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We Can and Should Be Grateful in ALL Things

  Blog 31: We Can and Should Be Grateful in ALL Things People can experience suffering in a variety of ways from birth, or even before birth. I don’t know anyone who wants to experience physical or emotional pain. In my field of work, I have been around people who experience one or both kinds of suffering, sometimes daily; including myself. I also know that it can feel very challenging if not impossible to be grateful when one is suffering. We all suffer in different degrees and for different reasons, and at different times. Types of suffering are too numerous to count, and it is something that everyone can relate to at various times in their lives. There was a disaster, recently, in a community in which I am very familiar. My immediate family or close friends were not significantly affected; however, I did witness the hardest hit areas firsthand. I saw true devastation up close and personal so much that I experienced it with nearly all my senses. I also experienced shock and...
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Blog 30 - You Are Living a Life of Pretend!?!

  People in the LGBTQIA+ community celebrated “Pride Month” in June. I had a sense as I would guess most people do, of what this was supposed to be about, but I wanted more information on how this movement started, so I did a bit of research. So, to give a very brief and cryptic historical summary based on my google query, I learned the following information: ·        Prior to June 1969 bars that hosted “gay” people would be raided ·        In June 1969, customers at the Stonewall Inn in New York protested ·        The issue grew bigger with mass protests occurring ·        Brenda Howard, reportedly a bisexual activist, organized a pride march on the first anniversary of the Stonewall Inn protest. ·        They use the rainbow flag to signify diversity and use “pride” to signify self-esteem in their choices   Now ...
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Each One of Us Has Drama in Our Dust!

  I think it is safe to say that not one adult will leave this earth without experiencing some relationship drama in their life. We are all imperfect humans who are born with a tendency to be self-seeking. You can even recognize this in people who seem to be the most giving or seem to have hearts of servitude. I can think of certain individuals in my own sphere, for example, who for all observational purposes appear to be helpful, giving, and kind to strangers on a regular basis. Yet if you follow these people around for a couple of days, weeks, months, or even years, you may find that their loved ones get very little if any positive attention. Now, one could say that the “neglected” people in the life of such a person might be hard to love. Or perhaps like with someone I know, they just keep giving to try to "earn" love (that should not have to be earned but should be naturally given). The one then receiving all the love, nurturing, encouragement, etc. has more to give t...
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We Spend Our Time Where Our Heart Is

            What if it is true, at least for most people of free will, that we spend our time where our heart is also?! Another way to put it is that we tend to spend our time, money and talents on what we value most in life. There is a scripture verse that speaks to this concept in this way: “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21, ESV.           I think that we can each attest to how this scripture plays out in our lives as well as in the lives of those we are close to, or whom we refer to as in our ‘inner circle’, or even in the periphery of that circle. I may be a bit more observant than some, but I can honestly say that I can clearly identify certain values of many people in my sphere.           Perhaps you will consider asking yourself where your “treasure’s” lie. Where do you spend your time, your money, your focus? Is it a...
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It Is Best To Do The Right Thing

  Everyone should have the right to be happy, right? But at what or who’s expense? Some people have the attitude of “if it feels good, do it.” Can you imagine the kind of world we would live in if everyone lived in accordance with that line of thinking?? I suppose that it might resemble something a bit terrifying… like, uh, perhaps ‘utter chaos.’ I would not doubt that everyone reading this wished at some point in their lives that they could do whatever they want, whenever they want or perhaps, they know someone else who is narcissistic (sorry, gotta call it what it is) and lives life in a self-serving manner such as to do as they please without considering others. So, whatever happened to the type of reasoning that led to attitudes like “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Luke 6:31) yes, that frequently used quote came from the Christian Bible. Another frequent quote I have heard goes something like ‘do nothing out of selfishness, but in humility, count ot...
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You Should Leave ICE and other "LE" ALONE!

  It seems to be obvious to many people that several communities, especially in certain states, need a reality check about right and wrong. A prime example of this is the uninformed and/or confused, and/or ignorant people who are demonstrating in Minneapolis, MN. One truth I heard a protestor say was something like ‘Jesus loves all people, and all people should have a chance to have a good life’ (paraphrased). This is true. That said, the choices we make influence how that pans out. It is NOT okay to infringe on the lives of others to have that ‘good life’. Let’s say you are in the grocery store, and you think that your time is more valuable than people in front of you, so you choose to put yourself in front of the checkout line. How do you think that will work out for you? You may now be thinking to yourself, “I would never do that’. If that is true, then how can you even consider that it is okay to break the rules concerning coming into a country illegally?? ALL of life has...
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In Christ Alone

  In Christ Alone Everyone who is reading this blog has just survived through Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. Christmas being one of two most significant holiday seasons for people of the Christian faith. It is the time of year when we celebrate the birth of Christ. Most believers know that no one knows the exact date that Christ was born, and we may even be celebrating the birth of Jesus in a different season than when he was born. All that said, it does not make this time of year any less joyful. It is symbolic of our faith, and that is what matters. Thanksgiving and New Years Eve are also important times of the year when people tend to get together with family and friends. These can be very joyfully filled get togethers as well as signify possible stress, filled with familial discord. We can each contribute to the ease or the difficulty that these ‘reunions’ bring. Most of us hopefully have the sense to forgo bringing up sensitive topics relating to religion, politic...
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