A Broken Down Place

                                Everyday is a brand new day, everyday is a journey.


His was the heart that overmuch
In human goodness puts its trust,
And his the keen, satiric touch
That shrivels falsehood into dust.

Fierce for the right, he bore his part
In strife with many a valiant foe;
But laughter winged his polished dart,
And kindness tempered every blow.

—William Winter.

It was a frustrating morning. Nothing in this apartment works the way it should. Don't get me wrong, there are as many advantages to living here as disadvantages. I just would like to live in a nice place. A nice place in a nice neighborhood with nice furniture. None of that exists here. We are here for one reason only.

It seems like I am always saving money. When I was a youngster, we were immigrants and didn't have much money. We were starting out in a new Country and that takes time. For all of that, my parents have done well. When I had children, it was the same theme as my childhood. Then I became a single mom and then we definitely lived paycheck to paycheck, sometimes even in the negative. Then they grew up and my next goal was to start paying off any debt. Now, I'm trying to save for the future.

Living in the city can be very expensive. Even the suburbs are high, probably even higher. That is if one wants something nice and they usually don't take pets. Moving again isn't in the plans, or at least around here. This has been home for almost three years in December. We came here to save money so we could move into our "forever" home or close to it. 

Yet, nothing works here. Things break down and no one is available to fix it. I have endurance and plenty of it, but even I am becoming tired of the waiting. Life is hard work and we have to work even harder to achieve the good things in life. 

We all have our own versions of what that good life looks like to us. My grandeur may be totally different from your grandeur. I don't want what you have, I want my own reflection of me.

Have a blessed day everyone.

Just Share It: Alexandra Hoover

                                                 Everyday is a brand new day, everyday is a journey.




A lowlier task on them is laid,
    With love to make the labor light;
  And there their beauty they must shed
    On quiet homes, and lost to sight.
  Changed are their visions high and fair,
  Yet, calm and still, they labor there.
HYMNS OF THE AGES


Boy, did the following post stir my heart! I felt as if she was writing about me. How many days I have had like hers? How many times I have questioned "how long" Lord? When Lord? Is this all it is, Lord? We lead ordinary lives, but we dream on the inside. At least, I do. I have had so many days just like hers and I have had so many thoughts just like hers. Hope you enjoy. She might be writing about you, too.

Our Extra-Ordinary Calling
By: Alexandra Hoover

I walked in through the door, exhausted from a long day of work. Traffic added to the stress of my day, as well as a handful of letdowns and hard conversations. It seemed as if disappointment was following me from one meeting to the next.

The day not only reminded me of all my unmet expectations in my career and dreams, but also poured salt over an open and hurting wound. I thought to myself, Alex, is this what life is all about? Is this it? Discouraged, I continued to press on through my day.

Putting my things down at the door, I hurried to let our babysitter leave for the day. I was grateful for her — how she loved on my kids and stepped into her job so well with our family. My babies ran up to me, excited and eager to tell me all about the ups and downs of their day. I waved goodbye to our sitter and commenced what I like to call, “the afternoon shuffle.” Then I made my way to the kitchen to prep for dinner. Deep breaths, I said to my weary soul.

I was quickly met with a resounding yet subtle conviction, an alerting from the Holy Spirit about my current heart posture.

I was so angry with my day, with dreams that seemed so far away, and I wanted God to tell me that my ordinary life was going to get better somehow. I wanted a whisper of, “Your dreams are coming.”

Instead, He quieted my soul by giving me something I needed, a refreshing of His heart for me. I heard Him whisper, “That’s where I do My best work — in the ordinary.” It’s in the mundane, in the calling of your day-to-day. The Scripture of the Great Commission came to mind instantly.

Matthew 28:19-20 says, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

I began to understand that my calling wasn’t what I thought it was. I wanted God to tell me which job I needed to be working and which dream of mine He would bless so I could be “walking in my calling.

Yet in reality, whatever I choose to do with my life, whatever job I am blessed with, is right where God wants me and where He uses me and my gifts to make disciples and grow His Kingdom. It’s His greatest dream for all of us.

My desire to be in my calling started to make sense, and my job and mothering suddenly began to look different to me. They were ministry, and God had called me to it.

And what better teacher to follow and learn from than Jesus? His greatest ministry was in the day-to-day, where He met the most ordinary people in the most ordinary places, offering them all an extraordinary life, simply because He’s a good and loving God. And He’s still in the business of doing that with us today.

It’s the greatest calling of all — to live in our “everyday-ness” of life as a light, as a conduit to God’s bigger and more beautiful story. Just like my babysitter uses her gifts to bless our family, I use my gifts to bless God, to glorify Him. This is our most beautiful call. Let's answer it and steward it well.

Have a blessed day everyone. 

A Moral Code

                                                                  Everyday is a brand new day,
                                                                   everyday is a journey.



So others shall
  Take patience, labor, to their heart and hand,
  From thy hand, and thy heart, and thy brave cheer,
  And God's grace fructify through thee to all.
  The least flower with a brimming cup may stand,
  And share its dewdrop with another near.
E. B. BROWNING.

Everyday our moral meter is tested. I find that only a few people exist that actually use it. We can just about justify every action we make when we set our minds to something. It doesn't matter if it's morally correct or not. To some people, the ends justify the means.

There is a line that we just don't want to cross. Once we do. basically we sold our soul to the devil. There is no turning back from the consequences that will unfold from this drastic and selfish decision. They are always the selfish decisions that direct us toward the passing of the moral meter line.  We try to convince ourselves and others that it was anything, but personal gain. We try to silence our conscience with excusable reasoning.

Well folks, wrong is just plain wrong. Just like Pastor Jeff Shreve From Heart To Heart Ministries says: Right is right even when nobody's doing it. Wrong is wrong even if everybody is doing it.

Later as we are faced with the realization that we have crossed a line morally, the consequence has to be paid in full, even with repentance. The prisons are filled with people that are sorry, but they still have to live out their sentence.

Have a blessed day everyone.

The Importance Of Taking A Break

                                                                 Everyday is a brand new day,
                                                                 everyday is a journey.




Thy beauty, O my Father! All is Thine;
    But there is beauty in Thyself, from whence
  The beauty Thou hast made doth ever flow
    In streams of never-failing affluence.
Thou art the Temple! and though I am lame,--
    Lame from my birth, and shall be till I die,--
  I enter through the Gate called Beautiful,
    And am alone with Thee, O Thou Most High!
J. W. CHADWICK.

I just love a beautiful Winter scene, especially from the inside. This year we hardly had a Winter at all. I know, I know. I should be extremely grateful and I am, but once in a while I want that white scene! 

One reason I actually love a good Winter storm is for the shutdown day it brings. When a storm is coming, I take off work and can recharge at home, I have this huge problem of taking on way too many projects, because I love busyness. When you are constantly running, running, it's like you need an excuse to take a break. Or at least, I do.

Unfortunately, this year has been the opposite in more ways than one. We just have so much work available at my job that I don't think a Winter storm would halt anything. Besides, it has been nothing but mere dustings and sleet.

So I bet that none of you want to ask me why rest? Why is it important? I think we all understand the need for health reasons alone, why we need to take a break regularly. Now that break could look completely different to each individual. For me, just staying at home among my craziness is enough. 

Yet, I can't remember when I completely rested by doing nothing. I mean nothing like laying on the beach or in front of the pool soaking in the rays. Or sitting in bed and binge watching and not multitasking. So taking a break and resting can be a real challenge for someone like me. I'm trying, folks, really trying. Everytime I set up a day or weekend, there always seems to be an unexpected errand or request made by someone else. 

Everything seems to be a work in progress when it comes to me. Today I read in a devotional by Berni Dymet: 

Even with a to-do list longer than my arm, some days, there needs to be a half hour to have coffee with a friend. Or lunch with my wife. Or a phone call to someone that God just laid on my heart to call today.

These little time wasters - they're like an oasis in the desert. Those moments of pausing from the madness - are like food for the soul. They restore some sanity and balance and….

That is so true, so very true. It's these little moments that at times become our breaks from the stress. So tonight, I am just watching a show and crocheting, but not much. 

Have a blessed day everyone.

The Road Not Taken

                                                                 Everyday is a brand new day, everyday is a journey.

Men cease to interest us when 
we find their limitations. 
The only sin is limitation. 
As soon as you once come up 
with a man's limitations it is all over with him.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson


I find myself reflecting back to the times of my life. Many of them have been the best moments. Aging has brought this on, this looking back and remembering all the people who have been prominent in shaping who I have become. This can be both good and bad, depending on how one looks at it.

Recently, I have come across one of my favorite poems by Robert Frost. It's my favorite for two reasons. One, it is the first poem I have ever read. Two, I feel as if it explains life pretty well. This is how we reflect upon what has been and perhaps what will be?

Anyway, I thought that maybe this poem would bring back a lovely memory or two for some of you. Enjoy.

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

Have a blessed everyone.

Just Share It: Glynnis Whitner

                                                     Everyday is a brand new day, everyday is a journey.
                              



Quiet, Lord, my froward heart,
  Make me teachable and mild,
  Upright, simple, free from art,
  Make me as a weaned child;
  From distrust and envy free,
  Pleased with all that pleaseth Thee.
J. NEWTON

I think I am the queen of procrastination, especially when it comes to doing things I don't like to do. I can keep sweeping the unpleasant under that rug until it becomes Mount Everest. This past year, I've been climbing all my Mount Everest's from years ago hoping to finally overcome that horrible habit. Yet, I don't believe I am the only one. I think we all have a bit of the procrastinator living inside of us. Enjoy the following post  from yet another of our kind. 


When Life Is Too Busy
By:Glynnis Whitner

My husband and I used to laugh and say if it weren’t for the last minute, nothing would get done. Then we’d stay up all night to finish a project due the next day or make the whole family stressed because of our stress.

I laughed it off at the time because I didn’t really think it was a problem. Everyone procrastinates on something, I reasoned. Plus, what more could I do? The problem certainly wasn’t with me.

On the surface, there were always reasons why I couldn’t get everything done. Good, solid reasons, like I’d taken on too much work or my family needs were too demanding. And the technology which should have made my life easier, actually made it harder sometimes. Who couldn’t understand that? I reassured myself.

Faced with a deadline, I snapped at everyone, stayed up late, and rushed to finish what needed to be done. Consequently, everything suffered. My family was shortchanged, my work was subpar, and I became a person I didn’t like very much.

Those issues affecting me were all legitimate. But there was still another issue afoot. One that took some soul searching to identify. And that was an internal desire for ease rather than a challenge.

This truth about myself hit hard when I read Proverbs 13:4, today’s key verse: “The appetite of the lazy craves, and gets nothing, while the appetite of the diligent is richly supplied.”

At first, I didn’t think this verse applied to me. How could I be lazy when I’m always busy? When my whole life is too busy?

In fact, I didn’t know any woman around me who was actually lazy. So why did we all tend to complain about not being able to get things done?

But then it hit me: Faced with a choice between two tasks, my tendency is to choose whichever seems easier. I tend to put off what’s difficult until I “feel like it.” But that day never comes — because I never feel like organizing my tax information or tackling projects that highlight my weak areas.

So my days were filled, but filled with less challenging work. And my to-do list got longer, overflowing with tasks and projects I’d much rather avoid. The crazy thing is I will even avoid good things if I think it will make me address an issue I’d rather not face — like choosing not to clothes shop to avoid admitting my size isn’t what it once was.

At some point, I got around to doing my work, but usually with a wrong heart and only a shadow of the quality I could produce. Or, it was filled with so much frustration that it affected everything else. I even abandoned some fabulous opportunities. How can I follow a dream if I can’t even keep my kitchen counters clear?

Eventually, I realized I was disobedient to God in some areas. Of course, they were the hard things God asked me to do. I’d much rather obey God in the easy areas — but step out and take a risk? I’ll do that another day, thank you very much.

However, realizing my tendency to avoid discomfort, to choose ease over challenge, helped me finally address my busyness.

Each time I caught myself thinking I’ll do that later, I tried to identify my resistance for each task and face it. It’s not always easy, because my reasons for procrastinating are often complicated and overlapping.

But when I address my resistance and don't give in to it, I get stronger. It’s just like going to the gym and lifting weights. It might hurt, but the only way to strengthen anything is to face resistance.

God’s Word did reveal a lazy tendency in me. And honestly, it’s still there. But with His help, I’m not avoiding it anymore. And with His strength in me, I can face it and get more of the right things done.

Have a blessed day everyone. 

Another Day

                                                 Everyday is a brand new day,
                                                  everyday is a journey.


The Holy Supper is kept, indeed,
In whatso we share with another's need;
Not what we give, but what we share,
For the gift without the giver is bare;
Who gives himself with his alms feeds three,
Himself, his hungering neighbor, and me.

—James Russell Lowell

I don't think I will ever choose to participate in a "word for the year" or "goal for the year" again. Or at least, not for a long while. In my quest to always be on the look out for ways to grow my soul, I tend to feel I need to be constantly working on something. Sometimes, we just need to sit still. Not for long, but enough to bask in the current knowledge we have acquired.

It's only February and already I regret choosing the word I have chosen. Relaxing is a lot harder than one thinks. This morning, I awakened to the toilet leaking after each flush. It was bad enough for the floor to be wet so I knew it could not wait. I headed out to the association office to make a request order for maintenance, paid the rent and went to pick up Emily. By the time we arrived back home, the maintenance guy was already there and for the rest of the morning nothing else could get accomplished. Just the toilet.

Another day I didn't post a blog even though one is written. Another day a video sat waiting to be uploaded. Another day no appointment has been set with the dentist or the oncologist. Another day of no Ministry work being done. Another day of just plain nothing.

It seems that all we do is sleep, eat and work. Then the cycle begins again and again. It is no wonder that we had a successful no buy January, we had no time to go spending any money. It seems that one has to make an appointment to relax.

It isn't even that important that time gets away from me, it has always been this way. It's the fact that all these small, but irritating things keep happening like someone constantly parking in my spot. Or a paycheck that isn't right. Or the toilet leaking. Or the computer keeps buffering. All these mild irritation just won't quit.

My girlfriend said the same thing the other day. She chose clarity as her word, because indecision has plagued her for years. What do you think is happening? All these decisions are thrown her way. She can't make up her mind about anything and its upsetting her beyond normal.

All these goals we make are fine and dandy, but they can add stress to our life. We keep going on about them all our waking moments. We have to meet our goal, we just have to. I mean, we made a declaration all over social media last January 1, didn't we? What will everyone think? Well, perhaps that we failed?

It's crazy what we do to ourselves in our desire for betterment of the soul. I think we just need to relax.

Have a blessed day everyone.

Just Share It: Spirit Lifters

                                                                Everyday is a brand new day, 
                                                                everyday is a journey.
 

My Father! what am I, that all
Thy mercies sweet like sunlight fall
So constant o'er my way?
That Thy great love should shelter me,
And guide my steps so tenderly
Through every changing day?
ANON


Over my Christmas vacation, I went through a lot of my files that I have been accumulating over the last couple of years. The following has been there for who knows how long, but people do say that when we are in need, the appropriate things just pop up. In my quest for finding relaxation this year, I think it is extremely appropriate. It wouldn't be a bad idea to write these out and place them in a small box to pull out when doubt finds us. I hope these really do lift your spirit and remind you who you are to the Almighty Father above. Enjoy.

Spirit Lifters

by: Norman Vincent Peale

1. What Christ can do for you.
2.  Develop a right thought pattern, along with intelligence is positive not negative.
3.  You are never alone. God will always see us through.
4. Joy has healing value but gloom is sickening
5. Be optimistic and hopeful in attitude.
6. Clean mind and high spirits.
7. You are stronger than you think.
8. You have in you to meet all your responsibilities.
9. No matter how overwhelming your problems you need have no fear.
10. God will strengthen and help you.
11. He will hold you up and make you adequate for any situation.
12. Every longing of the human spirit finds enduring satisfaction in the life giving message of jesus.
13. Depression is sometimes due to evil in thoughts and actions.
14. From the water of life, our spirit is endowed with continuous refreshment. We never thirst again.
15. Love given returns to you.
16. Practice kindly affection, always take a generous  and patient attitude.
17. Practice consideration by placing others ahead of yourself.
18. Courtesy has amazing power to dissipate ill will.
19. Free your heart of jealousy and resentment.
20. The love you give will be returned to you and your spirit will be lifted to new levels.
21. Tension is one of the worst of all depressants of the spirit.
22. Receive God's blessings.
23. Be rested and be happy.
24. To keep spirits high one must find renewal and refreshment of body mind and soul.
25. Learn to sleep fore sleep is the greatest restorer.
26. Remove anger and lift your spirits.
27. So much energy is expended in anger that you are literally exhausted.
28. Anger that simmers and seethes is even more depressing because it permits a constant leakage of energy.
29. Negative thoughts can lead to restlessness and weariness.
30. No one can experience inner peace until they experience inner cleansing.
31. Our souls are restless until they find peace in God, then we know pure joy.
32. We become low spirited when we weakly give into temptation.
33. God has his eye on you.
34. Depression of spirit is often caused by a haunting sense of incompleteness and by unresolved conflicts.
35. You can overcome rather than be overcome.
36. Faith, hope, love.

Have a blessed day everyone.