Decisions, decisions....

The following quote was posted on Facebook by my fb friend, KT Leong

 . I really don't need to write anything else about it. You are intelligent enough to be teachable by those who are wise.

‎"When her husband of seventy years died, she had to move to a nursing home....As she maneuvered her walker into the elevator, she was given a verbal description of her tiny room. "l love it," she declared with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old presented with a puppy. "...you haven't seen it yet...Just wait." "Happiness is something you decide upon ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged; it's how I arranged it in my mind....Every day is a gift, and as long as my eyes are open I'll focus on the new day and all the happy memories that I've stored away....." ~a real life elderly mentioned in "You're only young twice" by Ronda Beaman, RdS  

It's Not Complicated

  Someone I love  has an email address that includes the words its not complicated . Whenever I am trying to write down that email address  while trying to remember where to put punctuation, how to spell complicated,etc., I disagree.  I think:" Oh, yes, it is complicated!" We humans have a tendency to complicate things. 
     Adam began to complicate simple directions when he added : "And we must not  even touch it" to God's command not to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. He probably just added it because he knew Eve better than we do. As a teacher and houseparent, I've seen children add to the playground rules, house parents add to the rules in the house. A lot of government ordinances are a very human attempt to  add  our own two cents to God's Big 10. Oh, I understand that laws have to be specific   enough to eliminate any possible misunderstandings. Our efforts at clarification, however, typically   complicate so much  that you have to hire a lawyer just to help decipher what it actually says.
   As humans we tend to complicate just about everything we touch or think about. Human invented  inventions and technology make life easier, you say? Sure they do! Easier, except when they don't work  properly- then, it complicates everything. Even knowledge can complicate our decisions and our actions. Our worries, our fears  not only complicate our own lives ; they also complicate  the lives of people around us. The list is endless.

   Faith, on the other hand,   has the tendency to simplify . It amazes me that the Creator, whose creation continually astounds with its multitudinous intricacies, was willing to boil the simple BIG 10 down to two very simple rules for living. Love God. Love people.

 The wise King Solomon, full of words and thought summarized  like this:

"Here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
    for this is the duty of all mankind.
¹⁴ For God will bring every deed into judgment,
    including every hidden thing,
    whether it is good or evil."

And the Prophet Micah simplified by saying this:

"He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."Micah 6:8

    I could go on, but why complicate things? 

    The real matter at hand is:what does all this have to do with being happy? Quite simply, I love God, He loves me. Never, at any time or in any circumstance am I unloved.

     How could I not be happy? 
                                                                        

                       It's just  not that complicated.

   

Warming It Up!

Hmmm...hummm, humm.We've had kind of a rough time lately. Serious flu complications, losing the job that was our mainstay income,etc. Why, then do I wake up with a song in my heart every morning?
1. Because I'm old enough to be grateful I woke up? Well, yes.
2. Because there is the possibility that I could spend time with people I love, today? Well, yes, that does make me smile.
3. Because I slept in a comfortable bed, warm with a roof over my head without the rumbles of hunger in my tummy? Well, yes, I do not take those for granted.
4. Because even on grey, winter days, there is beauty to be found? Well, yes...and I enjoy the treasure hunts to find it.
5. Because I know that I know that I know that God loves me? Well, yes and no, not exactly...that's the reason I live, and move and have my being.
6, Because even in the darkest moments, I have troves of good memories to peek at when I need a little cheer? Well, yes, memories are useful in that way.
7. Because I have been graced with the gift of sure faith in the faithfulness of God? Well, yes, faith reinforced by the experience of knowing Him through all the dark times I've experienced before. I know His faithfulness like I know the moods that play across the face of my dear friends  I've learned these things  because of our history together and because I treasure who He is.
8 Because there are  such a things as rainbows and candle flames and baby giggle? Well, yes...duh!.
9 Because  when I did my body inventory this morning there was  a  little spot on my little left toe that didn't hurt ?. Well, yes...I do look for the painless spots and celebrate those.
10. Because with all these reasons and many, many more:WHY NOT wake up with a song in my heart?
And just  like I go out and warm up the engine of my  car so it can run well in this cold weather before I try to depend on it to take me somewhere and to function well. ;  I also hum a little hum to warm up my heart so it can run well in this sometimes cold world, so I  can depend on it to be loving and cheerful when its needed.