who are you blaming?

We all blame someone else for things we should own up to. ever tell your boss you were late because of your kids or flat tire or whatever. I think we all have heard about the dog who ate my homework. It seems we all try not to put the blame on ourselves when we should. its called blame shifting.

I figure most everyone I know has heard or read in the Bible in the book of Genesis about the creation account of the world. And also have learned about the garden of Eden. If you have read this then you may have also learned about the fall of mankind. When God asks Adam and Eve about their plight. they both respond with similar answers. They said well God that person in which you created caused me to do wrong. Even in the first sin ever committed by a person there was blame shifting.

Do we still do this now? How many people say well Adams sin caused the world to be this way and that's why I turned out the way I have. But what if Adam and Eve weren't the first sin? What if they lived perfect lives and never did a bad thing? Would you have still done every single thing in your life up to this point exactly the same? We are told not to do wrong or sin against God but we still do it everyday.

Every time we do wrong we try to find a reason to take the blame off ourselves. Humans are not perfect. Only God is perfect. And the only thing we can do is ask for forgiveness every time we catch ourselves doing something wrong. This also means we have to give forgiveness when its required as well. Grace is getting what we do not deserve and mercy is not getting what we deserve. This is how we should live in order to have peace. We are not supposed to be quarrelsome but kind and gentle. Playing the blame game, no one wins ever.

Why worry?

I always wonder why people worry so much. I know I have done my share of it over the years. I don't worry much now though. I just don't let things bother me anymore like they used to. Part of the reason is because I read Matthew chapter 6 verses 25-34.  It starts with, Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is life not more than food and the body more than clothing?
Then it ends  with, Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Doesn't God care for each and every one of us? Will he always provide for us? Will worry add anything to our lives? We will be taken care of and all things will be taken care of in its own time. All things work together for good. That doesn't mean all things ar e going to be good or fun. We all will have trials and tribulations. Most of them I think will be self inflicted. Very little happens to us that we didn't cause in the first place. We have to continue to keep faith in our Lord and we will be just fine. Worry will only add to the stress of life and not do anything to solve the problem. Looking for a solution to a problem is better than dwelling on the ramifications of the problem. I have also learned that dealing with it sooner than later will be better than waiting and letting the worry to compound the problem. Things always get worse with time. There is nothing wrong with thinking about the problem and finding solutions but to sit and worry will only add strife. Give your problem over to God and he will show you the solution if you listen. That doesn't always mean it will be easy but the solution will be there.
Life is not easy but worry will not make it easier. In fact the lack of worry will create more happiness. Remember that whatever is going to happen will happen and is any of it within your control anyway?

What's Stopping you?

What is stopping you from doing the things you want? What are you doing or not doing to make yourself successful? Basically What is your excuse? Because you only need one excuse! One excuse will keep you from your dreams. This one excuse will stop you dead in your tracks. If you do nothing you gain nothing.

     In the Holy Bible is a parable called "The Parable of the Talents". And in the book of Mathew Chapter 25 verses 25 and 26. He said" I was afraid and hid your talent in the ground, look, there you have what is yours." The Lord said to him, " You wicked and lazy servant, you know I reap where I do not sow and gather where I have not scattered seed."  You see God gives to us and we are supposed to be useful with it. We are supposed to share with others, not keep anything hidden from others.

     In the Book of Ephesians Chapter 5 verse 14 It says " awake you who sleep, arise from the dead and Christ will give you light."  In other words you are being commanded to stop being lazy, quit using excuses, to stand up and do something. There is a war going on here. get involved find something you enjoy and start doing it. If you don't want to be on the front lines fighting find something else to do, maybe you can help, carry the bullets! Everyone has a passion for something. Figure out what you love to do and start doing it. Bill gates did not get rich in a week. It all started with a passion. In fact he never even graduated from College.

    Again in Ephesians but in Chapter 6 verses 10-17 it talks about the Whole Armor of God. Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against the flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of his age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore , having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench  all the fiery of darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
    He wants us to do something, anything. We are not to sit and be idle. Obviously not everyone will attain greatness but maybe we can be helpful to someone who is. Do you have children? Maybe they are going to go do great things if they are shown how. They will only be as strong as the weakest link. Are you the weakest link? We are supposed to be powerful not pitiful. Maybe its time to quit saying "woe is me" and start being strong. Maybe now is the time to do something for yourself or for someone else. Its time to look around you and see what is going on. Now is the time to be truly great. Greatness come from within yourself, nobody gives it to you. You attain it, by the things you say and do. It is also true of honor. Honor is something nobody can give or take away. It is yours. What is the one thing you have always wanted to do but was too afraid to. Start small build momentum and do it now!

Where is your focus?

This is a topic I have been thinking about for the past several months and still haven't come up with a conclusive answer for it. But the question still remains. Everyone is focused on something, right? And each person could be focused on more than one thing at a time. This being the case My whole point is at the main focus of your life. Are you focused on your career? maybe  its on that  old car sitting in the backyard. Are you focused on your family or pets. Maybe its your friends. Do you focus so much on one thing that you are neglecting other things around you? Maybe your So focused on on one thing because you are avoiding the white elephant in the room. Is what your so focused on really that important?

Everyone has to decide for themselves what is important and whats not. And those priorities can change over time or day to day. Are you focused on too many things? I have the tendency to feel that if your focus is on God and his teachings that you will be able to succeed in other areas of life. Does that mean you have to completely rule out everything else in your life? I guess that would depend on what everything else is. If you look to God to guide you and ask for his help and you follow what has been given to you then you will be very happy and rewarded. Does this mean blindly running through life doing what you think God wants of you? No. But you should evaluate everything you are doing and what you are wanting to do and decide if its what is in your best interest. I mean you could say God wants me to buy a new car. Well I guess that would depend on the current condition of your car and the financial ability to purchase a new car without  adding too much pressure on your finances.

See I feel we are here to help others. If we do what we can to help out our friends and family and do it in a way that is pleasing for Christ then we will be blessed by it. Sometimes the best way to help someone is to not help them. That is a very difficult situation but that is where guidance comes in. I feel if we focus in the right direction then we will know what is the best way to overcome each obstacle. I also think everyone wants to be a hero and do it all by ourselves and not reach out for help when we need it or say no when we cannot handle it. This is where we need to look at what is really important and make a decision. I also think this is where being focused will help us. If we have a focus on pleasing our creator then we will also know what is truly important for ourselves. Sometimes it may mean getting out of our comfort zones to help someone or to overcome an obstacle. We cannot make everyone around us happy all the time. The old saying "We can please all the people sometimes, We can please some people all the time, but we cannot please all the people all the time".  Just because we are not focused here or there all the time does not mean we are not doing good. There may even be some setbacks but we cannot let that get us down.

You might want to be the best husband or wife in the world. But you are not always going to be. You will hurt them you will make them cry and they will get upset with you sometimes too. But if you are focused properly on your life and your goals then you will be able to better yourself everyday. Same goes with parents or coaches or friends. You may have to upset someone on purpose just so they can see the truth. That doesn't make you a bad person, the idea is to be focused so you know when you need to be that person.

I have had certain people do and say hurtful things to me. It really sucked but sometimes later on I realize they were only looking out for me. So the next time someone is not so nice to you take a moment and try to see their side of the coin. Maybe they are looking out for you.

I guess to think about what your focus is can be different from day to day and from hour to hour sometimes as long as the goal is the same. You may even be focused on more than one thing at the same time. This may work as long as they do not contradict each other. You do not want to pull yourself apart trying to go in two directions at once.  "Perseverance is not a long race; but many short races one after another". -Walter Elliot

Whats your motivation?

Lately I have been thinking about motivation. Not to get out of bed or to go to work, but do do something out of the ordinary. Or maybe to help others. When is the last time you had a cause or a reason to do something for the better good of your community or your nation or even the world. Does anyone ever think about their impact on other people? I feel people are getting progressively more selfish. It seems people care less about their neighbors and family than they did in the past. Why are people so rude to their fellow man? It talks in the Bible about helping each other and loving thy neighbor. I feel the reason for this is because if you love your neighbor then you will be less likely to steal from him or to treat them unfairly. If you love your neighbor then you will  actually have an interest in their life and well being. And if this is the case then you will be there for them in times of hardship. I am not perfect and fall into the typical category of not caring as much as I should. That is part of the reason why I am starting this project. A place to read my own thoughts and to see where I need to improve. Also I hope this will be a place others can come and hopefully see the potential they have to help themselves their family and neighbors and see if we can change our motivation. I feel more and more that people will not do something unless they are going to receive something in return.

So  what is your motivation? What are you willing to do? And more importantly what are you willing to do for it? I feel we should start to look around us and see if there is a need that could be met. Is someone in your immediate family having trouble? What can you do to help them and to what expense to you? See I think thats the problem. If its going to cost time or money then we are not willing to help. My time is precious to me. I want to know that if I am donating my time or my money then I want to know its going to be worth while.

I was recently in a terrible car wreck that involved many injuries and a death. In the aftermath of that I realized what people were willing to do for me. Some of which may have been almost insignificant to most but meant the world to me. I had a friend stop while getting gas and pray with me. I had others call and ask if there was anything they could do for me and my family. These were the things that meant more to me than anything. because it showed that they cared. They went out of their way to make sure I was comforted. I also had other people act indifferently or as if they could careless. That was also blatantly obvious as well. I think it is very telling of the personality of that person. They didn't realize the the negative impact they had put on me. My point is that there are people that have needs and are screaming for help. Not physically but metaphorically. It is very obvious sometimes when someone needs a friend in a certain capacity. But noone wants to help because they can't be bothered.

This is where your motivation comes in. Are you motivated to do something because of what you get in return? Is it for the money or for the power? Will it help position you to benefit yourself? What about the feel good, is that why you do things? Will you get a promotion or a raise because of it? I could ask all sorts of questions here but the point is to get people and myself thinking about what motivates you to do something.

I think we should be doing things out of love. It should be because of love that you brought that dinner to the family that just lost their job. It should because of love that you donate your time to help the church. Love should cause you to want to meet the needs of others even if they never know it was you. Its not like you need to save the planet or stop all crime. But would a phone call to see if someone is doing ok or maybe a reassuring smile to a passerby. You never know when someone is watching and what impact you may have on others.

I feel trying to carry yourself in a loving manner all the time and thinking about how you can humble yourself then you will be able to make a difference around you.