Remember what it was like when you were young and in love? How you looked forward to a phone call from that special someone and even more so to the upcoming weekend because you would be going on a date with them! Just because we are older now and married does not mean that we have to lose that feeling or that excitement.
Why do a lot of married couples feel that they no longer have to do all of the things that they once did when they were dating? Just because they’ve “caught” the one they were chasing after does not mean that the romance has to end. The days of whispering sweet nothings in your special someone’s ear does not have to cease, and neither do date nights!
I know that with demands from the job, a family, etc., some things fall by the wayside. Romance in your marriage should not be one of them! Make it a priority! If people would continue to do all of the things that they once did to win their mates over, their relationships wouldn’t be in ruins today. Be purposeful about time spent with your mate.
My husband and I have learned this the hard way. Things were great in the beginning of our marriage. We were happy and so much in love. Then other things started creeping in, and we stopped making our marriage a priority. We focused more on the children, our jobs, household chores, everything BUT taking time out for each other and our marriage. It shouldn’t have come as a surprise, then, what happened next. We started drifting further and further apart. We felt disconnected from each other. The slightest little thing would irritate us or aggravate us. We couldn’t quite put our finger on what was going on!
Do not let this happen in your marriage!
We finally realized that something was missing, and we became intentional about the time we would spend together. We started making time for each other. All other things had to wait on days that we would plan an outing for just the two of us or a romantic evening together. We would make sure that the children were well taken care of, and then off we would go!
Whether we spent time on a dinner cruise, walking hand in hand on the beach, or grooming horses in our backyard, it was time spent together doing something that we enjoyed. It doesn’t have to be anything extravagant, unless you want it to be. It’s just important to spend time together. One of my most favorite things to do is just talk. Hold hands across the table as we are dining out, and just talk to each other without a lot of interruptions, except from the waitress occasionally checking on us. Then take a walk by the water’s edge holding each other as we pause to look up at the moon and the stars sparkling for all the world to see but feeling in that moment that they’re dancing just for us.
This may seem small and like one of those “where have you been” moments! Just know that this happens more often than you may think in relationships and marriages. That is why it is so important to make time, be intentionally focused on your mate, and spend time together. Continue to keep the love, romance, and passion alive in your marriages. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been married five years or fifty years. Show your spouse that they are important to you, that you love, cherish, and treasure them, and that nothing else matters in that moment but them.
My husband and I aren’t just planning a date night this time. No, today we are taking an entire day to go on an adventure together – just the two of us. I am looking so forward to our time together. As he was sitting near me drinking his coffee this morning, I asked him for his thoughts on this whole subject of date nights. Here is his response, in his own words:
I have really enjoyed our time together. It gives us time to reconnect and appreciate each other. My wife is a blessing to me. I feel much closer and the bond is greater than before. It’s like another level of intimacy has entered our marriage, and I look forward to our time together. It makes me appreciate my wife, care for her, and cherish her even more. My world feels complete when we’re together talking, snuggling together, holding hands, hugging … just showing affection. It’s huge! I have also realized that this is key in a relationship to maintain the connection, to show the other that you care and appreciate them. You reach out to them for no other reason than to hold them, to have that actual connection, to share your feelings.
I will leave you with that as we begin our adventure together today. Make time for those that you love. Carve out time for memory making moments together.
I firmly believe that if a person truly wants to change, they will find a way to make the needed changes in their lives. It might take a situation where the person reaches rock bottom before they finally make that much needed change, but I believe that everyone has it in them to do so if they set their mind to it.
There are addictions of all kinds (i.e. drugs, alcohol, food, sex, etc.). It can be hard to get out from underneath the grip that these things may have on you, but I know that all things are possible with Christ! You don’t have to try to do this alone. He will help you if you only ask. I’m sure you are filled with remorse for having let yourself down as well as your family, but if you ask forgiveness and truly show that your heart and ways have changed, you will slowly gain the trust back from those that you love and who love you.
I have encountered a lot of negativity when I have been supportive toward someone close to me that has just within the past few months admitted that they were addicted to one of the above mentioned things. I will not call the person out, identify them in any way, nor will I state which addiction they have as they deserve privacy and respect. I will, however, say that I have had to endure countless “lectures” on how this person is never going to change, how they don’t believe that this person’s heart has been changed, and how they don’t believe that this person truly wants to make a lasting change. They feel that this person is talking the talk but is not walking the walk. They are standing in judgment of the individual to the point that it angers me. Why such strong emotion? Because this is someone that I love, and whether I’m considered naive, “in denial,” or just plain stupid, I still have faith in this individual. Why? Simply because I know that this is not truly who this person is nor what they are about. I have faith in this person because I know that they have the strength within them and through God to conquer this and squash this addiction once and for all. I know that this person is better than this, they just have to think more of themselves than to allow this cycle to continue.
This person has had a “rock bottom moment” within the past few months so much so that I truly believe the change that they have made for the better will be a lasting change. Sure, in the past it has only lasted two weeks at the max before things reverted back to the way they were before. However, I don’t see that happening now. I see a person that is in recovery. I see a person that has sought help all on their own for their addiction, and I see a person that desperately wants to recover and live a different life. I see a person striving to do so every day. Sure there will be struggles and temptations along the way, but this person can draw on the strength that the Lord provides so that when they are tempted God will deliver them from evil.
The sad thing about this is the ones talking negatively are the ones that were addicts at one point or another in their lives. They sought help and recovered, and yet they doubt this person’s heart and ability to fully recover themselves. How would they have felt in the mist of their recovery process if they had heard such negativity from people that simply did not believe in them? Would it have helped them thrive and continue on in recovery, or would it have caused them to relapse.
People can change. Change is possible if the person is sincere. No one knows their heart but God. However, I choose to see the good in them and will encourage them on their road to recovery.
This post was inspired by the Five Minute Friday prompt word: Change.
If you’ve been with Light Love Hope for a while now, you know that we love Joyce Meyer and Joel Osteen. I have read several of Joyce Meyer’s books, and I have her daily devotional on my phone with the Bible App. I also have a daily devotional book written by Joyce Meyer as well. My husband is a big Joel Osteen fan, and while we have many books written by him, my husband reads Joel’s daily devotional every morning. It doesn’t take long to read through what the devotional has to offer for that day, but the message stays with you throughout the day. You find that with both Joyce and Joel, you meditate on their words throughout the day. You find ways to apply what they’ve said to your life. I especially love the bible verses referenced and how it is biblically based. Some have argued about these two Christian speakers, but I have not found anything in my reading or in seeing them live in person that has not been in line with the Word of God.
With that said, imagine our excitement to learn that not only does Joyce have a new book to add to our collection, but Joel does as well! I can hardly wait to get my hands on a copy of Living Courageously by Joyce Meyer and You Can You Will by Joel Osteen. I enjoy reading their words of wisdom and how they speak the gospel. Having seen both Joyce and Joel in person at their events, I can almost hear them speaking with such power and conviction as I read the words in their books.
Speaking of daily devotionals, Aaron Tabor has a 365 Interactive Devotional entitled Jesus Daily. While I have not read Aaron Tabor’s work before, I am excited to see what he has to offer to inspire and uplift as we prepare to greet the day.
If you are looking for a good Christian Fiction book to read, you may be interested in AD30 by Ted Dekker. While I have not yet read this book, (as I tend to lean more toward self help type books, devotionals, and Non-Fiction), I may just give this book a try. From what I understand, it takes place in the year of our Lord, AD30. Wouldn’t that be an interesting read? I think so!
If you’re wondering where we found these jewels, it’s at a little store called Family Christian. You can shop online, or you can visit their various locations. We have two within driving distance that we frequent. I could spend hours in that store (and have … just ask my husband!). From Bibles, to candles, jewelry, prints, music, even performance tracks … they just about have everything you can think of to inspire your soul right there in their store! Check them out! They are sure to become a favorite of yours as well.
There has been a lot of talk about depression since we lost one of the most loved men in the world this past week. I would guess that anyone reading this post has at one time or another suffered from some sort of depression with varying degrees of intensity. As many have said in articles this past week, there is not any single thing that can break a person out of this. However, there is a little thing that you can do for someone that may temporarily break them out of their funk; a distraction.
What do I mean by a distraction? I will use myself as an example. I am currently in a very difficult situation at my place of employment. The owner fired 25% of the workforce the beginning of the year. I have been given the privilege of taking over another person’s position as well as having to do my own without any additional compensation. I am completely overwhelmed at the moment. At first, I was able to handle things but as the months have worn on I find myself getting further behind. I feel that I am in an impossible position as there are no jobs in my area for me to apply for to remove myself from this situation. I come home at night to an empty house. I don’t have anyone here to talk to about how I feel. Put all these things together, and I have the perfect recipe for a severe bout of depression. I feel trapped with no way out. However, there is something that helps pull me out for a while which helps to give me a new perspective; distraction.
What do I use for distraction? I find a song that speaks to me and touches my heart in a way that brings a smile to my face. I may play that song over and over again. I have been known to set my iTunes to do a single repeat of a song for hours. If a song makes me feel good, then I play it all the time. It is my way to help pull me out of my funk.
Each of us has something that can be used as a distraction for when we are feeling down. You can touch a person by a small gift. Bring them some ice cream or chocolate. Any little thing can help to bring a person out of the depths of despair. Think of a little something that would bring a smile to each of your family members, then go out and do it for them. It may not resolve their problems, but it will show them that they are loved and help to give them a little different perspective on their current issues.
If case you are wondering what I am using for my distractions of late. Here are the songs / artists I am hooked on:
With so many students returning to school this week and next week, we want to take this opportunity to encourage school age children to stand up to bullying! While we would never encourage a confrontation, we would like you to consider standing up for those that are shy and those that are being picked on unmercifully. If you see this happening to a fellow student, please don’t turn the other way and ignore it. Consider speaking up on behalf of the student that is being bullied so that the bullying stops once and for all. I would suggest getting a teacher involved and advising them of what you have just witnessed. If it is something that is currently in progress, maybe the teacher would have a chance of catching the bully in action. If not, still talk to a teacher about what you have witnessed. This way, they will be able to keep an eye on the individuals involved so they can prevent a situation like that from happening in the future.
If someone is bullying you in any way, please find your voice and speak out about it. I was bullied in school, and I was also threatened that if I told anyone that the bully would do worse things to me than they were already doing. This kept me silent for far too long. Please don’t fall victim to this. The earlier you speak out, the better your chances are of being released from this prison.
Schools have a zero tolerance for bullying where I live. They have even had the police department out to speak to the students about how serious bullying is and the consequences behind doing it.
Join us as we continue to pray over the students returning to school. Today, please also join us in prayer for the ones that have been bullied in silence so that they have the strength and courage to speak out. Please pray for those that may witness the bullying so that they also have the courage to speak out on behalf of the one that is being bullied.
Now is the time for new beginnings. It is the start of a new school year. While the children are moaning as they prepare for their first day back, parents are praying that their children will have a wonderful school year.
My mother-in-law called tonight to tell both of my girls that this morning in church the preacher asked for the church to pray over the children’s book bags. While we do not attend her church and my children’s book bags were not there for the service, she said that she imagined both of my daughter’s book bags in her mind. Then, she prayed over their book bags just as the others were doing in the church. This touched my heart!
As a parent, we do pray over our children. We pray for their safety, we pray for them to have a good learning experience, and we pray for their teachers and friends as well.
My daughter has been driving for a year and a half now, but I still get anxious as she waves and we blow kisses at each other as she goes down our driveway. She either calls or texts when she gets to her destination so that I know she has arrived safely. This is for my reassurance, and she happily obliges so that I feel better. I actually do sigh a big sigh of relief when I know she’s safe.
We talk before school, and even as I sit here writing this, she has been anxious this weekend. It is her Senior year, and things have happened over the summer to where she feels as if she is going into this school year without any friends. I have tried to encourage her that maybe everyone will be better on the first day of school, and hopefully, she’ll end up having a great start to her Senior year. Regardless, though, she cannot control anyone else but herself. I will be praying for her all throughout the day until I hear from her at the end of the school day when she’s gotten into her car and calls before she leaves the parking lot to let me know she is on her way home.
My youngest daughter has anxieties of her own as she goes into Fourth Grade. She is afraid that the math will be harder this year, and I’m sure it will be but know that she can handle it, too. She is one smart cookie! She is also going to have an adjustment period as she has a new teacher this year. At the small private school that she attends, she has pretty much known just about all of the teachers up to this point. Now there is a new teacher in town assigned to her grade. We met her at orientation Friday, and she seems really nice. I know that Fourth Grade is also the grade where they are growing up more, which was already starring me in the face considering that she is almost ten years old! But, the teacher even said that at orientation. She is going to make them more accountable and more responsible this school year as she prepares them for the years to come. Oh wow. This has hit me like a ton of bricks!
My babies … are not … babies any more!
As we squeezed all of the fun we possibly could squeeze in on the last day before school starts, my younger daughter asked me to ride with her in the go-cart. I agreed, and she set off around the house on her little course just as proud as ever. We didn’t get very far before I started tearing up. Yes, the go-cart ride made me cry! That sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? How in the world is that even possible? Because … I realized that life is going by so fast. My older daughter will be 18 in January, and my younger daughter will be 10 in September. I think of how I’m growing older, too, and as she rode me around on the go-cart all smiles, it tugged on my heart and I began to pray to God. I asked that He please allow me to be here with my girls for a very long time to come. I was silently pleading with Him to allow me to be here for my girls through all of the stages of their life. I want to be an old, old woman sitting on my front porch rocking my great grand kids! I want to bounce their babies on my knees and tell them all the stories about the “good ole days.” I want to have more of these precious moments with my babies. Please God, I begged … Please allow me more time with my girls. I am tearing up now even writing this all out. I just want more time. I don’t want to think of ever leaving my girls, and it certainly wouldn’t be by choice. I know that God hears me, and I just hope that He will grant my prayer so that I’m here for my babies. I want to watch my oldest graduate from high school and college, and get married and have babies of her own. I want the same exact thing with my youngest daughter.
I think of my grandma. She was 84 when she passed away, but up until the last two years of her life she was healthy. She was outside in the yard cutting her own grass and weeding her flower bed. She had so much energy and stayed busy. Then she got sick and was never the same again. However, up to that point, though, she was an inspiration, and I told her that often. She lived a long life, and she got to do exactly what I mentioned above – she had three children, and she got to see all three of them graduate and go on to have families of their own. She got to rock her grandchildren, and she also got to hold her great grands in her arms also. She watched them grow and savored every moment she had with them all. I want that as well. I pray that God will allow me to live well into my 80s and be healthy, too!
Now is a time for new beginnings for my babies as they start a new school year, and I thank God for all of the memories we made this summer. I thank God that we’re all healthy and are getting off to a great start on the first day of the new year. I’ll send my prayers with my girls as I always do, and I promise not to cry!
As Summer has come to an end, now is the time for new beginnings with the start of a new school year. Join Light Love Hope in praying for all of the children returning to school.
My grandma with my younger daughter at her K5 graduation. We love and miss you, Grandma. Give my sister a hug in Heaven and tell her I love her, too!
It seems like all of a sudden Summer has come to a screeching halt. It was fun while it lasted, but the days of sleeping in until noon for my girls will soon be over.
I sit here thinking of all the fun we had this summer and am ever so thankful that I was able to have this time with my daughters. They have grown up way too fast, and it is so hard to believe that my oldest daughter is a Senior this year while my youngest daughter is a Fourth Grader! Now is when we say:
“Where has the time gone?”
We blink, and they grow up on us!
You’ll probably laugh at this, but the other night when I was having one of my moments, my oldest daughter allowed me to cradle her in my arms just as I did when she was a teeny tiny baby. That was hilarious as she certainly doesn’t fit into my arms quite like she used to, but it was fun to take my emotional moment and turn it into one filled with laughter. The entire family burst into laughter as I held her in my arms, rocking back and forth like I used to do while singing “You Are My Sunshine” and “Jesus Loves Me.”
I am thankful for those memories. I am thankful for the ones we made that night in all of our silliness.
That is what life is all about. It is the special moments spent with those that you love doing sweet, caring, thoughtful things right down to the silliest and funniest of things. You’re living life and enjoying it with those that you love with all of your heart. Memory making at it’s finest!
Each of us are leaving behind a legacy. We may not think about that as we go about our days, but we are! It is hard to imagine that one day we all will be just a memory for someone else. We’d better make sure that it’s a good one!
I want my daughters to look back on the days of Summer that we spent together and remember all of the good times that we shared. I want them to remember the trips we took but so much more than that. I want them to remember the time we spent together. I want them to remember how close we always were and how I would do anything in my power for them. The nights that we stayed up talking until after midnight because they had something on their minds and hearts that needed to freely flow, and so we bonded in those wee morning hours together just talking it all out. That is more important to me than any trip we could eve take for it is precious bonding time with my babies.
We did have some fun this summer, though. From getting our ranch all settled in and bringing in a few more horses to add to our herd, to trail rides and time spent grooming our horses …
To taking my oldest daughter to an all day concert where she could hang out with all of her friends while my youngest daughter, husband, and I went to the United States Whitewater Center for a day of whitewater rafting, rock wall climbing, and mountain biking …
To the thrilling rides at Carowinds where my youngest daughter was ever so excited to finally be able to ride the BIG rides! She was finally tall enough to ride all but two rides in the entire park. She was so happy!
Right on down to the house we rented for our stay on Lake Wylie, which included a canoe for our enjoyment:
Ah yes, we had some good times this summer, even letting my oldest daughter experiment with her hair color … from teal
To changing her mind and hair color, too, to purple
Don’t worry, the color has all washed out now … just in time for school to start Monday!
We sure did have fun this summer and made memories that will last a lifetime.
As to the silliest we spoke of earlier, here’s a little glimpse
Take the time to make memories with your loved ones. Leave a trail of happy moments, lots of laughter, and time spent together. Chores can wait. Work can wait. They don’t stay little long. You blink, and they’re all grown up!
And so it ends … Goodbye Summer … Hello New School Year … Bring On Fall!
Someone right this minute is struggling. They are not sure where to turn or how to get out of the pit that they are in. They are anxious and filled with fear, unsure of the next step that they need to take. Your story needs to be brought out from the darkness into the light. You do not need to suffer in silence any more, sweet child of God. Share the things that torment your soul, speak them out into the universe so you can release the hold that they have on you. This will require you to walk through the pain to get to the other side, but it is a necessary evil on the road to recovery. You can speak it, you can share your story because your story matters. It is up to you to tell it! In doing so, you may be able to help another soul that is struggling like you. You can be an encouragement to others. You have the power to release your thoughts and feelings into the universe. It is up to you to tell your story … because it matters.
Time is slipping away from us all. There’s a list a mile long of things we need to do, and yet there is so little time to do them in. So many things need our attention, and yet there never seems to be enough to go around. Think of the children that need you, all of you, every ounce that you can pour out at the end of the day. They need to hear how much you love them. You can tell them. You can be the one to not only whisper it in their ears at the end of the night as their eyelids grow heavy just before they drift off to sleep. But realize that they need to hear it more often than that. They need to be showered with your love and affection. They need to be the center of your attention. They need to know that they are your entire world, your heart and soul, the reason you are here on this earth – to parent them, to love and guide them, to cherish and treasure them. You can tell them.
It is up to you to tell others that you love them … they need to hear it.
This post was inspired by the Five Minute Friday prompt word: Tell
Join us this and every Friday now over at Kate’s place, which is now the home that others gather to share their heart and a glimpse into their souls each and every Thursday night leading into Friday.
No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world.
~Robin Williams in the movie Dead Poet’s Society
This week the world lost a very valuable actor, Robin Williams. He was known for some serious roles that he played such as in the movie Dead Poet’s Society, but he was more known to my family for his role in Mrs. Doubtfire and for all of the laughter he supplied to us through the years. My daughters both grew up watching this movie repeatedly. We have watched it so many times that we can all recite lines from the movie. He provided humor right when it was needed in the way that only Robin Williams could, yet he touched on some very serious subject matters in this movie as well.
Robin Williams seemed to be America’s funny man. He was usually all smiles for the camera and had a joke or two readily available to give you a big ole belly laugh. The vast majority of us did not realize that Mr. Williams suffered for years with depression. I have heard a lot within the past week of how not only did Mr. Williams suffer from depression, but he was also Bi-Polar which of course has manic and mania tendencies. All I know is that no one truly knows what goes on behind someone’s smile. This is proof right here!
Many fans around the world are shocked and are in disbelief over Mr. Williams taking his own life. Looking in the windows of his life, it would appear that Mr. Williams had it all: Fortune, Family, & Fame. However, there were things going on inside of Mr. Williams that tormented him. He had his own personal demons that no one can ever fully understand unless they’ve been right where Mr. Williams was the day he took his own life. No one could have ever imagined that Mr. Williams had depression and suicidal thoughts going on behind that smile of his and all of his jokes.
In high school we lost two of our classmates to suicide. I remember hearing the news that my friend had hung himself and how he was clinging to life with the aid of the ventilator. I was unable to visit him in the hospital, and to be honest, I don’t know how I would have handled seeing him in that shape. I just prayed for him and cried my eyes out the next morning when it was announced on the school intercom that he had passed away. I remember attending his funeral with tears falling like rain. I remember my grandmother also grabbing me at the funeral telling me to pull myself together. This shocked me to be told at a moment like this to pull myself together … at a funeral … under the circumstances with the way he died. It felt like I was not allowed to grieve for my friend and then immediately guilt set in for not being able to control my emotions.
We lost another classmate a year or so later the same exact way. It left us all asking why something like this had to happen and how someone could take their own life.
Then depression and suicide touched my family and brought us all to our knees. This was something that always happened to other people. We always “heard” of this but it was always “over there” in someone else’s family … surely not ours! But, there it was, dropped right in our laps when the world crumbled around us that hot July day back in 2001. It doesn’t seem that long ago, really, and there are times when it seems like just yesterday when all of the feelings and emotions come rushing in. The day my sister took her own life. She died by her own hands. She committed an act that we never would have ever thought she would have done. She drew her last breath on this side of Heaven, and we knew that we would never be the same again. When she died, she took a part of us with her. She was my only sibling, my older sister that I looked up to. And now, I’m all alone in this world without my sister, my best friend.
It is so hard to understand how a person could do this, and yet it happens far more than we can even begin to imagine. People get so down in life with different things troubling them. They are in so much emotional pain with things coming at them from every angle. When their problems pile up, they begin to feel as if the only way to end the pain that they feel is to end their life. It’s tragic when it gets to this point. A lot of people say, “If only they would have reached out for help …” and question why such a strong person would succumb to weakness to this extent … you and I will never understand unless or until we’ve been right where they were the moment they made the decision to end their lives. I pray you and I never know how it feels. I pray that we never go through our own personal hell to this extent to where we feel the only way out, the only way to make this better for us and our loved ones is to take matters into our own hands.
Please … hear me now, whatever you may be feeling reading this or whatever you may be going through in life, please … I beg you, as a survivor of the aftermath of suicide, please know that help is available. If you could share how you’re feeling with a trusted friend or family member, they will get you the help that you need. Help is also available through the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255) where you will be connected to a skilled, trained counselor at a crisis center in your area. This service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
We talk a lot on this site about choosing joy and staying positive. We try to change our negative way of thinking to find more positives and things to be thankful for. We ask that you focus on things that bring you joy and happiness instead of things that threaten to pull you down. We ask that you give thanks and recognize how blessed you are in this life. We do this for a reason. It isn’t so that we can all live in a bubble of make-believe and pretend, ignoring problems in our lives. No. It is because there ARE so many problems and things that trouble us in this world that we ask you to shift your focus if you are able to do so. We realize that if you are in the pit of depression, this is something that you simply cannot do very easily, if at all. In times like these, we hope that you will speak with a trusted friend or family member and that you will also seek professional help. Please know that there is NO SHAME in reaching out for help. I only wish more people would do so. Oh how I wish my sister had reached out that day instead of taking matters into her own hands.
There is such a stigma attached to mental illness and depression. A lot of times, people do not want to share what they are going through for fear of being judged or looked down upon. Please know that it takes a lot of courage to speak up and to tell someone. It takes a lot to reach out for help, but please … I beg of you, if you ever get to this place, please reach out to someone!
Over the years I have had several friends that did reach out to me, and I am thankful that they did because I was able to take them to the emergency room at a local hospital for them to get the help that they needed. I have personally taken two people in my vehicle to the emergency room when they have called me for help. It was not easy dealing with this type of a situation, but these people reached out to me in their time of need, and I immediately rushed to their side. I spoke with them at length, and then we made the decision together to go to the emergency room. Thankfully these friends were willing and did not put up a fight at all. They recognized the need for help and were literally crying out for it. And so, they were taken to the emergency room where they were admitted into a program to receive the help that they needed in the form of counseling and medication. They are doing well today, thankfully.
I have had two others friends that dealt with suicidal thoughts as well. One was determined no matter what we said to end it all, but thankfully her attempts failed. She ended up in the psychiatric ward on lock down against her will the last time, and I think that was what it took for her outlook to change. She has not attempted since, to my knowledge.
The other friend that I spoke of worked in the medical field. He dealt with cases where children were involved, and the cases did not always have the desired outcome. After losing a precious little girl that he had gotten close to with her and her family, he went into a deep depression and attempted suicide himself. He survived and lived to tell about it. He sought treatment and is in a better place today as well.
Each of the individuals mentioned above were struggling with things inside of themselves that could not be remedied by a simple attitude adjustment. No amount of positive thinking was going to change their view on life at that moment in time. No amount of anyone saying to “pull yourself up by your boot straps” would help either, instead, often times it would add insult to injury with someone saying such things. We realize that depression, mental illness, and suicidal thoughts is a very serious matter, and that is why we beg of you … please reach out, please talk to a trusted friend or loved one.
Here on this site we want you to know that you’re not alone in your struggles. We want to encourage you in every possible way, and we want you to know that you are a precious child of God. We want to offer support to you and give you our love. We want you to cling to hope and put your faith in God to see you through. Every one of us will go through hard times in this life. We are not sure why that is, but perhaps it is so that we can show compassion for our fellow man. Perhaps going through our own struggles allows us the ability to empathize with others. Perhaps it enables us to show more love and kindness.
Take a look around you. What do you see? Do you stop to notice a lavender sunset? Do you wonder at the beauty of a sunrise on a spring day? Do you notice the different shapes of clouds floating above you? All of these things are God’s artistry in action. Each and every thing on earth is God’s artistry in action; every single thing. That includes you and I.
We are masterpieces of God’s artistry; each of us in our own special way. You may wonder how can we be a masterpiece when some are born with some sort of difficulty. God creates us in a certain way as a start to our canvas. He then gives us the chance to take that canvas, add brush strokes to create ourselves into the masterpiece of our choosing.
In our world here on earth, we treasure masterpieces of art and handle them with utmost care. Yet, we don’t do this with ourselves or those around us much of the time. Should we not consider each and every person and creation of God a masterpiece to treasure and nurture? We have the chance to paint brush strokes on the canvases of others with our words and actions. Should we not take care in what we say and do to others so as to not discolor their masterpiece?
You are a masterpiece. Treasure yourself and those around you as such.
Today we are calling you to take action on this Tuesday! Yesterday we pointed out various different ways that we are so very blessed in this life. Today I would like you to participate in a little activity. I hope you will join me as we are going to be focusing on our blessings!
Whether you do so in the comment section, in your email to another family member or friend, or if you write it on Facebook, I would like to challenge you to list several things that you are thankful for. You don’t necessarily have to write them down, but for me, it helps to do so instead of leaving those thoughts in my head. If I write them down and see them in black and white in front of me, it seems to possess more power.
For the next week, I would like you to focus on these and other things on your list that bring you joy, love, and happiness. I am asking you to give thanks and to be grateful for the gifts you have been given in this life. Count your blessings not your troubles or sorrows. Focus intentionally on things that you truly need to praise God for, and then start doing it!! That is the key!
Are you ready to accept this challenge?
I am thankful for:
My beautiful children that God has given to me. They are my miracles from above, and I just thank God from the very bottom of my heart for trusting me to care for these precious little ones. He gave them to me, and my soul danced with delight the day I found out I was pregnant. I was so in love with you, and my heart leaped with joy and excitement every time I would feel you move and kick inside of me. There are no words to adequately describe how I felt when my baby girls were placed in my arms for the first time. Tears of joy filled my eyes and spilled out down my cheek as I looked into your angelic faces. I counted ten perfect little fingers and ten perfect little toes. I thank God for my babies. They are now 17 years old and nine years old at the time of this writing, and my heart cherishes and treasures each and every moment that I have been given with them. They are the reason I am on this earth. They are my purpose, and they are my life! I thank God for my two miracles from above!
My parents who gave me the best that they possibly could growing up. We were not rich by any stretch of the imagination. What we lacked in money and in material things, we were overflowing with in love, compassion, and care for one another. My parents raised me with good morals and values. They taught me to be a responsible and respectable young lady, to be a woman of great character and integrity. I am thankful for my parents loving me in the good times as well as the bad and for being my rock through the troubled times in my life. Things haven’t always been easy, but we had each other through it all. My heart is eternally grateful, and I thank God above for my parents.
My husband who I met when we were teenagers. Although too shy to really connect back then, we thought of each other through the years and destiny brought us back together many years later. We reconnected and rekindled the spark inside of our hearts for each other. Although we have struggled through the years as most marriages do, we have realized that the love that we have is something worth fighting for. We share what most people search their whole lives for and rarely ever find. It has not always been easy, but it has always been worth it. It is a love that I will fight for and do everything within my power to ensure lasts. As God as my witness, I will not rest until I have exhausted every measure to ensure that this man knows how much I love him. I thank God for putting us back together.
My friends. Oh, the Lord has richly blessed me with friends who are more like family. They truly are the family that I have chosen for myself. You are born with family, and then you meet people in this life that you connect with on such a deep level. They, then, become your family of choice. I love each and every one of them with a love so deep and so powerful, and I thank God for placing these beautiful souls in my life. Some friends I have had for 20 years, and I know that they will be by my side no matter what. We may not always see eye to eye, and there may be things that threaten to pull us apart from time to time. However, we always come back together. That is what true friendship is all about. I thank God that I have a hand full of people in this life that I know are my true friends and love me completely just as I love them. They are my brothers and sisters of the heart.
This list is just something that came to me right off the top of my head as my fingers floated over the keyboard and words flowed from me onto the post that you’re now reading. I have many, many blessings in this life. I am so very thankful to God for all that He has done for me and my family and friends. He is so good, ladies and gentlemen! He is so good to us. He blesses us and continues to pour out His blessings in our lives. He is worthy to be praised.
Look around you as you start to write your list. You don’t have to capture everything today. Just think of a few things that easily come to your mind. Be sure to thank God for these gifts in your life.
May God continue to pour out His blessings on your life.
We all have struggles and trials in this life, and I am sure that there have been times when every one of us has uttered some version of the following saying:
I know that God will not give me more than I can bear. I just wish He didn’t trust me so much.
There may be times when you feel pushed to your limit. You may feel like you’re hanging on by a thread even. When you’re at your wits end and are not sure how much more you can take, know that God will not give you more than you can bear. He won’t.
Also, know this. God will be with you every step of the way, even carrying you when He needs to in order for you to make it through.
With everything that you’ve been through, know that there is someone else in the world that has it worse than you do. When we stop to consider just how blessed we truly are, our problems begin to lose their grip on us. The problems may still be there, but it helps to change your way of thinking about them. Instead of focusing on the negatives of your situation, try to think of a positive in the situation. I promise you, as bad as you think your problems are, someone somewhere else in the world has it a lot worse.
It takes a lot of effort, but when you find yourself starting to dwell on your problems, try changing your focus to something a little more positive instead. Easier said than done, but trust me. You have so many blessings in your life. You have so many things to be thankful for!
You are blessed!
I am blessed!
Weare blessed!
We are so blessed in this lifetime! Why, then, do we focus only on the negatives? Why do we give them so much power over our lives? Let’s do something about that, shall we?
When your eyes open in the morning, immediately start your day with a positive thought and a word of praise.
Oh thank you, God! Thank you for waking me up this morning! Thank you for the gift of another day! Thank you for another opportunity to live my life to the fullest.
It matters how you start your day! If you wake up and begin with negative thoughts before your eyes ever open, you won’t have as good of a day as you would if you begin your day with words of thankfulness and praise.
When you wake up, take a deep breath in and thank God for waking you up with the morning light. Thank Him for allowing you to be with your loved ones another day. Some people didn’t get that extra day that you’ve been given.
When your feet hit the floor, thank Him that you can get out of bed in the mornings. Thank Him that you had a bed to sleep in last night and covers to warm you. Some people do not have this luxury.
When you walk to the bathroom to get a shower, thank God that you’re able to walk! Thank God that you’re able to do for yourself. Others have to depend on people to bathe them as they are unable to do that for themselves. Think of how blessed you are, and say a special prayer for all of those that are going through this and for the precious caregivers. Neither the patient nor the caregiver have an easy road ahead of them that day, yet here you stand under the warmth of the shower.
Don’t give into the temptation of a complaining spirit. You have much to be thankful for!
When you sit down to have your breakfast and drink your coffee, thank God for the food! Some do not have anything to eat at all. (Be sure to thank God for your food before you begin your meal. I always notice when people don’t do this and just start eating or stare at us when we get ready to bow our heads to say the blessing before we eat. Be thankful in all things … even for the food that you’re about to receive!)
Make time to read your bible or a daily devotional and pray before starting your day. I have heard people that say they just don’t have time for this. I say that you DO … you don’t have to get down on your knees every single time to pray. You can pray while you’re in the shower, having breakfast, or driving down the road going to work or school. You CAN find time. If your mind can wander to all of the negatives, you have time to gain control of your thoughts and go to God in prayer. That is when you need to re-focus your attention any way instead of remaining in a negative state of mind. You DO have time to pray! As far as not having time to read your bible or a daily devotional, that isn’t true either. There are some devotionals that don’t require a lot of time, yet their messages are powerful and will have you thinking on them all day. My husband reads Joel Osteen’s daily devotional every morning. I am partial to Joyce Meyer’s daily devotional. Jesus Calling by Sarah Young is also a very powerful daily devotional. They do not require a lot of time, yet they leave such an impact! Try it!
We are blessed in this life. If we would just take a moment or two to redirect our thoughts, it will make a difference in how our day goes! It has been proven!
Will you try it? Will you make an effort to be more positive and to start your day in a more positive manner?
Will you count your blessings instead of focusing on your troubles?