Tag Archives: encouragement

Tricking Myself

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It’s raining.  It’s Monday.  Hmmm….I could post “Rainy Days & Mondays” by the Carpenters, but that wouldn’t help a bit.  🙂  So I think a little tricking of myself is in order to flip this mood around.  I hereby publish:

The Five Official Reasons to Love a Rainy Day:

1.  The rain makes everything greener, and I love green for sure.

2.  The rain makes me very tired chilled out, which makes for a relaxing day.  And I like relaxing for sure.

3.  The rain sounds cool on my tin roof, and I like cool sounds for sure.

4.  Gene Kelly looks super happy “Singing in the Rain”, and I like watching that for sure.  genekelly

5. ?

Oh, well, I guess it’s now The Four Official Reasons to Love a Rainy Day.   And four out of five ain’t bad.  Slainte, Lisa

Believing Before

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When I was a child, I believed easily.  I would look up at the leaves on the trees as I soared high on my wooden swing, see the sunlight piercing through them, and just know without thinking too hard that God was real and there.  I said my prayers simply and without questioning at night, somehow knowing that Someone bigger than me was listening and watching out for me.

I think that’s what Jesus meant when He said we have to have faith like a child.  Just trusting that all of this crazy life is taken care of by Someone bigger and smarter and more in control…not thinking so hard all the time.  I still believe today, and I’m so thankful for that.  Life is hard sometimes, and without Him, I wouldn’t know where to turn, who to give all these worries to who could handle them all.   He is stronger, and He will never leave.  Look up through the leaves today, feel the sunlight on your face, and just believe.  Slainte, Lisa

“Were there no God we would be in this glorious world with grateful hearts and no one to thank.”  – Christina Rossetti

Wide Open Space

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Ever wanted to be free?  Free from guilt, free from past pain, free from the feeling that you’re not good enough, free to just be in some wide open space?  There is a way…..

“We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that He has already thrown open his door to us.  We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand – out in the wide open spaces of God’s grace and glory.” – Romans 5:2 The Message

“If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” – Jesus, John 8:36 NIV

He forgives, he loves you, he lets you start over.  And that’s true freedom.  Blessings on your day, Lisa

On Track

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When you’re hiking, you can get lost pretty quickly if you don’t stay on the trail.  Things start looking the same and you can get turned around and disoriented.  In dancing or figure skating, experts say to keep your eyes fixed on one focal point, so that you won’t get dizzy during spins; it keeps you grounded.  In my life, if I take my eyes off God, I can get dizzy and lost and disoriented really quickly.  And then I always wonder what happened….how did I get so discouraged?  It usually takes me a few days to realize what I did…I lost sight of my focal point, my constant.

“Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own.  Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; He’s the one who will keep you on track.”                                                                                                           – Proverbs 3:5-6 (The Message)

I pray that I can keep focused on His voice, and I pray the same for you today.  Blessings, Lisa

Know It By Heart

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When I was little and I would memorize a new song for my piano recital or learn the Gettysburg Address for 4th grade, I would say “I know it by heart.”  Now, knowing something “by heart” means something entirely different….it’s being able to recall something, deep inside, remembering the smells and sounds and touch of something as if it was yesterday.  It’s remembering by heart the feeling of riding my bike, without a helmet, fast down Mt. Run Lane road, the wind ripping through my hair. bike2 It’s feeling by heart the soft stuffed elephant that my then-boyfriend and now-husband gave me at the lockers, his first gift to me.   It’s hearing by heart the sound of my  baby’s first cry as he made his way into the world.  It’s smelling by heart the warm, breezy, salty air as I stepped out of the car at the ocean. bike3

It’s sensing by heart the excitement of Christmas morning as my sister and I ran downstairs, my parents’ happy faces beaming.

So many things I have learned “by heart.”  And I am thankful for each precious one.  Have a blessed weekend.  Slainte, Lisa