Holding you Down

Think on this…it goes without saying that there are some people with whom you need around you, to keep your sanity. To say it in the current vernacular these people “hold you down.” For some it’s their parents and for others it’s good friends. There is nothing sadder then witnessing relationships that are vital to an individual’s mental health deteriorate. Whether through anger, bitterness, misunderstanding, or intentional injury these separations happen every day. To the detriment of both parties involved.

For me, it’s my wife who “holds me down.” She is my sounding board when all else is unclear. I honestly don’t know what I would do without her. But some times she bugs me J (love you baby, she reads my blogs). We don’t always flow as smoothly as I wish we would. On occasion we hurt each other, but to the degree that I excommunicate her from my life, is to the degree I will fail. Why? Because she is there to “hold me down!” I can’t allow petty things to get in the way of my own success or her success for that matter.

If we knew the damage we cause ourselves by allowing our relationships to wither we would think twice. “Don't hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you've got it in you, get along with everybody.” Romans 12:17-18 Yes, some people are toxic, but many more are simply flawed and in need of our forgiveness. Why? For our own sake and theirs…Just a thought.

Fighting Words

Think on this...Words are powerful. We need only look at some 
parents/child interactions and see name calling, completely wreck a 
child's self esteem and confidence. Your ugly, stupid, etc are some 
favorites. Sticks and stones may break your bones, and words can kill you...fighting words! Is it possible that you may have received or
 delivered words that destroy?



If I am honest, I have been damaged by many words (and have dished them
 out too). I was told that I was dumb, and would not amount to anything.
 It took many years to get over that. I didn't believe I was smart until 
I was in the 10th grade. How crazy is that? When you look at my life to
 that point, it made sense. I had bad grades almost all my life (until 
college). I had no real aspirations. It was sad. I became the sum total
 of what had been spoken over me. I was told that I would probably end up 
like others in my family. Drugs and jail were on my horizon, and I was 
on my way there.



It wasn't until I had become a Christian that I could even begin to
 believe that I was made for greatness. I still have to remind myself of 
that now. WORDS ARE POWERFUL! I want to encourage you to continually 
speak words of affirmation and life to those around you. Tell people who 
you believe they can be, and not just what they have become. Who knows,
 your words may be the ones that cause them to believe in themselves.
 Make your words count! "The tongue has the power of life and death..."
Prov. 18:21 Just a thought.

Windows

Think on this… We often have many choices to make in a given day. Some are simple like, what should I wear, eat, which smell good to splash on. But, often we miss the more challenging opportunities around us. It's in the simplicity of our day that we miss chances to show steady, honest, character. These are the chances to share a kind word to someone having a rough day, allowing someone to go ahead of you in traffic, or by simply doing a great job. These are all windows of opportunity.

People forget that God is always watching. The good, bad, and ugly are ever before His eyes. He is always opening windows of opportunities for us to exemplify His character before people who need to see Him in us. How many windows do we miss in a day, truly how many? We do this by refusing to forgive someone even though God always forgives us, or by holding on to a horrible attitude. The bible says we are to, “Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everybody." 2 Peter 1:5-7 How amazing would your life be if you lived like that…Just a thought.

A Different Kind of Gratitude (inspired by m. celita lewis)

Think on this…we are often grateful for the good things in our lives, but what about the bad. Have you ever thanked God for the things that you wished hadn’t happened in your life because of what they produced in you? That is a hard thing.

For me it looks like; thank you God that my father abandoned me shortly after my birth. Thank you for the abuse my family suffered from a crazy man. Thank you for the woman that sexually abused me. Thank you for growing up poor. Thank you for the gang of which I used to be apart. Thank you for those friends and loved ones who have died prematurely. Thank you for all the people who have called me names, put me down, and said I would amount to nothing. Thank you for a child with special needs. For all this, I say thank you, in Jesus name Amen. Does that sound spiritual?

You see my hard childhood produced a resiliency in me that I may not have had otherwise. Every death reminded me that my life would not last forever, and it showed me that I needed to live for what matters most. The people who have spoken against me allowed me to develop tenacity that I didn’t have previously. Having a son with disabilities gave me more compassion for those for whom others overlook. The bible says… “But we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Romans 5:3-4 I thank God for my journey, good, bad, and ugly...Just a thought.

Thank you

Think on this…it’s Thanksgiving week in the United States. This is a holiday that has its roots in early America where the native born people taught the European settlers how to utilize the local resources. The settlers in response gave thanks for what they were given and what they had learned. I have conflicted feelings about the roots of the holiday due to the abuse of the settlers toward the Native American’s which was right on the heels of this benevolent act. It seems to me if you are truly thankful you don’t steal land and almost wipe out the indigenousness population. That’s just me.

I do like the holiday for another reason. It simply reminds us to be thankful for what we have. Thankfulness is something I can sink my teeth into. We can be so focused on what we don’t have that we can miss the blessings around us. If you don’t have a job, be thankful for unemployment checks. If you aren’t married, be thankful you’re your friendships. If you have one leg, be thankful for the other one. If you are jobless, unmarried, and legless you still have breath in your body. Remember that things could always be worse. “Let them praise the Lord for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them.” Psalm 107:21. As an exercise of thankfulness; respond by writing a list of the things for which you are thankful. Start with; you are still breathing…Just a thought.

Editing

Think on this…I had an interaction with my sister that caused me to think about these blogs. Her exact words were, “Do you or does someone proof read your blogs?” Basically, she was saying I have too many typos or grammatical errors. If you are in agreement with her I apologize J, I will try to do better. She tried to spare my feelings by telling me how she just picks up on these things and it wasn’t so much my writing as it was her inability to withhold her critiques. So yes, I kick rocks. I love it; family keeps you honest and humble.

I think that is how we live our lives. We are so focused on trying to project perfection to those reading our lives, that we leave little room for mistakes. The challenge is we rarely see what we don’t see. We grow accustomed to the regular mistakes we make. I think these areas, like my sister, keep us honest. Not that you shouldn't present your best, but try embrace the fact that you are prone to get things wrong in some areas.

So, if you see a grammatical error going forward, I’m working on it. If you should happen to see a flaw in my character I am doing the same, it may take some time, so please be patient with me. The bible says, “You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all 2 Corinthians 3:2. I desire to be a compelling read...Just a thought.

Boogers taste good!

Think on this...I have school age son. It’s cold and flu season and the kids in his school are ripe with runny noses, and congestion. On any given day you can see some kindergartener with a dried, crusty, force field of snot caked to his/her face. The crazy thing is for some reason they are oblivious to how gross they look with this disgusting patch on their face. Inevitably, a small worm like finger will go digging for gold! Once the sought after treasure is obtained it goes right in the mouth. Umm! I have come to one conclusion; boogers taste good. They are a little salty, and little creamy. Okay, who has not eaten a booger? You used to be one of those gross little booger-eating machines too. Don't judge me.

As adults the pattern persists. We consume unhealthy things just because they are there. No matter what our vice, we are prone to hold tight to unseemly habits. I love that God patiently works with us to help us be who he wants us to be. The bible says, “he wants to keep us from falling and present us faultless before His presence with great joy.” Jude 24 It’s our one responsibility to decide that we want to be freed from our nasty habits…Just a thought.