life: acoustic & amplified

poetry, quotes & thoughts about life

Archive for the category “Purpose”

the ‘pour-out-your’ bucket list

The things you do for yourself are gone when you are gone,
but the things you do for others remain as your legacy.
– Kalu Kalu

Ann Voskamp’s writes on her blog yesterday over at A Holy Experience was her thoughts on Bucket Lists –

I’ve never had a bucket list, and I’m thinking that I don’t want a bucket list as much as I want a poured bucket list. I’m thinking:

The best lives don’t have Bucket Lists as much as they have Empty Bucket lists.

Because the thing is when I kick the bucket, I don’t want there to be anything left in my bucket. When I kick the bucket, I want the bucket right empty.

I don’t want my life to be how I took experiences — but that I gave exceedingly.

That I gave every last drop, that I poured it all out, that I held nothing back. Because the way to really live is not to try to fill your life up — but to spill your life out.

“Where do you want to go?” the editor urges.

“What do you want to see — and, most important, with whom? Then just do it! Figure out a way to make it happen, and 20 years from now, you will not be disappointed. As we have the opportunity to check items off the list, not only are we given fantastic stories to share, but we also gain memories that will last a lifetime.”

This is what has changed me: writing thanks down on the list — and who can hoard their life when they see the abundance of His grace?

I hold the magazine in both hands and it’s unexpected — how wild I feel to rewrite this whole thing:

The question is really is not what you want to see — but who do you want to serve — and yes, most importantly, for Whom. Then do that!


read the full post at http://www.aholyexperience.com/2012/08/best-bucket-list/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+HolyExperience+%28Holy+Experience%29

I concur!

The secret to life is to begin living with thankfulness for a glimpse of grace – and then finding that EVERYTHING is grace!

How then can we not pour out our lives for this gift, this love beyond our human comprehension, we have been so richly and freely given?

Don’t get bogged down with all the details of how it’s going to come together. Just do the dishes. And watch the momentum build. – Brian J

Here are ten things to do even if others judge you for it:

1.Take care of yourself. – Your relationship with yourself is the closest and most important relationship you will ever have.  If you don’t take good care of yourself, then you can’t take good care of others either; which is why taking care of yourself is the best selfish thing you can do.  Read The Mastery of Love.

2.Do what you know is right, for YOU. – Don’t be scared to walk alone, and don’t be scared to like it.  Don’t let anyone’s ignorance, drama, or negativity stop you from being the best you can be.  Keep doing what you know in your heart is right, for you.  Because when you are totally at peace within yourself, nothing can shake you.

3.Follow your own unique path. – Every new day is a chance to change your life.  Work on making life all that you want it to be.  Work hard for what you believe, and keep your dreams big and your worries small.  You never need to carry more than you can hold; just take it one day at a time.  And while you’re out there making decisions instead of excuses, learning new things, and getting closer and closer to your goals, know that there are others out there, like me, who admire your efforts and are striving for greatness too.

4.Lock yourself away from the world and work on your goals. – Dream big dreams, but realize that short term, realistic goals are the key to success.  Success is directly connected with daily action.  The way we spend our time defines who we are.  Successful people keep moving, by doing small things every day that bring them a couple steps closer to their dream.  They make mistakes along the way, but they don’t quit – they learn and press on.  Read Getting Things Done.

5.Adjust your goals and dreams as life changes. – A great deal of pain in life comes from having a specific dream that you’ve fallen in love with, and when it doesn’t work out exactly as planned, you become angry that you now have to pursue a different path.  If you want to tame your inner demons and make the most of life, you must not become rigidly attached to just one specific dream, and remain open to there being an even better, equally as happy path ahead.  Life is unpredictable, but it provides plenty of opportunities to make dreams come true.  Just don’t forget that sometimes taking a positive step forward requires you to slightly adjust your dreams, or plan new ones – it’s OK to change your mind or have more than one dream.

6.Forgive those who have wronged you. – Forgiveness is a gift you give yourself.  Forgiveness is an attribute of the strong and wise.  Forgiveness allows you to focus on the future without combating the past.  To understand the potential of everything going forward is to forgive everything already behind you.  Without forgiveness, wounds can never be healed, and moving on can never be accomplished.  What happened in the past is just one chapter.  Don’t close the book, just turn the page.

7.Show everyone your love and kindness. – If you are reserving your love only for those who you have decided are worthy of it – all strangers excluded – it may come as a surprise to learn that this is not love at all, it is called judgment.  Judgment is selective, love is all embracing.  Just as the sunlight and the wind do not discriminate, true love does not make any such distinctions either.  Love and kindness is a way of living.  Where there is love, there is no judgment.  Where there is judgment, there is no love.  Read The 5 Love Languages.

8.Stand up for others, even if it’s the unpopular thing to do. – Sometimes you will say something really small and simple, but it will fit right into an empty space in someone’s heart.  Dare to reach into the darkness, to pull someone else into the light.  Remember, strong people stand up for themselves, but stronger people stand up for others too, and lend a hand when they’re able.

9.Fight through your failures. – When you are feeling down or dealing with failure, don’t be ashamed.  There’s nothing to be ashamed of.  You are going through a difficult time, and you are still pushing forward.  That’s something to be proud of – that you are fighting through it and slowly rising above it.  Let everyone know that today you are a lot stronger than you were yesterday, and you will be.

10.Keep your head held high and keep on smiling. – Every day of your life is a page of your history.  The only time you run out of chances is when you stop taking them.  Don’t cry over the past, cry to get over the past.  Don’t smile to hide the pain, smile to heal the pain.  Don’t think of all the sadness in the world, think of all the beauty that still remains around you.

http://www.marcandangel.com/2012/08/01/10-things-to-do-even-if-they-judge-you/#more-493

Have patience with all things,

but chiefly have patience with yourself.

Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections

but instantly set about remedying them …

every day begin the task anew.

~ Francis de Sales

 

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;

his mercies never come to an end;

they are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness.

The LORD is good to those who wait for him,

to the soul who seeks him.

It is good that one should wait quietly and

patiently for the salvation of the LORD.

Lamentations 3:22-23, 25-26

 

Maritta Terrell
Thoughts are also posted at:
http://thoughtsaday.blogspot.com/
If you wish to receive these daily thoughts, please send me an email to mt-ct@swbell.net

 

Art painting wonderful style by Podgaevskaya Marina on http://art-and-dream.tumblr.com/

 

do all things with love

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Yes….ALL things!
“Love the Lord with all your heart. Love your neighbor as yourself” – Jesus
Love is truly all we need.
Not love the way our world protrays it, most of the time.
A love that takes us higher and higher.
Love that brings freedom and fuels our passion and purpose.
Love that builds our world and changes hearts.
He leads us by example.
His words are life changing.
I know – it happened to me!
He loves us beyond anything we can comprehend.
Yet just a glimpse brings our souls and hearts to life, flaming the passion to give, and receive, this love.
It is real and it is available for everyone.
We are all his beloved.

living from the heart of christ

How does the Spirit of God manifest itself through us?  Often we think that to witness means to speak up in defense of God.  This idea can make us very self-conscious.  We wonder where and how we can make God the topic of our conversations and how to convince our families, friends, neighbors, and colleagues of God’s presence in their lives.  But this explicit missionary endeavour often comes from an insecure heart and, therefore, easily creates divisions.

The way God’s Spirit manifests itself most convincingly is through its fruits:  “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5:22).  These fruits speak for themselves.  It is therefore always better to raise the question “How can I grow in the Spirit?”  than the question  “How can I make others believe in the Spirit?”

– Henri Nouwen
http://www.henrinouwen.org/

 

the search

The meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour.What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general bur rather the specific meaning of a person’s life at a given moment. To put the question in general terms would be comparable to the question posed to a chess champion: “Tell me, Master, what is the best move in the world?” There simply is no such thing as the best or even a good move apart from a particular situation in a game and the particular personality of one’s opponent. The same holds for human existence. One should not search for an abstract meaning of life. Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life to carry out a concrete assignment which demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated. Thus, everyone’s task is as unique as is his specific opportunity to implement it.

As each situation in life represents a challenge to man and presents a problem for him to solve, the question of the meaning of life may actually be reversed. Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather he must recognize that it is he who is asked. In a word, each man is questioned by life; and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible.

By declaring that man is responsible and must actualize the potential meaning of his life, I wish to stress that the true meaning of life is to be discovered in the world rather than within man or his own psyche, as though it were a closed system. I have termed this constitutive characteristic “the self-transcendence of human existence.” It denotes the fact that being human always points, and is directed, to something, or someone, other than oneself — be it a meaning to fulfill or another human being to encounter. The more one forgets himself — by giving himself to a cause to serve or another person to love — the more human he is and the more he actualizes himself. What is called selfactualization is not an attainable aim at all, for the simple reason that the more one would strive for it, the more he would miss it. In other words, self-actualization is possible only as a side-effect of self-transcendence.

© 1959 by Viktor Frankl from
Man’s Search for Meaning

 

The time is now…

be the change you wish to see in the world – Gahandi

The difference between who you are and who you want to be..is what you do!    – unknown

What’s your gift?

Into the silence

I am still
I wait
I pray
I clean
I am alone
– for the most part
Solitary
– even in a crowd

I wish for it
– interruptions come
some enjoyable
some annoying
I am present, yet not

I know the answer will come
I know movement is coming
but for now
It is the silence
That I embrace
and endure
with patience
and courage
at other times I have even been cheerful during this time
but not this time

This time,
I am in mourning
Grief surrounds my heart
heavy sadness
– for choices made
– being made even now

I long for intimacy
I long to be the choice
I wish I could help
but I can’t

Only God can do what needs to be done
– and He can only do it if the choice is made by you
– to ask, seek, knock – even the slightest opening He can transform
the choice is personal and must be freely made

and so we wait –
me and God
Jesus puts his arm around my shoulders
and pulls me close
I feel the Spirit holding my heart and bringing me comfort
I close my eyes and hear his promise,
‘I will never leave you or forsake you’
and my sadness is blurred
with the surge of peace and joy

The silence is good
we know each other here
in the waiting
we have been here many times before
I have learned to wait
– Even enjoy this path
the answer will come soon enough
this is the place of intimacy and trust
where we know each other most

Life will move forward
and I will spring into action
and do what is being set for me to do in my waiting

I do not question the way
– I am a willing vessel
Mine was a shattered life
which has known your healing touch
you, so lovingly, put my pieces together again
and mended me with love

My God knows the way
– mine is a heart of thankfulness
I am the grateful follower
waiting to love you and share with whomever I can
Not for any other reason except love

You have allowed me to glimpse
My belovedness
My value
The value of each soul you have created
The depths of your love is unending

I desire only to please you
My creator, my savior, my lover, my friend

I long to share this love
with the ones you allow me to

And so I wait
I stay in the silence
until my answer comes
and God speaks
I am listening, Lord
As You have before,
Speak when you are ready

AL 4/13/12

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