Friday, March 11, 2016

Heavy on my heart... time... purpose.


I promise to share more health related posts as well as other sources of inspiration, but first I feel the need to share something that has been weighing heavily on my heart. It has to do with time. Time seems to flee so quickly. We are always rushing to do this or that. Before we know it the day has come to an end, and no matter if we accomplished all we set out to do, the day is finished... we close our eyes to hopefully be blessed with another day. When we look back at our day, how we spent our time, do we find purpose, or has it passed by in a blur with us not even really paying attention to what all happened. Were we thankful for the blessings that were poured upon us throughout the day? Or were we too busy to even notice... the blessings. Do we even think our day was a blessing? Anyone of us, or our loved ones could pass at any given moment. Are we thankful for the time we have, right now? For so long I have gone about my days, thinking I need to get this done, how I wish I had time to do that, praying for changes I wanted to see happen. Looking back I was focused on what I wanted. Sometimes I would get lost in the very things I wanted; wanting to control things to make certain situations happen, wanting to get certain things done to try to get ahead. But was I truly getting ahead? Was what I was spending my time doing, possibly meaningless? Time... it flees quickly. Are we making the most of it? We are given the choice of setting our priorities of what we will do and get done in a day. If we take the time to look at the greater picture, our entire day, everything we touch, see, taste, hear is a gift. Our time is a gift. If you believe in the Lord, you know where these gifts come from... God, the source of all good things. Knowing He is the giver, He is the Creator, are we taking time for Him? Are we praising Him for all He has given us? If we go out of our way to do something nice for someone else, don't we hope to get a thank you in return? We like to know the other person was touched, grateful for whatever we did, right? Otherwise we might start to think it was a waste of our time. Well, if God is constantly giving to us and never feels or sees any gratefulness from us, why would we expect Him to keep giving? Why is it we often need to be brought to desperation before we make the time to pray and talk to God. In actuality are we just demanding more from Him? It seems like it is usually in the hard times when we make it a point to cry out to Him for help, but why should He listen when He was never given any time beforehand? God, the Creator of all, has left us one very important tool, a book that shows us all how to live the very best life possible. If we turn to Him, put our focus on Him, He promises to heal our land... not in the future, but now. I challenge you to read the Bible for yourself. His promises are huge, powerful... life changing. And I feel bad I haven't taken the time to get to know Him better before. But now I am thankful because he has given me more time, to understand Him, His ways... directly and through His word via the Bible. Making time for Him daily, praying, reading His word, allowing Him to guide me has changed me. He is making me better on so many different levels. I want this so bad for everyone. God is the only way to a better life and it is possible for everyone who makes time for Him. We are His children, He loves us no matter what, but His great desire is for us to love Him in return, but in order for us to do that, we need to take the time for Him, to get to know Him, to build a relationship with Him, where in the end we fall in love with Him with our whole heart, we see Him clearly for all He has done for us. Jesus died to give us more than salvation. He died to free us. He took the curse from us on the cross. He wants us to know ALL things are truly possible for us NOW because he blessed us with the Holy Spirit to dwell in each believer. Hello power! It is right there, in me, in YOU waiting to be used! I believe He truly wants the very best for each and every one of us, but are we taking the time to find out what that is, where He wants to guide us? This is where our purpose will be found. This is were we will be fulfilled... through Him. I pray you will take time for Him every day. It is a choice to be made by you. I know I have become thankful for all the gifts God has given me, big and small, the beauty that surrounds me, health, family, home, good food.... I know He answers prayers, I want Him to always answer me, so I am determined to set aside time for Him and to praise Him for all His good gifts, that I am so undeserving of.

Action Plan:
If you are an unbeliever/atheist I encourage you to reconsider, to do research for yourself. I suggest learning about C.S. Lewis and his findings. I think that if you want hope of better things to come you can find it if you search. Knowledge is powerful. Learn all you can and be open to the words found in the Bible. See if it speaks to you... it could be life changing.

The Bible: This is a very important book. You could call it a map for your life. There are even treasures to be found within, but only by you, by reading it yourself. There are so many different Bibles out there, you have to find one that is easy for YOU to understand. I was surprised how much my daughter's Bible differed from my own. Even though hers was a kids addition, it was hard to understand. Who wants to read something that is difficult? You won't be able to get much out of it if the wording isn't clear to you. I love mine. It is the New International Version Holy Bible with Helps, Words of Christ in Red Letter, by Zondervan. It is the easiest one I have found to understand and be true. I am sure there are many other great ones.

Make Time: Try setting aside atleast 10 minutes a day to pray and read the Bible. Maybe read the Bible for 10 minutes and pray while you are driving, taking a shower, doing dishes. Pray continually throughout your day. God is always listening and enjoys hearing from you. Making time to read the Bible may be more difficult, but I bet you can if you truly want to make Him a priority. Take time out from watching t.v. or from using the many forms of technology... iPad, iPod, computer, facebook, instagram, twitter, texting..., games, magazines, other reading material... you can always find time if you want to. You can even read the Bible with your child before bed... just a few suggestions.

Have Fun! Enjoy your journey while learning about God. Praise Him for the good you see in your day or through His word. A thankful heart is a joyful heart. I don't know about you, but I would much rather choose joy rather than any kind of stress/pain/hurt. Joy is healing, physically, emotionally and spiritually. Always remember, you are blessed!

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