Christmas Letter from Jesus

I saw this posted on a friend's FB status and had to repost.  It puts so much into perspective!  Read, enjoy and be blessed!
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Dear Children,


It has come to my attention that many of you are upset that folks are taking My name out of the season. Maybe you've forgotten that I wasn't actually born during this time of the year and that it was some of your predecessors who decided to celebrate My birthday on what was actually a time of pagan festival, although I do appreciate being remembered anytime.

How I personally feel about this celebration can probably be most easily understood by those of you who have been blessed with children of your own. I don't care what you call the day. If you want to celebrate My birth, just GET ALONG AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

Now, having said that let Me go on. If it bothers you that the town in which you live doesn't allow a scene depicting My birth, then just get rid of a couple of Santas and snowmen and put in a small Nativity scene on your own front lawn. If all My followers did that there wouldn't be any need for such a scene on the town square because there would be many of them all around town.

Stop worrying about the fact that people are calling the tree a holiday tree, instead of a Christmas tree. It was I who made all trees. You can remember Me anytime you see any tree. Decorate a grape vine if you wish: I actually spoke of that one in a teaching, explaining who I am in relation to you and what each of our tasks were. If you have forgotten that one, look up John 15: 1 - 8.

If you want to give Me a present in remembrance of My birth here is my wish list. Choose something from it:

1. Instead of writing protest letters objecting to the way My birthday is being celebrated, write letters of love and hope to soldiers away from home. They are terribly afraid and lonely this time of year. I know, they tell Me all the time.

2. Visit someone in a nursing home. Not just during Christmas time, but all through the year. You don't have to know them personally. They just need to know that someone cares about them.

3. Instead of writing George complaining about the wording on the cards his staff sent out this year, why don't you write and tell him that you'll be praying for him and his family this year. Then follow up. It will be nice hearing from you again.

4. Instead of giving your children a lot of gifts you can't afford and they don't need, spend time with them. Tell them the story of My birth, and why I came to live with you down here. Hold them in your arms and remind that I love them.

5. Pick someone that has hurt you in the past and forgive him or her.

6. Did you know that someone in your town will attempt to take their own life this season because they feel so alone and hopeless? Since you don't know who that person is, try giving everyone you meet a warm smile; it could make the difference.

7. Instead of nit picking about what the retailer in your town calls the holiday, be patient with the people who work there. Give them a warm smile and a kind word. Even if they aren't allowed to wish you a 'Merry Christmas' that doesn't keep you from wishing them one.

8. If you really want to make a difference, support a missionary- especially one who takes My love and Good News to those who have never heard My name.

9. Here's a good one. There are individuals and whole families in your town who not only will have no 'Christmas' tree, but neither will they have any presents to give or receive. If you don't know them, buy some food and a few gifts and give them to the Salvation Army or some other charity which believes in Me and they will make the delivery for you.

10. Finally, if you want to make a statement about your belief in and loyalty to Me, then behave like a Christian. Don't do things in secret that you wouldn't do in My presence. Let people know by your actions and words that you are one of mine.

Don't forget; I am God and can take care of Myself. Just love Me and do what I have told you to do. I'll take care of all the rest. Check out the list above and get to work; time is short. I'll help you, but the ball is now in your court. And do have a most blessed Christmas with all those whom you love and remember:

I LOVE YOU, JESUS

I FOUND MY THREAD!

I have always been curious about my purpose in life.  I'm sure you have too.  But sometimes I got overwhelmed with the daily routines, the small and large hurts in life, and even the celebrations.  I got into ruts and habits that swept away my days and nights.  I made no progress on my quest to know just who I am and why on earth that I'm on the earth. 

Now that my life is much quieter, what with being an empty nester, I have time to ponder this.  That's the typical ebb and flow of life I guess.  That's what the quiet times of "middle age" affords us. 

So, I've been pondering.  Nope, I haven't found the grand answer of all answers but I have found some clues.  When I look back over my life from youth through parenthood I can see my "threads." I can see what caused me to lose my "voice" and follow someone else.  I can see the times when I was distracted by the shiny object off in the distance.  Sometimes it was the glitter of hope and sometimes just a piece of glass that was meaningless.  I can see the bright spots where my faith and passion shined through and I was carried away with excitement and purpose.

For me, there's always been an element of messenger to those bright spots.  I may not have been the hero but I could tell the story of the hero.  I may not have been the savior but I could teach about the Savior.  I may not have been the star but I can point the way to the star.  There is peace in this - knowing what my place is.  So - I can now breath and know my gift (at least it's one of the major ones). 

What is your gift?  What's that thing you do that excites you and centers you all at the same time?  Do you know?  Is your life quiet enough for you to explore?  Just wondering ....

Healing

This week I had a converstion with a friend about the science of healing.  Most people think of healing as that in the physical - requiring biology, medicine, and technology.  What we often forget about is the other aspects of healing.  Healing of hearts, minds, emotions, spirit, friendships, relationships and soul.  There is a "science" to each of these healings but they aren't about the physical sciences you learn about in school.

For example - I have recently become the owner of a puppy which has it's challenges and it's rewards.  One of the unexpected outcomes was the ability to receiving healing from this puppy.  It's such a synergistic relationship.  She relies on me for food, water, exercise, time, and those essentials.  But I have come to rely on her for the healing of my energy after a day of work or problem solving.  Yes, there's the obvious unconditional love that we all know about.  I mean a deeper healing.  When we find ourselves staring deeply into the eyes of another creature or person there's an energy exchange that is healing.  Oh, this sounds kind of silly when I read it on the screen but it's real and I'm just becoming aware more and more lately about energy exchange and what it feels like and what it looks like.  I already know about what this is like with other people but was surprised to feel it from an animal. 

So ... now I'm on a journey to learn about healing energies.  Join me?

Dreaming

Dreaming ... lately I've been finding myself doing much more dreaming. Not the kind when you go to sleep and you never know if you are going to have a good one or a bad one. I mean the kind of dreaming when you get to create the future you want to have. Day dreaming. Over the past several years I've been doing alot of research, reading, learning, and listening about this concept of creating our own reality. I've come to believe in it on many levels. Sure you hear about the law of attraction as it relates to money because that's what we often think about wanting to attract. (It works by the way.) But I've also learned that the law of attraction is much deeper than that. I attract like minded people and the experiences I fret about or focus on. But I also attract spiritual awakening and emotional healing. Part of that is about setting the intention to be open and receiving it. I've learned how to do that. Part of it is in the willingness to open my hands and heart wide enough to loosen the grips on the barriers I set. Whether that is a long held belief or an assumption about what others think about my own ability or what I think about what's possible - I have to be aware of letting it go.

As the cliche goes, the more I know the more I know I don't know. Same here. I don't know how it all works. I don't know what other barriers I haven't bumped into yet that need to be released. I don't yet know how big my dreams can go. But I keep on dreaming. I start posing questions to myself, like, "If money wasn't an issue I'd ...." or "If I could achieve my biggest success I'd ..." or "If anyone could walk into my world I'd pick ..." These kinds of day dreams are different than the one's I used to have where I would day dream about tripping, or getting lost, or having a disagreement, or having just enough to get by ... or not.

So I ask you - are you dreaming? What kinds of dreams do you have? Are they big enough? Wildly fantasic enough? Are they ambitious enough? Are they motivational enough?

Come dream with me!

Good-bye Icons

There's a sadness in the world this summer. There are so many celebrity deaths that everywhere I go I hear people talking about them. It seems we always hear of famous people dying in sets of 3. That seems to be the way we categorize it and the way we are aware of it. There seems to be something extra sad about this summer though - multiple sets of 3 in very close timing. Big names - really big names like Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, Michael Jackson, Walter Kronkite. These are the names of my childhood. These are the iconic people I remember watching and admiring for their talent at the top of their game. I related to them in some way, or looked at them as the ultimate "possibility". Their names are lingering in the air. Their talent still shining in our collective consciousness.

What is it about losing icons that makes such an intense universal impact? Why are we still talking and hearing and reading about them? It's not like we knew these people intimately. We may think we knew all about them but all we knew was what someone else wrote or assumed or the little glimpse of them showing their talent. We don't really know them at all! They weren't family. They weren't friends. They weren't even acquaintances. What are they really? Role models - maybe some. Idols - likely yes to many. But it has to be more than those superficial connections that keep us hanging on to them. I wonder why it's so difficult for us to say rest in peace and let them go.

For me, it's hard to think of someone close to my age being gone. Someone who's face I recognize at a mere glimpse and who's voice I know by heart. It's like a part of my childhood is "poof" ... gone. It's a certain reminder of my own mortality. And it makes me wonder at the level of impact I've had. Have I done enough? Am I just coasting through life with my small circle of influence? Do I even have a legacy that people will remember? Maybe that's part of the impact. Losing people from the face of the earth that have clearly impacted so many makes us wonder about our own impact. I have work to do. I have people to love, encourage, teach, learn from, and inspire.

So, for now I say to Ed, Farrah, Michael, Billy, Walter and all the others. Go swiftly into the embrace of God. Rest in Him! We will remember you as we carry on!

BEING A FOREIGN EXCHANGE "MOM"

I recently sent my foreign exchange student back home after being with me and my daughter for a full school year. The experience was something I've wanted to do since I was in high school day dreaming about jetting off around the world on adventures. So this past year I decided to take advantage of my daughter's final year of high school and make this happen.



Our student was a lovely girl from Norway. From the very beginning she seemed to fit our family well - she liked similar shows and activities as my daughter. She wanted to dabble in American sports and she signed up for several sports throughout the year. She worked hard in the beginning to get a handle on the US school system, and a Catholic private school at that (nope, she wasn't Catholic, and she wasn't religious in any form). Things got off to a great start.



We hit some snags but that's to be expected along the way. I'm not sure if it was cultural or just the personality of our student but she didn't bond with us in the tight way I had heard other students do with their families. At times I felt like she was simply on a 10 month vacation and sometimes I felt we were in her way because of our conservative beliefs and behaviors. We're not monks of course but we certainly couldn't compete with the California lifestyle I later found out she wished to have on her exchange.



At the end of the day I have no regrets. I'm glad to have done it. I'm glad to have provided this experience for my daughter and for our exchange student. But I'm also left wondering. I ponder whether the lack of bonding meant little to no influence in the life of this girl. She was polite and genial (well, for the most part). But I can't put a finger on whether or not my dream to have her here had much impact on her at all. I wonder if our faith and what she learned about our culture has changed her heart or her behaviors in any way. I wonder whether she went home wiping her brow, glad to have gotten through it. I wonder if I will ever see her again. 10 months is a long time to give emotionally, financially, and spiritually. I feel a connection to her as a mom in a way that I'm pretty sure she doesn't reciprocate. So I wonder and ponder and muse at the level of influence we had on her. I wish for her all the dreams of her young life. I hope that she remembers us and her time here fondly. I hope that a glimpse into our life plants a seed of faith for another day. I wish her love and happiness. And I miss her.

DRIFTING

There are days that come where we all seem to just wander around unable to define who we are and what we are here to do. Have you ever noticed that people tend to drift during times of "in between crisis" and "in between celebrations"? Why is it that our lives are all about circumstances dictating our moods or our thoughts or our actions? Shouldn't it be the other way around? Shouldn't it be that passion and commitment and decision drive our attitudes and actions?

I'm learning about this concept and trying to put into motion the changes based on what I choose. If life is about choices then that should include the choice of action, reaction, emotion, and mood. Yep ... still learning. Yep ... still practicing.

I do notice that the times when my life seems to be really rocking along in a good and powerful way I feel that I am in charge. I don't feel swept away by emotion in those moments. I feel like I am the cause of those emotions. I don't feel like I'm drifting but rather that I'm driving.

So, today, as the weather is gloomy and full of "liquid sunshine" I choose to continue to deliberate with myself about my level of control over what I think and what I feel. I choose to leave the drifting feeling on the sideline and get into the game of life again.

What do you think?

Who Do You Inspire?

In my work as a Human Resources Manager for a large corporation I tend to meet alot of people. A whole lot. When I add in the work I do as a Myers-Briggs certified trainer, I meet a bunch more. Every once in a while I meet someone who absolutely, hands-down inspires me. It's electric and enchanting when it happens!

I've been thinking about what it is that touches me so much about these people and I think I finally figured it out - because they are all about making the lives of others better. Simple isn't it. They don't even do it in big, grand or sweeping ways - they do it in everyday life. They are easy to talk to. They are genuine in their concern for those that don't even usually have a voice in the matter. They are humble and kind. They aren't donating wings of hospitals. (Don't get me wrong - that's pretty spectacular!) But the people that truly inspire me are the ones that make me happy to be me and happy to know them. Which is pretty much the basis for love - love grows when we are happy to be ourselves with someone else.

Simple ... simple ... simple.

I wonder, just wonder, if I am ever the person who inspires another. Do I measure myself against the right success criteria? Do I make them happy to be who they are when they are with me? Am I self-aware enough to notice?

If you want to see someone who I think is inspiring by venturing to spread smiles, peace and happiness in these difficult and worrisome times - check out Paul Wesselman and his uRock campaign. And then, check out this video on youTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EYAUazLI9k.

Enjoy!

Friendship

I am amazed at the blessings of friendship I have received over the years. As a child growing up in an orphanage (age 3-8) I thought making friends was the scariest thing because none of them ever lasted. Grade school and high school brought a smattering of friends but alas none of them seemed to stick either. I often thought I was destined to be one of those people who was always looking in from the outside. Sad but don't feel sorry for me - I just needed time to grow up and "see" what I really have.

What I've learned is that I don't have to define friendship the old way. I have true, lasting, wonderful friends that I have kept through moves around the world and across town. I approach life differently now. And when I talk to those friends either by email, phone, letter, Christmas card, or Facebook I find that my bond with them hasn't changed. That's because now I define friendship not by the day-to-day intertwining of our lives (although that's a blessing when I have it as well), but rather as a heart-twining that time and space doesn't have the ability to affect.

I love my friends and I truly thank God each day that they have been an integral part of my life. So for today, here's a shout out to my long-distance and short-distance friends. I love you all - and yes, you know who you are!

May today be blessed and tomorrow be better!
Hugs all around,
Barb

Remember Who You Are

Do you ever sometimes forget who you are? Not your name. Not your family. But your faith - do you forget that you are chosen because God created you and He loves you? Sometimes I think it is so easy to forget just who we are.

I think about this as I approach problems and questions. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in seeing the problem that I forget the next step - looking for the solutions. If we always stay stuck in that space of identifying, naming, categorizing, analyzing, giving name to our problems it becomes bigger and stronger in our mind. Take for instance finances. I used to think so much about what the next bill is, when it's due, how much or little I have in the bank to cover it, etc. I never actually moved passed the stage of being in awe of the size of the problem. I never actually remembered that who I am is a child of God. I have the protection of the Creator of the Universe behind me. I have the creative power that He rendered to me at birth, in His likeness. I just need to look for opportunities to use it!

Sometimes the solution is in renaming and reclaiming my power. Be it over destructive habits (in this example, spending or not saving). I sometimes forget that this life is about creating and about possibilities. The possibility to see things from a different angle. The possibility to count my blessings instead of my sorrows. Yes, it's a lofty ideal if it's just that - an ideal. But when I put it into practice - when I really and truly look for and count my blessings, big and small, it overwhelms me how truly loved I am. All problems seem to regain their proper perspective and new ideas and new solutions come into my consciousness. Not because the problem went away but because I remembered who I am and who my source is. There is nothing that can overcome me if I have my eyes, my heart, and my gratitude on the Lord.

So, friends - remember who you are and look for the grand possibilities that exist in this world to overcome.

Be blessed!
Barb

Feed your spirit for Easter!

I was just listening to my favorite Christian radio station online and realized that this is probably one of my favorite ways to "feed my spirit". There is something about music that changes my connection to my emotions. It can mellow me out or it can fire me up in a 3 minute time frame. I never really thought about Christian music until I lived in a little town called Connersville, IN about 16 years ago. I'm not much of a country girl so the atmosphere was just ok. But I found in that little town a group of believers. We had weekly Bible study at a friend's home and the house was always filled with the sounds of music - good, uplifting, Christian music. It started my love for this type of music. I listened to it all the time. Then when I came back to Cincinnati and life got busy and my kids turned to teens I listened to what they were listening to. I enjoyed some of it, was shocked by much of it. I certainly provided my "2 cents" worth of opinion on it and banned quite a few things. What a waste of music!

Last year when I had an incredibly spiritual experience and captured it in my book, MIGHTY INSPIRATION: Love Letters from God, I felt my heart shift back toward what feeds my spirit. Now, it's virtually all I listen to. I'm thankful to have this station in my town. They sing me to and from work and fill my life with reminders of what is great and how we can all make a difference in this world. What a blessing.

So, for this Easter, as you go about your day enjoying the eggs, the candy, the kids, the beauty of spring I wish for you a blessing of music to feed your spirit!

May God bless you!
Barb

http://www.eloquentbooks.com/MightyInspirationLoveLettersFromGod.html

MIGHTY INSPIRATION, Love Letters from God

Today is a great day! My book, MIGHTY INSPIRATION, Love Letters from God is now published and released!

A year ago when I started to hear God's words stir in my heart I never imagined that I could actually write a book or that the book would be published. I had heard and felt God in my life before and it always provided peace or challenge for me in the moment. But this was different! Way different! God's words were so strong inside of me that I had to capture them in writing. He led me on a journey of self discovering and broadening my vision for my purpose on this earth. And he challenged me to help others find their purpose and their gifts for this world. We are all here to make choices - big and small choices that will move the world to a better place. God has a message for all of us. See what he said to me.

http://www.eloquentbooks.com/MightyInspirationLoveLettersFromGod.html

Peace and love to all!
Barb