New Year! New Beginnings!

A New Year brings new beginnings! But every day, even every second, brings the opportunity to make a new beginning! Come January 1st, our minds seem to more easily shift gears to embrace the opportunity more fully! It is just one second away from December 31, but, it seems a doorway to a new world of the next year! I am thankful for that stretching of my awareness and perceptions that I can have a new beginning, especially when I have been in a slump, stuck in a valley of  seeming darkness or fighting alligators in my "swamp" of life! I get weary of the struggles against the tide washing over me, over and over! But thanks to God, I have constant opportunities to float on the wings of my God, rest in the peace of acceptance of life on life's terms, knowing my God loves me and provides all I need if I but surrender all to God and ask for help and wisdom about what choices I do have to better my situation and avoid the pitfalls of despair and hopelessness. If I wait patiently, listen and follow the still small voice, I find new beginnings, providence and opportunities I never realized were just waiting for me to discover!! Oh, the joy of letting go and letting God!!

Lifted from low places, higher and higher!!

Woke up this morning as I often do, feeling down. Sometimes it is just a vague feeling of doom, but often it is "leftovers" of mental meals about looming problems with negative consequences and no visible solution yet appearing.

This morning I also woke up with physical pain and the fatigue that has lingered for months from my health condition that had deteriorated last year. I quickly move to my morning practices - first and foremost for my spirit: praise and thanksgiving and an expression of my feelings about the pain and lingering fatigue, with a few tears from memories of my painful childhood. I am reminded of promises I rely on: I am healed and whole in Jesus. Those who wait upon God will be lifted up, and shall renew their strength! My spirit moves. My mind shifts gears. The Holy Spirit envelops me and soon I have a different attitude. It is as if someone has lifted me up from falling on my way up my path, which seems so steep and full of many steps lately. The view from standing is better and I see the way to the next steps. Higher and higher I go!!

Some more of my morning conversations with God and on to silent meditation: Be still and know God!!! I get up and the pain is gone. Slowly I feel energy! My strength is renewed! God is good! I turn on my favorite morning show and the TV is on another channel with someone saying: Hope is the answer!!! Praise God, who is always there, speaking to me in many ways, from many sources! Alleluia! Amen!!

Let Go and Let God!!!

Is it already the end of June? OMG! Seems like 2011 just started. Mom went to the hospital again at the end of March and then on to rehab. She was just discharged and I am drained. Got some bad news from my immunologist, who told me my blood tests at the end of 2010 showed my system was so down it was as if I had been on chemo for a year! She was concerned and her news sent me back into reality and out of my denial that all was OK!! I am now resting more but getting further behind!! I am realizing that there are even more things that I can let go and still be OK. I still have to take time for being with good friends, for supporting others as a sponsor in a 12-step program, and always trying to be present and loving with whomever is on my path! That is essential for daily peace and guilt-free evenings, which lead to restful sleep. I am letting go more and more and seeing God working in my life in unusual and surprising ways. The more I let go and trust, the more I experience that God truly is there FOR ME, which leads to more trusting and letting go. God is good and always faithful, but not always in the way or the time that I expect or desire!!! It ain't easy, but His yoke is, once I put in on!!! Thank God!!

What to Do About Mom and Dad? - ABC News

More about the Silver Tsunami on its way!! A series on ABC evening news this week: What to do about caring for elderly relatives! It takes 10 years off the care giver's life! Yipes! I knew my life felt like it was ebbing away!!!! The last 2 years, and especially 2010, has been an onslaught of overwhelming activity for my mother's care, which has been the reason I have not been able to post to my blog!! Let's learn together about a certain issue rising for most people with relatives who are aging beyond their ability to take care of themselves, a high probability in this age of medical miracles that keep us more healthy in body but not necessarily in mind!!! The link to the initial kickoff story on ABC News last night is below!!

What to Do About Mom and Dad? - ABC News

Managing your time, God's style!

Click on this link to listen to a lecture on time managment with God in mind!



Video Broadcasts

Inspiring an attitude of gratitude! Live joyfully!

I dare you to watch this and not be aware of lots of reasons to be thankful!! An inspiring video on how we can be happy and live joyfully, no matter the circumstances. There are always things to be thankful and joyful about in our lives! A reminder when we feel sad or sorry for ourselves is to watch this or think about the many people suffering or managing with so much less than we have. I am so thankful for good friends, great weather, breathing, the ability to walk and see the beauty around me, the ability to listen and hear birds singing and music playing whenever I want!! How great is that!! When I am sad, when I am experiencing a loss or painful circumstances, I let myself feel the pain and sadness and remind myself of all the good things, giving thanks to God! Rejoice always! And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds! (Philippians 4:6-8.) Not only thinking gratitude, but saying out loud how thankful I am, makes my life better and better every day and brings to my awareness more and more the many gifts given to me every day of my life, no matter what else is going on!!!

Happy Holidays, Holy Advent!

Peace, joy and blessing to you! I have missed being here! My mother was hospitalized 3 times this past year and needing so much of my time, I have not updated my blog, even with a new app on my phone to do it mobile! Sorry for letting you down! I let myself down most of all! It has been a dream and vision to have this blog and my dream got lost in a tsunami of activity for my mother's care. I was engulfed, flooded and drifted away "overboard", with the onslaught of waves of my mother's needs! I am determined to get myself back "on board" and stay afloat!

Trinity Wall Street - News & Blogs - Features - 2010 Advent Calendar

Here is a link to a different kind of Advent Calendar showing each day a brief scripture verse with Christmas music for meditation and a brief video or slide show on Christian outreach projects. These meditations reflect Christianity in action, which is what really brings Christ more into the world, the reason for the season, and not just parties, eating, church going, shopping, gift exchanging and lots of reasons for grumpiness and stress! Happy holiday season to you! Enjoy the true reason for the season: love and divine living coming into the world!! May God bless you with lots of awareness and experiences that bring joy into your holiday season and beyond, every day in many ways!! No matter the circumstances, I have found in times of pain and struggles, hardships and loss, there is a way to find peace and joy that surpasses all of our understandings and logic, all our reasoning's and activities to pursue it. And Christmas is about how the way for this came into our world and opened the door for it to come into our lives, every day!! Spread the good news!!!