I was driving to Minneapolis this past weekend to visit my niece who just moved there and saw a sign on the way that said: Hope: 1 mile ahead. That sign got me thinking about hope!
What is hope? How do you find it? How can we capture it for just one moment? Hope's definition is desire, expectation, expectancy, trust, confidence, reliance, faith, belief, assurance, security, reassurance, encouragement and/or prospect. Think about your own definition of hope - what does your heart tell you it is in your life? Ahh....a very nice thought to ponder!
One of my all time favorite sayings is from Emily Dickinson who said: "Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in your soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops at all...."
Isn't that beautiful? Hope perches in our souls!!! Hope sings without words!!! Hope never stops at all.........wow - I find that amazing!!!
Joyce Meyer teaches that we are "Prisoners of Hope" and encourages us to not give up when times are tough. We have the hope of Eternal Life if we know God's only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Now that is truly hope with a promise!!!
The scriptures tell us in Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."
Do you know someone who needs hope? How can you offer hope in a tragic or extremely sad situation? Where do you find that assurance?
Do you have a desire that is supported by some confidence that it will be fulfilled? Have you ever been persistant in hoping for something against all odds? Do you have grounds for expectation in some area of your life? Or, do you have something that you place your confidence in to achieve, fulfill or accomplish? If so, what is stopping you???
Do you have hope? If not, why not? If so, how so? Think about it..........
HOPE is wonderful, HOPE makes you feel alive, HOPE is the heart and soul of faith!!!
Consider spending 15 minutes contemplating what hope means to you in your life....
And if you are a believer: Praise God for the wonderful HOPE we have in HIM!!!
Tips on how to DeStress and enjoy life more!
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Thursday, October 3, 2013
Technology Stress - anyone?
Technology, technology, technology!!! Fifty years ago life was so much less complicated! You picked up one phone in the house when it rang instead of screening your calls. People actually talked to each other from home........safe and sound..........no hustle and bustle except dinner time, homework and families together. Now, we deal with people talking and/or texting while they are driving and putting us all at risk! No one can seem to put their phones down for fear of "missing" a call or text!
Phones and computers, computers and phones.........ugh!!!
In this crazy world of technology, I now have two iPhones - one for work and one for personal use, thus, two voicemail accounts to check, two email accounts, Facebook, LinkedIn, Career Builder alerts, Indeed.com alerts, spam out the ying yang and distractions that are beyond imagination fifty years ago....Indeed!!!
Do you remember when we used to push a button to turn the TV on? Now, we have to have multiple remote controls just to turn the blasted thing on! What craziness we have created with technology.
Yes, are microwaves easier to use to "nuke" something quick to eat? Sure, but are we putting ourselves at risk for some disease like cancer or some other danger that we don't even know about yet by using it? Who knows? We don't yet!
Is it easier to "eat out" than cook a home meal for our family or ourselves? Sure, but how much weight can one person and one society gain by doing so?
And, what are we missing by sharing the food around the table together, passing it to one another and saying "please and thank you" to those we love? When was the last time you sat down for a meal at home with your family??? Oh, that's right - that was Leave It to Beaver in the 1960's.
What??? Give us sports for the kids? Going to the gym after work? Bible Study at church? Carpool for the ballet class? No way! We NEED all this stress, don't we? It is uncanny what we have done to ourselves over time. No limits, no boundaries, no sense.
What technology measures the amount of stress all these "conveniences" have given us? Can we UNplug and go relax somewhere quiet without our cell phone ringing or dinging to let us know someone sent us an voicemail, email or text? Well actually, yes, we can!!!
We do not have to feed into all the technology and be on top of every email, every voicemail, every text, every activity or join every social media tool to help us get a job, get the news, get caught up!
We absolutely do NOT have to buy into the technology crazy at every angle of our lives.
We CAN stop, breathe and think! We CAN go outside and sit on our deck or back porch without our phones and without our computers. We CAN fix a meal at home and share it with our family, a neighbor or some friends! We CAN go for a bicycle ride or walk in the park! We CAN slow down and imagine doing less!!!
But, will we???
Phones and computers, computers and phones.........ugh!!!
In this crazy world of technology, I now have two iPhones - one for work and one for personal use, thus, two voicemail accounts to check, two email accounts, Facebook, LinkedIn, Career Builder alerts, Indeed.com alerts, spam out the ying yang and distractions that are beyond imagination fifty years ago....Indeed!!!
Do you remember when we used to push a button to turn the TV on? Now, we have to have multiple remote controls just to turn the blasted thing on! What craziness we have created with technology.
Yes, are microwaves easier to use to "nuke" something quick to eat? Sure, but are we putting ourselves at risk for some disease like cancer or some other danger that we don't even know about yet by using it? Who knows? We don't yet!
Is it easier to "eat out" than cook a home meal for our family or ourselves? Sure, but how much weight can one person and one society gain by doing so?
And, what are we missing by sharing the food around the table together, passing it to one another and saying "please and thank you" to those we love? When was the last time you sat down for a meal at home with your family??? Oh, that's right - that was Leave It to Beaver in the 1960's.
What??? Give us sports for the kids? Going to the gym after work? Bible Study at church? Carpool for the ballet class? No way! We NEED all this stress, don't we? It is uncanny what we have done to ourselves over time. No limits, no boundaries, no sense.
What technology measures the amount of stress all these "conveniences" have given us? Can we UNplug and go relax somewhere quiet without our cell phone ringing or dinging to let us know someone sent us an voicemail, email or text? Well actually, yes, we can!!!
We do not have to feed into all the technology and be on top of every email, every voicemail, every text, every activity or join every social media tool to help us get a job, get the news, get caught up!
We absolutely do NOT have to buy into the technology crazy at every angle of our lives.
We CAN stop, breathe and think! We CAN go outside and sit on our deck or back porch without our phones and without our computers. We CAN fix a meal at home and share it with our family, a neighbor or some friends! We CAN go for a bicycle ride or walk in the park! We CAN slow down and imagine doing less!!!
But, will we???
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