Category: inspiration

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inspiration

Opportunities Disguised As Disruptions

Some closed doors can be broken down, but that should not always be the required response.

Hoping to get to work on time one morning after having left home a bit later than usual, I arrived at the train platform just as the doors to the only available train were locked – a full minute ahead of schedule! At least according to my watch. It started moving forward but then it stopped and the doors unlocked, providing me the opportunity to get in. Relieved and breathing a quick ‘Thank God’ under my breath I gleefully entered.

A short distance along our way an alarm went off in my coach and it was confirmed that there was an emergency situation, and with it the potential of a long delay for me getting to work.

My first thought was “Oh man, why did I get this particular train!? I’m gonna be so late!” I immediately reflected on the fact that another train was pulling in when this one was leaving, and how the wait would have been ‘only 5 more minutes’ before that too would have been on its way.

It then occurred to me that perhaps I should say a word of prayer for the person, whatever the emergency happened to be! Admittedly it was a very short prayer that I breathed, and it soon appeared all was well. I started thinking about how often we are presented with opportunities to redirect our focus, but we miss them because we are in a rush to get where we are going.

“…this momentary disruption you are facing might just point you into a different direction than you intended, but which will have a far more positive impact on your life.”

At the same time, we can so easily fail to see how we can turn such disruptions around, making them mere ‘detours along a more scenic route’ where we get the opportunity to experience something special, something we didn’t even know we needed.

Maybe your disruption is just God’s way of telling you to ‘Slow down; take a break; rejuvenate yourself.’ Or perhaps He’s telling you danger is ahead – such as having an accident that takes you to the ER where a routine, precautionary exam reveals some totally unrelated condition that you never knew existed, but which could have life-altering implications.

Who knows, this momentary disruption you are facing might just point you into a different direction than you intended, but which will have a far more positive impact on your life. Or, perhaps, on a journey you had no idea that you needed.

Sometimes a closed road leads to Multiple detours that can yield unexpected yet rewarding results.
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inspiration

Gratitude – A Matter Of Perspective

Taking a pause to give thanks for what we have is a useful way to remind ourselves of our many blessings

In our quest for material gain and social advancement we sometimes lose sight of the things that ought to be most important.

We compromise our health in pursuit of wealth.

We ignore the blessings we have – such as limbs that move – forgetting that some persons have none.

We complain about the food we have to eat – forgetting that some have nothing to eat, some have little or no choice about what they eat, while others have to be fed through tubes.

When we view our circumstances through the correct lens, we find that we actually have far more to give thanks for than we may have previously realized. We are blessed in so many ways and while someone else might have something we lack and desire, if we shift our focus inwards we will find that we are indeed blessed beyond measure.

When what we have is assessed from a perspective of gratitude, we might even find that we do have a lot that others are wishing they had – things that may even be of far greater value than what we have been pining after.

#gratitude #AttitudeOfGratitude #BlessedBeyondMeasure

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inspiration

Keep Your Light Shining

The darkness around you makes your light shine brighter. Keep on shining.

It is never comfortable while in that dark place in your life. Maybe this dark place you are currently in is the darkest it has ever been! Be assured that this won’t last forever so while there, make the most of it: as you LABOUR your way through it, make sure you GROW your way through it!

After all, the light that is within you shines brightest when it has some darkness to shine through. So be confident and radiant even in your darkest hour; not only will it make you stronger, but also importantly, it will help you light the path for someone else to find their way through.

Don’t let your light go dim because of the darkness around you. Keep it shining and showing the way. Perhaps someone has already set off on the path being lit by you as you go through your days. Shutting it off can well see then lose their way.

You are not alone; reach out to someone willing to help you retain your sheen. Yes it might be hard to do, but it is easier to maintain your light than to rekindle it after it has already burned out.

#KeepOnShining #LightingTheWay #StayStrong

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inspiration

Things Will Get Better

The absence of sunshine does not mean the sun is not there.

What do we focus on most when we go through our days? What determines whether we feel we are having a good day, or a bad day? It is quite easy, and perhaps normal, to focus on the situation we currently face rather than the more significant aspect of who we are becoming as a result of the situation.

Like our mood – which changes from moment to moment in some cases – our situation is only a fleeting, minuscule aspect of our daily lives, unless we fail to see such situation for what it really is and become paralyzed by it. Of itself it does not define our long term outcomes. After all our moods sometimes change a lot doesn’t it!

No matter what is going on in our lives, there will always be a brighter tomorrow. Just keep holding on.

To see beyond our situation is to see our life as a whole rather than a fleeting circumstance, no matter how dire. Our circumstances and situations change, and while we are impacted by them, we can look beyond them and find hope for brighter days ahead.

After all, the absence of sunshine does not mean the sun is not there.

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caring inspiration kindness love matters

Our Words Matter

Does the way you respond to others make them want to connect with you when they need someone to talk to?

We sometimes forget to consider our own frailties when we interact with others. We therefore speak to, and treat, others as if their opinions and feelings do not matter, especially when these opinions and feelings happen to be in conflict with our own. At times we exhibit uninviting and unwelcoming dispositions which keep others from reaching out to us in their times of need.

A hallmark of a positive relationship – and indeed society – is the extent to which participants in that relationship or society value each other’s feelings and opinions, and are guided by that in their interactions. Words DO hurt, and persons who have greatest influence on others tend to affect them most with not only the words they say, but also HOW they say it.

We need to be honest in our interactions and our communications, but we can still accomplish both if we adopt an approach that seeks to encourage positive change. A wise and mature individual is one who will take stock of himself/herself regularly and make the necessary changes that will lead to greater mindfulness of others, and that in turn will go a far way in building more harmonious relationships.

Sticks and stones may break one’s bones, but words can break their spirit – and that might well be harder to heal than bones.

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emotional pain inspiration patience responses

A major paradox of life is this: people who are hurting tend to hurt others

While we all endure pain in its various forms from time to time, whether emotional or physical, our responses tend to vary depending on the cause or source of our pain. If we hurt our foot against a piece of furniture we do not kick at the furniture in anger. If we are injured, say in an accident, we tend to be very protective of the injured area.

However, if we have been hurt by someone we tend to lash out at those who we believe to be the source of our hurt. Unfortunately, when we cannot readily identify or reach to the source of our hurt, we instead tend to lash out at others. This is because our level of tolerance of others becomes impaired due to our emotional state, thereby putting us in a defensive mindset aimed at self preservation. In such a state, the wrong word or action can send someone careening off the cliff of self-control.

So next time you feel like lashing out at someone just pause long enough to consider your emotional state, and ask yourself: am I directing my anger at the correct person? If not then is it fair to ‘lash out’ at him/her?

Conversely, it is worth being aware that if someone lashes out at you for no apparent reason, it might just be that they have been hurt by someone else, and a response of love and patience might be just what they need to put their hurt into the correct perspective, or perhaps even to assist in healing their hurt.

Anger, especially when not properly managed, may not only cause unintended pain to others, but can be ultimately quite embarrassing.
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developing strength inspiration patience patience through trials, trials perseverance personal growth

“Give Me Patience!” – Such A Loose Phrase!

Do you ever encounter situations where you find yourself quietly asking for, or wishing you had, more patience? My guess is that your initial thought is “Don’t we all!” And I suspect you would be correct.

If we are at a place where we believe we are supremely patient, I suspect we simply have not encountered the right set of circumstances that really stretch our limits, challenging our bloated sense of the depth of our patience. You see, the strongest and most patient among us will acknowledge that such ‘patience’ and strength only come from exposure to situations, which, when they have passed, result in an expansion in our capacity to better handle similar situations in the future.

We cannot develop patience by being shielded from bad experiences; neither can we develop strength from merely imagining ourselves in hypothetical situations, or even from hearing about other people’s struggles and triumphs. Patience and strength are personal fruits of practical, lived experiences.

To recognize we are not as patient as we need to be, is to acknowledge that we are aware that things could always have been worse. However, to actually ask or pray for such patience, when genuinely done, is to actually INVITE such hardships – TESTS – the likes of which we have never experienced before! Or perhaps we have encountered such tests before, but never really learned the lessons they were teaching us.

Why do you think two individuals, facing the exact set of circumstances, can end up responding in such disparate ways with disparate impacts? Well, temperament might play a role in this but under the right set of circumstances even temperament will not be sufficient. I suspect that a great determinant of this difference in response and impact has to do with past experiences – or lack thereof – to which these individuals would have been exposed.

Notwithstanding the value of experience, Patience is not a destination that one can say they have reached. Instead it is a constantly evolving capacity that will continue to be expanded as we are exposed to situations that test and stretch us. Increased patience is an excellent thing to strive for; however, in the quest for patience do not forget to ask for wisdom to navigate the challenges, and the correct mindset to help us embrace these challenges when they come, “…knowing that the testing of our faith produces patience…” – James 1:3 (NKJV).

While developing patience does not only result from actual victories won, it requires actually facing and enduring the challenges that we encounter, which provide the ‘lived experience’ we need to gain the benefit of increased patience.

patience #grow #challenges #adapt #strength #inspiration #encouragement #endurance

A rabbit doesn’t complain that it is getting cold; instead it takes advantage of, and patiently adapts to, the challenging conditions to protect itself from would-be predators by blending in with the environment it finds itself in.

Stress, Patience, Strength, Confidence…all part of the same package