It is finished...the year that is

Baltimore's Inner Harbor

Gen. 2:15 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

The year has come and gone in a whirlwind of speed.

As I rip the last calendar month off, I reflect on the year it was. T’was a year of uncertainty, the loss of a dear cousin-in-law and a facebook friend to colon cancer. I think of the sad months and the joyous months also, that I leave behind in a heap of dried leaves left for springtime removal.

I end the year in uncertainty too as I’m not quite sure where I fit into this life anymore. I’m sure my days as an inspirational writer are over. How can I write to inspire when I have nothing to inspire people with? We'll see.

As the New Year rings in at midnight and people will either be glued to their television watching the bane of society dancing and gyrating across their screens, tucked away at some bar chugging in the new year, or huddled in coats and blankets watching the firework shows going off in many cities (like Baltimore) across America. I myself will be fast asleep and won’t wake until six in the morning to see just what went on while I slept.

While horns will be blaring, guns will be shot in the air, pots and pans will be banged on, tooters will be tooting and again, I will be fast asleep as the world rings in a New Year. Do I resent people partying and ringing in a New Year in a fashion that I once, in my youthful years, was an active participant in? Not at all. We all need to celebrate SOMEthing in life and if a New Year beginning is what works for you, don’t you dare judge me for not finding excitement in just another day and night.

As I’ve said earlier, I don’t do resolutions, I no longer party, and as I get older I no longer stay up past midnight for ANY reason. Some people use a holiday, any holiday as an excuse to drink and party it up. In my day, I was one of those zombies. Not any more and I’m grateful for that. I no longer allow alcohol and partying to rule my world.

I guess I grew up somewhere along the line. I became a fuddy-duddy when I was out seeking my soul. I’m still seeking my soul purpose as I’ve always done and it will never end until my time here on earth ends. We’re not born to just diddle and dawdle away our lives, we’re placed here to SEEK. From the very first book in the Holy Bible, Genesis, we were created to be pure and knowing of no evil.

We faltered and fell and it has always been our destiny to seek out and become like the Adam God created, knowing of no evil. While some will linger in evil for their lives, banking on the forgiveness that Christ gives, we are not to be sinners as a rule because of forgiveness, we are to be sinners and know better before sinning again! After begging for forgiveness for a sin committed, we are to turn from that sin, we’re not to commit it over and over again thinking our forgiveness is a get out of jail FREE card.

The soul seeker in me seeks to purify my soul by any means and if that means giving up the wages of sin, if that means walking in the Light instead of the dark, if that means to be the best person God created me to be, then so be it.

Tomorrow I will wake and a new calendar will be in place. A new day will be here for me to embrace and my soul will rejoice in seeking out all that is good in the world. My heart will be light and as fluffy as the newly fallen snow and I will strive to be everything God intended me to be when I was formed. I will not try to be who people expect me to be, I will Be. I will be ME!

Happy New Year to all who celebrate! May blessings abound in this new calendar shift. 

BE SAFE!!!

The Year Ends

1 Thess. 5:4-6  But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.

Well another year has come and gone. I posted more this year than last year but less than the year before. Just in case you were interested. Has my year been great? Not really, it’s been about the same as the other years.

I am happy to report that my son graduated high school this year and that was a highlight I’ll not soon forget! The rest of this year whooshed by so quick I can’t remember too much excitement. But I’m okay with that, I’m a quiet gal that doesn’t like the outside world barging into my life, and I’m okay with that too.

While many people are out making resolutions before the New Year begins, I save my new beginnings for the reflective Lenten season that *I* celebrate that culminates in MY New Year.

I know you’re thinking that I reflect a lot and you’re right. You can’t expect God to move you to change if you don’t reflect on what might need changing now, can you? I’m still enjoying the Essay course that I’m taking and I’m still enjoying my position at WVU as a handy-dandy-help mate.

The next couple of months I’ll be reflecting on life, truth and me. Not some truth that man begs for or a truth that man tries shoving down my throat but truth and what it means to me. I’m not going to seek out this truth online or in some storage place that man has formed for himself and wants others to believe in his opinion. No, truth cannot be found in some book of the month. Yes I read the Bible but my faith is not based on just the bible or anything some scientist throws at me as fact. My faith is based on Him and Him who dwells within ME.

Mark 8:18 Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not? and do ye not remember?

I understand opinions are like eyeballs, everybody has them but not everyone uses them (and some can’t) but I like to use my inner eyes for my opinions, not a man made opinion accepted because that’s the flavor the month. Nope, my inner eyes are solely my opinions and rarely accepted or believed as anything BUT my opinion.

I’m very vocal with my opinion because I like to write, so I write my opinion down. I understand that people are human and that they base their opinions on what they SEE and read, can touch and feel but my opinion comes from something greater than what I see with my naked eye. My opinion is grounded in faith and what I FEEL. Maybe this is what God meant with the sleeping man will wake. Maybe he’ll begin seeing with his inner eyes instead of clinging to all the false opinions (not facts) of what others say or write.

Rom. 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.

Imagine a world where people are not so opinionated because of something they read whether in a book, in the news, the entertainment section, on some website, social or otherwise. We would need our inner eyes to see what was right in front of us. Our opinions would then be based on a reality of all we see with our inner eyes manifested into the physical world. I know I’m a rarity and I know this could never happen to ALL men. We just have to all hold on and wait for the day we’re called off this planet into a realm unknown to us. Our opinions won’t matter, all that we read won’t matter and all our human ways won’t be a part of what we become.

Maybe my New Year will be looking inside towards Heaven, because God knows, there is no Heaven here on earth. Earth is but a place for opinions to be formed not a place to shape a soul. A soul can only be formed from the INSIDE.

So while you’re here basking in all the prosperity, in all that you acquired or didn’t acquire, running barefoot and blind through the fields of life, remember it will all be gone in an instant and all you have to hold onto is your soul!

1 Cor. 15: 51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

 

 

 

The 'Year in Review' goes over bad

2 Pet. 3:8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

In the facebook world everyone knows everything about you, especially what you post and LIKE. Some people don’t know that what you LIKE or COMMENT on is showing up in your friends’ news feed. You know like all those Bible pages you LIKE and comment on? Or maybe your thing is LIKing HOT BABES and not realizing all your friends see you for who you really are.

Needless to say, facebook has taken it upon themselves for people to glorify their productive and bountiful year and has an APP for showcasing your year in review. While it seemed like a good idea at the time, facebook is now being slapped in the face with the folks who DIDN’T have a good year.

Facebook is a place to share your pains and sorrows as much as your joys but since there is no dislike button, when someone dies, people show their support by clicking LIKE! The APP is compiled of your activity on facebook in way of posts that people LIKED.

I’m wondering if the like button isn’t a measure of popularity.

When people post meme’s they get less likes than someone pouring out their heart of pain which gets all 800 of your friends in a LIKING frenzy. To a person (and I know many) who have had a bad year, the APP will glorify the painful posts because they got the most likes.

The APP. does ask if you want to share your year in review; I myself only having 90 friends tops, chose NOT INTERESTED. Of the ninety friends, I’m lucky if five people like ANYTHING I post and that’s in a week, so I am kinda curious how facebook would handle an unpopular person’s year in review. Showcasing what OTHER people have posted on my wall? Boy, that should make me feel real good.

While I think the whole thing was well intentioned, the APP. has caused a lot of heartache to people who have lost children and parents or pets and siblings. It just brings up the worst part of your year. Haunting reminders that your year wasn’t really all that good.

I’m sure the boasting people that bought new houses and cars, new dogs and new this and that like showcasing all the good that has happened to them in the year, the only people who are hurt by the APP. are the people who have been HURT throughout the year; by the looks of it, it’s the majority of people on facebook.

Yeah, as you can tell facebook has worn off for me. No more joy, no more idle chit chat and fun banter, it has become a ‘Popularity Contest’; one that I’ve never been a participant in. Sorry, that’s just me. I’ve never been like everyone else and I guess God made me that way.

To those that have hurt this year, my heart goes out to you. I totally understand that nobody’s life is perfect and having it displayed hurts. May you all find a peace wash over you in the coming New Year. Toss this old year in the garbage where it belongs. Make the best of what you have – be yourself! That’s what works FOR ME!

Quotation Saturday

^from the net ^

RELIGION

“The easy confidence with which I know another man's religion is folly teaches me to suspect that my own is also.”
~ Mark Twain

“All I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

“I believe in God, but not as one thing, not as an old man in the sky. I believe that what people call God is something in all of us. I believe that what Jesus and Mohammed and Buddha and all the rest said was right. It's just that the translations have gone wrong.”
~ John Lennon

“In truth, there was only one Christian and he died on the cross.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche

GOD

“The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us.”
~ C.S. Lewis

“God has no religion.”
~ Mahatma Gandhi

“I sought to hear the voice of God and climbed the topmost steeple, but God declared: "Go down again - I dwell among the people.”
~ John Henry Newman

“I don't stand for black man's side, I don't stand for white man's side, I stand for God's side.”
~ Bob Marley

FAITH

“I have faith that God will show you the answer. But you have to understand that sometimes it takes a while to be able to recognize what God wants you to do. That's how it often is. God's voice is usually nothing more than a whisper, and you have to listen very carefully to hear it. But other times, in those rarest of moments, the answer is obvious and rings as loud as a church bell.”
~ Nicholas Sparks

“Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens.”
~ J.R.R. Tolkien

“I have great faith in fools - self-confidence my friends will call it.”
~ Edgar Allan Poe

“Sometimes beautiful things come into our lives out of nowhere. We can't always understand them, but we have to trust in them. I know you want to question everything, but sometimes it pays to just have a little faith.”
~ Lauren Kate

“Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want. It is the belief that God will do what is right.”
~ Max Lucado

“You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is like an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.”
~ Mahatma Gandhi

NEW YEAR

“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes.
Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're Doing Something.
So that's my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody's ever made before. Don't freeze, don't stop, don't worry that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life.
Whatever it is you're scared of doing, Do it.
Make your mistakes, next year and forever.”
~ Neil Gaiman

“For last year's words belong to last year's language
And next year's words await another voice.”
~ T.S. Eliot

“May Light always surround you;
Hope kindle and rebound you.
May your Hurts turn to Healing;
Your Heart embrace Feeling.
May Wounds become Wisdom;
Every Kindness a Prism.
May Laughter infect you;
Your Passion resurrect you.
May Goodness inspire
your Deepest Desires.
Through all that you Reach For,
May your arms Never Tire.”
~ D. Simone

“Tomorrow, is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one.”
~ Brad Paisley

HAPPY NEW YEAR

A Perfect Day?

Romans 12:2 (NIV)

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is -- his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

A Perfect Day…

Yesterday was as close to perfect as I can ever remember. We rose early in the morning, anticipation was high and excitement filled the house; it was Christmas day. I won’t go into detail of what a glorious day it was by not waking and running right to facebook to see people sharing love pics and well wishes.

After my day of relishing the LOVE of God, spending the day with such an endearing family who actually knows what the meaning of LOVE is, then coming home, stuffed full of some good home-made eating and relaxed with some tea and a movie. The camaraderie of family and stories and just idle loving banter made my heart swell three times bigger yesterday.

I rose today feeling good and refreshed only to peek in on facebook and saw what was LOVE sharing days ago, turned into a pile of hate filled people calling people names and acting like two year olds instead of the mature men and women they claim to be. I guess when popularity and loneliness rules your world, you have nothing better to do than call people names and wholeheartedly agree with those other folk calling names. A sad day.

Pss. 34:1 I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

I’m living in a world full of hate. They try to dress it up with cute pictures but dig not so deep the surface of their skin, they’re bitter souls lashing out at whoever will listen and from the looks of it, hundreds of similar people (they call friends) LIKE it.

The month of reflection has led me to believe that this world is a lost cause. I try to see the good in everything but here lately the negative hating is turning me against all the love I seek to see in the world. I cannot and will not be a part of the evil that is slithering into lives and being accepted. After-all, the laws of the Lord only apply to a select few while others fashion the law and candy coat the Word to suit them when they need it. Dress it up and call yourself a Christian. To be honest, if this is the way Christians behave, I sincerely don’t want to be a part of that religion.

Do you know the word I’m defining here below?

Psychology: (no longer in technical use; considered offensive) a person of the lowest order in a former and discarded classification of mental retardation, having a mental age of less than three years old and an intelligence quotient under 25??? The word is idiot.

The word offends me just as calling a person a retard offends me. It offends me when prejudice and racism collide, just as religion and all those so-called Christians collide.

So are you telling me, people, that YOUR I.Q. is higher than that of the person you called an idiot? Seriously? Look in the mirror. Judge YOUR life before judging someone’s life.

I’ve been offended by one too many people of the supposed intelligent stature who uses this word like dipping their cookies in milk. Tastes good, might was well use it while the going is good. Jump on the bandwagon and wee, wee, wee all the way home.

I’m obviously not worried about offending these people who name call because it is quite evident they have a scholastic degree, make thousands upon thousands of dollars and are productive people of society. No?

I’m tired of all the hate, I’m tired of surrounding myself with people who live and thrive off of negative lashings to feel good. I’m tired, just so tired of trying to be turned into something I’m not. I think I need a new outlet for being alone, filled with love and wonder, in a world full of hate.

Isolating myself is an option; one I don’t look forward to but I’m just so tired of negativity affecting my being that it is my only choice. There is no place else left for me in this sinister world unless I want to be conformed to this world and in my heart and soul I don’t feel that is what God has in mind for me. I'll let all the scholastic, hard-working, higher people enjoy it.

People have taken this Icy Palace I have built for myself and melted it into a puddle for them to stomp through; they have taken my High-horse and set him free to roam unleashing him to a society that would rather see him dead and on their plate for dinner. As long as they feel good, let go and let live. Maybe I’ll have something positive to write about in the New Year.

So much for the Perfect Day…

Jer. 5: 28 They are waxen fat, they shine: yea, they overpass the deeds of the wicked: they judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, yet they prosper; and the right of the needy do they not judge.

Change

1 Cor. 15: 51 "Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,"

I’m sitting here in the safety of my home warmed by heat as the snow passes outside my window. It’s making me think of the last minute shoppers that need to take a chance with life and to get out on the slippery roads.

I think of the older folk who flee to Florida to be in a warmer climate because the cold is too much for them to bear. I myself enjoy the cold winter air. I embrace four seasons, none of which I got when living in Texas where it felt like summer and spring year round.

We need change to appreciate living a life of blessings. If we stay the same year after year, continually living the same thing day after day, there doesn’t seem to be much room for growth. We can tell ourselves we’re changing, we can try to change but the mundane becomes normal and sometimes we see no need for change.

I hear quite a few Nebraskans wishing winter was already over but they remain in Nebraska knowing full well the winter and its harshness, so why stay? They stay because of home. People plant themselves in a home and stay for generations never leaving no matter how unbearable the space around them makes them cringe.

I’ve told the story many of times of my life back in Baltimore where I yearned deep in my soul to branch out and leave. Leave I did. I left all of my worldly possessions, and not so worldly possessions. I left behind years of memorable collections that then became junkyard fodder.

A lot of time has passed and I still miss certain things that meant a lot to me, stupid things to you but to me, cherished. I miss my very first Teddy Bear – Bith that I held onto thinking he’d journey with me in life. I miss my jewelry box filled with trinkets and stuff that my parents had given me over a span of my lifetime. I miss nic-nacs that I left behind. I miss, I miss, I miss but I let it all go. No longer mine, just memories of what was and will never be again.

While I see the world around me uncomfortable with change, I see a few who are willing to take the leap and give it all up for the love of God. While this year was and still is in the changing phases of my life, I have loving memories of what was and what will never be and what was not meant to be and what is to come.

I’ll end this blessed year with a changing of the calendar and a change within me. I’ll continue to grow and learn from all this craziness in the world, I’ll share my life as it unfolds if for no ones eyes but my own. Change to me is shedding of the old ways and making new and loving paths, my ways.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good write…

Quotation Saturday ~ Christmas

Luke 2:13-14 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

CHRISTMAS

“And when we give each other Christmas gifts in His name, let us remember that He has given us the sun and the moon and the stars, and the earth with its forests and mountains and oceans--and all that lives and move upon them. He has given us all green things and everything that blossoms and bears fruit and all that we quarrel about and all that we have misused--and to save us from our foolishness, from all our sins, He came down to earth and gave us Himself.”
~ Sigrid Undset

“How many observe Christ's birthday! How few, His precepts!”
~ Benjamin Franklin

“I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.”
~ Charles Dickens

“There are many things from which I might have derived good, by which I have not profited, I dare say,' returned the nephew. 'Christmas among the rest. But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round -apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that- as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys. And therefore, uncle, though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket, I believe that it has done me good, and will do me good; and I say, God bless it!”
~ Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

“Don’t spoil Christmas Day by anticipating how it will be. Let is unfold as it does, and be grateful for whatever comes.”
~ Toni Sorenson

“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!”
~ Dr. Seuss

“Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time.”
~ Laura Ingalls Wilder

“Christmas can be celebrated in the school room with pine trees, tinsel and reindeers, but there must be no mention of the man whose birthday is being celebrated. One wonders how a teacher would answer if a student asked why it was called Christmas.”
~ Ronald Reagan

“Want to keep Christ in Christmas? Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, forgive the guilty, welcome the unwanted, care for the ill, love your enemies, and do unto others as you would have done unto you.”
~ Steve Maraboli

“I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

“As Christmas day unfolds in strips of ribbons and bows, I’m reminded of Christ and His birth, when the Glorious King came to earth wrapped in swaddling clothes.”

~ Joni Zipp

“And in despair I bowed my head;
"There is no peace on earth," I said;
"For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!"

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"God is not dead, nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
the Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!”
~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

I'm Alive!

Num. 23: 8 How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? or how shall I defy, whom the LORD hath not defied?

The season of JOY is in full swing and I’m so happy to be alive.

We went to see the movie Exodus Tuesday night and it was the first time that we’ve been out alone in a very long time, nine or ten years? Yeah that’s about right. We don’t get out much not only because of funds but because seriously there is nothing out there that I so desperately need to see.

Exodus was an exception. I had heard it was a good movie and when someone says it’s good we usually wait for it to come out on DVD to see the product of what people are talking about.

The movie Noah had some pretty bad reviews so we didn’t waste our time on it. God’s Not Dead received pretty good reviews and we’re thinking about purchasing and now Exodus? A lot of excitement surrounds the Moses story so we wanted to see for ourselves what Hollywood is doing or not doing for our Lord.

Christian Bale was chosen for the role and I would have much rather had Jim Caviezel, who played Christ in Passion of Christ in the role, but Bale would have to suffice. Although Bale lost his English accent quite a few times, he didn’t do a bad job of Moses and bringing him to life for me. (English accent, really?)

To me the movie Exodus was a darker version of the all time favorite version with Charlton Heston in The Ten Commandments. The images were not as colorful and vibrant but then again, do we really believe the Bible stories are all about Rainbows and Unicorns? No, the Bible can be pretty dark at times and I think Hollywood pulled this one off. Is it biblically sound? Well you’ll just have to see for yourself. I didn’t leave the movie laughing at the fabled lies like the Noah movie drew; I left feeling… ALIVE!

Then the drive home -- I despise nighttime driving no matter who is behind the wheel and Tuesday night was no exception. The roads have no streetlights so basically you’re driving blind down a narrow dirt road until high beams are spotted. With what felt like a never ending constant swerving at a high-speed journey home, (the speed limit is 60 MPH) my prayers were being said the entire time and you guessed it, we made it home ALIVE!

Three times this month we had a near miss car collision – once when Steven was driving north into Gibbon and a white pickup was heading east. He had a stop sign and Steven had the right of way but the truck just kept coming through the stop sign. Steven pressed hard on his brakes to avoid a collision, leaving a nice skid mark on the road and the man driving the pickup looked at us like WE had done something wrong. The incident almost put us toppled in a ditch but the Lord was just not ready for us yet.

Adam had three incidents in his learning to drive so far. Once when a lady was backing up out of her driveway, again not looking to see if any cars were coming. A good horn-honking stopped her abruptly. Then a red light runner almost hit us. Then yesterday a company van was trying to hurriedly get through a stop sign to beat an oncoming truck as an 18 wheeler passed. He didn’t see us because he was waiting for the cattle truck to pass, then speed up and make it to the other side of the crossing only WE were there on the other side of the cattle truck. He came within less than a foot of ramming Adam in the driver’s side. Adam had the right of way and the van was just in a hurry to get across the road.

Here lately, it seems like the world is in a state of defiance where they don’t feel the need to obey traffic laws or any laws for that matter. Very similar to the days when Moses was trying to free the Hebrews and they became restless and tired of ‘waiting’ for God.

People are taking the Law into their own hands and it looks like their trying to wipe my family out but my patience of waiting on the Lord is my saving grace and we were spared death.

Thank you Sweet Jesus!

Rom. 6:11 “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

A Dislike Button?

Well we know THAT won’t happen because of the state the nation is in right now. We’re divided, we’re colorized and we’re full of DISLIKE for more than we LIKE.

I was thinking of writing to Mr. Zuckerburg to offer some suggestions for a ‘possible’ dislike button. While the Like button, introduced in February 2009, is used up to 4.5 billion times each day, I’m sure I have a few friends who have used half of those millions in one week.

I personally think the LIKE button is as demeaning as Mr. Zuckerburg feels the DISLIKE button would be. Maybe the like button was for you to feel good about yourself, but not much unlike being in a schoolyard with surrounding friends, when one child is left in the corner with NO ONE liking them, it can begin to feel very isolating; intentional or unintentional.

Here’s my ideas:

Instead of a like/dislike button, why not have a like button with options? It hurts (yes truly hurts my heart) to see people announce the death of a loved one and people LIKE it? I think they’re trying to express emotion without actually using WORDS of condolences. Emoticons can only do so much. A heart symbol means love, it doesn’t mean an offering of sympathy, empathy, prayer or agreement. Simply put emoticons display emotions of love, happy, sad, angry and so on.

When I purchase an item online I’m often asked when giving a review of the product--

Do you: LIKE, NOT SO MUCH, AGREE, or DISAGREE. I think the like button on facebook should be upgraded with the changing trends of this world. Give us options.

Just like those questions on products, facebook offers a place to ‘leave a message’; many choose not to express emotions and click the LIKE button for no apparent reason other than clicking to acknowledge that they saw the post.

When a review is left for a product, again we’re given options:

Was this review helpful yes or no.

Quite simple. We’re given options!

I think Mr. Z is apprehensive for fear of it affecting advertisements, trolls, and bullies. We have options whether we want to SEE the ads, or choices of what we DON’T MIND seeing, so why can’t the LIKE button express more emotion. Facebook is an emotionally driven site. We need more than emoticons, again, they just don’t cover it all! We need choices!

If Mr. Z is afraid of the downside of a DISLIKE button, why not take the LIKE button away completely and replace it with the silly emoticons? Then when someone dies, the emoticon with tears can express what the person wants to say. If someone disagrees with a post, the angry face emoticon, smiley will replace LIKE, and a heart will signify LOVE. THEN a person can actually feel free to use WORDS to convey their joy, sadness, sympathy or love for a post in the message box.

An example: Joni received – 5 smiley faces, five angry faces, 1 million hearts. Okay I exaggerated the hearts a bit.

Here’s another suggestion for FRIENDS. Have you ever seen a person with over 300 – 800 or even a thousand friends? What is up with THAT? Do they seriously know these people or are they friend thieving? Jumping on the grab-a-friend-of-a-friend bandwagon?

I love the LISTS. We can name them and then click on what we see in our feed. I have a WRITER list and view what my writing friends are posting. My suggestion is this, what can people see on my wall? That option is FRIENDS ONLY which kind of stinks if you have a bandwagon of friends. I would LOVE to see OPTIONS of who can see this! FAMILY, friends, close friends, etc. Not too hard but apparently Mr. Z wants us sharing with total, possibly stalking strangers! Just because a friend APPEARS nice, is not always the case when he begins stalking you now is it?

We live in a techno text world, one I am not accustomed to in any way. If I go to a page and see a bunch of txt lingo I click away from it quicker than you can blink an eye. I will not be dragged into trying to interpret what people are TRYING to say. Can’t people write WORDS anymore? Can’t people express themselves like normal people? I have one or two friends who actually uses words, it’s comforting to know out of millions of people caught up in this age of technology, I can find two or even three that still use words to express their emotions.

Mr. Z, something needs to change. The site is no longer a social friendly service for teens, it is a community of adults overwhelmed by not being able to express themselves. If the emoticons do it for people, give them what they want. Me, I’ll just keep writing for myself. “Better to write for myself and have no public, than to write (and be a showcase) and have no SELF!”

Here! Here!

 

My Christmas Countdown

1 Chron 29: 9 Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the LORD: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.

I don’t know if everyone looks at their calendars and counts down the days until the arrival of Christmas but the child in me still looks forward to the day. I don’t know why; I’m not expecting anything special but just the leading up to the day itself carries an aura of joy and happiness.

I had the audacity to go shopping Saturday kind of forgetting the hustle and bustle that people put into this season. I went early thinking it safe but boy was I wrong. I can see why people become humbug after experiencing the joyful blissful spiritual feelings of Advent to be tossed into the raging sea of people only to be spit out and tossed onto the shore.

The real reason I went shopping on Saturday was because they are calling for some wild and crazy weather this week. Saturday was a cloudy 55-degree day and felt downright warm so with teaching Adam to drive, I thought this would be a good day to venture out on the roads.

We did fine until he hit the traffic congestion. I don’t know about you when you first learned to drive but throwing obstacles like New York City traffic at you when you barely know the stop signs and red/yellow/green light signals; it proved not to be a good idea.

I picked up a few things as quickly as possible, left the store and got behind the wheel myself, meandered through even more congested traffic and brought us home safely. I couldn’t believe I pushed Adam into such crazy traffic. I know I know, he HAS to experience it but the nose-to-tail jamming of two lanes was too soon. All turned out okay because we made it to our safe haven where we could relax and enjoy the rest of the day.

Since we’re not rolling in the dough, our Christmas, just as Christmas’ past, are meager but joy-filled. THAT is what the season is all about to me, the JOY of the season. If I do decide to buy something I prefer to do it online, but there are some things you just can’t buy online. While people tried to rob me of my joy, I kept it intact and sit here today feeling good, not having overspent, enjoying the lights and pleasantness of an over commercialized season.

I woke yesterday morning to a blanket of white covering the lawn and walkway. I read the weather before bed and it said possible snow/sleet/rain but I was not expecting it to be a beautiful layer of the white stuff. It’s God’s gift to me. Thank you, Lord!

Yes, I see the Lord in everything and all my experiences are gifts from Him. Whether it is a trial or a blessing, I cradle my humbleness in my heart and allow Him to work through my daily living. This is the season of joy, this is the season of life. In nine more days it will all be over? Or will it? Not for me because I carry this season in my heart year round.

My gift to Him this season is the celebration of His life and power instilled in me!

Oh wait…it isn’t the ‘season’ that brings me joy it is God’s immense love for me! He fills me with the Holy Spirit and walks with me through dark tunnels, sunny days, gray skies and starlit nights. Nothing fake, mean or humbug about that. He is the joy that overflows my spirit daily. Praise be to God.

Quotation Saturday

1 Cor. 4:14 I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you.

 CHARMING

All charming people have something to conceal, usually their total dependence on the appreciation of others.

~ Cyril Connelly

“With mortal age comes the immense need for childish charms. Like a fine wine, sweetens with maturity.”
~ Rae Lori

“Don't rush to design your face to look beautiful, attractive and charming. Rather, be quicker to decorate your mind to appear as goal-oriented, passion-embedded and action-driven.”
~ Israelmore Ayivor

“If you look up "charming" in the dictionary, you'll see that it not only has references to strong attraction, but to spells and magic. Then again, what are liars if not great magicians?”
~ Deb Caletti

DECEITFUL

“It's discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit.”
~ Noël Coward

“The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.”
~ William Shakespeare

“Mindfulness helps us get better at seeing the difference between what’s happening and the stories we tell ourselves about what’s happening, stories that get in the way of direct experience. Often such stories treat a fleeting state of mind as if it were our entire and permanent self.”
~ Sharon Salzberg, Real Happiness: The Power of Meditation

“Never pretend to be something you are not, especially to be accepted. Be loved for who you are, it will be tough at times but worth it.”
~ Isabella Poretsis

CONSCIENCE

“There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right.”
~ Martin Luther King Jr.

“Your conscience is the measure of the honesty of your selfishness.
Listen to it carefully.”
~ Richard Bach

“The Roots of Violence: Wealth without work, Pleasure without conscience, Knowledge without character, Commerce without morality, Science without humanity, Worship without sacrifice, Politics without principles."
(Young India, 22 October 1925)”
~ Mahatma Gandhi

“Through pride we are ever deceiving ourselves. But deep down below the surface of the average conscience a still, small voice says to us, something is out of tune. ”
~ C.G. Jung

PRIDE

“A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.”
~ C.S. Lewis

“Generosity is giving more than you can, and pride is taking less than you need. ”
~ Khalil Gibran

“All men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil. The only crime is pride.”
~ Sophocles

“When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures bristling with prejudice and motivated by pride and vanity.”
~ Dale Carnegie

BELOVED

“Over the years, I have come to realize that the greatest trap in our life is not success, popularity, or power, but self-rejection. Success, popularity, and power can indeed present a great temptation, but their seductive quality often comes from the way they are part of the much larger temptation to self-rejection. When we have come to believe in the voices that call us worthless and unlovable, then success, popularity, and power are easily perceived as attractive solutions. The real trap, however, is self-rejection. As soon as someone accuses me or criticizes me, as soon as I am rejected, left alone, or abandoned, I find myself thinking, "Well, that proves once again that I am a nobody." ... [My dark side says,] I am no good... I deserve to be pushed aside, forgotten, rejected, and abandoned. Self-rejection is the greatest enemy of the spiritual life because it contradicts the sacred voice that calls us the "Beloved." Being the Beloved constitutes the core truth of our existence.”
~ Henri J.M. Nouwen

“Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. This is the true self. Every other identity is illusion.”
~ Brennan Manning

“To ignore, repress, or dismiss our feelings is to fail to listen to the stirrings of the Spirit within our emotional life. Jesus listened. In John's Gospel we are told that Jesus was moved with the deepest emotions (11:33)... The gospel portrait of the beloved Child of Abba is that of a man exquisitely attuned to His emotions and uninhibited in expressing them. The Son of Man did not scorn or reject feelings as fickle and unreliable. They were sensitive antennae to which He listened carefully and through which He perceived the will of His Father for congruent speech and action.”
~ Brennan Manning

Christmas Celebration

Rom. 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Why do we celebrate Christmas?

The first Christian celebration of Christmas was December 25, 336 AD. The very earliest of Christians like Peter and Paul and the people of that time did not celebrate Jesus’ birth on December 25^th. I may have been right in assuming that in fact Jesus was born in late April. 

Notice the final paragraph on that page.

Christmas seems to be a pagan holiday twisted and turned into this commercialized vehicle and I seriously don’t know why I celebrate it except that for the fact I have been conditioned and brainwashed into celebrating just because ‘everyone else is doing it’.

Through researching Christmas as you can imagine, I came upon a plethora of pages and links that I clicked until my eyes burned. As with any religious searches on the internet it is no wonder people come up confused with what is fact and fiction. 

When I grew up and became the religious freak that I am, religious celebrations took on new meaning to me. The rebel in me did not celebrate the Holy Days like everyone else; it was my way of not conforming to what the world tried to program in me. Sure I have a tree but to me it is a symbol of life and death and to commemorate a holy day that has been celebrated for centuries. The lights signify the Light within. Ornaments are a display of memories throughout the years. Giving became a year round ritual of the giving of all of me, but on Christmas it became a ritual of what people ‘expected’. Please know, I am conformed by the Holy Spirit.

I often hear people say ‘Remember the reason for the Season’, but do they themselves even KNOW the reason for the season? Have they done ANY research as to why we call the day the ‘Day of Jesus’ birth’? Do they even care?

In my eyes, the people of the world have conformed to the world, they’re happy with being led around by the falsity in life. I’m okay with that but don’t expect ME to conform to the worlds programming.

The Christmas tree IS a holiday tree. Are you putting it up to commemorate Christ? Did Christ have a Christmas tree? Or is the Christmas tree just a traditional politically correct term that you expect the entire world to follow?

We’re so caught up in our own pre-programmed belief system that when the truth comes along it looks like a foreign plague that we cannot and will not be a part of. This year as the world celebrates Christmas, I will be reminded of the TRUE reason for the Season.

Luke 2:7-14 “And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

Dominion

Eph. 6:12-18 -

[12] For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
[13] Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
[14] Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
[15] And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
[16] Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
[17] And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
[18] Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
[19] And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,
[20] For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

We wrestle against rulers of this world through lies, deceit, commercialism, buying into the falsity that is fed us by the ladle-full.

What hand do you have in participating in this deception of innocent souls? Taking on the whole armor of God is not telling you to wear God when He’s convenient and fits into your lifestyle.

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, is not a casual affirmation, it is a deep down spirit-filled prayer that ripples through your body and becomes a part of who you are as you wrestle with the evils of this world.

The wrestling match is on – good or bad, dark or light, up or down. Free will allows us to choose – there is no place for lukewarm, indecision or maybe.

Since living in the safety of the armor means oneness with Jesus, we can expect to share His struggles as well as His peace. Remember, God offers us His victory in the midst of trouble -- not the absence of pain. So "do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you, but rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ..." (1 Peter 4:12-13) ~ Eternal Crossroads

Begin your day as a journey with Christ knowing full well you are safe in His hands. Wrestle with the enemy to keep yourself on the straight and narrow road you must travel.

 
God be with you all.

A Conscious Decision

Picture by Elaine DeBaucher

Matt. 15:17-18 Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught?
But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.

On a daily basis I wake and find that I have to make a conscious decision of doing right instead of wrong, being good instead of bad, listen without jumping in and breaking the train of thought that goes into making a conscious decision.

Here lately I’ve been feeling like I’m browsing the streets at Mardis Gras. I’m wandering around people I’ve known for years but only from a virtual standpoint and they are wearing lavish masks. They are wearing make up, their hair is adorned in barrettes and baubles and beads are slung around their necks and the smile, they carry an eerie smile.

Why is it an eerie smile? Because when the mask is lowered, the windows are opened and you glance at their eyes, the doorway to the soul, and you glimpse the true them that they were hiding.

What I’m saying is that some people think of the Mardi Gras as a lifetime event carrying the mask with them wherever they go. That is all many people get a chance to see. They like what they see, the cloaked character is then happy being disguised this way because he/she is liked and almost worshiped.

We’re a people who accept the masks, make light of it and clings to whatever is spewed forth from the mask, never doubting the wearer. But I myself oftentimes see under the mask and all that is hidden and sometimes it scares me immensely because I too at one time was fooled by the mask wearers. Under the mask isn’t so pretty.

As a Christian, we make the conscious decision to not lie, cheat, steal or hide behind a mask. There are some who call themselves Christians and make a conscious decision to lie, cheat, steal and hide behind the mask, they’re happy there; in that place of fooling the onlookers. People are deluded and that makes the mask wearer happy. Then there are non-Christians who could care less what conscious decisions they make.

Recently I made the conscious decision to get back into writing. Not on my blog necessarily but writing and honing a craft that has been trying to elude me. I made the conscious decision to focus on the wrong things like facebook and whatnot and now it’s time for me to slap myself upside the head and regroup.

It’s not as if I have an amazing following or anything, nobody follows a non-mask wearer. They’re looking for fun, beads, excitement and a parade of activity. Me, I just spit out the truth; I don’t hide no matter how ugly the truth is to look at. Pride will be the death of many.

We live in a country that has a bountiful stock of food. How is it that a parent is proud when their child comes home happy with a kill of squirrel, deer or rabbit? How are people reveling in committing illegal acts? No matter how big or small, killing is killing, illegal is illegal; there’s no way to sugarcoat a conscious decision to make you feel better about yourself.

I have to go and reflect on what this world is coming to and what people accept as the norm. I have REAL issues to sort through and no longer will my blog be a place for my exposure of me. Just after two weeks of The Personal Essay course I’ve learned the difference between personal and private essay writing.

I am making a conscious decision to focus on my family, my faith and ME. Have an abundant Christmas full of love and beauty and may the Light of the Lord be with you all. Godspeed!

1 Kings 8:61 Let your heart therefore be perfect with the LORD our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day.

Quotation Saturday

John 15:19 “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.”

Advent is a time to wait, listen and ponder the awesome wonder of God. Pause and spend some time this season reflecting on God’s gift of love. Jesus IS the reason for the season.

“Advent: the time to listen for footsteps – you can’t hear footsteps when you’re running yourself.”

~ Bill McKibben

“The supreme trick of Old Scratch is to have us so busy decorating, preparing food, practicing music and cleaning in preparation for the feast of Christmas that we actually miss the coming of Christ. Hurt feelings, anger, impatience, injured egos—the list of clouds that busyness creates to blind us to the birth can be long, but it is familiar to us all.”

~ Edward Hays, A Pilgrim’s Almanac

“Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this life, in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; So that, at the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal.”

~ The Book of Common Prayer, published in 1662

“Christmas has lost its meaning for us because we have lost the spirit of expectancy. We cannot prepare for an observance. We must prepare for an experience.”

~ Handel Brown

PRIDE

“For the believer, humility is honesty about one's greatest flaws to a degree in which he is fearless about truly appearing less righteous than another.”
~ Criss Jami

“Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.”
~ Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

“Chasing a person doesn’t give you value or build values in you. You earn your value by chasing morality and practicing dignity.”
~ Shannon L. Alder

“Wealth is a gift from God, and pride is bequeathed to us from the devil.”
~ Douglas Wilson

WISDOM

Pss. 49:3 “My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.”

~ King James Version of the Holy Bible

“The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom.”
~ Isaac Asimov

The secret of life, though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight times.”
~ Paulo Coelho

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.”
~ Confucius

JUDGMENT

1 Chr. 16:14 “He is the LORD our God; his judgments are in all the earth.”

Job 19:29 “Be ye afraid of the sword: for wrath bringeth the punishments of the sword, that ye may know there is a judgment.”

Pss. 37:28 “For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.”

Pr. 19:28 “An ungodly witness scorneth judgment: and the mouth of the wicked devoureth iniquity.”

The Angel's Called

Ex. 23:20 Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
 
~ * ~ The Angel’s Called  ~ * ~
The angels came from mounted high,
cradled his soul I don't know why.
Wrapped in fleece-like softened wings;
silenced now he no longer sings.
 
Nestled within a tidal womb
fertile bed becomes a tomb
Shrouded in the serene abode
a vacant place his body stowed.
 
Earthbound duty not his call,
a rain of stars on him did fall.
Whisked away before I could hold;
a lifeless body lay there cold.
 
Summoned to be an angel himself;
journey of breath put on a shelf.
Though I miss his earthly duty;
I savor now his angelic beauty.

To think on this day 32 years ago I gave birth, blows my mind. The grieving process has minimized but it will never go away because Christopher is a part of who I am today. Even though I didn’t get to hear his cries, or see him walk across the floor for the first time, his voice played out in my soul day after day, year after year. His footsteps were heard in other children running and playing; his laughter was deep in my soul comforting me.

On this day as I remember the images all to vividly, I hold my child who was STILLborn in the essence of my being. As some people wish that grief would end, I don’t because grounding is necessary to move me forward in life and to always keep him alive in my heart.

My prayer for him today is that he is doing his heavenly duty for our great and Honorable King of Kings, and may he welcome me into Heaven when the time comes.

I’ve never stopped loving you, Christopher. 

What Advent Means to ME

Deuteronomy 7:9 (NIV) “Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands.”

The season of Advent is upon us and while many believe this is a season for the Catholic faith to celebrate the coming of Jesus’ birth, they are sadly mistaken. While the Catholic Church does celebrate through rites and rituals such as burning a colored candle each week as they focus on the coming of the Lord, many Christians such as myself celebrate Advent as a spiritual renewal.

This was a time in history documented and prophesied about in the Old Testament and came to fruition in the advent of the New Testament. The weeks leading up to Christ being born into this world are a pivotal proclamation to every single Christian. Our faith in Jesus Christ is solid proof, to ME, that the Advent of Christ is true to the biblical word.

Granted I don’t believe December 25^th as the exact day He was born. But it is the day that man has chosen to appoint and celebrate as the day of Jesus’ birth. Advent to me is preparing for the coming of the Lord instead of getting all caught up in the commercialization of a sacred Holy Day.

We’re living in a world where people make up their own choices and minds with how to honor the King of Kings. Christians everywhere claim to be Christian but shrug off Lent and Advent and other spiritual expectancies that the very bible they claim to read speaks of and are happy just declaring they’re Christian’s. To me, that’s a mockery of Christ and the Holy Bible.

Yes, claiming to be a Christian is all well and good but it is more than just words, you have to put physical and spiritual ACTION behind those words for them to be believed. Even through my computer screen I can tell which friends are spirit-filled and which ones put on a show. When sitting in Church I can physically see who is there just to show people that they’re there. I am not judging people; I am confirming that I have eyes to see.

THIS is why a spiritual rejuvenation is needed throughout the year. THIS is why Advent and Lent are so dear to ME. Yes I spiritually reflect throughout the year, but these two seasons take on special meaning to my spiritual growth.

I watch as a globe erupts in turmoil; races against races, wars against innocent, death to believers, fear in the loving. Satan is standing at the threshold of corruption, rising in great power throwing swords of fire at the earthbound physically and spiritually weak.

The flames have reached every corner of the earth, blades of fire have licked the spirit of all as we sit and watch, waiting, just waiting to understand.

THIS is the season for true Christians to fully understand the biblical elements at work. This is where we gather our spiritual strength and prepare for the coming of Christ. We can’t shrug off what we are called to be; we can’t ignore and draw a blind eye of what is to come. We can’t walk and pretend that we’re doing everything in our power to prayerfully heal a nation in the throes of an uprising while we're too busy to reflect even once on the spiritual growth of our being. We’re not called to ‘just’ believe.

This is not a time to wear a mask and delight in the show of the Christmas spectacle; this is the time to be spiritually awake in the depths of your soul. This is not the time to look around at all you don’t hold in your hands; this is the time to be grateful for every little thing you DO have. This is not the time to walk in confidence knowing you have a faith and belief in God; this is the time to meditate on all you are, all you hold true and all you hope to one day become THROUGH the blood and power of Christ.

THIS, my friends, is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it. (Pss.118:24)