Wednesday Worship: Let My Words Be Few

And I stand in awe of you, Jesus
Yes, I stand in awe of you.


You are God in heaven...


Because Jesus, I am so in love with you.

No other words needed.

Peace & Blessings,

Patricia

What Faith Teaches You by Guest Blogger A. Kathryn Trombly

At the beginning of this year, I began reading a new blog, Kathryn's Just Daily Living.  I had two really big goals, to lose weight and to write (at minimum, to finish my wip and to write another novel).  I'm always on a hunt for inspiration and I found it in Kathryn's blogs.  It was a no-brainer to ask her to share some of that inspiration with my blog readers.  Thanks, Kathryn!


What Faith Teaches You by A. Kathryn Trombly

“If I can just make it through my workout today, then next week will be easier.”

When I set out to lose weight that became my mantra. I was so out of shape, and at the heaviest I’d ever been, I frankly couldn’t see much further into my future than a week at most.

I was someone who spent most of my life focused on, well, worried is more like it, what was to come and where I would be in six months or a year. This little act, unconscious as it was, would prove to be a turning point in my life.

When I stopped looking toward a future that had not happened, or may never come to pass, I began to zero in on what I was in my control today.

I could control whether I went to the gym for my workout, made a healthy meal, smiled at a stranger, spent an hour writing, or time discovering and adding things to my daily life that made my heart smile.

So that’s what I did. I focused on what I could control, and how I was living each day, and began to allow everything to unfold.

The days went by, then the weeks, and the months, and slowly I lost weight, dropped four dress sizes, started writing again, began a blog, reshaped my relationships to others and myself, broke patterns of behavior, and experienced a host of other “firsts.”

My life was changing - it had changed - and it felt so organic, so natural, that sometimes I had to stop and remind myself how far I’d come, and who and where I once had been.

As I glanced behind me, and looked through my past, (something that for many years and months I refused to acknowledge), I saw shapes and patterns to my life that reminded me of a story.

It was as though I had been cast as both the villain and the hero, and like chapters and scenes of a story, I saw how each experience, the good and the bad, fit together to create the reflection that gazed back at me in the mirror and my life.

I looked at myself, my life and all that had happened, all that I’d been through and I began to see how each event, decision I made, and emotion I felt, had led me to that precise moment in time.

I realized that even those dark ages of my life were necessary in creating the woman I was, and that even though I didn’t know it at the time, everything was always working out for me.

And that’s when I saw it.

I never meant to find it.

I was really just some young woman who wanted to lose weight and change careers.

But there it was one day, I just happened to turn my head when I saw it walking beside me.

Actually I believe it was always there, patiently waiting for that moment when I was ready to gaze upon it, and feel it within my heart.

What I found somewhere between my future and my past was…faith.

~~~~~~

If you haven’t already, I can’t tell you how you’ll be introduced to faith. I don’t know the exact moment, or events surrounding that encounter –like our journeys in life, such a meeting is uniquely your own.

But regardless of your current relationship with faith, be at peace and know that it is there right now, guiding you, teaching you - showing you, a little more about life and yourself.

Faith doesn’t say everything will be joyful, all will be good, and nothing bad will ever happen. It only tells you, “Everything will work out.”

It just won’t always tell you what that means.

Faith teaches you to trust in the story of your life. Even though you don’t know how it will end; even though you don’t know what you will find on the next page or chapter; even thought you don’t know which new characters will be introduced, while others taken away.

Faith just whispers to you to trust - in your self, in the wonder of the universe, and in the unknown mystery of a higher power.

Faith wants you to believe in your self, your instincts, your intuition, your heart, your mind, and your spirit.

Faith teaches you to believe in it, because it believes in you.

It holds your hand while showing you that life is more than you’ll ever fully understand, or know. But that this place, this experience, the people you meet, the things you do, all that you are, and will become…is amazing.

To walk with faith doesn’t mean that you’ll be without doubt.

This week in fact, I battled and struggled through my own moments of uncertainty. Wondering if I should just pack all my bags, resign from my day-job and drive west.

I questioned all that was around me, all that I was and the direction I’ve been walking.

Life, and some moments, continue to bring me to my knees, and I cry out feeling incredibly lost.

But faith has shown me that it never gets angry, or annoyed when that doubt creeps in.

No, even when an experience, a moment, leaves you feeling broken, shattered in a million pieces and utterly alone, faith is there kneeling beside you whispering that it will be okay.

Because whether you are aware of its presence, want it beside you or try your best to shut it out, faith can, and will, never leave you.

Even when you curse its name, when you cry tears of frustration and your heart aches, faith is there to cradle you while quietly assuring that everything will be okay.

And it is within those moments that faith reminds you, that you need not know the answers to your questions, nor the road to your future.

Because you cannot know what lies ahead on your journey through life. The book of your life does not rest before you so that you can flip through it, skipping to the end and reading the final pages before jumping back to the middle.

You cannot know what next year will bring, next month, next week or even tomorrow, so faith teaches you to focus on how you are living your life today ~ in this moment.

But with faith walking beside you, know that today you are exactly where and who you are supposed to be, and that every choice, and every road you take will lead you to the same destination.
Let faith help you to understand, and accept, that all roads lead to you.

~

About the author:

Kathryn Trombly writes about life how you awaken to it, how it changes as you grow, how you navigate the twists & turns, and how you love who and where you are today at Just Daily Living. As she slowly becomes comfortable in the uncomfortable, and excited about the unknown, she wants to help others learn to listen to the song in their hearts ~ one day at a time.
Photo courtesy of A Perfect Heart

Motivation From Children's Stories

I certainly find motivation and inspiration in the Word of God, but sometimes I'm sitting at my desk or heading somewhere, and a line or theme from a story I enjoyed as a child will pop into my head:

I think I can, I think I can...  (The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper)

Slow and steady wins the race. (The Tortoise and the Hare by Aesop)

Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop. (Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll)

I do not like green eggs and ham, I do not like them Sam I am!  (Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss)

Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain. (The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum)

Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents.  (Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

All of the above apply to this year's, "Eat Less, Move More, Write" journey in some way.

On Eating Less (I'm down 10 lbs on the year!)

Watching what--and how much--I eat makes a difference.  Especially how much.  If I keep below my target calories, I lose weight.  Even if it's only half a pound.

I think I can reach my goal of losing 50 lbs.  I think I can.  But it will definitely be slow and steady.  I've tried to many "fast weight loss" programs to consider going that route again.  Like Sam I Am, I may have to consider eating some things I'm not particularly fond of, but usually it's because I've never tried them. And I definitely will have to stop eating some things I love, like potato chips and gobs and gobs of peanut butter.

On Moving More (Hampered a bit by a nerve/muscle problem on my left side, but doctor says it's fixable)

Enjoying weekend walks with Hubby, when he's open to walking a little slower and I'm up for all but jogging, due to the difference in our leg lengths.  (He's 6'7" and I'm 5'2".)

Back to "I think I can, I think I can..."  I do not like exercise, I do not like it (most of the time, at least when I'm thinking about doing it although usually once I start, it feels pretty good and I'm glad I did it), Pat I Am.  But it is important to reaching my goal so that little wo-man behind the curtain (inside my head) who tries to convince me not to do it must be ignored.

On Writing (Wrote and submitted one short story and have been working on wip)

Another slow and steady undertaking, for sure.  Except there's something to be said for writing fast.  Just get the story out, then worry about whether it's any good later.  Which definitely will require ignoring the man behind the curtain (again, my head) who worries about whether the writing is good enough, the story is good enough, pretty much everything and whether it's good enough.

So I begin and go until I can't go anymore, then I stop.  Only to begin again.  Sometimes in short spurts, sometimes in long sessions.  The important thing is to write.

And regarding all three, the celebration I'm looking forward to at the end of this year won't be quite the same if I don't gift myself with the effort it takes to reach my goals.  Way too early in the year to anticipate anything other than the present of success.

Do you recall any lines from favorite children's stories?  Where do you find motivation for the journey?

Wednesday Worship: Bridge Over Troubled Water, RIP Whitney

There's a quiet place where I can talk to the Lord...

I was very saddened by the death of Whitney Houston for so many reasons.  On some level, I related to Whitney.  We were the same age.  We married less than a year apart, although thank God, my marriage is still in tact.  We had children not far apart.  She was from New Jersey; I'm from New York.

I admired her from afar.  She was the first of my generation to hit superstardom in the music world.  She was gifted to sing and to touch lives through her singing.

I see her music as the soundtrack for my transition into adulthood.  I enjoyed The Bodyguard (movie and soundtrack), but those weren't my favorites.  I enjoyed the dance cuts, the soulful ballads, especially the early ones, seemingly before Trouble, with a capital "T", found Whitney.

And I don't think it's fair to cast all her problems at the feet of Bobby Brown.  Whitney never struck me as someone who was led around by the nose.  She thought for herself and made decisions, big girl decisions, albeit less than constructive ones as times, all by herself.

The world feels slightly less populated without Whitney.  There's definitely a void.

My prayers go out to her family, especially to her mother and to Bobbi Christina.  No parent should have to bury their child.  No child should lose their mother just as she is making her transition into adulthood.

Couldn't pick a favorite Whitney song--there are so many--so I'll share a few.

From The Preacher's Wife soundtrack, I Love the Lord/Joy To the World:

Then there was this early performance on the Arsenio Hall Show with BeBe and CeCe Winans of Hold Up the Light:

Finally, another song with CeCe.  If you've been around her for a bit you know Bridge Over Troubled Water is one of my favorite songs.  What better than to hear Whitney sing it?

Rest in peace, Whitney.  May the Lord bless your daughter, to free her from the demons that stole her mother away from her too soon and to walk confidently and gracefully into the unique destiny that He has for her.

Peace & Blessings,

Patricia

Wednesday Worship: I Feel Good

I feel good.

That's a statement, not a question.  It's an affirmation.  It can even be an expression of my desire or motivation if it's not a 100% true right now.

Because sometimes you have to affirm what you are or even what you need and hope to be in order to lift your spirit.

Fred Hammond has a new album out, God, Love & Romance, and the first single is "I Feel Good".  If you don't feel good before you listen, I'm pretty sure you will when you're done.  It's that kind of song.

Makes me think of hot sun, summer, riding in a convertible with the top down sipping from an ice cold water bottle heading to the beach.

Now don't you feel good?  What does the song make you think of?

Peace & Blessings,

Patricia

Making My Way Down the Weight Loss Mountain

Time for an update.   Here's how I'm thinking about my weight-loss.  Not an uphill battle, but a downhill desent.

Downhill is far easier than uphill.  If weight loss efforts get too hard, mentally, that is, they're doomed.

Goal weight is a steep mountain, to be sure, but absolutely one I can get down.  Can't run or I'll trip and fall, but if I take careful steps, before I know it, I'll reach my goal to get to goal weight.

Given that, since the beginning of the year, I'd say my progress is pretty good.  Here's how I've done.

Eat Less:  I'm definitely eating less, but consciously so.  Using the MyFitnessPal app on my smartphone is the absolute best way to keep track of and be conscious of not only what I eat but more importantly, how much.  There's a bit of guesswork when the exact food product isn't in the database, and I eyeball my portion sizes rather than weigh and measure, but I'd still say it's 80-85% accurate.  And that's enough to keep me honest.  So since my last post, when I was still slightly up after the holidays, I've dropped a net four pounds.  "Net" four.    From up to down. Just watching what and how much.  No special diet plan.  Still a little too much snacking but I pay for it by not having enough calories left at the end of the day to have an evening snack without going over my daily allotment.  Not bad.  Trending in the right direction.

Move More:  I began using public transportation to commute to work last month.  That alone has me walking more.  But Hubby and I have also been going for longer walks on the weekend, like 3 miles or more.  Definitely more.  Good progress with room for improvement.

Write:  Ah, something had to give.  Actually, I wrote more in January than I did in December, so that's good.  I put my wip aside for a bit to work on a short story, and didn't finish the wip as planned.  Also, back to sharing my laptop with my oldest who has a slew of papers he's working on.  Still, have to push myself to get back into a daily writing routine.  Not beating myself up, but definitely can and have to do better.

How's your progress against your goals going?  If you're with me on this weight loss journey, how's it going? Do you view it as climbing up or coming down the mountain?

Peace & Blessings,

Patricia

Wednesday Worship: Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus

Spoken word is worship too.

So today I'm featuring the video that has gone viral with something like 17 million views, Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus.

Listen.

Think.

Love Jesus.

Peace & Blessings,

Patricia