Just Me

Wondering why, wondering what if -
A trap craftily concealed -
Ensnares the unsuspecting.
To the weak and wounded it appeals.
 
Undetected by its captive,
The entanglement’s hold is fast.
Each doubt, each fear, each question
Only tightens its greedy grasp.
 
Struggling now, fighting for air,
The trap becomes apparent.
Is it too late to escape
The damaging thoughts inherent?
 
Silencing lies, silencing the fears -
The only way to break free -
Shedding all misconceptions
Until I’m left with only me.
 
The me who can learn from my failures
The me who can laugh at my fears
The me who can see the beauty
In my scars, in my pain, in my tears.
 
The me who must stop wondering why
Who must smile and simply move on
Holding tight to all I’ve learned,
Believing it will make me strong!

Advertisement

Keep Flying

“Do I have bones?” my three-year-old son timidly asked. He was lying in bed beside me as I attempted to lull him to sleep with a bedtime song.

“Yes,” I answered without further explanation. I could tell his little mind was troubled so I waited patiently to see how this conversation would unfold.

After several minutes of pondering, he finally declared, “I don’t like bones!”

At this point, I knew exactly what sparked this conversation. Halloween had just passed and spooky decorations were everywhere. Houses were clad with spider webs, witches, monsters and… SKELETONS. And it was those creepy skeletons that scared my little boy the most. He just did not like them. So, I chose my next words very carefully.

“You know,” I said. “God gave you your bones. He made us all with bones.”

Following his 3-year-old logic, my little boy concluded and then hesitantly responded, “I don’t like God.”

“But God loves you very much! That’s why he made you with those bones,” I explained. “Without bones, you couldn’t do anything. You couldn’t sit; you couldn’t stand; you couldn’t walk. God gave you bones so you can be strong, you can jump, you can run and –”

“—And I can fly?” he optimistically interrupted as the wheels began to turn in that little head of his and a spark reignited in his sleepy eyes.

So, without any fear that I would be squashing the dreams of a three-year-old child, I emphatically replied, “Oh, no! Little boys cannot fly!”

But he’s been flying ever since!

And now he is a 2020 college graduate.

Congratulations to my baby boy

who never stopped believing that he could fly – –

Never stop soaring!

A Year of Smiles – Day 332

Reason to SMILE #332: SHOWING UP

There’s a war waging over ownership of your day – your attitude, your emotional well-being, your actions, your reactions, your words, your resolve, your joy. You can fight this battle relying on your own strength but I must tell you, the odds are against you. If you truly want to experience victory each day, your strategy needs to be a bit more unconventional. Actually, it needs to be entirely illogical.

Well, maybe not entirely.

You see, the key to winning the daily battles of your life is to realize they’re not your battles to fight. Whatever you are facing, whatever situations you are dreading, whatever fears are advancing – these battles belong to the Lord and He’s already claimed the victory.

All that is required of you is waking up, dressing up and showing up. Wake up to the gift of each new day. Dress up in the armor God has given you. (Ephesians 6:10-18 – Man! I wish I would have thought of this while writing yesterday’s SMILE. <Forehead slap> Oh, well. Put on the Full Armor and a cute outfit! 😉 ) Then show up:

Show up to work, to school, to the grocery store, to the post office, to your kitchen, to your laundry room or wherever your day leads with confidence in your steps.

Show up with an attitude of gratitude.

Show up ready to honor your Victor with all you say and do.

Show up to your day with a SMILE knowing the Lord is with you to fight each battle.

You know what that means, don’t you? It means a victory celebration is waiting for you every single day! And who wouldn’t want to show up for a celebration! 😉

A Year of Smiles – Day 213

Reason to SMILE #213: YOU’VE GOT THIS!

This week many of the children in my church begin another year of school. The first day of school is always a dreaded day in my household (actually, any school day is!) and I’m sure it’s the same for many other households. Of course, there are a variety of reasons to be anxious over the beginning of a new school year. For my kid, it’s merely that he doesn’t see the point of school! (Yep. Tell me how do you deal with that one! – – Please!) No matter the reason, I completely understand. I had a whole list of them myself. So, for all of you out there who may have kids hesitant to begin this new school year, here’s a SMILE to pass along:

 

And if you’re not a student, well, this SMILE is for you, too! Remember, no matter what you are facing, God and You have got this!

A Year of Smiles – Day 13

Reason to SMILE #13: DOING GOOD

It’s Friday the 13th.  We all know the stigma associated with this day.  If anything bad is going to happen, it’s going to happen today.  To add to our qualms,  we are only one day past a full moon.  Hmmm.  That must be why my alarm clock screamed, “Let the craziness begin!” this morning. 😉

Why don’t we make today different?  Let’s turn this Friday the 13th into a day that good things happen.  Find someone to surprise today.  Bake your neighbor some cookies (and actually take the cookies to them – I’ve discovered that it doesn’t count if you don’t deliver them!  Who knew? 😉 ).  Go visit your grandmother that you haven’t seen in ages.  Complete a task that is your co-worker’s responsibility – lighten his or her load.  Hold open the door for someone at the store; carry their bags to their car.  Pay for someone’s meal.  Give money to the person holding the cardboard sign on the street corner.  There’s all kinds of things that you can do to transform this dreaded day into a welcomed day for some unsuspecting person.

Let’s show our world that God is good and His “perfect love expels all fear” (1 John 4: 18 NLT), even on a day like Friday the 13th.

What are you waiting on?  Go get busy doing good and watch the SMILES spread!

 

Image provided by symbols-n-emoticons.com