Today, Matt Sanders, our Family pastor at Journey Christian Church, began a series about the family. The series is called "Picture Perfect." Todays sermon was thought provoking. It took us through the family dynamics of Jacob's 12 sons.
When reading or studying scripture I like to find the place where my life intersects with God's word. The story of Joseph has always given me some insight into God, His plan, and lessons for me. Today was no exception. I heard the Holy Spirit whisper truth to me. That is always a blessing, though not always easy!
When we first see Joseph in the Bible, he is a favored child of Jacob. He gets a special coat to wear and has the attention and the love of his father. I could hear the Holy Spirit tell me that I have always wanted to be a favorite as well. I am the second oldest child of a brood of seven. I was not the coddled youngest, nor the relied upon oldest. I was just second and always wanting to be first in line and in the hearts of my parents. O, yes, they loved me, but the love was different than the love of the firstborn and the last! In my eyes they had a special place. So, I was always wanting something I didn't have or be someone I wasn't.
I wondered if there might be another family for which I would be best suited back then, but Matt confirmed that God has determined our families. He has put us in the place that He wants us. Yes, He even placed me as a second child in a group of seven. He has a plan and He gave me a job. As Matt said: "Do what only You can do." Hm, what is it that only I can do in my family? I'll be giving that more thought. But on to the story.
Because Joseph was favored by his Father, he became hated by his brothers. Joseph didn't help matters. He shared his grand dreams of ruling over the family with his already jealous siblings. Again, I could put myself in the place of Joseph. I had dreams. I wanted to be first, didn't I? I may have even spoken out about my dreams to my sisters and brothers. Today I thought about how my arrogance and pride may have caused those rifts between family members that are so hard to mend. Oh my, The Holy Spirit can step on my toes sometimes!
Josephs brothers made a terrible decision to kill Joseph, but ended up selling him into slavery. They had no idea that their plan was also part of God's plan. God would use their ruthless deed against Joseph to set up the preservation of the entire family. I have been in the sandals of the brothers too. I sometimes wanted to kill or at least do something mean to those who seemed to command the better position in the family. Oh my, I am in need of a Savior!
Circumstances can cause families to fall apart or come back together. It took some doing to make that happen for Jacob's children. A severe drought, Joseph forgiving the wrongs against him, and repentant hearts of the brothers all came together to bring a group of related people back into being a family. I want to be the forgiving person, the repentant sinner who offers kindness to others in my family. I sometimes am that person, but sometimes I am not. I need to work on this.
The lesson learned? God put me into the family I belong to and He expects me to do what only I can do in that family! It may not be a perfect family but by God's grace it is the perfect family for me!
Father God, You designed and ordained the family unit. In wisdom You joined each person to others so that Your plan could be fulfilled for each of them and for the world around them. Forgive us, Father, for not trusting You and for taking out our misunderstandings on those who are closest to us. Thank You for each of our family members, in our earthly families and in our church family. Thank You for giving us grace to forgive and giving us all more than enough chances for making it right when we have hurt each other. Bring us to the place where we are united in love and offer forgiveness and grace to all our brothers and sisters. We have received Your forgiveness and grace through our older brother, Jesus. Let us be more like Him!
Showing posts with label forgiveness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label forgiveness. Show all posts
Sunday, July 6, 2014
Monday, March 14, 2011
The Miracle of Forgiveness
Forgiveness is a God-like quality. It begins with God. We would not know forgiveness if God was never revealed to us through His interaction with people and through His word. His forgiveness of us makes possible our forgiveness of others.
Gods' act of forgiving began with a promise to send a Savior. He, himself, became our Redeemer and removed the remembrace of our sin. Sunday, Pastor John mentioned that Forgiveness is needed when we cannot forget. God forgot our sin when He forgave us. It is an awesome thought to think that God did it all. He did not ask us to pay the price and then we would be forgiven. He is the covenant maker and the covenant keeper.
The process of forgiveness can be a painful journey for the one who has been hurt. God also took a painful journey to rid us of our sin. It is said that forgiveness is not for the one forgiven but the one who forgives, but both are set free in the process of removing the wall of sin. The person forgiven may not know or receive the pardon, but he is no longer bound eternally by the accusations of the one setting him free. The one who pardons another will experience freedom in thoughts and emotions. It may take a very long time or a constant returning to the conscience act of forgiveness to find the freedom but it will come. In it all there is a miracle of new life; a life free from the past and ready to start anew.
The miracle of forgiveness is the intervention of God in our sinful lives. It is a joyous experience to forgive. It is a miracle to be forgiven and made clean.
Savior God, You are a miracle worker! You have taken our sin and made it disappear to the place where even You have forgotten! You set us free to receive Your pardon. You are Good! You have also given us the power and grace to free others when they have hurt us. Forgive us when we hold on to those hurts. Help us to relase our grip on those things that can only bind us to the past. Thank You for supplying all our need when we need to forgive!
Gods' act of forgiving began with a promise to send a Savior. He, himself, became our Redeemer and removed the remembrace of our sin. Sunday, Pastor John mentioned that Forgiveness is needed when we cannot forget. God forgot our sin when He forgave us. It is an awesome thought to think that God did it all. He did not ask us to pay the price and then we would be forgiven. He is the covenant maker and the covenant keeper.
The process of forgiveness can be a painful journey for the one who has been hurt. God also took a painful journey to rid us of our sin. It is said that forgiveness is not for the one forgiven but the one who forgives, but both are set free in the process of removing the wall of sin. The person forgiven may not know or receive the pardon, but he is no longer bound eternally by the accusations of the one setting him free. The one who pardons another will experience freedom in thoughts and emotions. It may take a very long time or a constant returning to the conscience act of forgiveness to find the freedom but it will come. In it all there is a miracle of new life; a life free from the past and ready to start anew.
The miracle of forgiveness is the intervention of God in our sinful lives. It is a joyous experience to forgive. It is a miracle to be forgiven and made clean.
Savior God, You are a miracle worker! You have taken our sin and made it disappear to the place where even You have forgotten! You set us free to receive Your pardon. You are Good! You have also given us the power and grace to free others when they have hurt us. Forgive us when we hold on to those hurts. Help us to relase our grip on those things that can only bind us to the past. Thank You for supplying all our need when we need to forgive!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
A Call to the Prodigal
Today I came across an item I wrote awhile back. For some reason I see it as very appropriate for Shrove Tuesday. Shrove is the past tense of Shrive which has the meaning of confession and repentance. Shrove Tuesday is the day before the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday.
I hope my letter to those who have been hurt by the church will reach a heart or two (or more) and healing will begin. I also hope that those of us who have remained in the church, though hurt, will also find healing. Finally, for those of us who are the instruments of hurt, I pray we will return to the cross, seek forgiveness, and be renewed.
Dear Brother and Sister in Christ,
Please come back! We miss you!
Forgive us our trespasses. We understand that no apology can turn back time and change what has happened to hurt you so deeply that you felt you had to run away. We want you to know that you do not need to carry the hurt and pain any longer. We cannot promise that we will be any better than we were before, but Jesus is our healer and reconciler. He is teaching and disciplining us. We want you to find His comfort and peace.
Forgive us because we didn't know what we were doing. We had no idea that we were hurting you so much. We thought we were doing what God wanted us to do, but we were wrong. We didn't know how much we hurt ourselves when we treated you as we did. Without you we are incomplete. Our failures are multiplied and our successes are not as great. We need you just as our body needs all of our parts to work together.
Please come home! We wait in expectation of our reunion. You are welcome anytime!
In Christ,
The Church
I hope my letter to those who have been hurt by the church will reach a heart or two (or more) and healing will begin. I also hope that those of us who have remained in the church, though hurt, will also find healing. Finally, for those of us who are the instruments of hurt, I pray we will return to the cross, seek forgiveness, and be renewed.
Dear Brother and Sister in Christ,
Please come back! We miss you!
Forgive us our trespasses. We understand that no apology can turn back time and change what has happened to hurt you so deeply that you felt you had to run away. We want you to know that you do not need to carry the hurt and pain any longer. We cannot promise that we will be any better than we were before, but Jesus is our healer and reconciler. He is teaching and disciplining us. We want you to find His comfort and peace.
Forgive us because we didn't know what we were doing. We had no idea that we were hurting you so much. We thought we were doing what God wanted us to do, but we were wrong. We didn't know how much we hurt ourselves when we treated you as we did. Without you we are incomplete. Our failures are multiplied and our successes are not as great. We need you just as our body needs all of our parts to work together.
Please come home! We wait in expectation of our reunion. You are welcome anytime!
In Christ,
The Church
Monday, January 10, 2011
Sin is Sin
Sin is defined by God. Man, being sinful, cannot define sin accurately. God, being only good, is the only source we can turn to for what is bad in our world and our lives. He declares that what is not of Him is sin.
Every day I come face to face with the sin I commit, and the sin of others. This last weekend I found myself emotionally affected by the shootings in Arizona. I was physically and emotionally and spiritually affected by my sin. Both are devastating. Both are far from God and both are equally bad.
Growing up Catholic, I was taught about mortal and venial sins. The church taught that some sins were not as bad as others. If you die with a venial sin on your conscience, you still have hope to get to heaven. This is not so with a mortal sin. It is interesting that the protestant and other churches laugh at this doctrine. They claim that all sin is of equal destruction without Christ. I agree that sin is sin. The funny thing is that in talking to other non-Catholic church goers it is apparent that they too believe that some sin is worse than others.
A conversation last weekend confirmed this to me. We were discussing the proper way to handle our children who choose to fornicate, or follow a homosexual lifestyle. It seemed to be accepted that these children should be shunned. How else will they embrace Christ and His mercy for their sins? The question begs to be asked, what if the child had lied? What difference would that make? Should we shun the liar as well? What if the lie is not discovered? What if it was a one time sin as opposed to a lifestyle? Do we accept a little white lie and not the big cover up? Do we allow the sin in our lives but not in others? Do we allow the sin on our tv but not in real life?
The question of sin is not an easy one. God decides what is sin and what is not. It is only through His judgement on an action or thought that I can label it sin. God also decides how sin is to be removed and cleansed. He chose to pay the price but sets up parameters as to how the sinner will be redeemed. He chose to make only one avenue and that is through belief and trust in Jesus.
In my humble and sometimes faulty opinion, I believe that love is never wrong when it comes to sinners. Yes, sometimes it must be tough, but grace can always be offered in love. Those who choose not to accept grace will do the shunning. We do not need to push them away. It could be that our grace and love shown to those who are blinded by their sin, will draw them closer to Jesus so that His voice can be heard in their hearts and they will be set free. Besides, we are sinners too!
Much has been written about sin over the ages. My little offering will not solve the problems of sins labels or its removal. My purpose is to encourage all of us to let God be God.
Righteous and Holy God, You take away the sins of the world! Have mercy on us as we struggle to deal with the enormous hold sin has on our lives. Teach us to find the justice in weighing our silent sins as heavily as those who make their sin public. Thank You for Your Son Jesus who is Your sacrificial lamb. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us!
Every day I come face to face with the sin I commit, and the sin of others. This last weekend I found myself emotionally affected by the shootings in Arizona. I was physically and emotionally and spiritually affected by my sin. Both are devastating. Both are far from God and both are equally bad.
Growing up Catholic, I was taught about mortal and venial sins. The church taught that some sins were not as bad as others. If you die with a venial sin on your conscience, you still have hope to get to heaven. This is not so with a mortal sin. It is interesting that the protestant and other churches laugh at this doctrine. They claim that all sin is of equal destruction without Christ. I agree that sin is sin. The funny thing is that in talking to other non-Catholic church goers it is apparent that they too believe that some sin is worse than others.
A conversation last weekend confirmed this to me. We were discussing the proper way to handle our children who choose to fornicate, or follow a homosexual lifestyle. It seemed to be accepted that these children should be shunned. How else will they embrace Christ and His mercy for their sins? The question begs to be asked, what if the child had lied? What difference would that make? Should we shun the liar as well? What if the lie is not discovered? What if it was a one time sin as opposed to a lifestyle? Do we accept a little white lie and not the big cover up? Do we allow the sin in our lives but not in others? Do we allow the sin on our tv but not in real life?
The question of sin is not an easy one. God decides what is sin and what is not. It is only through His judgement on an action or thought that I can label it sin. God also decides how sin is to be removed and cleansed. He chose to pay the price but sets up parameters as to how the sinner will be redeemed. He chose to make only one avenue and that is through belief and trust in Jesus.
In my humble and sometimes faulty opinion, I believe that love is never wrong when it comes to sinners. Yes, sometimes it must be tough, but grace can always be offered in love. Those who choose not to accept grace will do the shunning. We do not need to push them away. It could be that our grace and love shown to those who are blinded by their sin, will draw them closer to Jesus so that His voice can be heard in their hearts and they will be set free. Besides, we are sinners too!
Much has been written about sin over the ages. My little offering will not solve the problems of sins labels or its removal. My purpose is to encourage all of us to let God be God.
Righteous and Holy God, You take away the sins of the world! Have mercy on us as we struggle to deal with the enormous hold sin has on our lives. Teach us to find the justice in weighing our silent sins as heavily as those who make their sin public. Thank You for Your Son Jesus who is Your sacrificial lamb. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us!
Friday, June 4, 2010
Forgive Me
After posting and rereading my post, I must let you know that I desire connections, but I often fall into the trap of thinking there is a connection with my short and sweet conversations.
I have not followed through on what I know I should do to connect with you.
Please forgive me. Be patient with me as I learn, grow stumble and fall in connecting with you. I'll be patient with you too!
Thanks for reading!
Carolynn
I have not followed through on what I know I should do to connect with you.
Please forgive me. Be patient with me as I learn, grow stumble and fall in connecting with you. I'll be patient with you too!
Thanks for reading!
Carolynn
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Asking Forgiveness
A week or so ago, I wrote an email to a friend. I had mixed motives in writing the email, and was not completely honest with her. Since then I have been convicted by the Holy Spirit to ask for forgiveness.
I've been slow in asking for forgiveness because my heart had not changed and I needed to deal with my bad attitude before sending off another email with mixed motives. This morning was my day to humble myself, seek forgiveness, be honest even if it meant being vulnerable, and clear my conscience before God!
What a relief! I have not heard back from my friend and she may not accept my apology. She may either say there was nothing to apologize for, but I know that if the Holy Spirit leads me in that direction, He knows their true heart. She may allow herself to express anger towards me that was held back because of the veiled messages I sent. In either case I am free from the sin because I have God's forgiveness and have obeyed Him in doing the right thing to clear the mess I made with my words.
Father, You are so gracious and kind to wipe away my sin! You are my peace, You are my Lord! You are holy and I am to be holy! You are wise in all You do! I need You to guide me, teach me, reprimand me and forgive me! Thank You for being all I need and for helping me through the really tough times like asking forgiveness. I want to be transparent. i want others to see my flaws and most importantly to see You working in me! Keep me under Your wing and never let me stray far from Your side!
I've been slow in asking for forgiveness because my heart had not changed and I needed to deal with my bad attitude before sending off another email with mixed motives. This morning was my day to humble myself, seek forgiveness, be honest even if it meant being vulnerable, and clear my conscience before God!
What a relief! I have not heard back from my friend and she may not accept my apology. She may either say there was nothing to apologize for, but I know that if the Holy Spirit leads me in that direction, He knows their true heart. She may allow herself to express anger towards me that was held back because of the veiled messages I sent. In either case I am free from the sin because I have God's forgiveness and have obeyed Him in doing the right thing to clear the mess I made with my words.
Father, You are so gracious and kind to wipe away my sin! You are my peace, You are my Lord! You are holy and I am to be holy! You are wise in all You do! I need You to guide me, teach me, reprimand me and forgive me! Thank You for being all I need and for helping me through the really tough times like asking forgiveness. I want to be transparent. i want others to see my flaws and most importantly to see You working in me! Keep me under Your wing and never let me stray far from Your side!
Friday, February 5, 2010
I Have to Laugh
After posting my last blog, I have to laugh at myself! I've been scared, worried, angry , frustrated and generally pounced on by the enemy!
Did I anticipate the good in the situations I faced? Well, I can't say I did in all cases. Yep, here I am "anticipating" and I take a small little trip over the edge of forgetfulness. I forgot to anticipate the good that God has for me in every situation. I let my emotions guide me.
Lesson: Let faith guide me not my emotions! Don't just SAY what I believe but DO it!
Father, Please forgive me for not acting on the trust I have in You! forgive my failure to live my life with faith. You are most loving and most faithful in EVERY circumstance and I must live out that truth every day! Thank You for picking me up and letting me see the mud on my face! Now that You have cleansed me from it all I can laugh at my foolishness! You are all I need!
Did I anticipate the good in the situations I faced? Well, I can't say I did in all cases. Yep, here I am "anticipating" and I take a small little trip over the edge of forgetfulness. I forgot to anticipate the good that God has for me in every situation. I let my emotions guide me.
Lesson: Let faith guide me not my emotions! Don't just SAY what I believe but DO it!
Father, Please forgive me for not acting on the trust I have in You! forgive my failure to live my life with faith. You are most loving and most faithful in EVERY circumstance and I must live out that truth every day! Thank You for picking me up and letting me see the mud on my face! Now that You have cleansed me from it all I can laugh at my foolishness! You are all I need!
Saturday, May 16, 2009
God Sees
It is very comforting to know that God sees and looks after me. I know He is aware of everything that happens to me. He is all knowing about my thoughts, fears, issues and even those of people that influence me. He sees me and looks after me in all things.
My Lord sees me with love and tenderness, but He also sees me with truth and reality. He will ask me to do difficult tasks, but He will constantly watch over me. He sees all. He sees my sin, and He knows my heart and my actions.
It is embarrassing to know that He sees my secret sins. Knowing that He watches sometimes stops me, but there are times that I choose the momentary pleasure over Him. Going to Him with a humble and contrite heart, a broken spirit, reveals to me His choice to be blinded to my sin. Yes, He sees but chooses to not see that which I place in the nail scarred hands of Jesus. I am forgiven. I am free. I am righteous before Him when I trust in Jesus.
All seeing, All knowing God, you are so merciful and kind to me a sinner! You see me and help me to change. You see me and accept me as holy. You choose for me the way of forgiveness and love. I can only choose You!
My Lord sees me with love and tenderness, but He also sees me with truth and reality. He will ask me to do difficult tasks, but He will constantly watch over me. He sees all. He sees my sin, and He knows my heart and my actions.
It is embarrassing to know that He sees my secret sins. Knowing that He watches sometimes stops me, but there are times that I choose the momentary pleasure over Him. Going to Him with a humble and contrite heart, a broken spirit, reveals to me His choice to be blinded to my sin. Yes, He sees but chooses to not see that which I place in the nail scarred hands of Jesus. I am forgiven. I am free. I am righteous before Him when I trust in Jesus.
All seeing, All knowing God, you are so merciful and kind to me a sinner! You see me and help me to change. You see me and accept me as holy. You choose for me the way of forgiveness and love. I can only choose You!
Friday, April 10, 2009
Prayer Garden
This has been a tough day for me so far, not the day I had planned and certainly not the outcomes I wanted. The only thing good about today so far is that I can finally put to rest a controversy in which I've been involved. And then there is the Word of God that has come to me in spite of all my struggles with pride and anger.
Gethsemane. A garden of olive trees. A place of solitude and a place to get close to God. Jesus went there often and found it the place where He could accept the will of the Father over His own fears of pain, humiliation, rejection, and betrayal. It may seem odd but today this place at my computer is my garden of prayer.
His words stir something in me: "Sit here, while I pray." I sit here while He prays for me! He is interceding on my behalf. I am just here. I am with Him. I need His prayers and I feel at peace.
"Remain here and watch," He told Peter, James and John as they went a little further away from the rest. Remain here. Watch. Watch Jesus pray. Watch Him commune with His Father. Remain. "I am the vine you are the branches, If a man remains in Me and I in him he will bear much fruit. Apart from Me you can do nothing." John 15:5 I remain with Him. I allow His life to flow through me. I can do nothing without Him. He has given me a promise of much fruit.
Then talking directly to Peter, Jesus says "Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation." Watch out for the temptation. Watch for the weakness of the flesh. Sleep comes when I should watch. I may miss my moment, my God moment. Pray. Prayer strengthens my spirit and my bond with my God.
No matter how many times I sleep when I should watch and pray, Jesus is always at prayer for me. He never fails. He is always ready for anything that might come. He is strong when I am weak.
Father, forgive her she does not know what she is doing! She does not know that I take the cup of her sin. She does not know my love for her is complete. She does not know that my plan for her will be fulfilled. Forgive her!
Gethsemane. A garden of olive trees. A place of solitude and a place to get close to God. Jesus went there often and found it the place where He could accept the will of the Father over His own fears of pain, humiliation, rejection, and betrayal. It may seem odd but today this place at my computer is my garden of prayer.
His words stir something in me: "Sit here, while I pray." I sit here while He prays for me! He is interceding on my behalf. I am just here. I am with Him. I need His prayers and I feel at peace.
"Remain here and watch," He told Peter, James and John as they went a little further away from the rest. Remain here. Watch. Watch Jesus pray. Watch Him commune with His Father. Remain. "I am the vine you are the branches, If a man remains in Me and I in him he will bear much fruit. Apart from Me you can do nothing." John 15:5 I remain with Him. I allow His life to flow through me. I can do nothing without Him. He has given me a promise of much fruit.
Then talking directly to Peter, Jesus says "Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation." Watch out for the temptation. Watch for the weakness of the flesh. Sleep comes when I should watch. I may miss my moment, my God moment. Pray. Prayer strengthens my spirit and my bond with my God.
No matter how many times I sleep when I should watch and pray, Jesus is always at prayer for me. He never fails. He is always ready for anything that might come. He is strong when I am weak.
Father, forgive her she does not know what she is doing! She does not know that I take the cup of her sin. She does not know my love for her is complete. She does not know that my plan for her will be fulfilled. Forgive her!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Withered Fig Tree Faith
Remember the fig tree that was cursed by Jesus? Well, the disciples and Jesus again passed by the tree and found it withered away to its roots. Good old Peter pointed out to Jesus what He had done as if Jesus wouldn't believe that His words would be so powerful.
It is as if Jesus replied to Peters' observation by saying:" You want to see power? I'll show you power! This is how you can have my power." It was then that Jesus spoke words that had the power of dying words, teaching words that simply spoke the message Jesus came to give.
"Have faith in God." Jesus spoke the most powerful of these words at the onset of this teaching moment. He is God! He is telling all of us to have faith in Him, trust and believe.
He then tells us that there will be challenges, like mountains, we need to overcome. They can be removed just like the fig tree dried up: Words, spoken in faith, believing in and trusting God will hold power to remove the obstacles to having faith in God.
Again, Jesus tells us that if we ask in prayer and believe we will have faith.
Finally, Jesus wraps it all up with forgiveness. He asks us to forgive anything and everything so that the Father will forgive us. This, too, takes faith.
Jesus teaches us that to find faith in God we must remove any obstacles by speaking our belief, praying and finally forgiving. What a beautiful lesson to learn under a cursed tree: Have faith in God.
God, You are the place where our faith begins and ends. It is taught at the foot of a tree You cursed for our sakes. I humbly thank You!
It is as if Jesus replied to Peters' observation by saying:" You want to see power? I'll show you power! This is how you can have my power." It was then that Jesus spoke words that had the power of dying words, teaching words that simply spoke the message Jesus came to give.
"Have faith in God." Jesus spoke the most powerful of these words at the onset of this teaching moment. He is God! He is telling all of us to have faith in Him, trust and believe.
He then tells us that there will be challenges, like mountains, we need to overcome. They can be removed just like the fig tree dried up: Words, spoken in faith, believing in and trusting God will hold power to remove the obstacles to having faith in God.
Again, Jesus tells us that if we ask in prayer and believe we will have faith.
Finally, Jesus wraps it all up with forgiveness. He asks us to forgive anything and everything so that the Father will forgive us. This, too, takes faith.
Jesus teaches us that to find faith in God we must remove any obstacles by speaking our belief, praying and finally forgiving. What a beautiful lesson to learn under a cursed tree: Have faith in God.
God, You are the place where our faith begins and ends. It is taught at the foot of a tree You cursed for our sakes. I humbly thank You!
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Expendable Relationships
There seems to be a growing number of people who believe that relationships are expendable. That means that they do not believe that relationships were meant to last and they can easily be replaced by someone else. This seems to be true of friendships as well as marriage partners.
The divorce rate keeps inching upwards and no family seems to be immune to the influences of divorce. Friendships are changable over the smallest of errors or percieved afronts. Because of the fluid movement of our society people feel free to drop friends in one city or state and find new ones in another.
As I look over the list of friends I've lost touch with over time I am saddened. I know there is no possible way to keep close all the friends of the past and present , but I believe past friends are still a treasure and a precious gift.
Forgiveness can prolong relationships that have been hurt, and correspondence through letters, Christmas cards, and emails can revive far off friendships. So why do we let relationships die instead of making an effort to remind the person that they have made a difference in our lives? Maybe they really need to hear it now. What might be happening in their lives that a sweet voice of a friend could cheer?
I don't want expendable relationships so it is time to make a call or two!
The divorce rate keeps inching upwards and no family seems to be immune to the influences of divorce. Friendships are changable over the smallest of errors or percieved afronts. Because of the fluid movement of our society people feel free to drop friends in one city or state and find new ones in another.
As I look over the list of friends I've lost touch with over time I am saddened. I know there is no possible way to keep close all the friends of the past and present , but I believe past friends are still a treasure and a precious gift.
Forgiveness can prolong relationships that have been hurt, and correspondence through letters, Christmas cards, and emails can revive far off friendships. So why do we let relationships die instead of making an effort to remind the person that they have made a difference in our lives? Maybe they really need to hear it now. What might be happening in their lives that a sweet voice of a friend could cheer?
I don't want expendable relationships so it is time to make a call or two!
Friday, October 31, 2008
Intimacy
Intimacy begins in the mind. It is our mind that makes the choices that govern our actions.
As a wife I am responsible to channel my thoughts towards my husband. My husband is to channel his thoughts towards me. Sometimes this takes effort. Sometimes it flows naturally.
When I have been offended or hurt by my darling husband (Yes, it does happen occasionally) it takes effort to turn my thoughts to him in a positive and loving way. The hurt can be forgiven immediately, but there are times when the the hurt leaves a wound that needs time to heal. It is a tenuous time while tending to the wound. Will he wait for the wound to heal? Will he find me cold and unwilling to get things back to our normal loving and intimate relationship, when in reality I am working hard to get back what was lost? I must believe he is questioning the same!
Of course there are times when we are in sync! We flow towards each other without effort. We desire to open ourselves and become vulnerable. We have no fear of being hurt because we trust and love one another completely. In these moments we have no questions as to the others intentions or commitment. We do not wonder if we understand each other. We know that we do.
I do wish there were never times when we close ourselves to each other out of fear of being hurt, but in this fallen world it happens much too often. The truth is that love remains. Love is strong between us because God is in our lives and God is love! It is Gods' love that draws me back to loving even when I hurt. It is Gods' love that binds us together.
Today is always a new day to work on healing the wounds and to turn our thoughts towards the other in love. Tomorrow things may flow because of the work we do today! Romance will come!
I see its sparkling shimmer just around the corner! I hope you do too!
As a wife I am responsible to channel my thoughts towards my husband. My husband is to channel his thoughts towards me. Sometimes this takes effort. Sometimes it flows naturally.
When I have been offended or hurt by my darling husband (Yes, it does happen occasionally) it takes effort to turn my thoughts to him in a positive and loving way. The hurt can be forgiven immediately, but there are times when the the hurt leaves a wound that needs time to heal. It is a tenuous time while tending to the wound. Will he wait for the wound to heal? Will he find me cold and unwilling to get things back to our normal loving and intimate relationship, when in reality I am working hard to get back what was lost? I must believe he is questioning the same!
Of course there are times when we are in sync! We flow towards each other without effort. We desire to open ourselves and become vulnerable. We have no fear of being hurt because we trust and love one another completely. In these moments we have no questions as to the others intentions or commitment. We do not wonder if we understand each other. We know that we do.
I do wish there were never times when we close ourselves to each other out of fear of being hurt, but in this fallen world it happens much too often. The truth is that love remains. Love is strong between us because God is in our lives and God is love! It is Gods' love that draws me back to loving even when I hurt. It is Gods' love that binds us together.
Today is always a new day to work on healing the wounds and to turn our thoughts towards the other in love. Tomorrow things may flow because of the work we do today! Romance will come!
I see its sparkling shimmer just around the corner! I hope you do too!
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