Time to be Thankful

Yes, when I reflect back on this year I realize that I have so much to be thankful for. I am thankful for my family and friends who have seen me through a dark pit of despondency and desperation. I am thankful for a roof over my head, food on my table and relatively good health. I am thankful for God who loves and provides for my every need.

I still have a long way to go. There are still obstacles in my path, some are scary....others not so scary. I take comfort in knowing that I'm not alone. I have support coming to me from all different directions. Yet sometimes I forget this. I have to be reminded that if I follow God's will and let him lead me, then I will see his glory shine in me. If I don't, then only I suffer for it. God doesn't punish me like I deserve to be punished. Instead he beckons me to follow him, let him lead and lay my burdens at his feet.

With God, nothing is impossible. I can be thankful for the life he's given me to share with others, the opportunities he's given me to serve others and for the many people I've met during this year of discovery. I am looking forward to next week when I will be introduced again to my new co-workers and start another journey. I do have a good feeling about this new job. I am thankful for this opportunity to fulfill a need.

Seeing things through another person's eyes

You never really understand things until you look at them through someone else's eyes. It is difficult to relate to them when you are only concerned about your own well-being. I have had to relearn this lesson a number of times. In some ways I am a slow learner. Some would say that it is human nature to care about filling your own needs before you turn to supply someone else's needs. Yes, I do agree with that statement. It is a lot easier to fill your own needs than it is to fill someone else's needs. Yet this is exactly what you don't want to do. It's selfish and self seeking to focus only on how you are going to fill your own needs. If you instead look outward, studying the people around you for what their needs are...then amazingly enough you will fill your own needs as well.

I've seen this in practice. Finding out what someone needs really isn't that difficult. You must first decide that you are going to take your eyes off your own situation. Worrying about all the bad things that could happen to you only saps your energy anyway....so why worry? Next, you should be open to listen. Listening skills can be learned. Good listening skills will help you define what the person needs and you may be able to provide. You will find some interesting stuff when you decide to shut off the "noise" and listen to others. Let the person know you're listening by: repeating what they said, asking questions and commenting on the words. Don't interrupt them while they are talking. It is rude...and makes the person lose their train of thought.

Write down what you plan to do and share it. Make sure they understand where you are coming from and ask for clarification of anything you don't understand. Once you do this, on most occasions, you can genuinely see through that person's eyes and resolve their problems.

Finally, step back and enjoy the colors of autumn. Their beauty is fleeting. Remember that when you feel like giving up on the human race.

Thanking God for family and friends

I've been going through a really rough trial the past year and half. Some of what happened is still clinging to my soul. It has changed me. There is no denying that. I realize that I can't go back to the way I was a year and half ago. There are things that I learned that I won't forget that readily. I don't want to forget them. I also don't want to forget to thank God for my family and friends. Without their support, I don't think I'd make it through this life sane.

I know that I've had to step back, reevaluate what's important and hold onto it. There were times and still are when I feel like giving up. The naysayers tell you that you'll fail. They tell you to give up before you even try. Then someone who knows you offers encouragement and help. They tell you that you can't give up. They tell you that even if you do fail, that you will be able to get back up and try again.

Sometimes my mind is overwrought with everything that I still need to do. Yet when I step back, take a deep breath and listen...I find that my mind is perfectly calm. I cherish my family and friends. I realize that often I snap at them for no reason...and I marvel that they don't (thankfully) snap back at me. I am still learning not to take in everything at once...the way this world seems to want you to do....but to take things in piecemeal in manageable chunks.

Keeping Positive when everyone around you wants to bring you down

Yes, I had one of those weeks. You do try your hardest to remain positive about the increasingly dire situation you're now in. It's not easy. You wonder from day to day if there will ever be a light to see by. Some days all you hear is the negative things which makes it hard to stay afloat in the restless sea of life. Other days you can see something in the distance, so you move towards it. Weights of fear and doubt drag you under the waves. You can't breathe. You can't even think straight...Then it happens.

Someone comes alongside you, seemingly out of nowhere. He or she steps in when you feel like you're just one step away from succumbing to the negative forces surrounding you. You know he or she is from God because everyone else wants to see you join them in the morass of despair and hopelessness. Only God can rescue you from that pit of despair that threatens to overwhelm you. You know this.

Yet something inside wants to rebel. How can you keep positive when there is nothing to look forward to in this life? Do you really have to suffer while everyone else is seemingly happy? Are they really happy though or is it just pretend? You ask yourself this daily as you struggle to make sense of the increasingly difficult trial you are going through. Why can't I be happy? Why must I struggle so? What has righteousness and purity have to do with anything? When will it all end?

Ah...I do know these questions very well. I know that God has a plan for me, and that there is something to look forward to in this life. I may not see it now, but someday I will. I can keep positive because God loves me, and he provides for me daily. Sometimes I do suffer because of my own stubbornness and pride. Sometimes I suffer because others don't understand why I take the stands I take. Happiness is a state of mind. I tell myself that I choose to be happy. I can let the difficult trial I'm currently in wreck me or I can grow and learn from it. I don't know why I struggle so much at times. I guess it's because sometimes it's difficult to see what God has in mind for me. Righteousness and purity are values I strive for in my every day life. I want others to see God through me. It will end soon....I wait anxiously for the Lord's return.