Monday's Blessing
Psalm 127:2

"It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of
anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep."

Where on your list of priorities  does sleep fit in?  How often do you gripe there's not enough hours in the day to get a full night's rest?  Life inundates us with a magnitude of obligations that sleep just doesn't fit into the equation too well.  Yet, from a medical perspective, lack on sleep and you open your immunities to a whole list of complications:

Obesity
Heart Disease
Diabetes
Headaches
Depression
Lack of Attention
Delayed Reaction
Earlier Mortality
Breast Cancer
Urinary Problems
Colon Cancer

Who would have thought ditching sleep would have such a profound effect on the body?  And, sadly we can not get caught up on sleep as many of us think we can do over the weekend.  In fact, sleep is a daily component that must be met each night to ensure its health benefits.

Why do we get caught up in life's complications trying to adhere to this rigid schedule we make for ourselves?  Is getting all our duties completed exactly as planned so important that it jeopardizes our health?  Furthermore, what about those we are doing it for?  What are we teaching them?  To grow up in vain accomplishing every little task and  never seeing the end?

The Bible says, those that rise early and go to bed late eat the bread of anxious toil.  God planned rest for us.  He knows the importance relaxation has on our bodies.  So important for our health is this request that we can become deathly ill if we choose not to.  How important are those tasks when stacked against your health?  Think of those that love you and need you.  How will your later years add up?  Will you be in good health to enjoy their later years?  Choose you first!  Make time for yourself each day, and set your bedtime and stick with it!

Daily Guidance

1.  Make peace with your bedroom.  Spruce it up, make it inviting.  You'll enjoy going there earlier in the evening if you do.

2.  Set out your favorite reading material.  Ensure your body has some down time each night to unwind.  This prompts restful sleep.

3.  Set a bedtime.  Pin it up on your wall.  About a half hour before post another sign that says, "Time to unwind at 8:30 pm".  This will remind you to take time for yourself each time you waltz into your room.

4.  And remember, "No, you don't have to do that

Monday's Blessing
Luke 6:38

"Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together,
running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be
measured back to you.”

How many times have you ventured down that path in hopes of presenting a card, a thank you gift, or other reward to someone who had a profound effect on your life?  One of those people who walked into your life for a brief period adding sunshine to a bleak dreary day.  Sadly, we often lose touch quickly with these people due to relocation, or maybe that service they offered  is no longer available.  But this special someone touched your life when you needed it most.  And usually they have no idea how much.  It is your turn to return the favor with a thank you. 

These individuals are present in our life for only a brief moment, like an angel, touching us and giving us hope to continue.  Sometimes this angel may stay for weeks or months, guiding us toward the lighted path and renewed energy.  Then simply they're gone like a fleeting shadow that we were allowed only a glimpse but not to commune.

When these people bless our paths, we immediately think of returning the favor with some form of gratitude.  Our senses are heightened, ready to share our appreciation and fondness to this individual who offered hope.  Yet, when we return to our daily obligations, even with these good intentions, life once again consumes us, and we succumb - forgetting to offer our tokens of gratitude.

God says to give and it will be given to you.  We are blessed in mulitudes when we bless others. When we offer a form of thanks to another individual we infuse a light.  This light was given to us in our time of need, and we return this light reminding them to continue their path of love and gererosity.

Take time this week to thank those special individuals in your life who have touched you.  If you have thank you cards adoring your tables, or a gift certificate that keeps being pushed aside, take time this week and offer these tokens of thanks to those who helped you in your hour of need.  Make special note from this day forward to follow through with those well intended gifts of appreciation to those who bless you. 

Daily Guidance

1.  Bless others this week when they touch your life through gratitude.

2.  Share a FREE ecard through Blue Mountain.

3.  Pick up the phone for a few minutes and make that call thanking someone who has helped you.

4.  Give a hug to that special person who worked a miracle in your life.

5.  Thank God for those Angles that visit us each day making our lives a bit brighter.

When was the last time you had fun?  Do you even have a working definition of what the word means?  I'm not talking about reading or watching a flick that diverts the mind. Nor do I mean working out at the gym that attains good health.  I'm speaking of good wholesome fun, "enjoyment, amusement, or lighthearted pleasure".  Take a moment right now for inventory purposes.  What do you do to have fun?

Finding it a little difficult to come up with an answer?  I bet you thought you were having fun already in some of your daily required tasks such as those mentioned above.  Sadly, we get so caught up int he process of life, the responsibilities of life, and what we want from it that we forget how to have fun.  Life is a joy.  When you think of some of your situations in life, you can't help but laugh.  Life is a game.  And to be a winner you must learn to play with fun.  

Yes, God wants you to have fun.  Unfortunately, we forget this part of spirituality.  This is where toys can come in.  What do you enjoy playing with?  Is it shoes or jeans?  Must you try on a pair everytime you frequent the mall?  When you commit some time each week to playing and having fun life gets easier.  But first you must realize there is more to life than working and paying bills.  When you have something fun to look forward to, life takes on a completely new meaning.  Fun actually gives you a new outlook.  It actually helps expand your mind and spirit.  Most importantly, it keeps you young and vibrant!  Fun allows you to think about something other than what needs to be done.  Best of all, fun is FREE!

There are so many simple things we can do to add fun to our life.  Get out there today and start looking for some fun.  Stop sitting there routinely getting through the day.  Look for new avenues of fun.  Ask for God's help!

Daily Guidance

Ways to have fun:

Become more creative in the kitchen
Take a walk in the sunshine
Visit a park
Learn a new craft
Try on new clothes
Teach yourself a new craft
Start a blog
Go stargazing
Learn a musical instrument
Take a new class
Visit the library
Play online games
Take an online class
Take a hot bath
Go out to dinner with a friend
Discover new music
Laugh more
Go to the beach
Get a pedicure
Get a new hairstyle
Get some hair color

Do whatever it is that makes you happy!





 

Monday's Blessing
Ephesians 4:29

"Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. "

Gossip seems a way of life.  Whether we pledge to do it deceitfully or feel we are making strides in helping someone else, it is never spiritually correct.  It has woven itself into the very fabric of our lives ensuring the continuity of some excitement into that mundane life we lead.  In return, it robs us of that delightful peace God promises each of us.

It's odd it has such a pervasive presence in our lives when we know full well the damage that can be done by uttering a simple phrase in deformation of someone's character.  Yet, we are still partners in crime with our posse as we gossip about the generalities concerning the nuances another individual gropingly adds to our lives.  Why do we do it?  Is it that simple need to shake up the day adding a bit of excitement?  Does it make our brain fire and feel alive?

Funny, when we do gossip, despite our well-intended efforts and excuses, we often feel scathed knowing quite well we've done something that is unacceptable.  We grudgingly continue our day making small innate plights promising to avoid such situations in the future.  It is so sad that just a few gathered can cause such havoc and unrest in another's life.  To top it off, we don't know how far these whispers will travel, or when they will pop up unwelcomed in our own lives again.

According to the verse stated it is never acceptable to gossip despite what good intentions we feel our advise may bring.  In fact, it is well noted that gossipers often feel a sense of insecurity despite how inadvertently their tactics seem.  Think, think, think before you speak from now on!  Don't allow guttural tantrums to roll from your lips due to insecurity or frustration.  Learn to listen instead and silence those lips allowing you time to think.  Don't offer your whims when other's are speaking out against someone you know.  By taking a few minutes to think, you can offer a side that may not be seen from the offender's point of view.

Remember, there is no understanding in God's eyes pertaining to gossip.  Each person you meet and become associated with, is a child of God.  No gossip warrants respect in any parent's eyes - including God's.

Daily Guidance

1.  Make this New Year a year planned to thwart out gossip.  Realize the lasting effects it can have on others.

2.  Understand that Karma has a way of returning when you hurt others.  Somehow, some way it will rear its ugly life when you least expect it, teaching you a lesson of "walking in someone else's shoes".

3.  When you feel the need to gossip say a prayer:

"Lord Jesus, Son of the Most Holy,
How Divinely pure Your thoughts are!
Your Words only reflect wonders,
Parables worthy of searching minds.
I earnestly strive to parallel after You.
Tend to my need of respecting others,
That I may never gossip against anyone.
Guide me in the righteous path of life,
Where sensational gossip is non-existent.
If by Your will, my intervention is required,
Guide me to extinguish the attacks of others.
Jesus, You are the glorious light of truth!"