So - I started my day with a call to the bff, Cathy - It went Hi Cathy - Hello - Whatcha doing? - Nothing - What's new? - Nothing - I remained silent.....listening..... and Cathy said - Are you still there?

So much for today's Lenten thought -

February 23 - Clear out the chatter.  Really listen to other people today.  Don't just wait for your turn to talk.  Life might get more interesting.

This is not something easy to do on a Saturday - I am home cleaning.  Cathy told me - I need to practice this on a work day.

Now, I can see Barbara, my co-worker, reading this - she is saying - Bev never listens.  It is true, I work like I drive, I never see or hear what ever is going around me.  Many people think I ignore them while I am driving.  The truth is - I DO NOT SEE  OR HEAR YOU.  You may be tooting your horn, but I have my radio on ....loud.   And you might be waving right at me.  But I am looking straight ahead as to where I am going.  You might be butt naked standing on the corner, but sorry - I didn't see you and you better get inside before you get arrested.  Thus, I am like this when I work - Barb can say something - and then she follows it with - "did you hear what I said" and my answer is  - "huh?"

So maybe this is my true challenge, not for just today but every day.  A true challenge for me because I don't listen - I have endless chatter going on in my head and that's why I blog, because I have to get some of it out.  So I have to try living outside my box, which is my thoughts, and open my ears and listen to others.  Listen to what is happening around me. 

My friends, please be patient, this will not happen overnight.  After a lifetime of talking,  learning a new trait like listening could take a while. I will pray on this and ask God for His help, because this challenge like any challenge requires help.  We are not in this world alone,  we always have God, our family and our friends; and to each one of them I  need to learn to listen.

40 Days of Lent - is the glass half full or half empty

Today's Lenten thought is going to be a challenging one for me because I woke up on the pessimistic side of the bed today.

February 22 - Clear out the pessisimism.  Someone said, "Some see the glass half empty, some see it half-full, I'm just glad to see the glass!"

Ha, this is a good one for me today.  But since I started to write it yesterday I knew some of the things that were suppose to help me clear the negative thoughts, so I practiced some of them on my way in to work- I think it helped my mood a bit.  But I can feel those underlying negative feelings just waiting to bubble back up - so I might have to read this a few times today.

You know - we all have our "ites".  Old Testament enemies always seem to have "ites" at the end like the Moabites and Hittities - We have poverties, husbandites, wifites, bossites and what ever else that might cause us to whine and feel like the world is against us-ites.  But we got to shake it off, we can't dwell in the abyss we call our mind.  We can't think all the bad thoughts and not the good.  Get over it as my good friend Cathy would say.

So - with that - lets talk about 10 ways to become more optimistic. 

1) Pray  - It should be the go to thing we do first in any situation - but especially to help get rid of the negative thoughts.  Ask for help with the problem, and then thank God for the good things.  When you start taking the focus off the negative you can start seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

2) Smile -  Of course, the first thing that came to my mind was the Lyrics to Smile - Smile though your heart is aching, Smile even though it's breaking. When there are clouds in the sky, you'll get by if you smile through your fear and sorrow.  Smile and maybe tomorrow, you'll see the sun come shining through for you. A smile really does help change your mood and relieve stress.  It takes fewer muscles to smile than to frown!!!!

3) Surround yourself with positive people.   Sometimes not so easy to do.  But reach out to one of your positive friends, someone that will perk you up - DO NOT - I repeat DO NOT call a Debbie Downer

4)  Change the tone of your thoughts from negative to positive.  For example, instead of thinking We are going to have a hard time adjusting to our living situation, replace that with We will face some challenges in our living situation, but we will come up with solutions that we will both be happy with.

5)  Don’t play the victim. You create your life—take responsibility.  Even if our living situation becomes unbearable, there is always a way out. Think - you will always have the choice to make change happen, if need be.

6) Help someone else.  Take the focus away from you - Do something nice for another person.  Do something nice for a stranger.  Donate food to your area food bank or volunteer to take someone to the doctor.

7) Remember that no one is perfect and move forward from that.  If you are dwelling on your mistakes, don't.  Shake it off and move on.  Unless we have a time machine and can go back and change it, we can't.  It's like the old saying - don't cry over spilled milk.

8)  SING - Sing a song, sing it LOUD - Sing it STRONG - Sing of GOOD THINGS not bad.  Sing of HAPPY not sad.  Just sing, sing a song.  Need I really say more?

9)  Make a list of 5 things your are grateful for right now!  Being thankful for what you have can put a darn good prespective on your life.  Here is mine - right now.  Coffee, my friends, almost done with a book I am reading, I didn't have ants on my stove this morning and I have a job.

10) Read positive quotes, scriptures or even post happy cartoons on your computer, fridge, doors or mirrors as reminders.

2 Corinthians 9:8 - And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

“I've had a lot of worries in my life, most of which never happened”  - Mark Twain

“Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.”  - Ashley Smith

You know what - I feel more optimistic already!