Just sayin'

      

I try not to ever be subject to "one of those days". You know, Pollyanna, make lemonade kind of gal... but....sometimes no matter what I do, I'm either tested or attacked, and then it's an opportunity to grow. Oh, man, yesterday! By the time I got home and got in the shower,  I was crying from exhaustion. Nothing serious. Just one stressful, frustrating thing after another. 

I kept slipping away to pray, kept declaring the Word of God, kept smiling. So do I consider yesterday a failure? 

Yes, and no. All day I kept my smile, tried to do my best at my job, and attempted to look at frustration through love colored glasses. But I barked at my husband when I finally got home. He was only trying to help me.  Even though I was not a happy camper, he kept trying to serve me. 


So, I still have a long way to go in growing up in Jesus. I am so grateful that He never fails me, and that His forgiveness is available every time I flub up.  The steadfast love of the Lord NEVER CEASES. His merices NEVER come to an end. They are NEW EVERY MORNING. Great is Thy faithfulness!!

How do you handle "one of those days"?

I know that was a loaded question yesterday: What's a Christian to do? Since I've been studying the love of God by flipping around 1 Corinthians 13 to discover ways that God loves me, I have a handle on it. Measuring my response to some issues yesterday, I'm falling down on the "loving" job. Thank heaven that Father never falls down on His job, His love.

God's love for us...keeps no record of wrongs. Amazing.
Ps. 103:12 blows us away with "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us."  How far do you have to go before east turns into west? Forever!

Aren't you glad? On the subject of betrayal, much could be written about forgiveness. But what are your thoughts on "keeps no record of wrongs"?

 Give me your eyes for just one second...

Completely undone. I work with the public, which can be a challenge as many of you know, but I try to be cheerful, helpful and professional. 


This morning I've been accused of being rude. Always rude, as a matter of fact. So instead of crying on my keyboard, I'm going to analyze this. 


Smile? Check. Helpful? Check, went out of my way in fact. So what the heck? This individual's rant bordered on irate. I am totally confused. My boss and coworkers know it's not so but nevertheless, I'm bothered.


Taking a deep breath and whispering a prayer, I'm determined to look at this through love-colored glasses. I've prayed for the Father to give me his eyes in dealing with people, but maybe I need His eyes to look at myself honestly. I purpose to do that with each transaction from now on. 


I know that people come in this place with a world of hurt and troubles that I know nothing about. I never want to contribute to that. If anything, I'd like to make it better. That's the goal anyway, I don't always feel that way inside. Sometimes, I am downright rude in my thinking and perhaps it shows on the outside.  The consensus around here is that I was not rude, but the very next time I see that individual, I am going to apologize.


Do you have problems and/or solutions for working with the public?

D.R.A.M.A.

I'm a sucker for an acronym.  Don't you just love a handle that you can remember when you need it?  Here's one I needed for this fact of life: drama.

We all have it.  Or course, we don't start it (ahem), but we sure bob in the wake of it when someone else does.  It can be pretty disconcerting and disrupting, discouraging and stressful.

So I was thinking about it and the Father blessed me with a handle.  Hope it helps you, too.

D = Do your best to calm the waters.  What's the best way to do that?  Stay out of it and don't talk about it. "Without wood a fire goes out; without a gossip a quarrel dies down." (Proverbs 26:20) and "Like one who grabs a stray dog by the ears is someone who rushes into a quarrel not their own." (Provergs 26:17)  If the drama directly involves you, then add:

R = Rest in your position: your biblically based, Holy Spirit led, prayed up position.  ^"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3: 5-6) You may find in your praying that you have played a part in the drama, the cause of the trouble.  If so then add:

A = Acknowledge your wrong.  Confess, repent, ask forgiveness and make restitution if need be.  "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."(1 John 1:9).  If that doesn't diffuse the situation, then add:

M = Maintain your peace.  Don't let the drama be yours, mine, and ours.  If folks persist in living in upheaval, then let it be theirs. "You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you." (Isaiah 26:3)  In any case, add:

A = Always forgive.  Whether they ask for it or not, always walk in an attitude of forgiveness.  Matthew 6:14: "For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you."
 Remember, however: "Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm." Proverbs 13:20. (Birds of a feather...uh huh.)

Every theatrical production starts the same way.  Someone creates it.  Don't let it be you. "...make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business..." (1 Thess. 4:11) Now there's a novel idea!