Last week I wrote about how faith, prayer, love, service, and forgiveness all work synergistically to help me face life with a positive outlook. At the same time judgment, control, self-pity, blame, and worry are things that I aspire to eliminate in my life. It is a work in progress, but the good news is that I am aware and normally recognize when the nasty side makes its appearance. I quickly change my attitude and rely on faith, prayer, love, service, and forgiveness. With the sudden realization that I am processing judgmental thoughts, I silently ask Jesus for forgiveness…
When I want to change my attitude or outlook on life, I quickly evaluate my priorities and reestablish how faith, prayer, love, service, and forgiveness are working in my life. Do I have a realistic perspective or am I living a life full of stress? Am I allowing fear or faith to lead my life? For me, faith is first. I can sense when I step over the line and try to manage my life rather than walk my intended path. I center my thoughts on Jesus and trust that opportunities will arise if I am open to all possibilities…
Lately, I’ve been thinking about perceptions and how often I automatically take what I see and hear as real. How often do I look at the situation and make a judgment based on a brief encounter? Do I go a step further and confirm what I have seen or heard or do I make a spontaneous judgment? I listen to and read the news that is reported but challenge myself to be open to various perspectives. I have my opinions but tend not to verbalize them because rarely have I taken the time to seek the truth through research…
I try not to think about all the times that frustration has quickly surfaced within me unveiling a side that is not particularly flattering. I am learning to overcome frustration with prayer and remembering the importance of maintaining love in my heart. I was researching businesses that extract wisdom teeth. I called to get price estimates, but the offices would not give any pricing over the phone. I was not pleased but understood the process. During the initial call, I asked if I could book the surgery for a particular week. The woman said, “We don’t book appointments until…
I will be honest, my definition of love 10 years ago was very narrow. For me, love was a term used when in the company of family and friends. I have always had the ability to spread love among those close to me, but my life changed when I was able to genuinely feel love for all. After reading the book Miracles Every Day I realized that I had been living life only appreciating love through my circle of influence (Zagrans, 2010). For me, it was Dr. Issam Nemeh who simplified love and made me realize our purpose is to…
In order to focus on what is most important, I believe it is crucial to understand our weaknesses. When we are aware of our weaknesses we are better able to manage and control our actions. As we gain an understanding of our weaknesses our strengths begin to blossom. My list of weaknesses is pretty extensive, but the ones I work on the most are my quick temper, my voice tone, and my ability to clear my mind and focus on Jesus. To better focus we have to be aware of our weaknesses and admit that they exist. That does not…
What matters to me is investing in others, myself, and my faith. Earlier this week my daughter asked me if I had a favorite motivational speaker or a favorite speech that was inspiring. I quickly replied, yes! I remembered the speech perfectly, but I had to do a Google search for the name of the speaker. This motivational speaker was at the top of the search, Father Greg Boyle, “I was taught everything of value by gang members.” If you have not yet listened to the speech, it will take 5 minutes of your time. This speech embodies the true…
Sharing is more complex than meets the eye. Often when we think of sharing worry sets in and fear becomes immobilizing. We allow worry and fear to overpower the joys of sharing. Why is learning to share as a child so important? Because every day we make decisions based on our willingness to share. Our daily decisions include sharing things, information, time, assistance, conversation, space, feelings and so much more. There are times when I think I am forthcoming about sharing information with others. I give my time and assistance but am I giving with my heart? Sharing what is…
Unity is what we hope to achieve, but are we doing anything to promote unity, or are we talking about unity without action? How does one promote unity? What can I do to support the efforts of unity among all people? What is it that hinders our ability to be unified? With all the talk of unification, I find myself taking a deep personal evaluation. I am questioning how I react to different circumstances and looking at ways to improve. Tensions are high among many of us. It is a time of uncertainty and major changes. In order to have…
As a child reading was not something that I enjoyed or that I wanted to spend my time pursuing. The truth is I didn’t and still often don’t fully understand some of the classic literature that “everyone” must read. For some of us reading comes easy for others it is a great challenge. I dreaded reading as a child and as an adult I still much prefer to surround myself with books that are written in a way that I understand. I do enjoy challenging my mind with new vocabulary, but when every sentence is a challenge, I…