Thursday, March 31, 2011

Resilience

"We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead" 2 Cor 1:8-10

Yesterday we talked about resilience and I referred to this passage. Earlier in the passage Paul talked about how he was comforted by God and it is that comfort he uses to comfort others. That tells me that when we are faced with adversity it is always for a good reason. Because through those troubles we would be made stronger IF we make the choice to seek God and the many resources He has given to us. But Paul was not secretive about the troubles he and others experienced. He went on to say that I don’t want you to be unaware…basically, don’t be fool to think that what we experienced was easy-breezy…This was some crazy stuff, to the point where we thought we had to give up the ghost! I like that because one, he was honest about what he went through. He did not try to paint a pretty picture, disguised his hurt and sufferings. He told it as it was, but he pointed to the one who helped him through. When we go through stuff, we are going to experience an array of emotions, those emotions are normal and natural. We should not feel guilty for feeling the way we feel. Resilience comes in when even in the midst of pain, we make the “right” choice. We make a choice to turn to positive coping mechanisms. We make a choice not to drown our pains in alcohol, drugs, sex etc. Resilience does not mean that we would be happy all the time, or feel hokey-dory as we go through moments of grief, abuse, relationship problems. Resilience is our ability to be stretched, bent over backwards, and feel like we are just about to die, AND STILL be able to make it through on the other side. It might take a while, it might take weeks, months, but we know that we have a Comforter who is there for us and we choose Him instead of choosing someone else.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Change!

Change is often difficult even when we have the best intentions to do the right thing. There are so many moments when we make up our mind to be different…Perhaps we want to eat healthier or lose some weight. Perhaps we said that we are going to invest time in God’s word so we could stay full. Or maybe we said that we were not going to pursue that toxic relationship that has been weighing us down. But sometimes we manage to push through and have a groundbreaking change. And we celebrate those moments that signify great strides. Maybe we find ourselves less dependent on people and more dependent on God. Maybe we open up ourselves and our hearts to new relationships which led to new found blessings. And even when we have successfully changed, we may suffer moments when we may even “relapse” and return to our old ways. Sometimes in those moments when we relapse we lose hope in our ability to truly change and be better, be different, and just be consistent.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Are You Using Your Health Insurance?

Some of us are blessed to have health insurance, either through our jobs or through the government. I decided to call my insurance provider to find out what exactly is covered and how much I would have to pay etc. Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised and thought it necessary to share with you what I found. Sometimes, we don’t know what we don’t know until we actually KNOW IT. That’s the case with my health insurance. I did not know that each year I can see a nutritionist 6 times that is 100% covered! I have had insurance since January 2007 and I did not know this! I feel like I have robbed myself. I also found out that I can visit the eye doctor once a year that is also 100% covered. I might have known this but I never actively thought about going.

Friday, March 4, 2011

One Year Bloggerversary!

Oh my gosh! It has been one year since I started blogging (February 2010)! I must take a moment to thank B. Damon, my mentor who first encouraged me to start this journey. Thanks to everyone who has stopped by, read, and taken the time to leave a comment or send me a personal email. I truly, truly, truly appreciate your words of encouragement. It has at many times kept me motivated and encouraged me to hear about your personal testimony and the encouragement you have received. I have no idea who is reading, or what the impact may be. My hope and prayer is always that I can encourage someone along the way and bring honor and glory to God as I strive (and sometimes struggle) to do what is right. So thank you so much for your support.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Can I really Let Go of Childhood Dreams?

I believe that each of us as adults have certain aspects of our lives that remain childish. Basically, it’s as if we never “grew up,” and a certain memory or event can send us back into time when we were 8, or 12, or 16. The same feelings, thoughts, hurts, anger, emotions we experience at that time come alive…and almost seems to haunt our existence in this present day. It’s the reason why so many adults act like children when they are upset…We often wonder what is wrong with her!? Why is he acting like a child? Maybe that child never grew up emotionally…Maybe that child has so many unresolved feelings that he or she was not given the opportunity to grow up.

I remember when I was 8 years old I came to the United States of America for the first time! It was the summer of 1989…and I was bursting with great excitement! I remember literally jumping for joy when I received the news that daddy and I were going to New York! I was downstairs, in the yard…It was a hot sunny day in Trinidad…and he told me we were going…With giddy ecstasy, I jumped, and jumped, and jumped! Because for the first time in my life I was going abroad…But more than that, for the first time in my life, I was going to meet my sisters and brother! And I was so excited to meet them! Ever since I knew myself I knew I had 4 sisters and 1 brother (on my father’s side) who lived in the U.S. and I could not wait to meet them! I had seen pictures of everyone, and knew each person in their birth order.