Why Are We Broken-Hearted?

"If our devotion is to the cause of humanity, we will be quickly defeated and broken-hearted, since we will often be confronted with a great deal of ingratitude from other people. But if we are motivated by our love for God, no amount of ingratitude will be able to hinder us from serving one another."
Oswald Chambers

I'm a people-pleaser. Have been since childhood. My parents will ill much of the time and I walked on eggshells - hoping that if I was good they wouldn't die.

This habit has followed me all my life. It's become a condition of my heart - a hiding place of sorts. But when I read this paragraph by Oswald Chambers I realized how unfair I have been to the Lord because of this need to please humanity. I have often let it supersede my desire to please God.

I have to ask myself why I do what I do. When the weight of serving others becomes a burden that seems unbearable, that's when I must examine my motives. Who am I trying to please - God or man? Our servant-hood must be born our of our love for the One who served us and is our example.

I'm still trying to wrap my brain around this. How about you? Do you know whom you serve and why? Is God's approval more important to you than man's?

The right answer just might save our heart from being broken again and again.

Blessings!

The Heart of the Matter

February is National Heart Month. I've always known that, but never really thought too much about it. I know about all the recommendations set forth by the American Heart Association for better heart health.

• Don't smoke
• Keep your weight down
• Exercise more
• Manage stress
• Eat a healthy diet

The risks are higher for women over 55 and men over 45 - especially if you have a family history of heart disease. Heart disease is still the number one killer in the U.S.

What about our spiritual heart?  There are many attitudes, emotions and conditions of the heart that can kill our spiritual lives. Bitterness, unforgiveness, fear and anger can all chip away at our "heart" health.

Those things ruin relationships, stifle gifts and talents and dash our dreams. We use negativity to build walls around us - trying to protect our hearts from any more pain.

When we won't let go, allow healing, or forgive, we damage the best part of us. We will never reach our full potential - live our destiny - when we are closed in the walls of our own making. Looking through the keyhole of our prison door is no way to live.

So as we adopt better habits for the health of our physical heart, shouldn't we do the same for our other heart?

• Lose the weight of negative emotions
• Partake of the nourishment of God's word
• Exercise your gifts and share them with others
• Manage your thoughts - determine to throw out the negative ones
• Don't smoke

Okay so the last one is just good advice.

What do you give more attention - your physical heart or your spiritual heart?

Stay well....

Come out, come out wherever you are!

The faces of the ladies listening to my message revealed a variety of reactions. As I spoke about the condition of the heart that is hidden, I could detect nods of affirmation, frowns of reflection, smiles of acknowledgment and sad eyes of sorrow.

I told them about my own journey through the game of hide and seek that we play as adults. Hiding our real selves from our family, friends and even God. I could see the ladies relating to my stories about hiding behind fear, pain, anger or bitterness as I spoke. Some of them approached me afterward and patted my hand.

"I have been hiding too." Some would say.

We all hide. We all want to protect our hearts, our feelings, our ideals. But at what cost? I told the ladies that they couldn't live an abundant life through the keyhole of a hiding place. And you can't be a seeker if you are a hider.

We have a choice to make. Will we risk some pain to reach our full potential? Or will we plaster on that smile, pretending no one will notice that we are hiding our true selves from them?

God has designed us all to do something wonderful. It's never too late to discover what that might be. But we must leave our hiding places behind to explore the possibilities.

What are you hiding behind? Are you afraid to show us the real you? Don't be...we will still like you!

I Think I'm a Big Baby.......

Going on day 15 of the worst cold I've ever had. I use up half my energy picking up used Kleenex tissues and the other half blowing my nose and coughing. I cough so hard that I have pulled a muscle in my chest wall right behind my.....well you know.

It's funny how we take it for granted when we are feeling well. I keep asking myself why do I waste time when my head is clear and sharp? Now that it's plugged with body fluids and cold medicine, I can barely think long enough to write this blog post.

Then I think about all the writers who have permanent physical infirmaries. How do they do it? How do they plow through constant fatigue, pain, discomfort and limitations? I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, but I have many more good days than bad.

After this cold is gone, I resolve to appreciate the good times - the days when I feel well enough to get lots done. It's like a new year's resolution....only kinda late.

What do you do when you feel poorly? Do you keep writing or give up, lay down and wait to be well?

I have an idea!

"The New York Times reported that “According to a recent survey, 81 percent of people feel that they have a book in them…and should write it.” If you do the math, that represents over 200 million people in the U.S. who want to write a book in their lifetime! No wonder self-publishing is thriving as never before!" from selfpublishingresources.com.

It almost never fails. When I tell people I'm writing a book (or two or three) I hear "Oh, I have an idea for a book I want to write someday."

Like it's a new recipe to try or a new dress shop to try out.

The think is....I never used to say that. I never had "an idea" for a book. Not for a long, long time. Then when I did have an idea....I didn't even voice it to anyone. I think I thought it was somehow a sacred thing...a wish like the ones you wish as you blow out your birthday cake candles.

I still don't talk about it much to anyone I meet. I'm not sure why. Maybe insecurity or fear of "the look". Of course it would be different if I were published....wouldn't it?

What about you writers out there? Do you talk up your book ideas or share with many that you are writing?

Conference anyone?

Just thought I'd put it out there again....the Inland NW Christian Writer's conference is coming up March 16 & 17 in Spokane, Washington. It's an inexpensive conference, but you will get so much for your money. Keynote speaker is best selling author Tracie Peterson. There will be professionals from all over the country coming to share their wisdom and offer their services as editors, agents, critiquers and workshop presenters.


Sign up now to get the early bird pricing. You won't want to miss this opportunity.

Go to the website to learn more or to register: http://www.inlandnwchristianwriters.com/.

Hope to see you there! Spread the word!

Jan

Forty years is a long time.

It's been 40 years since my high school graduation. Even longer since I lived through those years with young people I thought I knew. Maybe I didn't know them so well, but we were close all the same. As teens in those days we shared more, laughed more, dreamed more and expected more from our futures.

I don't think it's the same for many teens today. It's more about living for the moment, and the future seems more uncertain.

It seemed to me that the world of my high school campus was a sort of magical place - a think tank of ideas and exploration. We said what was on our minds, we thought we could accomplish anything and never once dreamed how hard life could be. Some of us knew what we wanted to be when we grew up and some of us didn't. But that didn't seem to matter because we had each other and we knew everything would just work out somehow.

Some of the best kinds of friendships are lived in high school. Some probably thougtht they would last forever. I did. Now I think about seeing all my friends and acquaintances again and I am excited to see how and where they impacted their world - my world. And I can only hope that somehow, somewhere I made a difference for theirs, even if only in a "cosmic" sort of way.

Forty years is a long time. Yet it went by in the blink of an eye. Have I changed? Yes. Have my schoolmates changed? Not in my mind. I only know them as they were. Did we think time would stand still for us? Maybe. And maybe when we meet again, it will seem that way. 

Did we become all we were meant to be? I know I'm still working on that.

Did we lose sight of our dreams? I'm still working on that too.

If only we lived in a world of do-overs and mulligans. Would we have a different story to tell when we meet again in June 2012? In reality, all we have is second chances...and this summer will be our second, third or fourth chance to unite and be the dynamic group of people we always knew we were. Won't that be groovy?

Here's to the class of 1972. I'll see you soon.

God bless.