Day 181 - Conspire to Inspire

"The best way to deal with our past is to hitch up our pants, roll 

up our sleeves, and face it head on. No more buck-passing

or scape-goating. No more glossing over or covering up.

No more games. We need a confrontation with

our Master."

God Came Near

by

Max Lucado

Today I had the privilege of encouraging a rather down and out friend who has so much to offer the world in talent and the love of Christ, but satan tries in every way to discourage. It's important to remember that God can and does changes things, make them good as scripture says, if we are called according to His purpose. His purpose is spreading His love, forgiveness, and grace to the entire world. We will have trials, some pretty heated ones, but He has overcome every one of them already.

Transparency is actually quite freeing. You don't have to tell everyone every detail of your life, but confession is good, and as Max says...we need to be straight with God. He knows everything already!

Whether we want to admit it or not all Christians struggle sometimes, otherwise, we'd be perfect, and we are far from that! It doesn't mean your faith isn't strong...remember Elijah?! It means you're imperfect. Remember Brennan's words about God's love? He loves us as ....we are...not...as we should be...because we will never be as we should be? Yep!  So fess up and stand tall!

I am trying to improve my attitude...and stress level...so I pulled out a bracelet I had purchased a while back, and I gave one to my friend, as she has been going through some disconcerting  challenges.  The bracelet has different words of encouragement - a Stay On Track Tri-Tone Stretch Bracelet, available on Amazon, although I bought mine at Hallmark. I'm thinking of ordering some for others who need a boost.

The words on my bracelet read: Enjoy Life, Relax, Think, Focus, Believe, Be Positive, Breathe, Live Healthy, Inspire, Improve, Have Passion, Learn, Stay Strong, Persevere, Don't Worry, Keep Calm, Reflect, Be Happy, and Embrace Love. Strange thing is that my "Embrace Love" is upside down! Do you think there's a message there?

So I came up with my own little slogan for the day, or better yet for the rest of the year: "Conspire to Inspire." I hope I can remember that the next two days!