A Gateway to Self Knowledge

#945   Lift Your Spirits

Here are some ideas to help you feel better:

(1) Fill your mind with happiness-producing thoughts. Create an encouraging inner voice.

(2) Remember the positive moments of your life. Re-experience the positive feelings you had when you lived through those moments.

(3) Get in touch with your moments of strength. When you felt strong, how did you create those feelings?

(4) Increase your sense of meaning in life by doing meaningful things.

(5) Create enjoyable mental imagery. Visualize yourself being joyous.

(6) View your depressed feelings as a challenge that can eventually help you to elevate yourself.

(7) Find some positive way of looking at each event and situation in your life.

(8) Keep a diary of the good things that happen to you.

(9) Keep a self-mastery journal to give you a greater sense of empowerment.

(10) Engage in physical exercises such as brisk walking or running.

(11) List ten reasons why you can feel better even though you are experiencing difficulties.

(12) Each day, do acts of kindness for others.
(For a series of probing questions on this topic, see Rabbi Pliskin's "Gateway to Self Knowledge," p.193-7)

Attitude and Attention

“And He called the people to [Him] again and said to them, Listen to Me, all of you, and understand [what I say]. There is not [even] one thing outside a man which by going into him can pollute and defile him; but the things which come out of a man are what defile him and make him unhallowed and unclean. If any man has ears to hear, let him be listening [and let him perceive and comprehend by hearing].” Mark 7:14-16 AMP

Two things that come out of us that can pollute us are ATTITUDE and ATTENTION

Do we just give to much stinking ATTENTION to offenses, defenses, bad behaviors, upsets, hurts, feelings, thoughts??? I believe there is a time and a place to look at these things and deal with them approprietly. I  think by the time we are hyper-aware of them we are out of balance and start hobbling down the road with a flat and too much wieght on one wheel getting our rim all bent up.

The bible says ...great peace to those who love thy law and nothing shall offend thee....well what about when I dont have great peace because for the UM-TEENTH time I am offended by Mr. Dear Hubby who leaves all his mess for me to clean up. Tracks mud or whatever across that freshly mopped floor???

Could that problem lead straight from my ATTITUDE!!! They say to cultivate an attitude of gratitude ....
well how about teaching those men from the beginning to respect your work in the house as a wife and mom and women by checking those shoes before they come in....

Is it possible that the reason we dont have a positive attitude and we are hyper-aware in our attention to offense is that when we begin relationships ( or continue in relationships)  in any setting...be it romantic, friendship, business...we always try to put our so-called best self forward (that is wordage for not being real) we are overly obliging and overly understanding when the truth is if we would let others know truthfully and honestly from the beginning when things hurt us, bother us, annoy us....(we may learn faster from our own honesty as well , as to when we are out of balance --ie. when we are starting to get a flat --like really really just having a bad attitude) they would know the real us....not the painted face. 

Husbands would know from the beginning what will drive their wife crazy and they can avoid it....instead of this nice "ohhhhhhhhh thats ok hunny dont worry about it I will get it ..*wink and smile*" then 5 years later she is a raging mess of hot anger ready to FREAK OUT in her ATTITUDE AND ATTENTION...

So..the best remedy for not being POLLUTED from the inside out...is HONESTY!! is TRUTH

Stop lying to yourself and everyone else and you will probably stop being offended all the time

(disclaimer: people dont always like the truth so when you start being real ...it wont be peaches and cream....so try not to be offended by their anger that you are suddenly truthful, be real and keep your eyes of Jesus :0)

F & L'er
Starla

Don't Worry Be Happy = )

Happiness is the peace of mind that comes from feeling that I am living a worthy life in the company of people I love and in the service of something bigger than myself.

Have a great day!

Tina Smith

Someone once said, "Success is when those who know you the best are those who love you the most."

Monday Motto - Be Realistic and Honest

Monday Motto : Be Realistic and Honest


Proverbs 25:14 Who ever falsely boasts of gifts [he does not give] is like clouds and wind without rain.

This past week I wrote a post called HELD ACCOUNTABLE. In that post I mentioned taking a spiritual gifts test where I scored a total of 1 out of 15 in the category of Mercy. ( I was not happy about that!! ) :0(

In this verse is states that who ever falsely boasts of gifts ....I would have told you that I am a fairly merciful person...because I love people ...and I can empathize with others....and I want to help people....(I don’t like to look bad ) But the reality is when it comes to --dictionary.com definition: being compassionate or having kindly forbearance toward an offender or an enemy --- I personally would like to show them the letter of the law. I dont have natural mercy for offenders....but if I find others are unkind to someone and my feelings become affected I want to defend them --i dont know if that mercy or not...???

When you believe something or speak something that is not true then -- we become -- a cloud and wind without rain. Believing and speaking things that are not real are good for nothing, just a passing cloud that is here today and gone tomorrow ---they hold no weight!!! ...no substance...

It is only when we can be honest with ourselves and others that we are able to do something about what IS...

God desires that we call those things that be not, as though they were. (Romans 4:17)

I can not have faith to be more merciful if I am not willing to be honest about how non-merciful I am. Only then ....when I am realistic...seeing truthfully....can I have FAITH to call forth the MERCY of God up out of the SPIRIT that lives within me. As long as I falsely believe I am ok....I am only relying of my own WORKS of RIGHTEOUSNESS. Those false beliefs make me in need of MERCY...

Lord thank you that you know how to show us TRUTH about our humanness and need for you. That we can see YOU, that we can rely on you to be what we are weak in through your strength and not our own. Thank you that I can see that while I am not so merciful, I am however in need of much mercy and that you Lord are the ultimate source of MERCY for us all.

F & L'er
Starla

Held Accountable

 The other night I had a dream and in my dream my BFF says to me :

Great understanding is hard to percieve when your flipping channels like morning T.V.

ohhhhhhhhh PROFOUND!!

So I tell Tina what she says to me in my dream and she's like "Hey that's pretty good!"   --right???  she is the one who told me...lol haha

So that same day that I told her about this dream I took this spiritual gifts test that our Pastor handed out to us at church. I had been putting this test off for like a week or so..... (I know, I know...your thinking WHY!!??)

 Well I was a little worried how low I would score in some areas......I took the test and I scored a total of 1 point in MERCY!  I was so mad, upset, bothered and driving myself nuts over it that I talked about it for 3 days after that. My BFF gets me on the MSN chat and asks me some questions....she notices everything...BFF's are good at that! :0) LOL

Well while she is asking me questions trying to get me to get to the bottom of why this MERCY thing is driving me crazy....I change the subject a little ...AND GUESS WHAT SHE SAYS TO ME??????!!!

Well your off that subject on to something else, reminds me of that dream thing about flippin channels....

BUSTED!!!!!   HELD ACCOUNTABLE  ....that is Friendships of Love in ACTION form.

Know ---I know she wants to know about me

Share ---I shared my dream with her

Serve ---she serves me the TRUTH and helps me to grow.

How often do we just get offended when we have a person in our life that will hold us accountable??

She called me out!!  Truth is I am not all that great on Mercy....if you screw up-- you get to eat what you baked in my book.....but I did scored high on Exhortation ...so I will lift you up and tell you that you can make it through when you screw up but I am not gonna let you slide and act like you didn't do it. --although at times I secretly hope others will do that for me  :0)

The best I can do since I scored 1 point ...is KEEP MY MOUTH SHUT!! but I'm sure you'll still get my vibe.

F & L'er

Starla