Thursday, November 12, 2009

TRUST

This is called TRUST and I wrote it March 25th, 2008

It's an impossible situation, and the consequences are dire.

Where will I turn for strength? The choice is right there: fake it all by myself, or give it up to Someone else. 

Of course I'll take control! Who else is there? Who else can I trust to weather this storm?

But then I find that I can't do it. I'm not strong enough; I don't have enough control to ever survive.

So I begin to loosen my grip, and as my fingers peel off the wheel, the world slowly turns to right-side-up.

I realize that my control causes death, and His control only brings life.

So I choose to trust Him with my life.

Hmmmm....poetry

Hello again, dear readers. As I've caught up on all of your blogs, I realized that my blog is missing something very crucial and life-giving: poetry.

I've written poems; I keep a journal of sorts specifically for poems. But what good are they in a book if no one but their author gets to read them? So I'm going to post some of my poems. I've tried to record the date they were each written, and I'll do my best to remember to include that when I post them.

Oh, and there's one really cool story [If I do say so myself!] that I will include...it might be a while, since I'll have to dig it out of one of my old journals, but I will definitely post it soon! So enjoy, and comment as you are led.

A Poem for God by His favorite daughter {written February 24th, 2008}

The Father is good; He's great all alone.
But that's not what He wants; He wants to share His throne
So He created a daughter just for His heart
But she ran away, breaking Him.
She put sin in between them, forcing them apart.
Her sin was painful, even for Him, Because He loved her so much,
and He went to rescue her, and went out on a limb.
He sent His Son to die for this girl, His girl,
And pay for her sins so she wouldn't have to.
He brought her back and then gave her a pearl.
He said, "You are mine, and that is for always."
She couldn't believe that He'd want her back.
But He did, and she decided to worship for the rest of her days.
So now this Father and daughter live happily, walking together side by side,
and I'm happy too, because this daughter is me.

Amazing Principles and quotes

Hello, friends. I hope that by now I may consider you my friend, and that you consider me friend as well. This has been an exciting journey so far, this journey of life. Let's get inspired and continue our journey!

It is a family tradition at my house to receive a calendar for Christmas. This year, my calendar has a beautiful picture, a virtue, and a quote about that virtue for each month. November's virtue is faith. St. Augustine said "Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of faith is to see what you believe."

This ties directly to what John Maxwell says about vision {remember that I'm reading his book}. He says that vision, or faith, is essential for leaders. Leaders themselves need to have a vision, and they need to impart this vision to those around them; otherwise, these leaders know where they are going, but are going there alone.

Maxwell describes this importance: "During World War II, parachutes were being constructed by the thousands. From the workers' point of view, the job was tedious. It involved crouching over a sewing machine eight to ten hours a day and stitching endless lengths of colorless fabric. The result was a formless heap of cloth. But every morning the workers were told that each stitch was part of a life-saving operation. They were asked to think as they sewed that each parachute might be the one worn by their husbands, their brothers, their sons. Although the work was heard and the hours long, the women and the men on the home front understood their contribution to the big picture." [pages 156-157]

Let vision guide you to see the bigger picture, even in the mundane tasks. Visualize the end result, and fight for it!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Leadership

Hello, readers! My, it has been a long time! School has definitely been keeping me busy, but I'm back!

I've been reading John C. Maxwell's "Developing the Leader Within You." Some of his principles are amazing, and they're simple! Please allow me to share with you some of my favorites. [This first one is Maxwell's paraphrase of Norman Vincent Peale, just for copyright's sake.] "...positive thinking is how you think about a problem. Enthusiasm is how you feel about a problem. The two together determine what you do about a problem." [page 84]

"A great philosopher once commented that an eagle's only obstacle to overcome for flying with greater speed and ease was the air. Yet, if the air were withdrawn, and the proud bird to fly in a vacuum, it would fall instantly to the ground, unable to fly at all. The very element that offers resistance to flying is at the same time the condition for flight. The main obstacle a powerboat has to overcome is the water against the propeller, yet, if it were not for this same resistance, the boat would not move at all. A life free of all obstacles and difficulties would reduce all possibilities and powers to zero. Eliminate problems and life loses its creative potential." [pages 77-78]

I'll keep you informed of more great leadership principles as I continue reading. I hope these inspire you!