Posts Tagged 'change'

when I’m wrong

Published May 25, 2012 enemies to intimacy , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual 1 Comment
Tags: , , , ,

 I don’t like to be wrong & this is often based out of pride.  I don’t like to be wrong because it makes me look bad.  I don’t like to be wrong because it makes me feel inferior.  I don’t like to be wrong because it hurts my ego.  Nevertheless, because I’m human, I’m not always right.  So here are some ways to constructively handle being wrong:

  • learn and grow from being wrong – it seems to me that I often learn more from being wrong than being right
  • get busy fixing whatever has been damaged from being wrong – this can include apologizing, taking responsibility (rather than shifting blame), forgiving and making amends
  • take on a humble mindset on a daily basis & this can help take out the sting from being wrong

My sense is that being wrong isn’t an if  issue, but rather a when issue.  With this thinking, it’s helpful to have some constructive strategies in place :)

managing isn’t the same as growing

Published April 25, 2012 enemies to intimacy , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual 3 Comments
Tags: , , , , ,

I have some weak spots in my life that can be really frustrating to me:  I don’t like it when I fumble meeting a new person, I don’t like it when I want to get back at someone for a petty insult, I don’t like it when one of my insecurities makes me look stupid & there’s lots more.  But I’ve been thinking about some of these things lately & I’ve decided that I have a choice:  I can manage these weak spots & work around them OR I can change & grow bigger than these weak areas.  I’ve certainly done much in the management realm, but I am feeling challenged to let the Holy Spirit work on me with the change & grow realm.

Ultimately, I’m very happy that the Holy Spirit continues to work with me, knowing that with His help, I can only get better & better!  How about you???  Are you managing or growing? :)

On making change

Published April 20, 2012 enemies to intimacy , family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual 2 Comments
Tags: , , ,

Have you ever been short changed, only to make this discovery when it was too late? This used to really big me, so I would do my best to remember to stay & count my change the moment I received it. The important part was to STAY & count the change.
I’ve been thinking lately about making some important changes in my life & I’ve come to the conclusion that commitment precedes change. A person who doesn’t commit often never changes but they will frequently change their surroundings to avoid commitments that would require them to change. I know that sounds convoluted, but simply put: change is often a consequence of commitment & a lack of growth & maturity is often a reflection of non-commitment.
If you want to avoid being short changed, be sure to hang around & count your change ,)

not too small

Published March 15, 2012 enemies to intimacy , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual 2 Comments
Tags: , , , , ,

 Sometimes I have these thoughts that run around in my mind that I’m not important, not making a difference, not being significant – the normal human insecurity junk.  If you’re like me, I get tired of these ideas.  They distract me from important things – most of all, my walk with Jesus.  But it is noteworthy to understand that whenever I get my eyes off of Jesus, the Source of love, acceptance, affirmation, comfort, Truth and more, it is in these times that I’m most vulnerable to the insecurity junk.  When I keep my thoughts & focus on Jesus, then all of those small ideas seem to fade to gray.

Keeping our eyes & thoughts on Jesus helps to immunize us from the all-to-familiar human insecurity mindset :)

testing, 1, 2, 3

Published February 3, 2012 Holy Spirit , living , spiritual 1 Comment
Tags: , , , , ,

 I used to teach Jr High & High School and I thoroughly loved teaching!!  My students to this day would probably tell you that I was a hard teacher and my tests were particularly difficult.  It’s true, I did give rough tests & I did my level best to have them graded and returned by the next day because I firmly believed that my students would learn the most if I could get their tests graded and returned asap.  Their tests would help them see where they were solid and the areas where they needed to make improvements.  Ultimately, the tests were not for my benefit, but rather for my students and I wanted to help them get the most out of them that I possibly could.

To me, this is interesting because there are several occasions in the Bible where God tested people and several verses that imply that He still tests us – to show us our strengths and weakspots.  Sometimes when we go through difficult seasons or seasons that seem to be murky or deficient in purpose, these can often be tests.  In the tests that I now recognize that God has given me, I’ve learned some extremely helpful things – the importance of wisdom, the power of patience, the significance of trust and the vitality of genuine love, plus more.  Even though we often don’t like tests, they can certainly be very valuable :)

jr high girls basketball

Published January 18, 2012 Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , , , ,

 One of my daughter’s friends had a basketball game last night & we we able to go, watch & cheer.  These kinds of games bring back lots of different memories for me because I used to coach both jr & sr high school girls basketball.  I thoroughly enjoyed coaching, but was also too competitive & I lived in the shortcomings of being too competitive (rash words, impatience, self-centered & more).  Last night, I found myself again being vocal & probably too competitive.

Do you ever have those areas in your life where you tend to struggle???  Here are some thoughts about how to deal with these areas:

  • avoidance – for years I never coached because I didn’t have the opportunity;  now I think I didn’t coach because God knew that this weak spot can be a downfall for me
  • celebrate progress – over the last year, I’ve been around coaching a bit more.  My celebration is that even though I’m not where I need to be, at least I’m not as bad as I was :)
  • accountability – last night I sat around some friends who would tell me to tone it down & I’m grateful for their help!
  • honesty – a problem that is ignored or downplayed won’t get better
  • be thankful – I’m grateful to God for helping me to grow, mature & become more like Christ through the power & presence of the Holy Spirit
  • humility – arrogance sabotages growth & change

An important key to getting results

Published January 15, 2012 fasting , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual 1 Comment
Tags: , , ,

I’ve been reading where Jesus talks about being fruitful for God in John 15 & He brings out the idea of pruning a branch to make it more fruitful. In this chapter, He talks about how there are branches that take life but bear no fruit. I can see the truth of what Jesus is saying in many areas of my life. If I’m not careful, I can get involved w lots of different things & give away loads of my time, but to things that have nothing more than frothy results, things that are shallow & empty.
If I want God’s results to be working throughout my life, then it’s very important that I cooperate w His pruning process, even when I don’t always like it. Pruning makes for a fruitful life :D

let’s grow with Tebow :)

Published January 14, 2012 Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual , Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , ,

 Ok, whether you like Tebow (the quarterback for the Denver Bronco’s football team) or not, he makes a very clear stand about his faith in Jesus.  There are lots of people who like him for his stand & lots of people who don’t like him for being so vocal.  This blog isn’t to applaud or criticize Tebow, but rather to encourage us to grow, mature, develop & change – and to foster development & growth in the people around us.

Some ways that we can encourage others to grow include:

  • applause – celebrate when those around you take a step that may be difficult for them, encourage persistence & endurance
  • constructive criticism - while we must of course be honest, being negative & critical doesn’t foster growth
  • listen – oftentimes, I find that many times I can find the answer that I need if someone will give me a few minutes of listening
  • pray – ask God to help the person that needs to grow & be open for God to show you areas in your life that need to change as well.  It’s not uncommon for me to be praying for someone else, andn God to show me some similar areas in my life that need to be improved, adjusted or revamped

And as for Tebow, whether you like him or not, I think we can agree that season has caused him to grow alot :)

the power of practice

Published January 12, 2012 cooking , family , Holy Spirit , living , prayer , relationships , spiritual Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , ,

When my kids were younger, I had a fairly consistent of habit of making at least 2 attempts to get to the car before I was successful.  I was always forgetting something – keys, wallet, bag, coat, shopping list, etc.  My husband always knew that my 1st effort to leave would always have some follow up attempts as well & we now joke about this :)   He teases me & I always say that my first effort(s) are practice until I can get it right.

 Practice is super important – it’s where we make mistakes, improve our skills, learn better ways, grow through endurance, etc.  Indeed, practice is an essential ingredient for success!  So if you find yourself having to practice alot, don’t get discouraged – you are merely getting continually better!!  Consider that today’s results of the consequences of yesterday’s practice & today is the essential practice that we will need for tomorrow’s success :)

Want an adventure???

Published January 10, 2012 enemies to intimacy , fasting , Holy Spirit , living , missions , prayer , relationships , saving moses , spiritual , travel 1 Comment
Tags: , ,

I love adventures!! I’m adventurous w my food, with trying new things, going to new places & in lots of different ways. But I’ve also noticed some areas where I’m not adventurous & it seems to me that it is these exact areas where God is beckoning me to follow His lead more fully. Of course, I’m not very comfortable in these areas but I think that my discomfort is part of God’s plan, so I rely on Him more fully. Indeed, it has been my experience that when I grow in my reliance on God, this is one of the ways that the Trinity increases my closeness with them. So the greatest adventure that we can ever experience is to walk closer & closer w God :D
Let’s Go!!

20120110-082104.jpg

Next Page »

sarahbowling

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 100 other followers

Goodreads

No data found
Book recommendations, book reviews, quotes, book clubs, book trivia, book lists

 

May 2012
M T W T F S S
« Apr    
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031  
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 100 other followers