Is it for you or me?

If I don't do this how you think I should; does that make me a failure?

Why do we pressure ourselves to be what others think we should be; and try to accomplish what others think we should accomplish? We try so hard to live up to others expectations of us, that we fail to recognize what it is that God wants US to do for OURSELVES!

We must learn to realize that our happiness begins and ends with our own satisfaction with what we do or don't do, as long as it's based from our own needs. Living for someone else is not going to bring you the satisfaction or fulfillment that you seek. It will only bring an endless journey of circle chasing, where you end up where you started.

You can't fulfill someone else's dreams and ambitions through your life, you MUST pray for direction, create and go for your own!

Do you have R or R?

Are you focused more on religion than a relationship?

Many people spend their time spouting religious philosophy and saying how blessed they are and how sanctified they are because they go to church. Let me tell you, this does not make you a Christian! Let me repeat, this does not make you a Christian.

What we need to be focused on is seeking, finding and maintaining a relationship with Jesus. Anyone can be religious, but to have that relationship is when you KNOW that Jesus has saved your life, when you KNOW that He makes a way for you out of no way and when you KNOW that He will NEVER leave you nor forsake you. That is establishing a relationship with Him.

When your inside relationship with Jesus is right, your outside religion will shine through with that inner peace and glow that only He can give.

Make sure you focus on your relationship with Jesus and your religion will speak in your actions!

Woe is me....

When you get to feeling down on yourself and your life, take a visit to a nursing home, cancer ward, cemetery, orphanage, unemployment line or soup kitchen and see how good you really have it.

Most of us don't know the real meaning of suffering. We think in terms of not getting our short term desires or wants satisfied, and think we have it bad. That nothing is going right for us, and we always seem to get the bad hand.

When your mind starts wandering in this direction and you get to feeling depressed because of what you don't have, where you aren't and what you haven't accomplished, start thinking on how much worse it could be. Hopefully this will get your mind refocused on appreciating what you have; your health, your mind, your job and your family.

Don't talk..just listen

Everyone take the time today to actually listen to what others are saying to you.

Don't try to out think them, prepare your response, cut them off, or out talk them. Just LISTEN!

We never take the time to actually listen to what others have to say because we are too busy figuring out what we are going to say next. If our mind isn't preoccupied with our own thoughts and opinions, then we are searching for errors in others conversation. We only hear them talk instead of actually listening to what they have to say.

Just for today, resist the urge to have a response to everything someone says to you. Instead, take a break when the conversation is done, tell them you would like to think about what they have said, and come back later with conversation based on your reflection of what you heard.

Talking for the sake of hearing yourself speak demonstrates your inability to control your thoughts.