Thursday, November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving Prayer

I pray that each and every one of you has a thanksgiving filled with true knowledge of your blessings. We take so much for granted, don't we? Anyway, this prayer is from Donna Partow and I thought it so appropriate for me. Perhaps it is for you, too. Happy Thanksgiving from my heart to yours.

"Dear God,

I want to thank you for what you have already done. I am not going to wait until I see results or receive rewards. I am thanking you right now.

I am not going to wait until I feel better or things look better. I am not going to wait until the pain in my body disappears. I am thanking you right now.

I am not going to wait until people say they are sorry or until they stop talking about me behind my back. I am not going to wait until my financial situation or the economy improves. I am thanking you right now.

I am not going to wait until the children are asleep and the house is quiet. I am not going to wait until a different season in my life unfolds. I am thanking you right now.

I am not going to wait until I understand every experience in my life that has caused me pain or grief. I am not going to wait until the journey gets easier or the challenges are removed. I am thanking you right now.

I am thanking you because I am alive. I am thanking you because I made it through the day's difficulties. I am thanking you because I have walked around the obstacles. I am thanking you because I have the ability and the opportunity to do more and do better. I'm thanking you, Heavenly Father, because you haven't given up on me. You are good and you are good all the time.

Thank you for all the good you've done for me. Amen

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Simple Moms

One of the many websites that I love to check in with is Simple Moms. Today, they are having a great giveaway, so I thought I'd direct your attention that way.

I don't know if you've ever seen Lisa Leonard's jewelry, but........Oh. My. Lands! I've admired Lisa's work for a couple of years now, and entered other giveaways hoping to win one of her gorgeous personalized necklaces or bracelets. Trust me; once you see her things, you'll be hooked.

Anyway, I get an extra entry today for posting about this giveaway on my blog, so there you go! That's why I'm willing to share the giveaway with you all. Of course, the more people who enter, the lesser my odds of winning, but you'll love looking through her online store. Perhaps you can even do some Christmas shopping while you are there.

Have fun checking it out!

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Consider This

I don't have a lot to share today, but I heard a quote from a fellow in our small group last night that will simply not leave my brain. I think it's profound and we all decided that there is enough in this one statement that it could be a sermon. Our small group discussion time was awesome last night; I appreciate the honest sharing from each person.

Consider this:
"Forgiveness is giving up all hope of having had a different past."

Some of my thoughts about this quote:
  • I don't know that I would say "giving up all hope," but to me it means accepting that we cannot change the past or a decision no matter how much we would like to.
  • The "different past" could be my own decisions and sin, but it could also be the actions, words, and sin of another who hurt me. No matter how much I wish that person wouldn't have said this, done that, or hurt me in whatever way, it is what it is. I am doing myself no favor by holding on to unforgiveness - hoping for a different situation to have occurred.
  • As has been said, "Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and hoping the other person will die." It doesn't work that way, when we don't forgive, we are the one that whithers and dies.
  • Sometimes the hardest person to forgive is ourselves. I know there are things in my past that I would love to go back and do over (responded differently, chosen better, not done, etc...), but I need to give up all hope of having done something differently and choose to forgive myself. If I say I accept God's forgiveness after confessing and repenting of my sin, I am, in a sense, turning my back on His gift if I don't forgive myself.
  • I can't move forward in life unless I deal with areas of unforgiveness towards myself.
  • And concerning unforgiveness towards others: even if a person(s) doesn't ask for forgiveness or acknowledge how they have hurt or damaged me or a relationship, I can make a choice to release them from my desire for justice. It does me no good to spend my time and life hoping that they will own up to their part in a hurtful situation. If I choose to forgive, I give myself permission to move forward. I will allow God to deal with that individual or persons, and even if I don't see any movement on their part towards accepting their part in a situation, I can be free from obsessing on the fact that I was wronged/hurt/etc...
  • Forgiveness can sometimes be a process. We must make A CONSCIOUS CHOICE to forgive, and then when our emotions bring that situation back to mind with all those same, old feelings, we can CHOOSE AGAIN to forgive. We may have to do that many times at first, but as God allows us to experience His forgiveness immediately each and every time we need it, we can learn and move towards those times being farther and farther apart when those feeling rear their ugly heads.
Okay, forgiveness is a big, ol' subject, and I didn't start this post to address every issue regarding the topic, but I did want you to ponder my friend's statement:

"Forgiveness is giving up all hope of having had a different past."