life: acoustic & amplified
poetry, quotes & thoughts about life
Archive for the category “strength”
No matter what – Jesus will still be there
This morning I am reading Still: Notes on a Mid-Faith Crisis, and the words of Laura F. Winner resound in my heart –
And again, to church. Sometimes I cannot say much about why I go to church other than what people who go to the gym say: I always feel better once I’m there; I feel better after; it is always good for me, not in a take-your-vitamins way, in a chidingly moralistic way, but in a palpable way. Perhaps this is to turn religion into therapy. But church is therapy, that is one of the many things it is, and as my friend Mike once told me, the real problem lies not in recognizing the therapeutic balm of the gospel; the real problem is going through life thinking that the health you need can be found anywhere else.
Don’t wait to commit!
How do you feel about commitment? I used not to think about it very much, and then my whole life changed and I had to make some of the toughest decisions I could ever have to make in this world. Did my faith really matter? Did my commitment level really make a difference? You bet it did!
I just finished the book, Not a Fan, by Kyle Idleman http://www.notafan.com/ it is one of the best books I have ever read on this subject. Are you a fan or a follower? Do you understand commitment? Do you understand intimacy? Do you understand the price of being free? Do you know your value? Are you committed? To Christ? To any of your relationships?
When my whole life exploded (about 15 years ago now) and I plunged into poverty, loss, homelessness, chaos…for year after year. When I thought I had nothing left to lose and then I lost more and even more – I had a choice to make: Was I committed? What did I really want? I didn’t understand exactly that I was committing. I remember in 1990, praying, I want to be happy…and AS LONG AS I am moving in that direction…I will continue to follow God’s path. Ha Well, it certainly hasn’t been the path I expected, but I have become so in love and so consumed and so full of love, joy and peace – not because of me, but because of the Spirit of God, I have found it is my all-consuming passion to die to myself and to attempt to move out-of-the-way so I can live and love in God’s way that is sooo much more than I can ever explain!
There have been several moments when it could have gone either way for me, I stood on the edge of the decision, day after day, and made the very tough choice toward faith. It didn’t make sense to many people, there were many times when it certainly didn’t make sense to me, and during those times I would cling to the promises. I would read Psalm 37, James 1, Matthew 5-7, and daily words of encouragement, many times over and over. I would listen to music, I would walk in nature. Each time I struggled and each time I found peace, hope, grace to continue my journey with Jesus.
I have to tell you, many times God seemed silent, Jesus was just a shadowy figure who didn’t seem real or relevant, and I had to look back at the path behind me, the miracles of the past years to keep my faith alive. Many times I sat for a while and just couldn’t move any further, a few times I made desperate decisions and ended up having to deal with those decisions for many years, but every day I have continued to ask, seek and knock. My faith and my passion have grown and I want nothing else in this world than to know my creator more. To understand love so that I can share that same love with others.
It’s all about me!
Yes, it’s true, life truly begins when we decide to take personal responsibility for our lives. That decision changes everything! Doesn’t make life easy – in many ways it makes it harder – but the benefits are so wonderful, profound, even extraordinary you will never want to allow anyone else to control your life again.
As with all of life, this is s process, but it all starts with a choice. Your choice! That choice must be followed through with awareness and determination!
Good stuff will follow! Not saying it will all be easy…just saying it will bring you to a place of peace and joy which is the best way to live life!
Choices, choices, it’s all about choices
April 4, 2012
Starting New
A Moment of Choice
We can choose to start over in this very moment, there is no need to wait for a new year or a new month or a new week.
There are times in our lives that lend themselves to starting something new. The beginning of a new year, finishing school, leaving a job, or changing homes—these all are times that turn our minds to fresh starts. Their advantage is that they bring with them the energy of that event, creating a tide of change around them that we can ride to our next shoreline. But we can choose to start anew anytime. In any moment we can decide that a bad day or a relationship that’s gotten off on the wrong foot can be started again. It is a mental shift that allows us to clean the slate and approach anything with fresh eyes, and we can make that choice at any time.
Starting new is most powerful when we focus our attention to what we are choosing to create. Giving all of our attention to the unwanted aspects of our lives allows what we resist to persist. We need to remember to leave enough room in the process of new beginnings to be kind to ourselves, because it takes time to become accustomed to anything new, no matter how much we like it. There is no need to get down on ourselves if we don’t reach our new goals instantly. Instead, we acknowledge the forward motion and choose to reset and start again, knowing that with each choice we learn, grow, and move forward.
Making the choice to start anew has its own energy—it’s a promise made to you. The forward momentum creates a sort of vacuum behind it, pulling toward you all you need to help you continue moving in your chosen direction. Once the journey has begun, it may take unexpected turns, but it never really ends. Like cycles in nature, there are periods of obvious growth and periods of dormancy that signal a time of waiting for the right moment to burst forth. Each time we choose to start anew we dedicate ourselves to becoming the best we are able to be.
http://www.dailyom.com
We are what we do! Starts with our thoughts! Make good choices!
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. – 2 peter 1:5-8
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