There but for the Grace of God – Go I

Mom said this to me frequently in my growing up years, when I was tempted to be critical of someone else.

So easy to get out of focus in life and fault find, blame, criticize…really it probably stems from insecurity, fear, loss of control, feelings of inadequacies on our part (the last one was a big one for me as I grew up). ‘Am I gonna make it?’

If I could just rest in the good plan God had for me…although I didn’t know it fully then…still don’t – but staying confident in who I was made to be and looking out for others instead of myself all the time, life became easier. My mind had less to think/worry about, and I was gonna be OK.

So far it has worked and is still working decades later.

How about you?

Good and Counterfeit Money

Back in the day when only cash was used…

Bank tellers were trained in a very simple manner – learn what the real money looks, feels, and smells like and you’ll recognize counterfeit immediately.

This simple method works in many other areas.

Take a bite and chew the sweetness of an organic apple. Yum! Bite into a pesticide sprayed apple and experience the bitter taste on the skin. You’ll see.

Eat a slice of homemade cake using your own flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. True flavor! Premade and box mixes have the customary smell and bitter flavor of the BHA and BHTs added for preservation.

Real vanilla extract does not smell or taste like imitation vanilla flavoring.

Tempered solid steel tools, nuts, bolts and screws won’t break into pieces or lose their shape when the craftsman uses them. Imitation metals will and can be dangerous to use.

Even ideologies, philosophies, religions need to come under the counterfeit test…the test of histories past, civilizations won and lost, good and bad outcomes.

We are responsible to train ourselves to recognize right vs wrong, good vs. bad, healthy vs unhealthy. This comes through reading and learning from the past, studying and observation of events and peoples today, and thinking through what the future might look like depending on which is chosen.

We have been given a good brain. Let’s train it, use it, keep it sharp!

Decide not to let others do your thinking. Teach yourself. Learn. With practice, we will come to recognize good intentions and bad intentions even within ourselves.

Grow and see how much good you really do have to offer.

It’s there!

You Are a Builder

What are you building? Are you building anything today?

We are all builders…building something. Will it last? Is it sturdy to withstand pressure and use? Can others benefit from it? If it’s just for me, will it be good for me?

Sometimes it’s hard to build. Really anything worthwhile is hard work. It takes a lot of thought, patience, looking at it again. Maybe taking it all apart and starting over – like I had to do so many times learning to sew. Even in writing. The words don’t come out right. They don’t say what you meant. The computer didn’t save it, you lost everything and had to start over…happened twice yesterday.  You have to begin an exercise program to stay fit after desk sitting for 10 years or start a particular therapy to recover from an injury…like after I fell off my bike.

Maybe it’s an internal build. You’re trying to develop a new mental habit or break an old one.

The important thing is that you continue to build. Some projects take lots longer than others. Sometimes you have to stop, rest and think about it.

Keep at it. You will have something rewarding after it’s completed, and you can be proud of it!

I will carry-on.