The Beauty Amongst The Weeds

I love to take hikes with my family. What better way for a family to bond then in the beauty of nature. It is peaceful. There are no interruptions. It creates amazing memories. I am also a lover of photography. It gives me a chance to get some amazing shots. A few weeks ago my family and I were out walking along the trails along the river. I saw some pretty amazing pieces of God’s artwork. I was reminded why I have always said one of my favorite artists is God. Every day he provides amazing blessings and sometimes we tend to take them for granted. Sometimes we are blinded by the negative things and not see the inner beauty of things. I walked along and took many pictures but the most beautiful were the wildflowers. Most people would refer them to the weeds. I never thought anything just that they were as beautiful as I looked through the eye of the lenses to capture the amazing beauty I could see around me. When I came home and downloaded the pictures. I had taken a picture of some golden rod beside the water. When I took a look at the picture, I thought wow the water and the vibrant yellow. What a sight. Many people would look at golden rod as a simple common weed. I saw something more that day. I saw the beauty of it. I also saw something else as I downloaded and edited the shot. I saw many little insects on the weeds. I never noticed these insects that were feeding off this plant. There was a moth, a bee as well as a couple of other insects. It was not just a weed it had so much value and good in it. I was soon reminded how many times people come into our lives. Many times people do not see any good they are nothing more than a weed. Maybe they are rough around the edges. Maybe you don’t like the way they speak or the way they act. Many times we react on what we see without really looking at that person. God uses all of us and our nature in different ways. It takes many people and many personalities to reach a world that is hurting. If we could only see them, through God’s eyes. So many times we turn people away because they don’t believe the same thing. Maybe they don’t act as we want them too. Maybe they are just not what you see as someone that God can use. It is funny how we look at people through our eyes and not God’s eyes. Funny how we tend to want to take things in our own hands and correct that person. We run right over never thinking on how our actions are reflecting on that person. All we see is that weed. We need to look through God’s eyes. If we did we would see a person who is the most caring person a vessel that is open and willing to be filled by God. A person that can reach so many lives. A person who not only can reach many but feed many. A person who is not as grumpy or miserable as you think. Maybe they are going through a situation that if you took the time you would see why they react that way to things. God uses the weeds because they are open. You may not always see the beauty in the weed but God does and he wants to bless you by bringing these weeds into your life. We need to ask God to allow us to see those weeds through his eyes. When we ask he will answer and we will be amazed at the beauty that God sees. Just like I did that day. The weed was no longer just a yellow weed but a beautiful creation of God that God uses every day. I encourage you to ask God to see people through his eyes. What does he see? I warn you however that when you do it will change your life.

Is Money The Answer To Happiness?

 

How many times have you heard someone say “If I could only win the lotery then I would be happy”.

Maybe you have thought this to yourself before.  I know I have been guilty of thinking “if I could only find a way to get the money and pay my debts off. I could buy a home. I could do so much if I had money to do it.”  Maybe you realize that money does not buy happiness but you think well if I had money…life would be so much easier. The question is does money really bring happiness?

I was sitting upstairs in my room sewing when my oldest daughter came running up the stairs. “Mom do you remember that guy that played in Mrs. Doubtfire?”  I looked at her and said yes that was Robin Williams. “Yes that is  him she said… Well Mom he died. “ I thought to myself wow that is such a great loss he made so many people smile. Her next words threw me for a bit of a loop. “ Mom they say he committed suicide.” My first reaction was no way. He has everything why would he do such a thing. I turned to her and said honey don’t believe everything you hear. They killed off Mylie Cyris last week remember. It is probably another scam. “No Mom it is true it was on the news and everything. “

I was in shoke that someone so popular. Someone with so much money and someone who had everything for them would take their life. I continues thinking. We don’t know the reason behind his death. We probably never will. This man so full of life. This man who made hundreds of people laugh. This man who people looked at though thought wow. I wish I could be as happy as him. He has fame,  fortune and money. He had it all.  I was soon reminded money can’t buy you everything. His death is a great tragedy. It will be devistating to many fans. In the end he was not truly happy. If a man who seemed to have everything was not 100% happy then is is possible to find true happiness.

The answer is Yes.  How do we find happiness you ask? Happiness is not something we seek. True happiness isn’t found in things. It isn’t found in having something or doing something. Being happy is a choice. How can we chose to be happy? If you chose to wait until everything is perfect and there are no stressful situations in your life. You will never be happy.

It is makling a choice to set the right attitude for the day. Much like setting your alarm in the morning. It is a daily choice that we make.  Unfortunaley life has so many challenges to offer. I  have heard people say that if God is real why do bad things happen.   God does what he can to protect us. He never promised us a bed of roses.  There is evil in the world and because of that bad things happen. God made us as individuals. He made us to make our own decisions.  He made us to think for ourselves.  Satan is here to steal our happiness. He is here to hurt us in anyway possible. It is up to us with God’s help to defeat him.

John 10:10

“The thief does not come except to steal and kill and to destroy.  I have come so that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

How do we get happiness?

 Keep a positive attitude. Looking at the positive. When you focus on the negative you get a negative attitude. Do not allow your joy to be stolen from the negativity that happens in everyones  life every day. Laugh more at yourself and at the things around you. Laughter is a great medicine.  Forgive yourself and others for mistakes. Forgivness is such a great feeling. Unforgivness only brings you heartache and bitterness.  Learn to enjoy God and others  around you.  Look at the good and happiness will find you. Too many times we look at the stresses and the garbage in our everyday lives. In reality happiness is all around us when we change our outlook. When we decide to let go of the garbage and focus on the beauty no matter what comes our way. That is when we will find true happiness. 

Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus

Have you ever found your life in complete turmoil? Have you ever found that life has put you in a whirl pool and you have no idea how you got there?

This is exactly the place where I am now.  I sit here I look back and I see that the main reason is because I forgot to trust.  I trusted in God but not totally and completely. I also got involved in trying to take care of things on my own. I got involved in the everyday life. I settled for second best. I got involved with my job and many things around me. I had to fix everything around me. I had to tackle this world on my own because no one else was going to make it happen. I neglected the important things around me. I had neglected my family, myself and most importantly God.

Don’t get me wrong. I was there the best I could be for my family. I did not totally let God go. I still believed in him. I still took time to worship him and spend time with him. I neglected him in other ways. I had no time to go to church because I was always working weekends. I had no family time because I worked. I would come home from a bad day and go to my room, so I would not take it out on my family. I needed to work. I have to provide for my family. In the mist of everything I neglected so much.

 I became a person that I did not even know. I had no patients with my children and others around me. I also could not stand in the storms that I battled because I was not getting the fellowship needed to grow. I had forgotten how to trust God. Trust that he would open the doors needed to provide for the needs of myself and my family. Along that road I lost many things. The bumps in the road were hard. It was like I was driving a car with no tread in the tires. God brought me through many of those bumps. Without him I would be in worse shape than I am now.

My neglect brought me to a complete place of depression and health issues. A couple of weeks ago I had a couple of deaths in the family. I was also under pressure for my job. I ended up breaking down. I could not stop crying. I actually at one point had thoughts of driving into a transport truck and ending it all.  My actions had cost me much. I knew I had hit rock bottom. I knew I needed help. My first question was where did that come from? How did I get to this point?

The Doctor removed me from my job because of the stress issues involved.

The bible says

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and don’t depend on your own understanding. Remember the Lord in all you does, and he will give you success.

Proverbs 3: 5-6 (NCV)

I have forgotten to trust that God is looking out for my best interests. He knows my needs. He knows my family’s needs. I have neglected myself and so much more because I forgot. I am still not back to where I need to be.  I know however as I trust God he will bring a complete healing to my life. He will bring complete success to my life and he will use me in so many ways. I know that even with the stresses involved in my job and my everyday life. He will meet my needs and he will bring complete success and peace to my life.

I want to encourage you today. God is the answer he will meet all your needs you only have to believe in him and

Trust.

The Thumbtack

Have you ever stepped on a thumbtack?

I was working away this morning trying to get things ready for the contractors to come and paint. I ran into my oldest daughter’s room to make sure she had moved everything around to allow them excess to the walls. I stepped between her dresser and the bed and low and behold I was hit with great pain in my right foot. I had encountered a stray thumbtack. I removed the thumbtack with great deal of pain and effort. Breathing deeply as I quickly pulled it out of my foot. I proceeded on to the housework. Limping a bit but eventually surviving the obstacle.

Isn’t it amazing how something so small can cause such pain?

When I was finished I sat down with nice hot cup of tea. I came to think on how much that thumbtack in my foot this morning was much like our lives. We come across incidents where someone says or does something to us and it hurts us, just like that thumbtack in my foot. When we try and remove it from our lives. It hurts to remove it but in time the pain does subside in a few days sometimes sooner. However we never forget the incident. We remember the pain.

 I was a victim of bulling as a child. I was told by many that I would never amount to anything. I was fat. I was ugly I smelled. I was stupid. They would make fun of me because I did not have the best clothes. I would never fit in. I had no friends at school. If I had a friend it was because they only wanted to get close enough to make me the brunt of their unkind jokes. I would let them in and they would crush me in any way they could. In time I built up walls so no one could hurt me. I was going to let that thumbtack in my life hurt me ever again. When I got older I learned to trust, however I always had that wall there. It put insecurities and doubts into my life. People would say things playing or kidding and I never seemed to see it as a joke. To me they were attacking me. I also found it hard to trust even God because everyone else hurt my why would he be any different. It was hard for me to see a relationship with God because every relationship or person I had met failed me or hurt me. I discovered in life that even as an adult you had bullies.

 In time as I grew I  actually felt sorry for these people because I realized that these people where the way they were because they too had low self esteem. They made me and those around them look bad to boost their egos. I was sad for them to think that someone would have so little esteem that they would have to make those around them look good. However the pain still remained. Once something is said or done to a person it will never be the same. Too many times we do things without thinking on the consequences. I see things so much differently since I because a believer in God. I see things through his eyes. I am not bitter towards those who hurt me. I do not wish anyone harm. With that thumbtack in my life it still makes my walk a hard one. Once the tack is in your foot you are not able to walk the same. When the tack is removed you can walk again however that memory is in the back of your mind forever.

God takes our lives and he helps us pull the tacks out. He also helps us to heal. With him I can see things differently. I can also forgive those that have hurt me. So many people walk around with grudges and bitterness because of that thumbtack that still sits in their foot. If they would only pull that thumbtack out and allow it to heal.

Do you have a thumbtack in your foot? Maybe it is time to pull it out. And if you can’t do it alone reach out. Once that thumbtack it removed you will be amazed at the difference it will make in your life.

The choice is yours to make.....

Do you remove that obsticle so you can walk again? Or do you walk on it forever?

God's Perfect Masterpiece

Look out your window…. What do you see?


I see a reminder that I am loved. As I look out my window I see a big tree full of snow. I see a perfectly shapes heart out of snow that is positioned sidewise on the trunk. Some people would look at that clump and snow and say yuck more snow. I look at the clump of snow as a reminder that I am not alone. I am loved.

I have really had a hard couple of weeks. I had picked up the flu bug last week. I forced myself to get into work. It has not been overly busy so at times we were allowed to leave early. I took every chance I could rest and get better. This week has been a stressful week due to certain situations and people around me. I felt like there is no way I will make it through this week. I was so happy to make it to my day off.

This morning I woke up and went for a little walk. I stepped out of my door to see the tree out front of my home. Every tree trunk had snow on it but this trunk was different. The snow was shaped in a perfectly shaped heart. I paused for a moment and looked at it. I felt such a piece as I realized that it does not matter what peoples image of me are. It does not matter if people tell lies about me or do not agree with my opinions. God loves me.

Snow is not always the greatest and with winter it is a long hard time for some. However when you look out at the snow what do you see.

Have you ever looked out at your window at night? It is dark however as the light hits the snow you see sparkles. It looks little diamonds.

Have you ever looked out your window after an ice storm? It is such a beautiful image. Everything looks like crystal. It looks like a glass fortress. I remember one storm this year. I looked out my window in the morning to see what the roads were like. We had just had an unbelievable ice storm. I said to my husband. “Wow look at it out here. It is so beautiful.” My husband looked at me strange. I turned to him and said I know it is dangerous time for commuting and all but it is beautiful.

God gives us many blessings around us every day. Sometime life goes by too fast for us to realize the gifts he is giving to us. Sometimes it is in our nature to look at the bad in everything and not take the time to sit back and see the good. This winter has been a long winter. For some it is so hard to get through it. Just remember that winter is a time of hibernation and rest. With the business of life we may not have time to hibernate. It is hard to take time to rest.

I want to encourage you to stop for a few moments and concentrate on the beauty around you. Take the time to sit back and look around you. You may be able to see the gift that God is trying to share with you. I also want to remind you that God loves you. We are also his masterpiece. He has a plan for each and every one of us. He has a plan for each of us. He loves us and he only wants the very best for us. God thinks we are worth so much. The bible tells us that he even knows the number of hairs in our heads. (Luke 12:7)

We are one of God’s precious masterpieces.

DEPRESSION

Depression is not a simple thing. Depression is an illness. It is something that many people deal with this time of year. Depression can lead to so much more such as suicide. Many people believe that it is an easy way out to a difficult situation.
I am here to tell you that there is a way out. I am a victim of depression. Certain parts of the years it is worse. I had a very hard time last April. I remember messaging a friend and saying please pray for me I can not carry on. I am battling something that I can not control. I had done everything in my power to fix this issue. The only thing that I did not do was go to the Dr's and be put on medication. I did not want to do it this way because in my family there is a history of people that have become addicted to over the counter medication. I made up my mind at a young age that I had been a victim of many things over life. This was something that would not control me. I felt hopeless and lost. I felt like I was the worst person ever. I was the worse mother, wife and friend. I felt that I could not do anything right. I could not even avoid my family from pain. I was actually considering walking away from it all.

Why would anyone want me in their life. Every time I tried to change my way of thinking. Something would happen or someone would say something to add to proving me right. I was useless.

I belonged to a good church but felt by certain people in the church, that I did not belong . No one cared. It was not all necessarily what was happening but what was going on in my mind. I remember contacting my friend and telling her that I just really needed a good ear to vent. One thing in my life that I was grateful for was God bringing this amazing friend into my life. She is always there and I know that no matter what I feel or say she would never condemn me.

I had been praying but felt that God had failed me. He was not healing me from this pain. He was also not answering me. I had lost so many special people in my life. If God is real why is it that bad things happen. When does he allow good people to suffer. I was angry that he would not help me. Why am I going through this valley. I had not lost total belief in God, However I did loose hope in recovery.

My family had gone out to the farm to visit my in laws and after dinner we all walked down to the barn. The girls helped out with chores, and to check out the new arrivals. My husband and I walked out towards the house. My oldest looked up and said "Mom check out that cloud it looks like a big eagle. " I looked up to see an amazing cloud. It filled the sky it was so big. It looked like a soaring eagle with it's wings stretched wide. I started to cry as soon as I looked at it.

I heard a small voice come to me saying
" But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint".

I felt an amazing feeling over come me. I knew that this was the sign that I was looking for. I had tried to do it all on my own. I did not rest in the wings of the eagle and allow him to carry me through.

I pray that anyone reading this that is battling with this disease will find comfort knowing you are not alone. Maybe you don't believe and you feel alone. Maybe you are thinking man this lady is crazy. Whatever your thoughts are today. I encourage you to seek help. To reach out to someone who you know you can trust. You may be like me and are thinking my family would be so much better without me there. If I ended it all now life would be so much simpler.

Please take heart to know even though you feel useless and you feel like you are a burden to your family and those who love you. It would be a bigger burden for them without you there. Even though you feel alone. You are never alone. God cares for you. He loves you. He has given you amazing blessing that you may not see. You are a blessing to someone even though you may not know it. Hold your chin high and know that you are loved. We can't do it in our own strength but we can carry on and do it with God's strength.