I took some time off from blogging. A very long time. But now I am back and I want to get started writing again. I am curious if anyone is still out there reading my blog.
Reflections of my life
Wednesday, March 8, 2023
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
The Power and the Glory.
Last night
we had a very bad storm come through our area. I love sleeping to the sound of
rain but this was rain, wind and lightening. The lightening was hitting so
close that it shook the windows and I could see the flash even through my closed
eyelids. It was very intense for about an hour. But the good news is we made it
through the storm ok.
A storm like
that makes you aware of the amazing power in the universe and how small we
really are compared to the world around us. If you don’t feel humble after
witnessing something like that then you need to wake up and smell the roses. With
all that power around us we could be gone in a split second. That dividing line
between life and death is just a thin hair so I am grateful for yet another day
on earth. There is so much I still want to do.
Many changes
are happening in my life now. The phrase “Letting Go” keeps popping up here and
there and that is what I am doing. Not letting go of life but letting go of the
reigns. I am still moving and at a good pace but I am no longer trying to
control things. And in doing so, my life is becoming much simpler and less
complicated. I no longer struggle and I no longer feel responsible when things
around me don’t go my way. I am confident that God is in control of my life and
He will lead me where I need to go.
I see new
things ahead of me now and I no longer dwell in the past. The future is much
brighter than it has ever been. I know that the world may be crashing down
around me but I can stay on course and make it to my final destination if I
continue to give glory to God.
Have a wonderful
day,
Greg
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Were you born in a barn?
I often hear that when God closes a door he opens another
for us. I do believe that is partially true.
I think it goes more like this;
God opens doors for us and sometimes he closes them for us
but not always. Sometimes we must be the one to close those doors.
Lots of times God has opened new doors for me. He has given
me new opportunities and showed me new paths to take and for the most part I
have taken those chances and gone where he has wanted me to go. However being
the “you never know” type of person that I am, I don’t always close the door
behind me. I usually leave those old doors open just in case. Just in case I want
to go back to my old ways or maybe some day take that wrong path.
I can hear my father now saying; Where you born in a barn?
Shut that door. And I know that my biological father meant it in a literal
sense but maybe that was God, my eternal Father meaning it in another way. Maybe
that was God saying; I will show you the way but don’t go back. Just some
thoughts running through my mind today.
Have a great day,
Greg
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
Stop in the name of Love.
I found that my life was just going way too fast. So I decided not only to slow down but to stop from time to time. Several times during my day, I stop, close my eyes, pray and then go on with my life. I have found that it quickly recharges my batteries and keeps me in a good mood.
I take my first stop of the day right after my alarm clock goes off. I turn it off, put my feet on the floor by the bed and sit there and thank God for giving me another chance here on earth. I don't always use it the way He would like but I do try. And the stops do help keep me on track.
I have also found out that once I got used to stopping, those little delays in life are no longer a pain, they are a blessing. When you get stopped in the grocery line, say a little prayer for getting the chance to pray. Traffic stops the same thing. Use those delays to praise God and you will soon find out that driving makes you happy again. Well it works for me anyway.
Enjoy the ride,
Greg
I take my first stop of the day right after my alarm clock goes off. I turn it off, put my feet on the floor by the bed and sit there and thank God for giving me another chance here on earth. I don't always use it the way He would like but I do try. And the stops do help keep me on track.
I have also found out that once I got used to stopping, those little delays in life are no longer a pain, they are a blessing. When you get stopped in the grocery line, say a little prayer for getting the chance to pray. Traffic stops the same thing. Use those delays to praise God and you will soon find out that driving makes you happy again. Well it works for me anyway.
Enjoy the ride,
Greg
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Reach out and touch someone.
Reach out and touch someone.
No this isn’t a commercial for the phone company although
one of them does use that slogan. I am talking about reaching out to your
fellow man. And it can be via phone, email, txt or maybe even….get this now…..”
in person”. Whoa that concept; reaching out to someone in person. The nerve of me saying that. I mean is it
still possible or acceptable to actually reach out to someone in person? I
think it is. But if you aren’t able to do it face to face try one of the other
avenues.
For many years I kept my feelings locked up inside. Telling
someone else my true feelings was not only hard to do it was frowned upon. My
parents taught me that real men don’t tell people how they feel. Real men put
on a front to look tough and to prevent anyone from knowing the real you. Real
men don’t welcome others with a hug or a smile or any kind of friendly greeting
because that lets your guard down and leaves you open for someone to get inside
your safe zone.
That may be true but what am I really protecting in that
safe zone…..”nothing”. The truth is it also prevents people from being your
friend or reaching out to you in need. I have discovered that there are a lot
of people out there in need. More now than ever before. And I am not talking
about being in need of cash although a lot are. I am talking about being in
need of a friend or someone’s shoulder to cry on. There are a lot of people out
there just one step from giving up on life or ending it all. There are a lot of
people who just need to talk to someone and have someone listen to them. And
just knowing that someone out there cares enough to listen may change their
entire life.
So I have decided to be one of those people. I have always
listened to the problems of others but I have never really reached out to other
to ask them if they are ok or if they are in need. We all have our problems in
life but I think I have a little caring that I can share with someone else. And
just maybe I can make a difference in someone’s life. I do know that if I don’t
reach out and take that first step, I may miss an opportunity to help someone.
And I don’t like the sound of that.
Greg
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Anger issues.
I have anger issues!!!
Yes I do. I have issues with angry people. I can’t
understand why people go through life always being angry. I have my moments
from time to time but for the most part I am a happy person. If someone cuts (or flips) me off in traffic
I simply slow down and give them some room. I don’t get upset about it because
in relation to the real problems in the world today, having someone pull out in
front of me in traffic is no big deal. And it certainly isn’t worth getting my
blood pressure up.
I feel the same way about other little things. Like people who get
in the speed line in the store with too many items or that wait until their
total is rung up before they start searching for their check book; No big deal.
There are so many little things out there that I tend to ignore while others go
off on a tangent. To me there is nothing
worse than being stuck in line with someone that is harping about having to
wait. Give me a break, please. Complaining and getting angry does absolutely
no good and it may even take years off your life. Get in another lane if it bothers you that
much.
I usually try to surround myself with happy people whenever
I can so don’t be offended if you start complaining and I simply walk away. Sometimes I will be in a meeting and someone will
start complaining. I usually just ignore them and my mind starts to drift away.
Often someone will catch me drifting and when they ask me why I wasn’t paying
attention I just say “I will when you stop complaining and say something
constructive”. That usually gets a smart reply but my point is made. When my
family starts complaining I just say “hey I can get this at work.”
So slow down, be happy and live a long life. That’s my advice
for the day. And please respect the speed lane at Walmart. I am tired of hearing about it.
Greg
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Prayer 101
When I was young, my prayers were simple; “God please help
me”. That was enough. I felt that He was listening and that He knew what I
needed and that He would give me what I needed and He did. When I became older
however my life became more complicated. There were adult problems and as an
adult I knew the solutions, but I still needed help from God to make my
solutions work.
So my prayers became more specific. I actually prayed more
often but for some reason I felt that he no longer answered me. I thought maybe
I am not good enough, maybe God is angry with me and that is why He isn’t
answering. I talked with others about my feelings and there was one answer that
most of my friends gave me; God doesn’t always answer our prayers. Hmmm I
though. What kind of God is He that He doesn’t answer my prayers?
So I went for many years feeling disconnected from God. Oh I
tried to reconnect from time to time but I kind of felt like hey if He doesn’t
take the time to talk to me, why should I talk to Him? Wow was I ever wrong and
so were all those people that told me that God doesn’t always answer our
prayers. He does. My God answers all my prayers. The problem for me was that
His answers weren’t always what I wanted to hear so I just ignored them. The
problem was that I asked God to help me with my plan instead of asking God what
his plan for me was. So simple that it evaded me.
And I started thinking about all those times when I prayed
for help with major problems in my life and about the outcomes in those
situations. And in each and every case, something happened that lead me from
the troubled spot that I was in at the time. And even thought it wasn’t the
escape route that I had hoped for it was in fact an escape route and it brought
me to a better place. So I truly believe that my prayers have always been
answered but I was just too busy looking for MY answer to see God’s answer.
So I decided to get back to basics. I no longer pray for God
to help me with my plan, I now pray for God’s will to be done. In this day and
time of evil all around us I simply pray that God be in control in my life. And
He is. I pray that God be in control in your life too.
Blessings,
Greg
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)