Difficult People

"We should love one another" 1 John 3:10

There are people in my life that are difficult to love. No matter how much I limit my time with them or am around them, I have a difficult time loving them. I dread seeing them. I dislike how just their presence creates tension in my world. I abhor how I allow them to make me feel.

I have tried praying...I have tried ignoring...I have tried kindness. What I have found is that I can't force it...I just don't like spending time with them.

In light of my last post and my 2012 mantra of "Living in Love", I need to figure this out. My heart is not speaking from love.

"For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything" 1 John 3:19

1 John discusses loving one another. This is a chapter that I will be reading...and rereading this year. I need it to pour into my soul. I need to feel it...to believe it.

"We love because He first loved us" 1 John 3:20

God loves me so much that He sent his only son to die for MY sins. He loves me so much that there is a place in His heart that only I can fill! ME?! How is that possible?

I can be difficult to love at times. I can be moody. I can be angry and hateful. Who isn't? But...He still loves me. He shows grace to ME!

Who am I to think that it is not my responsibility to extend the same grace to others...to these difficult to love people?

So I will continue to pray...pray for them...pray for me...continue to ask God to soften those hard places in my heart. I will continue to "act as if" these things are completed in me...until I no longer have to act...because...now...I love these people...and see them as children of God that are hurting. Then I will pray that God heals them and softens the hard places on their hearts.

Or maybe...I have it wrong...maybe I need to pray both things at the same time.

How do you deal with difficult people?

Living in Love

"Let your gentleness be evident to all" Philippians 4:5

My mission statement for 2012 is "Living in Love". I want to be more loving. I recently read the following prayer: God please soften the hard places of my hearth.

There are definitely hard places that are in need of being softened in my heart.

"God has not given us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love and sound judgement"
2 Timothy 1:7

The bible states that we are not to be fearful. Today I read both the Philippians verse and the 2 Timothy one. This is confusing to me and speaks to my heart at the same time. Gentleness and not showing fear feel like an oxymoron to me. Gentleness can feel like vulnerability...vulnerability can feel like weakness...weakness can feel like fear. However, I love how God put this out there for me to see it. If I want to "Live in Love", it will take a fearless spirit to show my gentleness.

I asked God to take my life and use me for His will...to help me by emptying me of me & filling me with Him. Basically, help me, Lord, to let go of my control on my life. Help me by speaking to me and guiding me for Your plans for me.

Then I read Isaiah 48:17:
"I am the Lord your God
Who teaches you what is best for you
who directs you in the way you should go"

From today's devotional , I got the following: gentleness, fearlessness, and allow God to teach me. If I release my control and allow God to guide my life, He will show me how to be fearlessly gentle.

Wow...powerful stuff! How blessed am I to be loved by a God that speaks to my heart so that He can smooth over the rough spots?

Day 2 of 30- God Moments

"I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord" Jeremiah 24:7

I am truly blessed to be surrounded by people that hear God speak, experience His grace, and are willing to share these experiences with me. Today I am thankful for:

God Moments!
(This post has nothing to do with the lake but this picture just "felt" like God to me...peaceful and serene)

My husband has a hereditary eye disease called Retinoschisis. As he ages, his eyesight is deteriorating. Reading in the mornings is becoming more difficult for him...maybe because his mind/eye connection is not "awake" yet. That being said, he was feeling frustrated and sad this morning when he struggled to read something. Yesterday, he and I went for a 3 mile run. During this run, we met a blind gentlemen who was taking a morning walk. After we said "Good Morning" to him, his response was "Good Morning! It's nice to see you today"! Wowwwwww!!! Talk about perspective! My husband remembered that moment when he was struggling this morning. He felt that it was God speaking to him that things could be worse! This was his God moment that he shared with me!

I was then speaking with my best friend whose father is slowly dying. This friend is caring for her father and experiencing some wonderful moments with him right now. However, there is one subject that she needed to talk to him about and get affirmation and closure on. She has been hesitant to bring it up because it felt negative. Last night, they were sitting around talking about everything. He brought up a subject that opened the door for her to be able to state these feelings that she was having. They were able to talk about it in a gentle, kind, and loving way. He was so wonderful to affirm her and she now has closure on this matter. It was almost like God spoke to her father and said "She needs this conversation". That was her God moment that she shared with me!

Again, I feel so blessed to have these people in my life...to remind me to look for and experience God's love. There are times that we don't hear His voice...but His actions speak deeply to our hearts.

Be still

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God"~~Psalms 46:10

A little over a year ago, I felt God speaking to me...asking me to be still! I felt that He had a specific plan for how this was to look. It didn't "sound" right to me. It didn't fit into "my plan".

However, here I am...at the place that He wanted me to be...with His plan complete. I am in awe of His power, His glory, His grace, and His mercy because I didn't make this easy. I was disobedient...argumentative...bargaining...and at times, down right bratty! I am exactly where he wants me!

What is different now than before is that I am not hearing what His plan is from here. I just keep hearing "Be Still". For a "Human Do-er" like me, it's hard just to be a "Human Be-ing". I don't listen well...I find something else to do...I run! So now I am nursing a foot injury...I have no choice...

...I don't do well sitting in quietness...in stillness!

I guess His plan is BE STILL...know that I am God...

...I am still curious to see how this plays out!!!

Why I Run...

I often get asked "Why do you run?". Good question...without one easy answer. So...I have decided to give 10 good reasons why I run...

#10- Because there ARE people chasing me...they are called the COMPETITION!

#9- Because I am (almost) 42 and I can!

#8- Because there are so many cute running outfits to buy!!!

#7- Because it doesn't matter whether I come in first, last, or in the middle...I HAVE CROSSED THE FINISH LINE!!!

#6- Because running makes me push myself farther than I thought that I could go!

#5- Because it gives me a reason to travel with my friends!

#4- Because it makes me a nicer person!

#3- Because I want to teach, by example, these 2 sweet girls that GIRLS CAN DO ANYTHING THEY WANT TO DO!

#2- Because I want to be around to celebrate many more wedding anniversaries with this guy!

#1- Because my Father has blessed me with the ability to run...I want to make Him proud!

Perspective

Have you ever seen that picture where if you look at it one way it's a young woman but look at it a different way it's an old lady? To me, that's a good example of perspective. It's the old adage of the glass is half empty or half full. I think perspective is so important with the climate of our economy. It's very easy to allow the gloom and doom attitude to get you down...or running in fear!

Perspective is also important in relationships. Every person has his/her own beliefs that can contradict another person's beliefs. Does that make one person right and the other one wrong? Not necessarily. Often, arguments occur because each person's perspective is different. Once again, does that make one person right and the other one wrong? Maybe. It depends on the incident. Just because I BELIEVE I am right, doesn't mean that I am...and it doesn't mean I am wrong either. My hope is that, when faced with an adverse situation, that I can see another person's perspective. Basically, put myself in someone else's shoes. Hopefully, it will help me be more compassionate, understanding, and considerate to others.

The only thing that I ask is that you do the same for me.