I've Been Sick!!

I'm back...I was sick for a few days and had to take a week off from work, but I have now recovered and will be blogging again!!!

Why Blame God?

We Reap What We Sow

"Unknown Author"
Why does God let bad things happen...
Let's see, I think it started when Madeline Murray O'Hare complained she didn't want any prayer in our schools.
And we said, OK.........
Then, someone said you better not read the Bible in school, the Bible that says "thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself".
And we said, OK.....
Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem. And we said, an expert should know what he is talking about so we won't spank them anymore...............
Then someone said teachers and principals better not discipline our children when they misbehave. And the school administrators said no faculty member in this school better touch a student when they misbehave because we don't want any bad publicity, and we surely don't want to be sued.
And we accepted their reasoning..............
Then someone said, let's let our daughters have abortions if they want, and they won't even have to tell their parents.
And we said, that's a grand idea.............
Then some wise school board member said since boys will be boys and they're going to do it anyway, let's give our sons all the condoms they want, so they can have all the fun they desire, and we won't have to tell their parents they got them at school.
And we said, that's another great idea...........
Then some of our top elected officials said it doesn't matter what we do in private as long as we do our jobs.
And we said, doesn't matter what anybody, including the President, does in private as long as we have jobs and the economy is good..........
And then someone said let's print magazines with pictures of nude women and call it wholesome down-to-earth appreciation for the beauty of the female body.
And we said, we have no problem with that....
And someone else took that appreciation a step further and published pictures of nude children and then stepped further still by making them available on the internet.
And we said, everyone's entitled to free speech.............
And the entertainment industry said, let's make TV shows and movies that promote profanity, violence and illicit sex... And let's record music that encourages rape, drugs, murder suicide, and satanic themes........
And we said, it's just entertainment and it has no adverse effect and nobody takes it seriously anyway, so go right ahead....
Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, and why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, classmates or even themselves.
Undoubtedly, if we thought about it long and hard enough, we could figure it out. I'm sure it has a great deal to do with...... "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

Take Time

Perhaps you've seen the poster that pictures a dad and his 7 or 8 year old son in an old rowboat on a little lake. It's early in the morning, there's a faint mist still on the lake, and the father and son are sitting there, quiet and still. They're each holding little bamboo fishing poles, and the two corks attached to their lines are floating motionless on the placid water. Underneath the picture are two words: "TAKE TIME."

Can't you just picture the serenity of the moment? This next week, I am going to the lake with a fishing pole, no cell phone, and just sit out on the pier and enjoy the peace and quiet.

I have been so busy, I haven't even had time to blog, but that is going to change. I have been meeting myself coming and going. The Police Department is popping, I mean it has been ever so busy. I guess it's the change in weather. We can't get to all the calls fast enough. So this morning when I got off, I turned off my phone and went to bed, I wanted absolutely no interruptions and it was wonderful.

So my goal this week is to just stop and enjoy the moment. I intend to take off a few days and just relax. I am going to spend most of it on the lake. So I should have a moment or two to blog more often and refocus.

Don't Be Anxious!

It is not work that kills men, it is worry. Work is healthy; you can hardly put more on a man than he can bear. But worry is rust upon the blade. It is not movement that destroys the machinery, but friction.

Henry Ward Beecher

As I travel this journey called life, I am learning to trust. Day by day, moment by moment, I do not know what the day holds, but He does. I don't know the whys, I don't understand everything. I make mistakes, I fall sometimes, but I get up and I continue. Things happen in the lives of people I love and in the lives of my friends, but this is life. If there were no struggle, there would be no strength. He has my back, His banner over me is love. I will never give up or quit and I refuse to let Satan win in any area of my life.

I KNOW MY REDEEMER LIVES!

My Heart Was Touched!

In this post I am going to share with you a story of a young man who has alot of hurt in his heart, but is doing well, I am not going to reveal his name, he has given me permission to share a very small part of his story.

Today I got off work at 7am, I had to race home and get the new boy who moved in with us. He is not new to me, I have known him for sixteen months, so he fits very well in our family. It almost seems as if he has been there all along.

So today, I had to take him to a doctor appt and I was sitting in on his assessment and my heart was so touched. He was explaining how he had grown up in a violent household and how he'd been abused by all of his siblings and mother. I almost choked up, it was so sad. She asked if he had been suicidal. He explained how he had tried to kill himself by cutting his wrists, hanging himself and by walking out in front of an 18 wheeler. He felt hopeless and wanted to end it all.

He explained how he had been told he would never amount to anything, that he was a failure and would always be a failure. This is why he chose not to go home. He wants a chance. He is working and going to school and doing well now. He is proud of himself and his accomplishments and has set some short term goals.

Sometimes I don't always feel others pain, but today I did. Today I was a mother to a boy who only belongs to me because God sent him to me. Today as he hugged me several times, I felt the need he had to be loved, to be needed and appreciated. He is very helpful, he helps me cook, he cleans the kitchen, he does anything he can for acceptance. He is teaching the other two boys spanish and how to play the guitar.

Without a doubt, I know God sent him to us. He has drawn us all together even closer. Now when we are all together, the boys are always laughing and cutting up in the backseat. They overdo it sometimes trying to get our attention or to get a hug. Today as they were leaving one of them hugged my husband Chuck and the other two ran over and asked if they could have a hug too.

I know how they feel, cause sometimes I need a hug too.

Reaction is their Favorite Action!

Have you ever noticed some people never get enough drama. Reaction is their favorite action. They never notice the good but are fully aware of the bad that is going on around them. They want what someone else has, they are never satisfied, or just complain about anything and everything.

Honestly, I believe we can all be at our finest or our worst when we are responding to the conflicts around us. When we don't stop to think and we react to every little situation around us, we bring alot of CHAOS into our lives, unnecessary conflict, drama, emotional drain....

I have learned, it doesn't accomplish a thing if I get upset or react. It simply doesn't fix anything, all it does is make the situation worse as far as stress goes, it strains relationships, it causes thinking errors which in turn makes emotions run wild, and always people get hurt.

I can remember when my husband used to drive me crazy because he leaves his shoes in the middle of the floor or his clothes by the bed, but one day as I was thinking about it, I said to myself...if something were to happen to him I would be wishing he was there throwing his clothes on the floor, so now I happily pick them up and go about my day. Sometimes I might remind him where the hamper is and he always apologizes and he does pick them up from time to time, but really, I don't worry about it anymore, now it seems so petty, so why worry about it?!!

I try to always look for the good, sometimes I have to look really hard and sometimes I even ask God...where is the good in this situation because I can't see it. lol! He always seems to show me something that I didn't notice or maybe the reason it happened. I have just learned not to react to everything that comes along.

I'm not sure why I posted this, except someone was complaining today at work and I thought how petty can you get!!