Choices.  Our lives are made by the choices we choose to choose.  We can choose to love or to hate, to forgive or to hold a grudge, to gain weight or lose it.  We can choose to eat healthy or eat garbage, to drink coffee or tea, regular or diet, to make the bed or not.

All these choices that we make lead to our eventual state.  I am reaping the seeds I have sown, whether good or bad.  It’s a natural law.  So if I sow into my running hobby, then of it I will reap strength and endurance.  I will be able to run farther.  If I sow into my relationships (good or bad), I will reap the benefits or consequences.

With this in mind, I was considering the things that I want out of life.  What I want to do, what I want to accomplish, who I want to be.

My mentor said that I am already what I want to be, I just have to develop it.  She said that the things that I love and am drawn to I already have inside myself, I just need to cultivate it.  To dig deep inside myself, to love myself, to nurture myself.

And I agree with her.  If I were to desire certain things without outlining a path, but just waiting for qualities or destinations to just fall into my lap, I am wrong.

Whether or not I want to acknowledge it, I’m already on a road, I’m already traveling.  And it’s up to me which direction I travel.

With that being said–which way are you headed?  Are you glad that you’re on the path you’ve chosen, or do you see a way onto another path?  Are you confused about which direction you should be headed?

I encourage you to get quiet with yourself, become aware of yourself, be calm, collect your thoughts, and sit before God.  Ask Him what path you should take, and desire His will for your life.

I know that without God, I am shackled in fear and past mistakes.  Don’t allow your own limitations (or the opinions of others) to hold you back.

Recommended Reading.  (I have no affiliation with the authorship of this book; I am also not being paid to endorse it!)

Forgiveness is a quality that is both truly vital and terrifyingly unattainable without God. I’m sure all of us have good intentions at one point or another; I know that we all long to forgive because that means that the hurt is in the past, that we are solid and unmovable, that our worth isn’t based on what someone has done to us or said to us that put a crack in our foundation. Yet, we show our frailty and humanness when we are unable to forgive.

The word “forgiveness” has been resonating with me a lot lately. Echoing in my mind; maybe because I so desperately desire it and need it, maybe because I so desperately need to give it.

I am an icky human being with faults and frailties and visible infractions. I am imperfect and make mistakes that are completely unforgivable. But these things are not unforgivable to God, only unforgivable to man, which makes my desire for God and to be like God grow even more.

There is a standard that everyone has in their minds for what is good and what is acceptable. I agree that this standard was made by God, and then adapted in human minds based off of circumstances, environmental influences and opinions. Nevertheless, the standard still stands. It’s funny that people have invisible standards that others are supposed to meet and if not met, the people are cast aside and thrown to the wind; yet, the offendee often feels that if they do not meet God’s “invisible standard” (which is not invisible, since He has articulated it), He should be “the bigger person” and forgive. That their actions shouldn’t emulate their imposed opinions of what they think God’s reactions should be.

This is where the dilemma begins. And here I see it more clearly.

If we have a standard that we are supposed to meet, but inevitably cannot meet, where is the meeting point? If God has created us with weakness and given light that in our weakness we are made strong through Christ, does this mean that we do not have to meet the standard? That we are doomed, indeed, if we try to meet the standard? For we can only try, and miss the mark, again and again. Thus, never being worthy of God’s forgiveness.

If we are only strong in our weakness with Jesus, does this mean that He is actually the One meeting the standard for us? And that it is by grace that we are enough? That through our imperfections, God is given more glory, because He is shown faithful when we are not. And in this sense, we are given forgiveness as much as we are able to forgive.

If there is a man who owes a lot of money, and there is a man who owes a little money, who is more grateful for the debt forgiven? Of course the man who has the bigger debt. And in turn, naturally this man will be more willing to forgive other debts that are owned to him, since he was never worthy or able to pay off his own. But consider if he were stingy and angry about others who did not repay their debts; wouldn’t the first Forgiver be angry upon knowledge that although He forgave this large debt, yet the first man was unable to forgive as well? So then, he will be forgiven less.  (Abridged, Luke 7:36-50)

I am a debtor. And I ask God to forgive my debts as I forgive my debtors. May the Lord grant me the forgiveness I extend, but may He understand my humanity and grant me the grace to forgive, for I cannot do it. I cannot meet this standard either without His nudge.

‘When they kept on questioning Him, He straightened up and said to them, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.“‘  John 8:7-11

Praise be to God, our Forgiver!

New Year’s Day is tomorrow.  I keep forgetting that this is a holiday.  But it’s not just that… I didn’t remember until just now that people make new year’s resolutions for this day.

I started to think about what my resolutions might be (if I made them).

But I realized, I’m already doing everything I want to do. 

I wanted to read more, so I read more.  I wanted to write more, so I wrote more.  I wanted to run more, so I signed up for races.

I’ve already made goals. Still make goals, and strive for them on a regular basis. 

My yoga instructor classes start on January 6, and I’m planning to run the Wahine Half Marathon at Honolulu on April 17 that I registered for today. 

Everything is so feasible for me now.  Nothing is out of reach.  Everything is possible.  For so long I was too afraid to try things, but now I am no longer afraid.  I am no longer terrified to accomplish things. 

I’ve stepped out of my comfort zone to try to be a better person and to try to make a better story.

I made the decision to not waste my life anymore.

I decided to do everything that I want to do.

So now, I run.  I practice yoga regularly.  I write, I read; I try to make time for my friends.  I’ve even started teaching a little girl how to play guitar (which will, in turn, encourage me to play more). 

I started lifting weights.  I started doing crunches and buying new music. 

And while, in many ways this year has been difficult for several obvious reasons, I have never, so much in my life, tapped into the amount of potential that I have as much as I’ve done this year.

And that’s fantastic.

Cheers, to many, many years of growing, challenging myself (and others); making new friends, keeping old, and following my dreams (while making them a reality).

What does YOUR STORY look like?

Photo Credit.

“Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs.”  Psalm 150:4

I’m excited because I’ve made a decision in my life that I feel is something I can’t run away from.  Over the last several years, the idea of becoming a yoga instructor has continually crept upon me.  I never made the decision to become one because of how the teaching can become very saturated in Hinduism (which is not my religion–I am a very devout Christ-follower!), even if Yoga has not derived from Hinduism.

However, I’ve not been able to shake the feeling that this is what I was supposed to be doing.  But yoga?  That doesn’t even make sense?  Why yoga?

Well, then I found Holy Yoga.  I couldn’t let it go.  The more I read, the more it felt right.  The more I prayed, the less I could drop it.  The more I searched, the deeper I found myself in the peace of pursuing this.

What is Holy Yoga?  I’ve been asked this already, and I’m assuming that this is going to be a question I receive a lot, as this is something I plan on doing for the rest of my life.

Holy Yoga is an experiential worship or discipline dedicated to God.  It’s a practice of releasing our minds to the power of Christ, taking all of our thoughts captive to Jesus, and letting go of our worries at His feet.

The word yoga means “yoke”, so I believe the perfect Scripture to share the Holy Yoga expression is this:

“Come to me; all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.“  Matthew 11:28-30

Another Scripture that I absolutely love is John 10:10, “…I come that you may have life, and have it to the full.”

So that is what we’re doing:  coming to Jesus, saturated in the Word, laying down our worries, our burdens, and filling up with the mind of Christ.

Colossians 4:2 says to, “Devote yourselves continually to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”

Before practicing yoga, the principle is getting clean before God.  So many Christians walk through their day, forgetting the mental surrender to God.  We made the promise “that one day in church” to give our lives to God, but we forget that it is a continual renewal of our minds.

In both Ephesians (4:13) and in Colossians (3:10), the Word says that we will be renewed and matured in the KNOWLEDGE of Christ and our Creator.  Does this mean we need yoga in order to be saved?  Absolutely not.  This is just something we can use as a reminder to clear our minds and go to our Father.  Everyone has different things that work for them.

Some people light a candle and sink cozily into their recliners with the Word; some people have a cup of warm coffee and sit outside listening to the birds; others lay in their beds, or pray in the shower–the idea is, whatever brings you to your knees, do it.  Lifting our arms in worship, or bowing to our Creator are all expressions of our surrender to God.

Bending on my mat is just another way to come to my Father and worship Him.

So back to those Scriptures, whatever fills our minds with the knowledge of Christ will bring us to maturity in Christ Jesus.  So if I’m meditating on the Word of Christ during my yoga practice, that will bring me closer to God.

If I’m meditating on the Word while cooking dinner, that will bring me closer.

If I’m meditating on the Word while working in my backyard, or changing diapers, or updating my Facebook–the idea is not that the action is bringing me closer to God necessarily.  But that I am disciplining my mind to FOCUS on Christ’s words.

“Be still and know that I am God,” Psalm 46:10 says.  By practicing Holy Yoga, I am disciplining my mind and body to focus solely on Christ.  I center my breath, I relax my body, I come into a quiet and sacred place.  I crawl up into my Father’s lap, I allow myself to breathe in the breath of Life, to focus on His words, to pray quietly in my spirit, and to be consumed by God’s love.

One thing that I told Reid (husband) is that I am so judgmental of myself.  I judge myself and therefore judge others, when only one thing matters.

After Jesus was asked what the most important commandment was He answered:

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’  The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  There is no commandment greater than these.“  Mark 12:30-31

So many times we think that following God is about following rules or becoming perfect.  We are already perfect: we are made perfect through weakness.  We are made perfect through Christ’s spirit.  Jesus has already defeated death and sin.  We are just partakers of this promise.  While I am in this body, I will have to discipline it, and my mind, to follow Christ.

So yoga is a physical expression of this discipline, and loving others is another expression.  Yoga is an illustration of taking my mind captive.  Loving others is another.

If some how I can incorporate the two, why not?

And so I will.

If you felt this article was helpful to your understanding of Holy Yoga and wish to pursue a way to touch others through it, please follow this link.

Please share this link with others!

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Ready for an awesome recipe?  I haven’t made this yet, but will and will post pictures as well!  There’s no way I won’t try this   Let me know if you have any success as well!

Check out this Fruit Leather recipe today!!

Photo Credit.

I found this article I’d written December 5, 2009, before my twins were born.  I had been bedridden for a couple of months by then and God was teaching me plenty of lessons in that stillness.  Thought this was worth bringing up again!

I am not a control-freak.  I don’t need things to be too-clean; not everything has a specific place.  I often forget birthdays; I never send cards (I’m trying?).  I forget things that are cooking on the stove; I boil water completely away.

I don’t wash the sheets every.single.week (CRINGE!).  But?  I have my own little order.  I have things the way I like them in particular, and out of this order that isn’t really order, I still have control.  Not in a freakish unreasonable way… unless you’re my child.  In which case, you have to comb your hair this way, and you have to wear this shirt, and probably you need to make your bed this way, and hold your pencil like this.  But that’s not REALLY unreasonable?  When you stir the cookie-dough, you’re supposed to stir it like this.  Not because I’m crazy or need to control everything, but because It’s easier this way and you’ll thank me later.

Right?

Wrong.

But the carpet needs to be vacuumed this way, and the bathroom floor needs to be swept this way, RIGHT?

Wrong.

Unknowingly, all along in my attempt to make things so much easier for Aidan-and-Reid for when I can’t do these chores for them I have been making life a little less enjoyable and less fun.  Sure life isn’t all roses, things aren’t ALWAYS FUN, but things also don’t always have to be done this way. (Unless I have any say so, I mean.)

So throughout these months of having to watch Aidan not put things into his back pack the way I would arrange them, watching him vacuum the way I would never vacuum in a million years, seeing Reid hang my sweaters instead of fold them, or throw stuff in the closet floor instead of just finding a place for the things he doesn’t know have a place, I have relinquished control.  I have stepped back, knowing that it’s a losing battle.  And throughout all of this accepting-circumstances-that-I-can’t-control and realizing the importance or rather, the unimportance of the things I’ve battled, I am now realizing that this way of living is a lot easier than forcing my will upon the world.

I’ve always thought that I’m pretty low-maintenance, and by some people’s standards, I still never-ever had it together, but I was still trying to force triangles into squares because that’s the shape I needed for my own sanity.

So hopefully when you come over, when I have crap all in my entryway, and stuff all over my couch (because these are things I have really little control over), you’ll instead see my heart, and the fact that I’ve grown because of all this mess: I have realized what just doesn’t matter.

Maybe throughout all of this I’m becoming just a little bit more like Mary, and a lot less like Martha.  <3

Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.  And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus’ feet, and heard his word.  But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone?  Bid her therefore that she help me. And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her. Luke 10:38-42 [added bold and italics]

Lord, keep my heart pure.

Recommended Reading.

Photo credit.

Don’t burn out; keep yourseves fueled and aflame.  -Romans 12:11

I read that awesome Scripture today.  One thing that I really noticed is how that statement was a command, not a suggestion.  It doesn’t say, “Try not to burn out!”  It doesn’t say, “Try really hard to stay fueled!”  No, it says, “Don’t burn out.”  But not just don’t burn out–Keep yourself fueled and aflame. That verse is so convicting for me for several reasons.

I try to do way too much. I take on too many tasks, I add too many projects, I have high expectations for myself.  The fact is, I can’t do it all.  But I try to.

I struggle with taking a break. With my goal list mounting and my regular chores, I tend to not take breaks until I’ve completely broken down.

I burn myself out (for several days at a time!). This part is the most convicting.  The other day I literally said out loud, “I’m just burnt out.”  I hadn’t realized what was going on with my body, but I did know that I mentally and physically hadn’t been taken care of.

These are several steps that we can do to take care of ourselves so that we won’t burn out.

Sleep. Are you getting enough rest?  Oftentimes we wake up in the morning working and then get to bed really late at night.  Are you putting yourself first?  Get at least eight hours of sleep!  I do believe that each person’s body is different, so maybe keep a sleep journal, or a mental note, of how you feel when you get five hours of sleep, six hours, seven hours, eight, nine–find out what’s best for YOUR body.  (Have a refreshing bath and a good night’s rest. – 2 Samuel 11:7)

Eat Right. This is something I struggle with.  Not only do I love chocolate and love coffee, I also love pizza too!  Think about what your body craves!  Have you had any vegetables today?  What about water?  Are you eating for fuel, or for fun?  Again, this is something that I really struggle with, but will try to be more careful about.  I will probably never be extreme in this department, but I can at least be more mindful!

Take breaks. Be realistic about your expectations of yourself.  Pick three things to accomplish for the day and then do them!  If that’s too much, do one thing!  Allow yourself to stop and rest, to read, to write, to go for a walk.

Enjoy nature. When I get out of the house and go running or walking, I really refresh.  Something about seeing the world outside of my little realm is a nice reminder that life goes on outside of my circumstances.

Take a shower/bath. Maybe it’s just me, but having little kids keeps me from enjoying my showers or baths!  Sure, that’s the only time I’m alone (some days!), but be intentional.  Rest your mind and thoughts as you bathe.  (Have a refreshing bath… – 2 Samuel 11:7)

Read the Word of God. What are you putting into your body?  Are you adding in un-Scriptural things, or are you focusing your attention of God’s promises for you?  Whenever I read encouraging verses I feel uplifted and have something better to focus on.

Pray. I grew up praying about everything.  I literally remember lying in bed looking up at the ceiling asking God to make my bangs grow faster.  I asked him to give me a husband with blond hair and blue eyes.  I asked Him questions, I told Him my ideas and plans, I asked Him for safety.  As I got older, praying was less prevalent because I became preoccupied.  I have had to be truly intentional about praying and giving up my thoughts to God.  In the end, I always feel refreshed and like I handed over my mental burdens to Someone who cares.

Exercise. I used to do yoga all the time, but recently I stopped for lack of time alone.  I’m going to start integrating it back into my routine, because I always feel more relaxed and comfortable (refreshed!) after having set time for it.

ALSO I am participating in a retreat online with Anastasiya Goers to learn to stay more refreshed and to stay fueled.

Join me as I try to refuel and stay balanced at the Balance In Me Retreat!

• What about you?
• Are you burning both ends of the stick?
• What do you do in order to stay calm, relaxed and reposed?

Thank you for reading this post! Feel free to share this post with others you think might benefit from it!

Photo Credit.

It’s in my nature to try to absorb every single bit of information that I can about something I’m ridiculously interested in.  For example, when I wanted to run, I read runners’ blogs, I read articles about running–about what clothes to wear, what shoes I should have; I looked at pictures of runners.  I read runners’ forums, I read running plans, I checked out books from the library on running.  I was trying to motivate myself to just get out there and do it.  I wanted to run so bad!!

But there comes a time when standing on the sidelines is not going to make me a runner.  I can read everything I want to read about being a runner, and nothing is going to make me one.  I can feel like a runner in my heart, but if I’m not out there running, then I’m not a runner.  I can dream about running a half marathon, or imagine myself effortlessly gliding across miles of land–I can do all of these things, but they will never make me a runner.  I can hang out with runners, I can volunteer at races, I can offer drinks to runners, and hand them towels to dry off–I can be fully immersed in everything of running: teaching people how to run, hydrating myself constantly, eating carbs for extra energy, and participating in conversations about runners, runners times, runners miles, etc–but if I don’t ever get out there to run?  Then I’m not a runner.

Sounds pretty simple, huh?  Maybe in theory….

The other day I was lying in my bed thinking about a choice I needed to make.  I wanted to please God, I still want to please God, but I just didn’t know what to do.  Obviously I decided to seek guidance–I asked one of my very trusted and good friends what her opinion on the matter was, and she told me exactly what she thought.  She told me exactly what she told me the last time I wanted her to tell me what to do.  She said, “Timbrel, pray about it and God will show you what to do.”

As I was lying in the bed and going over that conversation I really felt in my spirit a revelation.  It was like this: “Timbrel, you can look like a runner, act like a runner, read about being a runner and want to be a runner, but until you get in the race, you will never be a runner.”  I realized that God was telling me that I need to seek Him in order to truly call myself a Christ follower.  Am I doing what “other Christians do”, or am I following the leading of the Holy Spirit?  Do I seek God’s wisdom on every matter–not just the ones that seem “cloudy” or “hazy”–or am I looking at other peoples’ lives to decide how to live?  Am I basing my opinions and actions and convictions based on what I know about the Word of God, or am I leaving the dirty work to my brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus?

I always wondered how people could call themselves Christians when they didn’t really follow Christ–they followed a crowd.  But it’s so easy to get wrapped up in life and to forget the simplest things.  What does God call us to do?  What is so simple?  Love God, and love others.  Not follow a bunch of man-made rules!  So, am I a Crowdian, or a Christian?

What about you?  Are you basing your decisions on hunches, other peoples’ examples, or the Word of God?  Do you do things because you were told they were the right things to do, or do you do them because you know that it’s right according to the Scriptures?  Are you following your natural desires, the crowd, or Christ Jesus?

If you’re wondering how you can follow Christ in the modern day, remember that God is the same yesterday, today and forever.  His morals and values have never changed, but our societies’ have.  He doesn’t evolve, we do.  He never changes His mind and His plan has never wavered, we have.

Read God’s perfect and Holy Word today, for yourself.  Decide how you want to live based on YOUR discoveries in the Bible, not just someone else’s.  You will stand in front of the Judge by yourself, not with your fellow believers.

John 1:1-3,10-15 says,

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made without him nothing was made that has been made.  In him was life, and that life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it…

“He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.  He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.  Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God–children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.  We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Will you recognize Him?  Will you receive Him?  Personally?

What about you?

1.    Do you believe that you were created to fellowship with God?  If so, are you fulfilling that purpose by spending time with Him personally?
2.    Do you think that you will stand before God in a group of people, or by yourself, held accountable for your own actions?
3.    Do you think the attitude that you hold reflects your relationship with God?
4.    Do you think the relationships you have reflect your relationship with God?
5.    Do you have a similar experience that I had?  I’d love to know!

“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.  Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it.  But one thing I do:  Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.  All of us who are mature should take such a view of things.  And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you.”

Philippians 3:12-15

Photo Credit.

The older generation thought nothing of getting up at five every morning – and the younger generation doesn’t think much of it either.  -John J.  Welsh

1. Prayer/meditation. A great way to start the day is meditating on Scripture that is positive and reinforcing!  Giving your thoughts to God and resting in Him is always comforting too.  In this forum, an older gentleman brings up the topic of rising early and spending time with God.  It interests me greatly.  I love to read about people of the faith who have been so close to God–their secret is making time for Him.  Which perhaps is best in the morning!

2. Stretch. It’s an awesome way to start the day, because it’s great for circulation–which is precisely why you should do it in the morning!  Stretching should be a part of everyone’s routine at some point!

3. A cup o’ joe. Coffee is one of my favorite ways to start the morning.  Even if it’s just a comfort habit, it has its health benefits too!

4. Take a shower! Showering is a great way to rejuvenate.  I prefer to work out before my shower though….

5. Exercise. By implementing a morning exercise regimen, you are not only setting yourself up for success by getting your metabolism going more quickly, but you’re almost insuring a routine of exercise!  Read this article on the wonderful benefits of a.m. exercise!

6. Read encouraging words. I LOVE to read.  I read at night, in the day, and, of course, in the morning too.  But what I read can set the tone for the day, so I try to read encouraging words.  Specifically I prefer the Bible, but there are also great blogs, books, and other things.  Check out my Blogroll, on the right hand side, for great blogs to follow! 

Photo Credit Helga Weber

Yesterday I wrote this post about how to overcome fear.  Well this post is similar in the sense that we’ll still be discussing overcoming fear, but this time we’re focusing on fixing our thoughts.  Yesterday I talked about how I was overwhelmed by fear and depression when I’d gotten pregnant at seventeen and had a baby at eighteen.  With that story in mind, I wanted to continue telling you why my life is different, and how yours can be different if you’ve experienced traumatic situations too.

Some people believe that nothing happens for a reason, others believe in karma, while still others believe that God can use for good what the devil meant for bad.  I believe that we live in a fallen world where everyone is given a chance to make positive or negative decisions.  Based on these decisions, circumstances are born.  Whether good or bad, the circumstances form our opinions, perspectives, experiences, preempting us to form premeditated resentments, or rather: expectations.

In layman’s terms: decisions are like dominoes.  Once we decide upon something, a domino falls, while another domino reactively falls, regardless of whether or not we want these dominoes to fall.  (Are you still with me?)  These dominoes may or may not have a positive effect on those around us.

Or perhaps, someone else’s dominoes are falling on your dominoes.  Do you get what I’m saying?  We’re basically all subject to one another’s decisions.  So we can make a choice:  We can either be ticked that someone else’s domino is falling on us, or we can take it in stride.

What we’re going to do is look at how we can evaluate our reactions to people’s dominoes, or our own, and then see how we can improve our perspective based on that reaction.

Again, this helps us to overcome our fears, because our perspectives might actually be skewed by fear without us even knowing it.

1. Truth: I am only in charge of me; I cannot control others.  (Half the time I can’t even control myself, which is where my trust in the Heavenly Father comes into play!)

Scenario: I can decide to be angry about my husband eating my last piece of chocolate, or I can put this into perspective by realizing that the chocolate cost probably less than a nickel, and I can just go buy another bag of loads of chocolates at the grocery store, or the corner store.  For that matter, my son probably would volunteer to go get me another piece of chocolate just so he could ride his bike somewhere!

2.  Truth: I am a capable, independent person, perfectly healthy and able to achieve what I so desire, if it’s in God’s will.

Scenario: Say that my husband gets deployed: suddenly everything starts falling down around me.  I HAVE TWINS FOR GOODNESS SAKES!!  Husband is leaving, I’m in charge, and I can’t do anything without him!? Or, I can change my perspective by understanding that I am willing and able to take care of my children.  We can find the help that we need, and trust in our Protector, who also takes care of us.

3.  Truth: Nothing matters except expressing our faith through love because Heaven is our home with Jesus.

Scenario: We live on earth, where it is corrupt.  There is famine here, people are hurting, dying, killing; people are stealing from each other, destroying one another.  There is sin running rampant.  We are all impure compared to God’s standard.  It can be so discouraging to wake up and realize that it’s just another day where I have to change two more poopy diapers.  Make a thousand more meals for my family, and sweep fifty more times.  Another day to take care of everyone else, possibly going unnoticed.  Or, I can align my perspective with the Truth of God’s Word by understanding that this life is temporary: we are but a vapor!  We are here today and gone tomorrow, barely making an imprint on this earth, unless we change our attitudes.

So how can you change your life?  By aligning your perspective with what the Truth of God’s Word says about you.

God says that He made you, and that what He made is Good.  God says that we shouldn’t worry because if He cares for even the birds of the air and the lilies of the field, shouldn’t He care for us?  God says, that even if we being evil can give good gifts to our children, how much more He will give!

So I invite you to think vertically, think on things above.  Change your life TODAY.

Leave Remarkable Imprints by believing in God’s Truth.