Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Smoothing the Edges

Have you ever felt like someone or something was rubbing you the wrong way?  I have and it can feel very uncomfortable.  But if I stop and ponder why I'm feeling uncomfortable or even angry about the rubbing I some times realize that I did have some rough edges that needed smoothing out.

Now I'm not saying that everything or everyone who rubs me wrong is for my good.  Some times that is just a way of discovering that that thing or person was not necessarily good for me.

The point I'm trying to make is that at times like this I'm discovering that the important thing for my growth and maturing is taking the time to decipher whether the rubbing is something good or something bad.

I used to think that all that rubbing was my fault because I had been characterized as a porcupine and some people thought it was their job to take the sharp edge off of my quills.  However, there was a part of me that saw my porcupine quills as a defense mechanism to keep from getting hurt.  I didn't realize that some of the people I was trying to keep away were actually people that I needed in my life to help me become the person I was meant to be and who God meant me to be.

Yes, I do need some of those quills sanded down and smoothed out but I also need some sharp ones to protect myself as well.

As I noted earlier, what I need to keep in the forefront of my heart and mind is whether the rubbing I'm receiving will make my life better or worse.  That isn't always an easy thing to determine but as I make a concerted effort to distinguish between the two early enough I will come out a winner with some smooth edges and some rough edges.

Do you have someone or something rubbing you the wrong way (or is it the right way)?  Think about it.

Be blessed and encouraged as you go about your day.

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Plan B

I'm sorry I haven't been around the last few days.  Some times things just come up that you don't expect and throw your plans into disarray.  But isn't that what life is all about.

I read a quote that said, "Life is all about how you handle Plan B".

That sort of sums things up for me over the past week.

Fortunately I've been able to roll with Plan B and not freak out that Plan A didn't happen.  Maybe I am maturing and moving forward.  That is a great thought.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Follow Your Own Path

"Follow your own path and let people talk." (Dante)

In the last couple of days I've realized that I have slipped back into an old and unhealthy pattern in my thinking about myself.  The truth came to me yesterday that I was allowing what other people said or my interpretation of how they saw me to drag me down.  If I dwell on those thoughts I will drive myself crazy.

The truth is that the only people I really have to care about what they are saying or thinking are God and myself.  If I stay true to the path I believe God is guiding me down then I will be on the right track regardless of what others think.  I also have to know that I'm being true to who I believe God is leading me to become.
So today I choose to celebrate who God has and is making me to be and I will be true to myself regardless of what others may think.  I will follow the path God is leading me on and not the path others think I should follow.

Friday, May 14, 2010

Doubts of Today

"The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.  Let us move forward with strong and active faith."  (Franklin D. Roosevelt)

Do you have doubts today?  Doubts about your future.  Doubts about your ability to make it through today without falling apart.  Doubts that you will find love or be loved.

Take your doubts to your heavenly Father.  He won't be angry or upset that you have doubts.  If you bring your doubts to him honestly he will help you deal with them so that you can "move forward with strong and active faith".

One thing you will never have to worry about is that God will stop loving you because you have doubts.  He loves you no matter what.

Be blessed today.

Monday, May 10, 2010

A Point to Ponder

"We're not changed by the promises we make to God, but by the promises he makes to us."  (Found in So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore by Wayne Jacobsen and Dave Coleman)

This sentence hit me so hard I had to stop reading for a while and just think about what was really being said and how I could and if I should apply it to my life.  This is going to take some time and effort on my part to really make this idea a part of who I am because I believe it is something God wants for me to grab hold of to help me grow spiritually.

May your day be blessed with the fullness of God.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Making Comments on My Blog

Thanks for taking the time to visit my blog. You are welcome to leave a comment on any of my postings.


If you are new to blogs and postings, and you're not sure what to do, you will notice underneath each day's posting, the word "comment". Just click on it and it will open a screen with a comment box.

Type your comment in the box.

In the listing of choices, select the button with Name/URL. Now type in your name here (how you want it to appear on-line).

When your computer asks you to type in some funny looking letters (called captchca) it's okay to do.... it's proving to the system that you are a human and not a bot (don't ask, something computer-eze).

Then press the orange 'Publish Your Comment' button. This should work, but if you are having problems, you may e-mail me at ruthams@shaw.ca.

Thanks again for your input. I hope you are blessed and/or encouraged by what you read.

Saturday, May 8, 2010

Something to Chew On

I came across this quote from a book I read by Liberty Savard that gave me reason to stop and ponder what she was saying. I hope you are challenged to ponder it as well.

"There is a God we want, and there is a God who is. They are not the same God. The turning point of our lives is when we stop seeking the God we want and start seeking the God who is."
(The Unsurrendered Soul)

May you enjoy seeking the God who is.

Thursday, May 6, 2010

His Workmanship

Many years ago I attended a Bible college in Eston, Saskatchewan. It was a three year program. Each new class was required to come up with a name, Bible verse and song that would be theirs for the next three years.

Our class chose the name "His Workmanship" based on Ephesians 2:10 "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." (New International Version) I really wasn't too excited about this name and verse.  I didn't think it was splashy or cool enough (we are talking the 1970s after all).  But the majority had spoken.

It has only been in the last few months that I have gone back to that name and Bible verse and really decided to make it mine. In fact, it was with this verse in mind that I came up with the phrase "I am a Work in Progress".

I have finally realized that God has been working in my life as one of his special projects. You are also a special project of God's if you are his child. He has special things planned for yours and my life if we will let him work in us. Jeremiah 29:11 says,"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (New International Version)

So I encourage you to look at yourself as a work in progress and see what special things God has for your life. They may not always seem good or pleasant at the time but in the end you can be sure that they are the best for you.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Outside the Lines

I came across a quote that caught my attention today. It went like this....

"Grace does not exist to make us successful. God's grace exists to point people to a love like no other love they have ever known. A love outside the lines." (by Mike Yaconelli in Dangerous Wonder)

From the time we are children we are encouraged to stay within the lines. We are given pictures to color and we are often chastised if we color outside the lines. So we grow up trying to keep within the lines whether we are coloring or trying to live our lives.

In the same way we often grow up with our view of God inside a box of our minds' construction or from teaching we have received. But when you really think about it. If our view and understanding of God can fit in a box then we have a really small and ineffective God because we stumble over it if something happens to show us a picture of God that is outside of our box.

So I think that if I really want to grow and continue to be a work in progress I need to break down the sides of the God box I have created and let God out to be who and what He really is. Then I can also start living my life outside of the lines I thought I need to hide behind.

So I encourage you to take that step outside the lines and live in the freedom God has planned and provided for us from before creation.

I'll see you outside the lines.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Food for Thought

Watch your thoughts - they become words.

Watch your words - they become actions.

Watch your actions - they become habits.

Watch your habits - they become character.

Watch your character - for it becomes you.