We all want to be seen as successful in whatever we choose to do, but there are things that we do without knowing that actually are holding us back. One of the biggest is using the phrase I can't. When we say I can't we have already shut down, closed ourselves off to any opportunities for growth and or self-awareness. A close relative to I can't is fear, fear tells us that we are not good enough, it won't work out anyway, what everybody said about me is true. We need to start believing that we are a vessel that contains all the love, knowledge, and skill set to overcome and achieve whatever we set our minds to accomplish. Make a promise to yourself to be discriminating about who is allowed to share in your dreams and see you at your worst. Someone who will not rejoice with you in your triumphs, will not cry with you in your pain. "Do not throw your pearls among swine," not everyone is worthy of knowing what's in your heart. Guard and protect your heart by using wisdom and discernment to know when to share and with whom .
To leave someone completely and finally, to forsake utterly, to be unfaithful in relationships; these are the definition of betrayed, abandoned and rejected. When looking at these words they make the acronym BAR, when I was thinking about this it reminded me that people sometimes go to a bar to drown their sorrow and pain. The problem in this, as in any other escapist activity, is that it doesn’t work. The pain and anguish is still there the next day and you are no closer to overcoming your situation.
Everyone has experienced some form of betrayal, abandonment or rejection at some point in their life. What matters is did those experiences have the power to destroy the very essence of who we are as a living loving human being? No one said that we wouldn’t have struggles and disappointment, at times from the very same people who profess to love us. The concern is what our response is, do we give up, allowing the experience to define who we are or do we prepare our hearts to receive the lesson that’s in it for us to learn from that situation. Now the trick is to do this while going through something, that’s where we all struggle. We are like a ship that’s not tied to the dock, when the storms come we get rocked and sometimes cast out into the middle of the sea. Just as a dock keeps the ship grounded we too need something to be tied to in our lives so we don’t get lost in the midst of our struggles. ***Accepting our pain as a part of who we are*** *** Experiences can be a pruning for our lives*** We have to begin living our lives deliberately and consciously, being in the moment at all times. There are many practices that help maintain our stability in life; meditation, and prayer with the belief in something greater than us, these are some ways that people help ground themselves. Creating nurturing relationships that will become a support system in our times of trouble goes a long way in encouraging us as we grow. When we have established these practices on a daily basis, it allows us to create healthy responses to situations that at times are out of our control. ***Now the acronym is still BAR, but we are Believing And Receiving all the blessings that are for us boldly! Webster dictionary defines happy as feeling pleasure and enjoyment because of
your life, a particular situation, showing or causing feelings of pleasure and enjoyment, pleased or glad about a particular situation, event, etc. If we consider ourselves happy according to that definition, happy is really a fleeting emotion. That means that anything that causes me to feel stress, anger, frustration, disappointment, the list goes on, can now make me unhappy. If I’m living according to the world’s definition of happy, I might as well be on a roller coaster ride. You’ve heard it said that until you are happy with yourself, you’ll never be able to be truly happy for someone else. Well the truth is, you’ll never be happy with yourself until you truly understand WHOSE you are. For me the WHOSE is Christ, for you if it’s not Christ, there still needs to be an understanding on some level that there is something greater than us keeping this all together. Too many times we are putting our faith into things that change and distract us from our purpose. When we understand the concept of blessings, it only is then that we can open our hearts to be happy for others. There’s a song with a line that says “What God has for me is for me.” Once we grab hold of the idea that first of all, the good things that happen to us is only by the Grace of God and nothing can take our blessing away; it is then we know our action of sharing in others joy neither increases or decreases the good things in our own lives. There is a certain level of personal satisfaction that we must reach in order to be truly happy for and with others. What does it mean to be satisfied to you. For some it’s lots of money, fancy cars, big house etc. The problem with that mindset, what happens if none of that occurs? Are we now unsatisfied, not happy? The ultimate example of satisfaction is Paul. He truly believed that no matter what the circumstances he was reassured by his faith in God. God said “my Grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Hope- without hope we lose our ability to think that things can change appreciate what we have and not focus on what we don’t have ** focusing on what we don’t have is a sure fire way to miss everyday blessings that sometimes occur in the blink of an eye. Practice- you can’t become good at something if you don’t do it often **there’s a lot of truth to fake it until you make it. Act happy at someone else’s good fortune, smile and speak love to them. Remember, we don’t share blessings; your blessings will be released in the time that is right for us. |
Use this space to challenge long held beliefs that might be holding you back from living to your fullest.Archives
October 2015
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