Thank God for fatigue. It is your body telling you you have to rest. That is a good thing. “Speed” kills you for it overrides that message and given enough time you keep going and eventually your body deteriorates from within. Rest is a period your body recovers. If you consistently don’t sleep enough you don’t feel well for during sleep your body rejuvenates itself so observe the messages your body is telling you. Your body is an incredibly complex piece of machinery.
Tags: fatigue, God, listening to your body, rejuvenating quality of sleep, resting, sleep, speed kills, thank God, your body
Posted in balance, death, God, health, knowledge&learning, life, mental health, time |
If we are not our brother’s keeper continue to house most of the mentally ill in jails. After all, who cares if they get put in isolation wards when they misbehave there. So that is a form of torture. They usually are put on the cheapest medications not always the proper ones. Families are being destroyed not to say anything of the individuals there. I am sure the suicide rate is high.
I saw this coming decades ago when the states started closing down their state hospitals. The money did not follow into community services but just “evaporated”. Hospitalizations are very expensive. Partials are very cost effective. There is no way a person can be stabilized in a few days. At least in a partial you can be monitored over a long period of time. The therapeutic level of a psychotropic medication is often one to two weeks.
Are we our brother’s keeper? Yes! Yes! We are commanded to take care of the weak, the infirm, those in poverty and the mentally ill. We can not turn our heads to them. Each individual must do his/her part to alleviate their suffering. Our society has become so far away from that. So do your part no matter the role you take. It is never too late to start.
Tags: alleviate suffering, brother's keeper, closing state hospitals, community services, do your part, God, mental illness and jails, never too late to start, partials, psychotropic medication, society, take care of the infirm, take care of the mentally ill, take care of the weak, take care of those in poverty, therapeutic level of medications
Posted in balance, God, knowledge&learning, life, mental health, relationships, wisdom |
I have to thank God even for the wet and cold days. My sister lives in California and they are experiencing a severe prolonged drought. Not us. Thank God for small favors and thank you for the rain.
Tags: God, my sister, prolonged drought in California, thank God, thank God for small favors, thank you for the rain, wet and cold days
Posted in balance, God, local, seasons |
I was struggling to fall asleep for five or six nights. I knew it was due to anxiety which was caused by fear. I happened to open up a book I had on faith and found several passages I had underlined. The words were just what I needed to allay my anxiety. I kept referring to them the next few days. I started sleeping better. And not taking so long to fall asleep. It was a book I had not opened in a long time. I must have been dealing with similar issues before. It was just the right words I needed to hear. Books can be lifesavers.
Tags: anxiety, books can be lifesavers, faith, falling asleep quickly, fear, God, sleep
Posted in balance, God, knowledge&learning, local, mental health, time |
It is so easy to become unhappy. It is so easy to center on what you don’t have. I have to center on the multiple blessings I have been given: food, shelter, a loving wife. Humans have the capacity to want things they don’t have. It only makes me unhappy. For the rest of the Christmas season and New Year I will thank the Lord for the many blessings I have been given. There is so much I have to thank the Lord for. I will think about those things the rest of the year.
Tags: blessings, Christmas, count your blessings, food and shelter, God, gratitude, it is so easy to become unhappy, loving wife, multiple blessings, New Year, thank God, thank the Lord
Posted in balance, God, knowledge&learning, life, local, love, marriage, mental health, seasons, time, wisdom |
Every day is a gift. And a miracle. There is no way to get around that but to lead a life of despair. I chose not to do that. Every thing in my life is only by grace. I chose to believe every day is a miracle. And sometimes I wallow in despair. And have to work through it. The dawn is always around the next corner. In fact, it is right in front of you. And life can be bitter and contain much loss and pain. I have to work through it. And walk toward the Light–the Light that is always there. And sometimes I stop seeing it. It is there but my vision is clouded. I have to remove the blinders over and over. It is a process. I chose to believe every day is a miracle. There is no other way to live. The only other choice is despair.
Tags: dawn around the corner, dawn right in front of you, despair needs to be worked through, every day a miracle occurs, every day is a gift, every thing is by grace, God, grace, life can be bitter, life of despair, much loss and pain, remove the blinders, sometimes stop seeing the Light, The Light, the Light is always there, vision clouded, walk toward the Light, wallow in despair
Posted in balance, beauty, God, health, knowledge&learning, life, mental health, seasons, time, wisdom |
Everything is by grace. I was taking a shower today and had to remind myself the house I lived in before had no shower and for fifteen years I could not take a shower. I remember being thrilled every time we were in a motel: they had showers. I thought about all that briefly. Everything is by grace–even a shower.
Tags: Everything is by grace even a shower, everything-is-by-grace, God, grace, taking a shower
Posted in balance, God, local, time, wisdom |
Praise the Lord I can feed my seven cats and four dogs. The dogs are large dogs between seventy-five and ninety pounds so it take quite a bit dog food to feed them. The cats are not as bad although we get special cat food for them: one cat needs a certain diet and we can’t feed him that and not the rest of the six cats a cheaper cat food. And that does not include the bird seed I put out and the suet cakes for the woodpeckers. It is only by grace I can do all those things. Some families who are broke or unemployed would love to have the money we spend just on our pets (and bird seed). Praise the Lord for all that.
Tags: bird feeding, bird food, birds, cat food, cats, dog food, dogs, feeding our pets and birds, four dogs, God, large dogs, our provisions are only by grace, our seven cats and four dogs, pets, praise the Lord, seven cats, suet cakes, woodpeckers
Posted in animals, birds, God, life, local, nature, pets, relationships |
Give us today our daily bread. The prayer we give every day is God satisfies our daily needs. This is illustrated by one of Jesus’ parables. A farmer had a great crop and he built a gigantic store house. And Jesus came to him and called him a fool. Jesus informed him his time has come. You don’t have to stock up. He will take care of us every day. And it is a day at a time. That should be our prayer: He fulfills all our physical needs a day at a time. Each day you face.
Tags: "give us our daily bread", a day at a time, God, God satisfies, Jesus, no need to stock up, our daily prayer, parable, prayer
Posted in balance, death, God, knowledge&learning, life, mental health, money, relationships, time, wisdom |
Peace always revolves around grace. Each party commits mistakes. Conflict always exists. There can not be peace without grace. And grace does not come about without forgiveness.
If you talk about conflict between nations, there are always atrocities committed by both parties. Conflict is on-going. The only thing that breaks the vicious cycle is forgiveness. We don’t earn that. Only grace enables a nation to forgive the other. Then the cycle is broken. It is done one person at a time.
Let us get more specific. Let us talk briefly about Iraq. Thousands of civilians in that country lost their lives in the fray and civil unrest. No one talks about them. Many civilians died. Many people are mourning their close relatives who died there. Yes, many Americans died there or were injured, too. And their survivors are mourning them, also.
There is only one thing that will stop the carnage–forgiveness brought on by grace. And as I said before you can’t earn it. Each party has to forgive the other. Vengeance does not solve anything. That only happens by grace.
Tags: conflict, forgiveness, God, grace, peace, peace and grace and forgiveness, war and conflict in Iraq
Posted in death, God, knowledge&learning, life, politics, relationships, time, wisdom |
It is easier to spend less than to make more. Your money goes further. There is no end of desiring more and more. Less not more. Being satisfied with what you have is the trick. There is a reason thou shall not covet is one of the ten commandments. There is no end to coveting. You want more and more the more you have. It is just easier to be satisfied with the portion the Lord has given you. And there is less and more from the beginning of the ages. And the commercials you see on TV feed on that desire: you have to have this. You have to have that. A bigger car. A bigger house. A bigger TV. The list is endless. Then you will be happy. It is all lies. There is an end to this: just be happy with what you got. And thank the Lord for all his provisions. Give us our daily bread. That should be your prayer: give us today what I need. Our essentials. That is it.
Tags: avarice, be happy with what you have, bigger car, bigger house, bigger TV, coveting, coveting is one of the ten commandments, desiring more and more, God, less not more, money, our daily bread, our essentials, spend less, ten commandments, thank the Lord, the list is endless, the Lord, thou shall not covet, TV commercials, your prayer
Posted in balance, God, life, money, time, wisdom |
In the airport there milled around hundreds of people who were all strangers–maybe thousands. I would just people watch. They came in all ages, face and sizes. Some people were tall and others short. Their faces were all different. I could only marvel at God’s diversity. I kept expecting to run into a friendly and familiar face. This was unrealistic. In my town of less than a thousand I keep bumping into someone I have never seen so I don’t know know why I should expect that.
Tags: airport, God, God's diversity, hundreds of people, strangers, strangers at airport terminals
Posted in God, life, local, relationships, time |
