Write It Down

Life is so exciting in so many different ways.  There are friends to call, email, sms and meet.  Then there are other things to do, like work and make appointments here and there, but mostly there, wherever there tends to be.  Then there are the things in life that are not planned or that happen without warning and an immediate response is in order.  How do you keep up with yourself?  I mean, how do you successfully keep up with all the things you have to do?  Well I find that I have to write down everything, and I mean everything now.  I used to be able to keep those seven items in my mind which science has proven to be the limit of our short-term memory.  But now I like to keep that number down to a more reasonable three, and they still find themselves on a piece of paper somewhere in this flat, or my purse, or the pocket of my coat or slacks.

 

I recall from my first year in college being advised to log everything in a journal or a things-to-do list not only so you won’t forget it, but so you will actually DO it.  Now that’s kind of different isn’t it?  It has been scientifically proven, and we also conducted experiments in college, that if you write it down, nine times out of ten you will perform the task.  You may not always accomplish it in the time frame you desire, (especially if like me you have a things-to-do list that’s 15-20 items long.  Bien sur pas, ce n’est pas possible.  Unless you’ve itemized the dishes you must wash, then it’s doable.  :-)) but you will end up doing everything on your list because eventually you desire to do them and they become priority over other things that may and do come up.  For instance I wrote on my list “vacuum” which meant I needed to run the aspirator in my flat.  Well, even though my eyes and feelings told me I needed to do this, I would always find something else to do.  This went on for a week when I finally wrote it down.  Well, even after writing it down it took me another week to finally do it, but guess what?  It finally became the number one item to do when all the others had been done, plus I just couldn’t stand to continue seeing what I was seeing.  Hear what I’m doing?  LOL!!!

 

Sometimes at the end of the day I would find myself frustrated because an entire day would pass and I would not have accomplished anything important.  I found that I had not invested, but wasted too much time doing other things because I had not kept before me the list of things I needed to do.  You see, the list also helps to keep you on task so you don’t lose your time.  It helps you budget your time for each task and rendezvous.

 

Another good reason for writing down everything is so you can make the most of your trips from one side of Paris to the other (or whatever city or town you live in).  When you see everything on paper you can plan your day on the metro much better.  You can decide if it’s realistic to go to several different arrondissments/cartiers in one day.  (For Americans outside of Paris these words refer to zip codes, so it’s like traveling to another city within a city.)  For you have to take into consideration train delays, arrival times, walking into and out of the metro, getting lost. :-)  A day can go by quickly on the bus and metro, so writing down everything can prepare you for a realistic outing and good use of not only your time, but your cash and respiration.

 

I had a wonderful trip through the Old Testament book, Exodus, earlier this month and even though I’ve been reading this sacred text since the 5^th grade (no don’t ask me what grade I’m in now.  LoL!), each time something different than before stands out that I can somehow apply to my life in a practical way now.  See, Moses, the Israelite who was raised Egyptian, murdered somebody, ran away into the desert for 40 years, got married and had some sons, but then ran into God’s mini-forest fire in the desert which didn’t burn up anything (can you figure out that one?);  yeah him.  Anyhooo, he had a long 40-day talk (not 40 minutes, and not an internet forum) with the Almighty, all alone up on a mountain called Sinai.  God wrote His notes on some tablets and gave them to Moses to teach to the people.  But while he was away the cats and mice were playing down below and when Moses came down, in a high-fever pitched temper he threw down the tablets and they broke. 

 

After dealing with these folk and setting them straight, he returned to the mountain top and asked the Lord to please forgive these wild, immature and rebellious people, who He, God by the way, loved with all His heart and soul.  So for another 40 days Moses and God talked.  It doesn’t say that they had tea or coffee, or even hot chocolate or wine.  I wonder if Moses even had some water, but what I know about God, the Creator is that He never invites anyone to His place without providing for them what they would need.  Moses didn’t seem to have lost weight when he came down either, so all was well in that category.  This time God told Moses to write down everything.  The first 10 Commandments he broke (oops) and then some supplemental laws to deal with specific things.

 

Why did He tell Moses to write them this time?  Well when I read this as a child I thought it was because God’s hand got tired from writing them the first time.  But now I think it’s because since he broke it, it’s only right that he should fix it.  LOL!!!  Also, if he wrote it he would more than likely remember them (the first one being “thou shalt not break these ten commandments.  LOL!!) (this is scientifically proven too, that’s why taking notes by hand yields better learning and comprehension in the classroom), and also he would more than likely DO them.  You see, Moses needed to not only be the bearer of the message, but a doer too.  When you do something it shows that it’s a part of you, whether good or bad, positive or negative.  Just to read it doesn’t mean you know it, believe it or can, and will do it.  But when you write it down you imprint it upon your mind and heart.  This is why I love the “old” (not necessarily in age mind you, but someone like me) teachers and professors:  even though they must accept computers  and be progressive, most of them know the value of writing in the classroom and they still require handwritten essays and test-taking.  I say “cool”. ;-)

 

This is also why I like handwriting letters still.  They’re more personal and show the recipient how much they cannot understand your writing and that you need to return to your third grade teacher for another few lessons in penmanship.  LOL!!!!  Writing things down also allows us to be creative and it’s the first thing we learn to do in school when learning the alphabet and numbers.  It is something that no matter how technically advanced we become with computers and voice recording machines we will always need, and come back to.  When the electricity is off, or your surge protector didn’t work during that last storm and your computer got zapped, and your friend called you on a landline with the name and number of the guy who would re-hook you up for free, you will pick up paper and pen and write it down.  Oh yes!!  When you find yourself trying to get a fantastic position working for the deaf CEO of one of the most powerful companies in the world for which the recession hasn’t and cannot touch and you are the most qualified applicant and they really like you even though you don’t know sign language, you will want to have on your person a notepad and a pen, for it is not feasible to carry your laptop for having drinks just to have a social discussion which also includes consideration for a raise before your first day of work.  Hmmm, yes I think you will want to be able to “write it down”.  LOL!!  Am I having too much fun?  Yes I think so.

 

Anyhoooo, again, I just finished writing by hand the rough draft of my second book.  Well I don’t sleep too well with a laptop; I’ve tried it and decided that’s not for me.  But a notebook and pen, that’s another story (pun intended).  If I wake up from a dream, I can write it down even in the dark.  If a new set of lyrics starts to flow through my mind, I can just write them down.  If I get a call in the night with important information, I can just write it down.  If I feel like writing myself a letter, you got it, I can just write it down.

That’s all I have to write about that.  :-)

Living Outside the Boxx

Can you guess what I just finished doing?  Well I don’t want to say I’m becoming addicted to Sudoku, but I just read in the March 2009 edition of Reader’s Digest, page 35 that playing Sudoku can help you become wealthy because it (as well as some other number games, word puzzles, and brain-teasers) keeps your brain agile.  To quote the author Jean Chatzky, “they all help stimulate the growth of nerve cells, which makes your mind sharper over time.”  She goes on to say, “Having more mental clarity makes you a more flexible thinker, and that’s essential for wealth.”  She says more but that did it for me.  I find myself eyeing Sudoku everyday even when I don’t have time to play with him. :-)  Oh, but tonight I stopped everything and played a set and finished it faster than the last time not because I was trying, but because this new way of thinking is really causing me to “see” things much faster than before.

 

Somehow you knew I would take the time to explain for I’m enjoying this, truly.  I find that now my eyes look at the entire puzzle from the beginning, not just inside one box, the one or two with the most numbers, to find the easiest starting point.  Now that I’m no longer stuck inside the boxes (or boxx, my new word) my perspective has broadened and I think my brain cells are rejoicing!!  “She no longer has to ride the short bus” I heard one of them say when I finished the puzzle.  Smarty pants.    Even as I worked I could hear within my heart how “living” outside of the box allows us (at least it has done this for me in a short amount of time) not only to consider many options outside of our familiar surroundings in each area of life, but they allow us to look back inside the box too, and see things differently.  You see, we don’t have to run away from the box after we no longer live there for there are still lessons back there we can learn.

 

For instance, I know I need to start collecting boxes soon for packing up my life from this place to move to another.  I’m going to need boxes of all shapes and sizes.  I’ll even use some with wheels called suitcases (valises en Francaise).  You see, boxes are not our enemies; they are neutral and can be our friends.  It’s what we do with them, as with most things in life, which determine their positivity or negativity in our lives.  I love my parents and my upbringing in the church and specifically in the Pentecostal church, for we have a rich spiritual and musical heritage that demanded from us a level of excellence in everything we did, even when we didn’t have everything we felt we needed.  We learned to make do and make ourselves “look” and feel “rich” even when we were not. :-0  Now that’s a powerful heritage I wouldn’t give away for all the money in the world, really.  Within that heritage lies the power for me to get wealth, just like Chatzky said about Sudoku.  Oh, but guess what?  She was not the first one to say it.  Our loving Creator was/is.  Oh yes!!

 

In the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy 8:18 the Lord said through Moses to the Israelites, “And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth . . .”  And in the New Testament book III John 2 He speaks through that apostle, “Beloved, I wish above all things that you prosper and be in health even as your soul prospers.”  Now this is not just talking about money for there are many poor rich people, on the earth.  To be prosperous means you have wisdom and understanding concerning life and how to move and groove through the challenges that come your way.  I call prosperous people “Mac Gyvers”. 

 

You remember the weekly television show by the same name of the guy who would get in trouble just by being in the wrong place at the right time, or the right place at the wrong time, or the wrong place at the wrong time, and yeah, even sometimes the right place at the right time (depending on your perspective)?  See, Mac Gyvers learn to seize the moment to use their skills, and create some along the way.  When they don’t see what they need at hand, they create it.  For instance, while I was on tour in Belgium this past winter I needed a knife in my dressing room to slice a lemon for my hot tea.  Well, there were none to be found, but my road managers did find the can of peanuts I desired and guess what?  My Mac Gyver eye saw a knife!  I opened my can of nuts, and munched on some while slicing my lemon with the aluminum lid.  There were many other such events like that on my tour and my road manager Anna began calling me Mac Gyver.  (Even though she’s from Poland living in Belgium, she speaks fluent English and is very familiar with our American television shows. :-)  Thanks Anna!!)  Now she’s a true out-of-the-box person, and I found myself having to think outside of the box often in order to get by in those freezing temperatures.  LOL!!

 

So you see, my experiences have taught me that true wealth is not just about money, but it is also being able to live outside of the box and still learn from the box.  It’s being wise not to throw away the box with the baby (couldn’t think of another good one just then.) but keeping it for later, or just keeping the lessons learned from the good, the bad and the ugly that occurred in that environment.  Boxes can be limiting when we see them as our security and keep us from changing, growing, expanding, and learning.  A grasshopper in a box with a lid on it after awhile gets trained to jump only so high, so when the lid is removed, he doesn’t realize he’s free to jump outside of the box.  If you find yourself boxed in under an open sky, call somebody!! to come and cut the box from around you so you can move on.  Sometimes our relationships can be that way, on our jobs, in our homes, in our communities, churches and even our countries.  Sometimes you will have to use the items inside your box to build a ladder so you can climb out of that box and “see” that the world is larger than that box you’ve been in for a while.

 

I’m no different from anyone else.  I desire security and a nice home, family, a “job” with all the perks and quirks (NOT!), but at what cost?  What are we willing to sacrifice to live inside the box, and what are we willing to forego to live outside of the box?  There is a risk either way, and yes even living outside of the box it’s easy to create another box if “box thinking” is inside of us, like that grasshopper.  True prosperity is not only learning how to live outside of the box while keeping the good that came from inside the box, but it’s also not allowing in-the-box thinking to limit us.  Just because we change locations and time zones doesn’t mean nor guarantee that we’ve changed, or are living outside of the box.  You can still be thinking inside a square box with a round head.

:-)  

So I encourage you to take a chance, even a baby step.  Do something different, maybe drink tea instead of coffee, drink more water and cut out the sodas, really cut out those cigarettes that are puffing away your new opportunities down the line just to name a few.  Some others can be visit another country for 3-5 days, or another state.  Visit another church of a different race and denomination.  Read up on another culture.  Be willing to understand others even when you don’t agree with their philosophies.  It’s not the beliefs that are important, it’s the people and when they see your heart’s interest in them, they will be willing to hear what you have to say too.  Then you may be able to win them over to a more excellent way.  Or maybe you will be the one changing to a more excellent way.  “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”  Thank YOU, Jesus! 

  

What CAN you do? Su-Doku Part III

You’ve got it.  I’m back at it again.  Yes I had another date with Sudoku yesterday morning because there wasn’t much else I could do.  We just finished a three consecutive concert in a row tour (that’s redundant isn’t it?) and my body went on strike.  For two days I’ve been chasing my running nose like a two year old toddler who refuses to settle down for her nap.  I’m sneezing virtually and in reality.  No fever, headache or other aches, but just the tiredness that comes from a congested head that added a couple of kilograms on the scale.  Whew!

Oh but my time with Sudoku was nice and peaceful and I finished the puzzle faster, even though I wasn’t trying to speed through it.  What was happening?  Well, I’ve been applying the other lessons Sudoku taught me i.e. thinking outside of the boxes for instance.  But today I noticed something different I hadn’t been doing before.  I was talking out loud!!  LOL!!  “You can’t do this, you can’t do that. . . because there’s a nine here, and there and there.  Aaah, but you can do this!”  If I recall correctly from my school days (sometimes I was just dazed, and enjoyed it.) this is called the “process of elimination”.  Cool, it really does work in real life and not just in text books. :-)

Looking back on my upbringing especially in the church, we were warned that as Christians we could not do so many things, so much so we were not told what we could do.  So for many of us our lives were spent “not doing” rather than doing, like walking down the street with your eyes glued to the sidewalk so you won’t step in dog doo, but you miss that handsome man walking by who was trying to get your eye.  (Well something like that.  Wait, please come back!!)  We were thus limited in our scope as to who we were then, and who and what we could become.  Even though we had invited Jesus to live inside our hearts we had not intellectually come in contact with the great big dreams He had for us so we told HIM on a daily basis “we can’t do this and we can’t do that” by our words, thoughts and deeds, efforts at living righteously.  Of course I can now imagine Him looking at us with “unbelievable” in His eyes, yet with undying love and patience with us in our blindness.  (Thanks for Your Amazing Grace!)

As I played with Sudoku this time, each time I said what I couldn’t do, Sudoku would eventually reply “but you CAN do THIS!”  I was like wow! And each discovery made the game come alive to me once again.  That’s the power of encouragement and affirmation – it gives us strength and power to move on and press through the difficult time and place.  I wanted to go to church today but my body said “no”, and the Holy Spirit agreed, or the Holy Spirit said “no” and my body agreed.  Anyhooooo, that’s two against one.  All I could envision were the thoughts behind the stares (I can SEE what you’re thinking) of fellow metro passengers that with each sneeze, sniffle, and nasal drip snort that I was probably engaged to a pig.  NOT!  Then my mind fast-forwarded to the people I wanted to see who I’ve not seen for months thinking “ghee we’re glad to see you, but couldn’t you have stayed at home with that song and dance?”  So what could I do?  I didn’t want to just sit or sneeze the day away, at least in my mind.  My body thought it was a good idea and just continued as she pleased.  “Your body’s here with me, but your mind is on the other side of town.”  That’s what I was experiencing.  So I asked my Lover, what can I do?  He said “you can work on finishing your book and prepare it for the editor.  You can use this time to rest and be quiet.”  Not a bad idea.

Many times Jesus told His disciples to “come away” and rest after feeding thousands, taming stormy seas, cleaning out the temple (didn’t have Hoovers back then) and healing a man from the swine flu.  Well actually what happened was the man had a lot of “folk” living with him and everybody wanted to have things their own way.  He was very schizophrenic and violent and loud and when he saw Jesus get out the boat everybody just went berserk.  Jesus asked him his name and he replied “Legion because there are a lot of us living in here man.”  To make a longer story long (just kidding) Jesus told them only one person could stay, but all the rest had to go, so they asked Him to send them into the herd of pigs on the hill.  And so He did and the swine flew down into the sea.  LOL!  Jesus did what He could do and that was liberate that man mentally, emotionally, spiritually, physically, socially.  Wow talk about one-stop shopping!  Walmart has nothing on our Savior.

I’m now looking at life differently more each day, not from the perspective of what I cannot do, but what can I do here, now, on my way to doing what I cannot now do here. :-)  All things are possible to her who believes, and I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.  Nothing is impossible with God for if I have faith the size of a grain of mustard seed (that’s not very big) I can ask Him for what I need and desire – according to His best for me – and I shall receive it.  Daily God asks us “What CAN you do?” not because He doesn’t know, but because He does know and He wants us to know it and get it, and DO it.  I find that in all situations, the one thing I can do no matter what’s happening is pray.  Prayer isn’t just asking for this or that but it’s the vehicle for elevating my mind and senses above my environment.  Prayer empowers me to believe when I find it difficult to see.  Prayer encourages me to use all my gifts and talents to accomplish something at any level, not just for myself, but for others too.  Prayer lets me praise and show the Lord my gratitude for what He has already done for me in my life.  Prayer is an awesome privilege and opens the portal between heaven – the Lord, and earth Me (we are made from the dust of the earth. ;-0) – God touching me and me touching God Spirit to spirit.  (That’s what Jacob’s ladder signifies, btw.)  Prayer opens my eyes, gives me fresh and new vision (“I once was blind. . .”) to other possibilities, and also to retrieve nuggets I discarded because of disappointments.  I could go on about prayer (Yes I Can!  LOL!) but I think you see what I’m singing.  LOL!!

So the next time you or I are talking about this or that, and we hit a place where we’re talking smack, you look at me and I look at you, and ask the question “What can you do?”  Lord not only is Your grace amazing, but YOU are amazing!  

When Is Enough Too Much?

Good question right?  Or we could ask “when is too much enough?”  Hmmm.  Well I think both questions depend upon the side of the elephant you’re looking at, or maybe another way of saying it is, it depends on what side of life you are on and specifically to what you are referring.  This subject has been on and off my mind, mostly on, since the last time I posted a message and today I finally have been able to slow down long enough to let my thoughts have their way with me. :-)  I’m thinking about a time I was on stage singing up a storm with some other stormy weather singing friends and I stomped my foot in excitement and voila!  My shoe broke.  Well I didn’t have an extra pair backstage, but my McGyver twin sister did.  So she not only loaned them to me, but she gave them to me.  She was (and often is) a life-saver that evening.

 Well, back in the states I used to have well over 80 pairs (when it’s more than one pair, do you add an “s” on the end?) of shoes of all shapes, colors and styles for all occasions.  For instance, I had at least five pairs of bedroom slippers for traveling from city to city, or just from upstairs to the basement to wash clothes.  Now some people in my life when they saw my shoes said I had too many, until they needed or wanted to borrow a pair.  Hmmmm (Four m’s that time.)  Then others who knew my lifestyle as a singer and minister knew I couldn’t have too many pairs of shoes, especially black ones, and they helped me from time to time find another good pair.  LOL!!  For me it was, and is an investment for you get only one pair of feet and it behooves you to take good care of them from the toenails to the ankles.  Faire attention!!  (That’s “be careful” in French.  In English that’s “pay attention”.)

 

Now because I had so many pairs of shoes, did that make me extravagant, wasteful, or maybe a collector?  Hmmm. Funny isn’t it that according to the glasses we’re wearing that’s how we view other’s lives and make judgments, not according to their needs, desires, dreams and wants, but according to ours?  Not a good idea I think. (Or a good idea I don’t think.)  Also funny how we can deem some people “collectors” with so many figurines in a glass cabinet where all they do is collect dust, have no utilitical (new word) value, but however a sentimental value for the person, and that’s okay.  But someone with beaucoup shoes, or clothing, or jewelry, or phones :-), or ear wax, etc.  Ahem is considered to be greedy or wasteful.  Again, what side of life are you on?  What’s happening in your yard that helps you make the decisions you do, for yourself and about others?  When is enough too much and when is too much enough?  Who gets to decide?  Who gets to say “when”?  <I get to decide for ME when it’s time to say when, with the help of my Lover Who resides within.  He may choose to use you, a special brother, sister or friend, to help open my eyes to the “mess” I’m in> (if it is indeed a mess.  I may need to just make a few changes.).  

 

Sometimes we do amass too many things, but it’s not always easy to tell, depending on what side of life we’re on.  Depending on what’s going on inside of ourselves we may see all as normal.  Until a change gon come finally happens.  Then the scales fall off.  This happened to a prominent figure in the New Testament book of Acts.  His name was Saul.  He was edu-ma-cated very highly on the PhD level.  He knew the law better than his fingernails, so he was sent on a mission by his superiors (only in position, for none of them could shake a stick at him and not be embarrassed because their stick was too small) to stop a certain “sect” of people from increasing and spreading some story that Jesus Christ rose from the dead.  Just think of that.  They were threatened by a story like that and sent him to beat, harass, close down, imprison, and even kill these disciples of the Christ.  One such man he did it to was called Stephen who got in the last word before he was stoned to death, while Saul watched and consented to his death.  Oh, that’s in Acts too, a wonderful and powerful story.

 

Well, feeling good and fine like he just drank some fine wine, Saul went on his way to find some more of these obnoxious folks that just kept multiplying the more he killed them.  And he noticed they would die with a smile on their faces proclaiming they could see God in heaven, the God he said he was killing them for!!  Go figure.  This just ain’t possible.  But it was.  But God had had enough of his shenanigans and He met Saul on this rue called “Damascus”.  Wahooo!!  I’m so glad he finally got to meet the God he was persecuting.  That’s what he was told.  Okay, God asked him “Saul, Saul why you player-hatin’ on me man?”  Saul asked Him “Who are YOU?”  God told him “I’m the one you hateratin’ and holleratin’ on day after day, killing my homies and my ladies.  What’s up wit dat?”  Saul realized he didn’t KNOW this God at all, for if he did, he wouldn’t have been killing these people he didn’t understand and didn’t like.

 

When is enough, enough?  When is enough too much?  When is too much enough?  Well, if you’re in a relationship of any kind, for example and you’ve been punched in the face or any other body part because the other person had alzheimers and forgot who you were; or if you’ve been stomped because the other person couldn’t put his or her prosthetic leg on correctly or fast enough to suit them; or if you’ve been lied to about the same ole thing two times (“Fool me once shame on you.   Fool me twice shame on me”.  Don’t know who said it first so I cannot put author in a footnote.);  hmmmm (count the m’s)  Or if you’ve given your “life” (i.e. monies, heart, soul, prayers, tears, time, energies, etc.) just to have them kick the chair out from under you or smack the horses rump and left you hanging from a noose (Mr. Ed would have returned to help you down, and Bonanza’s Hoss’ horse would have too), then enough is too much.

 

See, so many times we say this or that will never happen to us because we’re on the outside looking in.  Window shopping does not buy the shoes okay?  It’s when you’re inside you get to not only SEE, but feel and touch and be touched etc. by the good, the bad and the ugly.  Depending on what side of life is ON you and inside of you too affects how we will act, react and respond in certain situations.  All you can pray is that the Lord will keep you out of Saul’s way, because you know the tables got turned on him.  The folks that sent him, when they realized he stopped working for them, they wanted to kill him.  It has happened in real life too.  A wife or woman has been abused one too many times.  A child has been left home alone one too many times.  An employee has been made fun of, or not paid on time or at all and couldn’t pay his/her bills, one too many times.  These are the stuff (not stuffs, right?  LOL!) headlines are made of.  “Enough is too much”, which means it never should have happened in the first place.  Too much is enough means you’ve reached your capacity for making use of, or enjoying all the items you’ve accumulated and it’s time to stop collecting, or time to give things away before adding more.  Etc. whatever “give” means to you.  (I.e. having a yard sale is still giving it away for you bought that dress for more than five dollars girlfriend.  And you only wore it three times.  Now that’s a give-away.)

 

I’ll be honest with you, I’ve had plenty of things in my lifetime and I enjoyed every single thing I had.  I try never to buy anything I won’t enjoy or that someone else cannot use or enjoy if for some reason it doesn’t work for me when I get it home, or after I’ve outgrown it for whatever reason.  (No comments are invited on that statement.  I buy my own peanuts. LOL!)  Waste not want not whether it be you or for someone else.  (I’ll have to work on that one a little more.) :-)   I think it is the fabulous Donna Summers who sings “Enough is enough, I can’t go on no looooong-er”.  Well, sometimes we can go on longer, but we shouldn’t.  How many times have your friends and family told you to quit that job, or leave that neighborhood, or that relationship because they see how it is bringing you down and your health is suffering, your life is in jeopardy and all your cash has been dwindled to nothing trying to help somebody else?  Yes we seem to have a high tolerance level for other folk’s messes and we end up with not only a littler (by now you know I’se talk lak dat on purpose. LOL!!) stick, but the short end of THAT stick!  A few months ago I heard the Holy Spirit say in my heart “Enough!” and I knew it was time for a change. Not only did the Lord know I had reached my breaking point, but even He was tired.

 

God gives us grace to suffer long and long suffer, but every coupon has an expiration date.  All the foods on the shelf have an “eat by” date, then it’s time to poubelle it.  Some relationships are for a life time and those are the ones that not only take, but give and you find yourself the better for it, and so does the other person.  Some relationships need to stop before they ever get started.  Enough.  Some relationships are for short-term only and you must recognize when the soap’s all gone.  It’s time to get another bar. :-)  Stop rubbing your hands on the sink trying to get all the soap that’s stuck there.  Get another bar!  (I’m preaching to myself so don’t get offended.  Just print it for later when you might need it.  :-0)  We must learn not to fear change, even when we’re in a good situation, because sometimes it’s time to say “enough”.  Change is just that, change.  Making adjustments, throwing out this, rearranging that, moving to another city, country, house, status, flower pot etc.  It’s not always negative and neither is it always about putting people out of your life.  Sometimes it’s you changing and they leaving your life because they don’t like the new you.  They can no longer do to and with you what they did before and because they don’t want to change, they say “enough”.  We must learn the parts, sing in harmony, and end on a positive note.

Peace.