I feel all this thinking about me is selfish. My mistakes, ignorance, regrets, on and on and on. I cannot change past. I am allowing 'me' to get in the way... and I ain't gonna win. He's gonna get me, because it is where I am supposed to be. There is a greater plan than I am can and am meant to understand; my purpose is to act with unconditional trust, guiding faith, His will.

The prophet Hosea says,

"He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; He has injured us, but he will bind up our wounds."

It further draws me to one my favorite CS Lewis passages,

He is not safe, but He is good.

Sometimes I feel it's a moving target. Me. Flip-flopping from reliving the past and what I had planned for the future. My mind a-wandering and me trying to fight my old habits and old-ways of thinking. It's hard to make a change. It's hard to go about your day-to-day. It's exciting and a challenge and scary all at the same time. Maybe because I feel that I'm alone making the change, and although I'm told i have the support of friends, the only person that can make the change, turn it over and surrender it all up, is me.

Today, I turn to American theologian, Reinhold Niebuhr for words that express my thoughts and my request.

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

Dale Galloway once wrote,

"A rose only becomes beautiful and blesses others when it opens up and blooms. Its greatest tragedy is to stay in a tight-closed bud, never fulfilling its potential."

I don't know if I can be called a rose, but i do know that I have been and I now challenge myself to open to bloom. I was closed so tight that it caused pain to the person I love, and that closed-bud selfishness upset the entire garden that I thought and tried to be a beautiful part of.

Lord, let the nurturing continue. Let your grace and love shine upon the one and those I hurt. Let your strength and encouragement shower me. Let it create a rainbow.

This next gentleman pens a feeling I've had for some time. He is a respected composer and songwriter, Mr. Porter Cole.

"I want to ride to the ridge where the west commences. I can't look at hobbles and I can't stand fences. Don't fence me in."

Why does the fencing take place? There's an interesting test I've recently taken. What values are my own? What values have been imposed? Which will I choose to live? I can tell you, I've been fenced in way too long. Playwright Christopher Fry has so keenly written,

"Life is a hypocrite if I can't live, The way it moves me!"

Photo by Wayne Mumford.

Author and Pastor Dr. James McDonald writes,

"I want every detail of every circumstance of every moment of every day to awaken my heart to the reality of God and His nearness."

To live with this thought, to feel the presence of God, to see God in all things, to experience God, is to know God - and thyself.

The Christmas holiday is my favorite time of the year, reminding me to be grateful for all that is given. It is also a time for reflection. I read an interesting verse from a man that I am becoming quite fond of, Mr. C.S. Lewis. I would like to share it with you, now.

God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.

Happiness and Peace have new feeling, depths without limits.

Photo by Steve Crocker.

Dear Friend & Reader,
I've looked for a quote better than Ms. Swain's below, but hers embodies my current thought and mission. I will refrain from further posts till i find another which draws my spirit. I hope hers does the same for you. God Bless.

Author Alice M. Swaim gives us today's quote.

Courage is not the towering oak that sees storms come and go; it is the fragile blossom that opens in the snow.

Change comes from the inside. The blossom is the beauty that is seen by the world.

French novelist Gustave Flaubert is best known for his masterpiece, Madame Bovary. He said these words,

The artist must be in his work as God is in creation, invisible and all-powerful; one must sense him everywhere but never see him.

We are each artists. I must paint the world with my palette, trusting that He is guiding me to create a masterpiece that is beautiful and worthy to Him.

A wise person once said,

A friend is someone with whom I can reveal many parts of me, even those I am meeting for the first time.

I never really understood the meaning of a friend, until i called them out in times of need. They rushed and stood to my side. Listening, supporting, giving of themselves unconditionally because they want to express their love. I had no idea the true value of friendship, until right now. The sacrifice a person makes when they offer to become yours, and what that really means. I am grateful.

We turn to our old friend, 12th Century Japanese Buddhist monk, Dogen, for words of wisdom.

When we discover that the truth is already in us, we are all at once our original selves.

He has placed the answers within us, just need to ask how to find it.

Highly regarded in the Armed Forces, Navy Captain Gerald L. Coffee's military decorations include the Silver Star, two awards of the Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, two Bronze Stars, the Air Medal, two Purple Hearts, and the Vietnam Service Medal with 13 stars. Through tremendous courage and resolve, Captin Coffee lived as a POW in the Communist prisons of North Vietnam for 7 years. After his repatriation in February, 1973, Jerry returned to operation duties, giving 28 years of service.

Our lives are a continuing journey - and we must learn and grow at every bend as we make our way, sometimes stumbling, but always moving toward the finest within us.

Sometimes we falter, but God does not let us fall. We become closer to the person we are supposed to be if we allow ourselves to learn, grow and love.

As a friend reminded me this day, Thanksgiving is an American Holiday and Tradition that the rest of the world does not celebrate. Personally speaking, they are missing out.
So with gratefulness of the Thanksgiving Holiday, I turn to 18th Century English Poet, Christina G. Rossetti.

Were there no God, we would be in this glorious world with grateful hearts: and no one to thank.

Thank you God.

Emmy Award Winning Television host and interviewer Dick Cavett once said,

It is a rare person who wants to hear what he doesn't want to hear.

We grow a little each time we step outside out comfort zone. Friends shared with me this weekend, "we must give a little to live alot." In reflection, it means to open myself to know and understand who I really am.

Let us listen and learn from the words of France's most beloved comedy writers and playrights, Moliere.

It is not only what we do, but also what we do not do, for which we are accountable.

Think first. Choose wisely. Act deliberately.

Today we turn to one of my favorite Quoters, American President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money. It lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.

I take great pride in effort, striving towards the finish line. Sometimes that line is nearer and other times so distant its not even visible, but I take personal worth knowing that I have given my all and will reach whatever finish line is deserved.

Comic book 'The Spectre' co-creator Bernard Baily shares his insight with these words,

When science discovers the center of the universe, a lot of people will be disappointed to find they are not it.

We are put to this earth to play a role and live with purpose. Our role and purpose are according to His will. We just have the choice of whether and how closely we listen.

I enjoy a good conversation and the realm of philosophy. Here's words to ponder by Socrates.

The greatest way to live with honor in this world is to be what we pretend to be.

As a child we attempt to become what we pretend and are not afraid to try. How did I let 'me' get in the way? How do I become what I pretend?

We turn today to wise words stated by author Mary H. Waldrip.

It's important that people should know what you stand for. It's equally important that they know what you won't stand for.

It's okay to draw a firm line on what is acceptable and not. Only then will we know where we stand, and the type of person I am.

Leadership coach Foster C. McClellan says,

Trust yourself. Create the kind of self that you will be happy to live with all your life. Make the most of yourself by fanning the tiny, inner sparks of possibility into flames of achievement.

It's so true. I am the one that has to look at myself in the mirror each day. Live with the decisions I've made. I can control myself, and only me. It's my decision, my action, my challenge, my opportunity.