Life Perspective

I've noticed a shift recently in the way that I talk.  I find myself talking with much less excitement and passion, it seems I have a much less optimistic outlook on life, like when I talk about a subject I feel more dread than excitement, and I struggle to have things to say in conversation. It seems to me that I've been quieter and less contributive to thoughts and ideas as a creative member of a group, instead I often feel like an outsider in groups and like I do more to correct others ideas than to come up with my own.
It has been bothering me greatly because I've always thought of myself as a rather upbeat and energetic person, and I am in positions where creativity, originality, spontaneity, and energy are very important.
Then today, another current trend in the way I talk and think became apparent to me, and I wonder whether they may be related.  The "Good" side of my family got together for Christmas today (we actually had a white Christmas :) ) and so there were lots of questions like "How's the new job? How's married life? How's the apartment?" etc, etc... and I found myself talking about a lot of negative things.  I mean, I told stories of some good things and relayed the fact that everything has been amazing and things are going great, but beyond that I realized that most of the everyday type of stories i told were about problems, bad things that had happened to us, and annoying things that people do or had done.  And the thing is, I didn't have to tell those stories.  Yes, there have been problems and annoyances, but there's also been a lot of fun times and great things that have happened.
I've always been one to let the bad go and focus on the good, but here I was mostly telling the bad stories.  And I wonder if that's why I find less excitement and energy in my voice, because the things im talking about are depressing, not exciting.  I wonder if that's why I critique and piggy back on others ideas and struggle to make decisions, because im seeing the problems and drawbacks rather than the possibilities.
The other night, after my computer contracted a virus and me and Dana were both trying to maintain a positive outlook, I looked at the verse for the day on my phone which was:
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
And it seemed fitting.  I think that maybe this is what I've been missing.  Perhaps I haven't been joyful always because I've been lacking continual prayer and thanksgiving.
So I am going to work on telling good stories; on not letting my life be defined by the things that go wrong but by the things that go right. It will take some conscious effort, but I think that overall it is worth it.  What about you?  Do you find that most of your stories are about struggle and hardship or do you find yourself telling stories of blessing and success?

Psalm 73

I love this Psalm, it carried me through at least one semester at West Chester University.  And seeing it put to music like this, it brings the message home even more clearly.

Giving from the Piggy Bank

For the light in heart, from Christianity Today:

In our town's elementary school at the beginning of the year, the school secretary routinely collects the lunch money from the new kindergartners. This solves the problem of lost money. But for nervous 5-year-olds, it took a few days to understand what was happening.
For two days, the secretary would come into the room and ask in a loud voice, "Does anybody have any lunch money for me?" Her question was met with no response.
On the third day, one little boy came in at the bell, walked hesitantly to the teacher's desk, held out his hand and whispered, "Here is lunch money from my piggy bank for the poor lady nobody gives money to."
—June Spivey, Christian Reader, Vol. 34.

Is Sleeping In a Sin?

This is taken from George Muller's autobiography:

I want to encourage all believers to get into the habit of rising early to meet with God.  how much time should b allowed for rest?  No rule of universal application can be given because all persons do not require the same amount of sleep.  Also the same persons, at different times, according to the strength or weakness of their body, may require more or less.  most doctors agree that healthy men do not require more than between six or seven hours of sleep, and females need no more than seven or eight hours.
Children of God should be careful not to allow themselves too little sleep since few men can do with less than six hours of sleep and still be well in body and mind.  As a young man, before I went to the university, I went to bed regularly at ten and rose at four, studied hard, and was in good health.  Since I have allowed myself only about seven hours, I have been much better in body and in nerves than when I spent eight or eight and a half hours in bed.
Someone may ask, "But why should I rise early?"  To remain too long in bed is a waste of time.  Wasting time is unbecoming a saint who is bought by the precious blood of Jesus.  His time and all he has is to be used for the Lord.  If we sleep more than is necessary for the refreshment of the body, it is wasting the time the Lord has entrusted us to be used for His glory, for our own benefit, and for the benefit of the saints and unbelievers around us.
Just as too much food injures the body, the same is true regarding sleep.  Medical persons would readily agree that lying longer in bed than is necessary to strengthen the body actually weakens it.
It also injures the soul.  Lying too long in bed not merely keeps us from giving the most precious part of the day to prayer and meditation, but this sloth leads also to many other evils.  Anyone who spends one, two, or three hours in prayer and meditation before breakfast will soon discover the beneficial effect early rising has on the outward and inward man.

The Love of a Father - The Response of a Son

Credit for photo

Ephesians 5:1-2
If you know the love of God, then imitate Him, even as a child who knows the love of their father will imitate him.  So live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.  Our service for God should not be an act of duty, but a response to love.
(My paraphrase)

Who Loves God?

Not everyone who calls Jesus Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only those who do the will of his Father, who is in heaven. Many will say to him on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?” Then he will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” The one who is known by God is the one who loves God.

We all were born loving everything but God, but now that we know God—or rather are known by God—we should not turn back to be enslaved by them all over again! Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know, because now we see and know only a poor reflection, as in a pond; then we will see and know God face to face. Now we know in part; then we will know fully, even as we are fully known.

On that day we will realize that Jesus is in the Father, and we are in Jesus, and he is in us. Whoever has Jesus’ commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves Jesus. If we love him we will be loved by the Father, and Jesus himself will love us and reveal himself to us so that we may know Him, even as we are fully known.

Now this is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.


A compilation of verses from Matthew, John, 1 Corinthians, Galatians, and 1 John)

The River of Life

Sometimes life feels like this river.  Things are always moving forwards, whether we want them to or not.  Sometimes everything passes by slowly, we are lulled along, almost feeling like we are moving in circles, only to find that those circles were bringing us closer and closer to the edge of a waterfall, where we quickly and viciously move straight forward, falling and jostling until we hit the bottom in utter bewilderment.  Sometimes we hit waterfall after waterfall, we run into rocks and around logs, running and running wondering when it will end, only to suddenly find ourselves cut off from the rest of the stream, resting in a side pool, not even moving at all.


Rest and rush. Rush and rest. The rhythms of life.  When we rush too much we become wearied and banged up. When we rest too much we become stagnant and stale, and we may even dry up.

Lord grant that we may run in the stream of life that you have provided. That we might be content with both the falls and the pools and live for your glory no matter where we find ourselves.  And let us remember that at the bottom of every waterfall is a pool and at the end of every pool is another waterfall, so that we might always be prepared for the things you bring our way.