Where Have I Been?

I've been dreaming of a White Christmas...Just like the one's I used to know.

Look upward seeking God's will in your life...

Look outward desiring to help other's...

Look inward maintaining a deliberate and devoted faith...

I'm so excited we have a big surprise planned for Christmas...stay tuned to find out!

Transformed: Day 30 of 30 Days of Positive!

Romans 12:2

...be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind...

Cricket's translation: change your thought pattern- what goes into your mind comes out in your life.

Wow, it's done! 30 days of positive, I did it. It has been a beautiful, rewarding experience. The last 30 days have been awesome. My mind and heart have been exactly where God has intended them to be. Everyday I prayed and meditated on each positve post that I made to make sure it was the right one. I've wrote some that I've never submitted because they just didn't settle in my soul. I truly have been on a positive journey these last 30 days and feel I am in a better place in my life because of it. I felt accountable to all that follow this blog- I felt it a necessity to make sure I was in tune with what God wanted me to post for me & for you.

I started this idea while I was re-reading "The Power of Positive Thinking" by Norman Vincent Peale. I read it last year and decided to read it again and decided to follow some of his thought patterns. The funny thing is he wrote the book in 1952 and he advised making a list of positives on paper for 30 days. I guess I updated it to the 2008 version by making it the focus on my blog. I felt if I had others to hold me accountable I would be less likely to fail. It worked, but I found instead of writing the positives as a daily chore they became more of a daily birth of my heart and mind. My heart and my mind have been forever changed. I find if a negative thought even creeps into my mind now I can feel it. I feel it like I feel a bug crawling on my leg or a cramp in my stomach. I feel ugly and useless and immediately throw that thought to the curb.

I want to thank each of you that have followed and responded via email, phone calls , with a comment in person or by commenting on the blog itself. You all have inspired me to be better and to think better- Thanks... Who knows maybe my New Years Resolution will be 365 Days of Positive??? It has been suggested by my sister and I feel she may be right.

I Love You All- Have A Great Day- Your Mind is New... & Your Heart Changed!

Gift Suggestions: Day 29 of 30 Days of Positive!

Christmas gift suggestions:

To your enemy, forgiveness.

To an opponent, tolerance.

To a friend, your heart.

To a customer, service.

To all, charity.

To every child, a good example.

To yourself, respect.

Be Thankful For Work: Day 28 of 30 Days of Positive!

Never work just for power and money. They won't save your soul or help you sleep at night.

Marian Wright Edelman

-from the fruit of his lips a man is filled with good things as surely as the work of his hands rewards him.

Proverbs 12:14

I long to accomplish a great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. The world is moved along, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushes of each honest worker.

Helen Keller


Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.

Thomas Edison



So this morning I had to run to the grocery store to pick up a few things. I immediately noticed the man replenishing the produce, he was happily whistling the Twelve Days of Christmas as he worked. In one of the isles another man was stocking the crackers and he too was humming a little tune and acknowledged me with a big, "Good Morning." Then as I was checking out the joyful voice and intriguing story of the bag boy in the lane behind me caught my attention. He was talking with the elderly couple that were checking out , and upon hearing his voice I immediately smiled. You know the type. The "older jolly grandpa voice" the voice that brings you comfort- He was telling the little couple about an episode of "Johny Carson" from years ago. Apparently Johny had a 144 year old guest on the show and he was asked his secret to living so long. The 144 year old said "I never let a day go by with out happily accomplishing something." The man checking out then asked the bagger how old he was, and he answered 88. I put 2 and 2 together and figured out that they too were taken with him. They must have commented on his great attitude while bagging their groceries, which led him to his Johny Carson story. Wow I thought- so happy just to be working, so happy just to talk to people...and 88 years old! He was adorable and he made my day! My post for the day too-
I hope my attitude may always be like those Publix employees while I am working. I also hope that I too will be as grateful as that 88 year old seems to be.
What a great morning- I was blessed! Thanks-

You Can! Day 27 of 30 Days of Positive!

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!
Phillipians 4:13

Your Season is Coming: Day 26 of 30 Days of Positive!

Most of my youth was spent in Michigan & Pennsyslvania. The thing I miss most about those states are their beautiful seasons. Mother Earth's way of showing us that everything has it's moment, things are born, they change , they rest and next season they bloom again. This is Father God's way of showing us we too will bloom many times over the course of our lives and at different seasons. Have Faith, no one ever just "blooms" once!

In three words I can sum up everything I learned about life: it goes on.

Robert Frost

No Complaining: Day 25 of 30 Days of Positive!

No matter how small your paycheck was this week, No matter what the weather was like, No matter what the "grouchy lady" said to you, No matter how much you have -to-do, No matter how tight your jeans are, No matter who cut you off in traffic , No matter how messy your house gets, No matter how much "it " cost, No matter how tired you are, No matter how long you waited in line, No matter how hard you worked, No matter how "lucky" they are, No matter what time you had to get up, No matter how bad your bones are aching, No matter how much your electric bill was last month, No matter what- don't COMPLAIN!

Complaining does nothing good for anyone. It only brings you and the ones you complain to down and eventually if you let it it will keep you there. Don't get caught up in Complaining - it is a nasty trap!

In everything you do, stay away from complaining and arguing,

Philippians 2:14

A Complaining spirit is first a caller,



then a comforting guest,




and finally a master...a master leading you no where.

Accept Differences: Day 24 of 30 days of Positive!

I love my dogs just as they are- just like they love me just as I am! Pets are awesome...they don't try to change us, they love us when we're sad, when we're happy, when we're right and when we are wrong. They love us when we stink, or say the wrong thing, if we're too fat or too skinny. They like all our hairstyles, and any outfit that we are wearing. Pet's love our hearts. I too want to be more like my pets.

"Charlie" are big bundle of love.

Accept differences.
We are all unique, in our outlook, perceptions, attitudes, feelings, experiences, and history. There is no one just like us in the world. There never has been an exact duplicate of us, nor will there ever be one.

Differences make life interesting, and yes, challenging. Dealing with other people who see life differently makes for interesting relationships. Differences give life its opportunities for growth, insight, and awareness. The unfortunate thing is that these differences can often lead to unmanaged or unresolved conflict, stress, and disappointment.

People who live happy lives accept the uniqueness of individuals. They are not on a mission to change them, correct them or invalidate them. Happy people understand that everyone is on their own path throughout life doing what they need to do in order for them to fulfill their destiny.

Happy people also accept themselves for who they are, and who they are becoming. They are not in a rush to get to the end of the game. They are patient with themselves and others knowing that differences in human behavior is, just the way it is.

Who are you trying to change? Who in your life needs behavior or attitude modification? If you have a long list you have a lot of work to do on yourself before you will find true happiness.

Phoebe posing for the camera...she is a super model!

Focus: Day 23 of 30 Days of Positive!

WHAT YOU FOCUS ON GROWS!

GOOD

OR BAD!

Be Present: Day 22 of 30 Days of Positive!

Throw your "act" away so you may offer the "real" you to others and in return begin to live!

I heard a story once about an elderly married couple. They were at a newcomers' dessert-type thing, a get acquainted type party. As part of the introduction they were asked to share their "family motto." The elderly couple was the type you are easily drawn to. The gentleman had a twinkle in his eye, a spark, as if he had discovered the secret to life. His wife was a tiny woman who was described as being very present. She was not a woman in hiding, nor a woman afraid. She was a woman at rest, at home with herself and with all pistons firing. She was alive and beautiful.

The gentleman looked at his wife and asked, "Do we have a family motto?" She answered, "Well, it's been on the refrigerator for the past thirty years." He asked, What? Amana?" (the Brand name) After some laughter, this is what she shared. This is what she lived by. This is what she invited others into.

This is their motto:


Now we should live when the pulse of life is strong. Life is a tenuous thing...fragile, fleeting. Don't wait for tomorrow. Be here now! Be here now! Be here now!

Be here now. Be real and present in this moment. Do not continue to hide, so much will be lost. We cannot have friendship or intimacy with God or anyone else if we stay hidden and offer only who we think we ought to be or what we believe is wanted. Remove your face that you have learned is safe, remove it and be what God intended you to be. It's not by accident that you were born; it was not by chance that you have desires you do.


God really does want you to know who you are. He wants you to be able to understand the story of your life. To know where you've come from, and where you are going. There is freedom there. Freedom to be and to offer and to love.

So who are you? You are God's perfect design. You were chosen before time and space, and you are wholly and dearly loved. You are needed. You are needed to play out your role in this life. The role God intended for you.

So go and let your guard down- be you- the you God intended. He makes no mistakes and everything he makes is beautiful!

Do Something Good: Day 21 of 30 Days of Positive!

Do Something Good- Because You Never Know- You May Be Laying The Groundwork For Something Great!

** In the late nineteenth century, a member of Parliament traveled to Scotland to make a speech. He traveled to Edinburgh by train and then took a carriage southward to his destination. The carriage, however, became mired in the mud. A Scottish farm boy came to the rescue with a team of horses and pulled the carriage loose. The politician asked the boy how much he owed him, "Nothing," the lad replied. "Are you sure?" the politician pressed, but the boy declined payment. "Well, is there anything I can do for you? What do you want to be when you grow up?"The boy responded, "A doctor." The aristocratic Englishmen offered to help the young Scot go to the university, and he followed through on his pledge.
More than half a century later, Winston Churchill lay dangerously ill with pneumonia- stricken while attending a wartime conference in Morocco. A new wonder drug was administered to him- a drug called penicillin that had been discovered by Sir Alexander Fleming. Fleming was the young Scottish lad once befriended. His benefactor? Randolph Churchill, Winston's father!
Sometimes the good that we do may come back in the form of a miracle you need.

**

Don't be misled. Remember that you can't ignore God and get away with it. You will always reap what you sow! So don't get tired of doing what is good. Don't get discouraged and give up, for we will reap a harvest of blessing at the appropriate time.
Galatians 6:7,9 NLT

Just Have Fun! Day 20 of 30 days of Positive!

Try to do something "fun" everyday. Every ones "fun" is different but to everyone it is a necessity. It's a guide to show us we are on the right path, a sign that we are doing well and a confirmation that we are blessed.

*

"No man is a failure who is enjoying life & having fun."

"The more fun you have, the greater your value to yourself and to your society. The more fun you share with others, the more fun you have."

"A Playful path is the shortest road to happiness."



" He who does not get fun and enjoyment out of every day...needs to reorganize his life"

Look On The Bright Side: Day 19 of 30 Days of Positive!

For every negative that consumes your happiness,

Affirm two positives that sustain you.

For every "should've" you wish you'd done,

Acknowledge something you're glad you did.

For every loss that has altered your world,

Count from it something you have gained.

For every limit that has ever beset you,

Consider your possibilities.

You can't always change the way things are,

But you can change the way you wish to see them.

Never stop looking

For the brighter side and beyond.

A Good Example. Day 18 of 30 Days of Positive!

A good example is the best sermon.

Thankful! Day 17 of 30 Days of Positive!

Happy Thanksgiving



So I've been praying all night and morning on what to post. Thankful seemed almost a given being that it was Thanksgiving. I really wanted to come up with something eloquant or mystical...but God insisted I go with Thankful. I believe this is one of God's favorite holidays. He wants us all to be thankful for all He provides. So make sure you invite Him to your table today!

Thank Him for all your blessings- Let Him know you love Him.



So what am I Thankful for? Where do I start? I guess at the beginning...

I am thankful I was born

I am thankful for Jesus

I am thankful for the air I breathe

I am thankful for my heart... for it loves and feels love

I am thankful for my mind, so I can learn

I am thankful for my legs, so I can walk

I am thankful for my arms, so I can hug

I am thankful for my hands, so I can feel and touch

I am thankful for my eyes, so I can see

I am thankful for my ears, so I can hear

I am thankful for my nose, so I can smell

I am thankful for my behind, so I can rest

I am thankful for my tounge, so I can taste

I am thankful for my knees, so I can kneel

I am thankful for my children

Iam thankful for my husband

I am thankful for my family

I am thankful for my pets

I am thankful for all animals...yes even snakes I guess

I am thankful for all my friends

I am thankful for people

I am thankful for nature, because it is beautiful & brings me joy

I am thankful for water, so I can quench my thirst and bath

I am thankful for the sun, for it warms me and brightens my day

I am thankful for the rain, the wind, the dew, the frost, the seasons, the moon, the clouds...etc. etc. etc.etc.etc.etc...................I would go on but I don't know when I'd be able to stop.

It's funny because when you start to make the list all FREE things, Gods Gifts, if you will, that you can not buy come to mind first. We have all we need, we have all we could ever want- Be Grateful!



******************************************************

To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live gratitude is to touch Heaven.

Family: Day 16 of 30 Days of Positive!

Be Thankful For Your Family. For a family teaches us what kind of person we want to be. From the good we can copy how we want to conduct ourselves and from the bad we can "not copy" how we want to conduct ourselves. Either way and in all ways we learn from them. It's how we use and apply what we learn that defines us as a person.
The older I get the more I am thankful for my family. I realize how important they are in my life. They know all about me and like me anyways.
We are not perfect...but we have perfect moments. We are not all the same...but we respect our differences. We don't always agree...but we try to understand. We sometimes cry...but more often we laugh. We always like...but more importantly we always love. I am grateful for all my family members! Thanks to you all- I Love You! (those pictured and those not)

Other things may change us, but we start and end with family.
Anthony Brandt

Heirlooms we don't have in our family. But stories we've got.

Rose Cherin

Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family:Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.

Mother Teresa


In every conceivable manner, the family is link to our past, bridge to our future.

If you ever start feeling like you have the goofiest, craziest, most dysfunctional family in the world, all you have to do is go to a state fair. Because five minutes at the fair, you'll be going, 'you know, we're alright. We are dang near royalty.'
Jeff Foxworthy

A healthy family is sacred territory.

To put the world right in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order, we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right.

Self Righteousness: Day 15 of 30 Days of Positive!

Be careful of Self Righteousness, for Self Righteous People are the hardest to reach. They are in a very lonely place where no one else is allowed!

********************

Love Measures our stature: the more we love, the bigger we are. There is no smaller package in all the world than that of a man all wrapped up in himself.

William Sloane Coffin, Jr.

We Are All Something, But None Of Us Are Everything.

He was like the cock who thought the sun had risen to hear him crow.
George Eliot


Through pride we are ever deceiving ourselves. But deep down below the surface of the average conscience a still, small voice says to us, 'Something is out of tune.'
Carl Jung

Atonement: Day 14 of 30 Days of Positive!

a·tone·ment
n.
1. Amends or reparation made for an injury or wrong; expiation.
2.
a. Reconciliation or an instance of reconciliation between God and humans.
b. Atonement Christianity The reconciliation of God and humans brought about by the redemptive life and death of Jesus.
3. Obsolete Reconciliation; concord.



We were all meant to walk through storms. There is so much more waiting for us on the other side of those storms. We feel safe just looking at the storms and waiting for them to pass- but they never will. Life is not meant to be safe- the storms are ours and they are meant for us. For it is only in our mistakes, our errors, and our faults that we grow and truly live. Sometimes the hardest part of the journey is believing you are worthy of the trip. Have trust that God will hold your hand throughout it. Get to the other side of the storm and feel the freedom.
No one ever has been lost to the storm- just Lost In It! You don't have to fight the storm, just quit feeding it- stop giving it power over you. No one ever wants to go back once they have made it through- I promise you that. Once you've made it you will find Atonement.

Atonement! It's a chance to fix the unfixable and start all over again. It begins when you forgive yourself for all you've done wrong, and forgive others for all they've done to you. Your mistakes aren't mistakes anymore, they're just things that make you stronger. Atonement is a great redeeming and equalizing force that leads to the fulfillment of all things: every hug you've longed for, every vacation, baseball game or walk in the snow you've missed. Everyone you've loved and lost. Atonement is "Heaven on Earth." It is not Heaven however, Heaven is Better! - some of these words were inspired by Glenn Becks book-"The Christmas Sweater"

Let Go Of All That Is Holding You Back- Let Go & Let God...

Don't Worry: Day13 of 30 Days of Positive!

Worry is a darkroom where negatives are developed!

Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up.

Proverbs 12:25

Don't even go there- it is hard to stay out of...but Keep Out of that negative place and don't let worry steal any more moments from your life!

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

Matthew 6:27

Accommodate: Day 12 of 30 Days of Positive!

When you can't change the direction of the wind, adjust your sails.

Max DePree

Laughter- I thought everyone needs to see this one again (Posted in Nov. 2008)

You know, sometimes life just gets too serious...too busy...and too complicated. We don't mean for it to happen, but we wake up one morning to discover the fun has slipped away.
A few years ago a health study determined there are 3 main reasons people can't cope in life:
They live in the past.
They have a low self-esteem.
They can't laugh at themselves.
In fact, the study indicated that we need approximately 12 laughs a day to stay healthy!

SO LAUGH..NOW!

Laughter is the sensation of feeling good all over and showing it principally in one place.

~Josh Billings

Remember, we need laughter sometimes more than food. ~Anna Fellows Johnston


The most wasted of all days is one without laughter. ~e.e. cummings


Laughter is the shortest distance between two people. ~Victor Borge



Laughter is an instant vacation. ~Milton Berle




I came across this joke and thought it was really funny! It reminded me of something I would have said as a child! Seems I always encountered people like this teacher... Ouch!



A little girl was talking to her teacher about whales. The teacher said it was physically impossible for a whale to swallow a human because even though a whale is a very large mammal, its throat is very small. The little girl stated that Jonah was swallowed by a whale. The teacher reiterated that a whale could not swallow a human, it was impossible. The little girl said, “When I get to heaven I will ask Jonah”.The teacher asked, “What if Jonah went to hell?”The little girl replied, “Then you ask him!”

Just Laugh!- Innocence is so adorable!

You're Beautiful! Day 10 of 30 Days of Positive!

“Everytime you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.”

Mother Teresa

Day 10- A Perfect 10... On a Scale of 1 to 10...Coincidence? Maybe...

Smile...You're Beautiful- It's True! - Don't let anyone else tell you different.

Beauty is the core to a woman- who she is and what she longs to be- and one of the most glorious ways to bear the image of God in a broken and often ugly world. It's messy to talk about. It's mysterious. And that should not surprise us. Women are creatures of mystery, not problems to be solved but mysteries to be enjoyed.

Woman want to impact the world for good. We want to make it more beautiful. We put flowers on the table, decorate our homes, paint our toenails, color our hair, pierce our ears, all in an effort to be ever more beautiful.

With beauty I don't mean " a perfect figure." The beauty of a woman is her soulish beauty. Deep within and so bright it comes shining out! Beauty is what the world longs to experience from a woman. We all know that. Somewhere deep down we know it's true. Beauty was given to all of us from God! Beauty is powerful, Beauty speaks, Beauty invites, Beauty nourishes, Beauty comforts, and Beauty inspires. Beauty draws us to God. (think sunsets, waterfalls, trees, flowers,)

Put your defenses down. Set aside your normal means of survival and let your heart show up- Beauty comes with it! A woman in her glory, a woman of beauty, is a woman who is not striving to become beautiful or worthy enough. She knows in her quiet center where God dwells that HE finds her beautiful, has deemned her worthy, and in HIM she is more than enough. A woman of true beauty offers others the grace to be and the room to become.

Beauty comes for most when we don't know it, when we are at rest with ourself. Loving, Helping and being the woman GOD intended us to be! - when we are not trying to make it come.

YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL...GOD DESIGNED US (woman) LAST...The Crescendo...The Cherry on Top...the final work of God. He saved the BEST for last and don't ever forget that. Look out the window right now- just do it... and say, "The whole vast world is incomplete without me, Creation reached its zenith in me."

Be The Beauty you want to see in the World- start today...

Many of these words were inspired from the book: "Captivating"- by John & Stasi Eldredge

Be Grateful: Day 9 of 30 Days of Positive!

Remember That Not To Be Happy Is Not To Be Grateful!

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.