The Promises

There is a famous line in one of Paul's epistles that I love. Paul says to the Corinthians, "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable" (1 Corinthians 15:19).

Remembering this should infuse all of us with encouragement and faith. What Paul is saying is that if we are only looking to Christ as someone to help us through this life, we miss the best part of Christ's message. There is so much more than just this life and Christ will continue to bless, heal, provide and help us not only now but forever.

Because of Christ we will be resurrected and live forever. Because of Christ many blessings we could not have in this life will be given to us in the next life. Because of Christ everything will eventually be made absolute fair and wonderful. So if we are only thinking in terms of this life it is easy to get discouraged. Instead we need to realize that Christ's power and promises don't have boundaries of time. The best is yet to come!

Legacy

Today I'm attending the funeral of a beautiful woman who lovingly touched my life. She led a long, wonderful life and I am by no means the only person she touched for good.

Her passing has made me think a lot about life and the legacy each one of us leaves behind. We kid ourselves if we ttry to pretend that we are nothing and that what we don doesn't matter. Everyone leaves behind a legacy (either a good one or a not so good one!) and by recognizing that fact and living accordingly we encourage oruselves to do what we need to do to leave a positibe legacy rather than a negative one.

Wouldn't life be fantastic if everyone lived their lives in such a way that when they pass on they elave behind a legacy of service and love like my beautiful friend!

Life As An Impromptu Actress

I once read a book by a drama teacher in which she described how much impromptu acting taught her about life. I can't remember the name of the book (I wish I could!), but I vividly remember some of the things she taught me.

One was that to be a good impromptu actor you have to deal with the lines the other actors give you. You can't sit down on the stage when someone gives you a line and start to cry saying, "That wasn't a very good line! Why didn't you say something I could respond to better?" Instead you have to accept what is said, and not only make the very most of it but make it into something that the audience will love.

All of us have watched impromptu actors on television or elsewhere and realize how true this is. No one is going to pay money to watch an impromptu comedian whine because they don't like what the other actors are doing. And life is a lot like that! None of us are going to succeed if we whine about what life has handed us.

After all when you stop to think about it, we are all impromptu actors and we all have to take the lines that are given us. That's what Living in Truth is all about. Take what comes and make it into something good!

Creative Problem Solving

One of the wonderful things about Living in Truth is that we realize that there are always alternatives. A friend who is a psychologist once told me that depression occurs when a person can only see two possibilities and doesn’t like either one. That is what happens in the Pit of Illusion, but when we Live in Truth we realize that there are always many alternatives and possibilities to any problem and so instead of growing discouraged we use our creativity and think up alternatives to solve our problems.


The secret here is to not be too judgmental. Too often we start to think of something and before it is completely thought out we dismiss the idea for one reason or another. But listing whatever ideas come into our head without being critical is healthy. Start by writing down any solution that comes to mind and DON”T censor anything. Some things may seem far-fetched or even ridiculous, but it is surprising how many times the outlandish sparks an idea that is actually good or when writing it down we begin to see ways that it actually could be doable.

In addition, even though some of the ideas are not workable, just adding more things to the list instills hope that there is going to be a solution that will work if we just keep trying.

Remembering!

The people who have given me such wonderful memories!

On Mother's Day I was overcome with a flood of memories of all the good times I've experienced as a mother. My mind floated through the years and landed on sock wars, Family Home Evening pantomimes, camping trips, dancing in the rain, playing machines, picnics at Mueller Park, story telling, and especially moments when I snuggled my toddlers close and listened to them giggle. I was in tears most of the afternoon as all these thoughts and many others danced in my mind.

Then on Monday I received a gift in the mail from D6. She had taken some of our old VHS family movies and converted them to DVDs. It was the best gift I've ever been given and as I watched three hours of home video so many more memories came dancing into my head. My head is a family tango! But the best part is how thinking about all these wonderful things has made me feel.

Too often in the past I've been guilty of remember the worst of the past instead of the best. But I'm here to tell you that by forgetting the worst and dwelling on the best it makes every moment of life richer and happier, and it infuses hope into the soul. After all, the past is over and we can't do anything about it so why stew over it? Instead relish every good thing from the past and watch how it enhances the present and the future.

There is power in doing this!!!!

Liberty of the Law

In his epistle to the Galatians the apostle Paul teaches something that is so misunderstood. He talks about liberty and bondage in terms of the law. Too many times we get a notion in our heads that the commandments are a bondage, a burden placed upon us that keeps us from doing what we want to do.

But Paul points out that the law is only bondage when we try to live only by the law. In other words, the Galatians had the 613 laws of Moses and they are trying to faithfully live by those laws as if that's all that mattered for salvation. To do that they had to have all 613 memorized and then act only within those laws. That is bondage because every time they went to make a move they had to stop and figure out if the move was in obedience to those 613 laws.

But Paul explains that the law of Moses has been fulfilled and that the purpose of law is to bring us to Christ and then Christ gives the Spirit to us and the Spirit guides us as to what we are to do. That is liberty! Instead of having to constantly refer to memorized laws and try to determine if our intended action is within the law, we rely on the Spirit to tell us whether what we want to do is right or wrong. That is freedom! It is the freedom to enjoy the peace, comfort, guidance, joy, and love the Spirit brings, and to shake off the shackles of worrying about whether everything we eat or drink or do fits within the law.

To Life!

If you’ve ever watch the movie, Fiddler on the Roof, you’ve heard the song “L’Chaim.” L’chaim literally means “to life” and it is often used on special occasions as a Jewish toast. But the phrase has deeper meaning than the words capture. Rachel Naomi Remen in her book My Grandfather’s Blessings explains that the phrase means that “No matter what difficulty life brings, no matter how hard or painful or unfair life is, life is holy and worthy of celebration.”


I love that thought. Living life is a sacred experience and when we remember that thought it changes how we experience life. And when we remember that life is holy we know that each moment is worth celebrating no matter what the moments bring.

So celebrate this moment by giving thanks or shouting hurray or dancing or singing or whatever you do to celebrate!

L’chaim! To life!