Abundant Horizons: living each day as a new beginning

Part of having an abundant life is having and maintaining a healthy life.  You cannot enjoy abundance if you are suffering from pain or distress in life.  The following is a 5 percent solution to good health as written in 1928 for the congressional members of our country.  At that time the death rate of congressional members was about 20 per year.  Dr. George W. Calver was brought in to find a solution to this alarming situation.  The following was his solution, titled the Ten Commandments of Health, and was provided to each senator and representative that come to Washington DC.  It’s a simple and wise set of instructions and one I would advise is still very accurate to this day.

1.  Eat Wisely

2.  Drink Plentifully (of water)

3.  Eliminate Thoroughly

4.  Bathe Cleanly

5.  Exercise Rationnally

6.  Accept Inevitables (don’t worry)

7.  Play Enthusiastically

8.  Relax Completely

9.  Sleep Sufficiently

10.  Check up Occasionally.

P.S.  Give 5% of your time to keeping well.  You won’t have to give 100% getting over being sick.

If we all took these simple steps to heart we would have less stress and a higher quality of life.  But how many folks actually follow such sensible steps in their lives.  Instead we eat foolishly, we get very little sleep, we exercise irrationally if we exercise at all, we spend more time in worry then we’d care to admit, and we give very little consideration to relaxing properly.  If we PLAY, we play combatively and if we drink it may not be water at all!  It’s no wonder we feel tired, depressed and totally out of sorts.  We’ve allowed our lifestyle to become our downfall. 

In the article that I found this “down-to-earth” formula, the writer spoke of his 100 year old mother who lived by the 5% solution.  As the author noted “she understands prevention and the common sense that goes with it.  She walked great distances, eats well and never smoked.”

If you, dear reader, are concerned about your longevity (how long you might live), your quality of life (how well you will live) and avoiding rising health care costs and treatments (how financially stable you will be) then review this list and pick just one where you can take baby steps to improve on.  Doing even one of these ten steps will make a difference in your life. 

Here’s to your good health and an abundant life!

From the Daily Devotional titled A Daybook of Grace I quote the following.  I felt that the story provided was a great subject to focus on.

“Charles Plumb was a U.S. Navy jet pilot in Vietnam.  After seventy-five combat missions, his plane was shot down, and Plumb parachuted into enemy territory, becoming a POW (Prisoner of War).  He survived his ordeal, however, and eventually returned home.  While eating in a restaurant one day, he was approached by a scruffy-looking man who said, ‘You’re Plumb!  You flew jet fighters in Vietnam and were shot down!’

‘How did you know that?’ asked Plumb.

‘I packed your parachute,’ the man replied.  ‘I guess it worked!’

‘Plumb couldn’t sleep that night, thinking about the unknown man who’d saved his life.  From that day on, he determined to always take notice of–and say thank you to–those who ‘pack his parachute’ each day.

‘Make the most of each day by thanking those who ‘pack your parachute’ and by making an effort to do the same for someone else.”

I loved this story.  It reminded me that each one of us, no matter what we do for a living, whether we are paid compensation or not, and how we approach our daily actions, affect so many others.  We will never know who or when we affect lives.  We sometimes think our actions, our words, or our efforts have little or no impact.  But we are wrong.  Everything we do and say in this life effects another.  It could be the smallest gesture, the simplest word that could make the biggest difference in someone else’s life.  Remember, you don’t know who is observing you.  You don’t know who hears your words.  Even those that are not necessarily meant to hear your words DO hear them and are affected.

If we choose to live our lives in the best way possible:: avoiding critizing others, avoiding making snap judgements, avoiding letting everything in life tigger our anger, we can make not only other’s lives better, but we improve the quality of our own life.

To order A Daybook of Grace just click the link below:

A Daybook of Grace: A Year of Devotions to Draw You Near to the Heart of God

As we enter into a new year many of us begin to plan out what the year might hold.  I’ve been a “planner” for as far back as I can remember.  This habit of making goals and planning my year out (and even further) was one that I started in my teens.  I made sure I wrote out my goals.  As I grew older I even worked with establishing “milestone” events to see if I was making the strides I wanted to see with these goals.  In my mind I felt I could control the sequence of life’s events by creating a roadmap.  To a great degree goal setting is very important in our lives regardless of our age.  But through time, experience and wisdom I have found that while a roadmap is great — to really see these goals manifest in your life you need to also have an understanding that it’s all going to happen in “divine order” and in “divine timing” as God wills it to be.  And once you get that, you’ll stop beating yourself up when you don’t meet the timelines of your plan.

The following devotional writ is taken from the EXPERIENCING GOD DAY-BY-DAY devotional written by Henry and Richard Blackaby.  I encourge you to get it (see the icon below to order) and to read it everyday.  It is filled with inspirational messages tied to the bible and extremely thought-provoking.  It is by far one of my most favorite devotionals that can be used year after year.  I will quote the entire message for January 16 below:

I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing.  Genesis 12:2

“Big assignments require big characters.  God will give you a responsibility in proportion to the size of your character.  In Bible times, a person’s name represented his character; to know someone’s name was to know what the person was like.  That’s why God changed the name of some when He transformed their character.  For example, the Lord wanted to bless all the nations of the earth through Abram, yet Abram’s character was too weak for such a great task.  God said He would make Abram’s name great so that He could make him a blessing to future generations.  Then over the next twenty-five years, God developed Abraham’s character to match the name He had given him.

“God sees your life from His eternal perspective.  He will take whatever time is necessary to grow your character to match His assignment for you.  If you have not received a divine commission lately, it may be that your character needs maturing.  Are you impatient to begin your work before God has refined your character?  A small character will fail in a large responsibility every time.  Don’t be too hasty to get to the work.  Character building can be long and painful.  It took twenty-five years before God entrusted Abraham with his first son and set in motion the establishment of the nation of Israel.  Yet God was true to His word, and thousands of years later people continue to be blessed by the account of Abraham’s life and by his descendant, Jesus.

“How is God building your character?  Do you sense He has a task for you that will require a far greater man or woman than you presently are?  Will you yield to God as He works in your life to prepare you for your next assignment?”

How true these words ring out to me.  God’s been working on my character for many many years.  Even though I was great at goal setting and meeting many of my goals, I had very little understanding that God was propelling me in the direction He wanted me to go in.  That understanding started to become a little bit clearer in my later years of life.  He is still working on me.  I am a work-in-progress.  Becoming aware that God was holding all the answers was a major “ah-ha” for me.  It certainly made my life a whole lot easier by allowing what was to manifest in my life to come in it’s own great timing. 

If I were to pick one of the greatest character-building traits He has taught me it’s PATIENCE!  Without this trait I would be feeling great frustration because I would still be looking to see things happen in my life on my timeframe vs. God’s.  Once I realized that with patience all things come in divine order and in God’s timing — wow, life became a whole lot easier. 

If you are trying to make a bigger life for yourself I would urge you to come to grips with the idea that you too are going to have to learn patience before you begin to experience the abundant life God has in store for you.  Does God have an abundant life in store for you?  You bet He does.  You just have to believe it’s yours for the wanting.

In the January 5th day of the devotional of “Experiencing GOD” by Henry and Richard Blackaby the following observation is being quoted.  I found this to be particularily hitting very close to home on how most of us feel toward our “relationship” with God. 

“Neither did they say, “Where is the Lord, Who brought us up out of the land of Eygpt, Who led us through the wilderness?”  Jeremiah 2:6

“Christianity is an intimate, growing relationship with the person of Jesus Christ.  It is not a set of doctrines to believe, habits to practice, or sins to avoid.  Every activity God commands is intended to enhance His love relationship with His people.

“God designed worship for us to see Him in His glory and to respond appropriately; for many it has degenerated into “religion”, one more meeting to attend out of habit.  God established the sacrificial system so that we, His people, could express our love to Him; but we often diminish our gifts to our Lord into futile attempts to appease Him and to pacify our guilty conscience. 

“God gave us prayer so we could have conversation with Him, but we often distort this by ‘saying prayers’ and hurrying off without ever listening to what is on our Father’s heart.  God instituted His commandments as a protection for those He loves, but the commandments can become a pathway to legalism rather than an avenue for a relationship with our Father in which He protects us from harm.

“Religious activity apart from fellowship with God is empty ritual.  The people of Jeremiah’s day were satisfied to have the ritual without the manifest presence of God.  They became so comfortable with their “religion” that they didn’t even notice God’s absence.  Is it possible to pray, to attend a worship service, or to give an offering yet not to experience the presence of God?  It certainly is possible!  And that has been the sad commentary on many a Christian experience.  Don’t settle for a religious life that lacks a vital relationship to Jesus Christ.  When God is present, the difference will be obvious.”

I felt these words to be so true.  So many of us claim to be Christians in our heart — but we fail to even recognize that we have no real relationship with God.  We don’t even follow His two only commandments:  Love God above all else and Love your Neighbor as you love yourself.  Do you REALLY put God as number one in your life?  Or does He sit on the shelf for when you really have to call on Him??  Or do you put others as priority in your life?  Do you put your career or your possessions as the number one priority??  Do you REALLY treat others with love?  IF you get enraged by another “group” of individuals because of their thinking, their color, their culture, their religious philosphy are you REALLY loving as God commands you to? 

If everyone in this world lived by these two simple (but very difficult) commandments we would have universal peace and prosperity in this world.  Everyone claims to know and embrace the “concepts of these commandments” but how many of us are REALLY living them?

This post includes a direct quote from Oprah’s “What I Know for Sure” column in the January, 2011 edition of O Magazine.  I hold great respect for this woman because she is a true example of manifesting her dreams and knowing the power behind “divine love” and the law of “giving and receiving”. 

“By now you’ve probably heard the Internet rumors about the year 2012.  Or maybe you saw 2012, the movie starring John Cusack as a man trying to survive the end of the world.  (Remember the line from the movie’s ads  ‘We Were Warned’).  For those of you not familiar with the prophecies of global change (based partly on the cycles of the Mayan calendar), suffice it to say that some people predict a cataclysmic collaspse of human civilization, while others foresee a time of spiritual transformation.

“Of course no one knows what will actually happen in 2012, but one thing I do know for sure is the power of intention.  And I intend to approach this year as one of great promise.  No doomsday for me:  I’m going to do my part, within myself and within the world, to bring about a shift that lets us live more authentically, more lovingly, more intuitively, more creatively, and more collaboratively.  That is my idea of spiritual evolution.  Of a spiritual revolution!

“I choose to see it as the dawning of a new year of alignment, because with alignment comes enlightenment.  When you’re aligned with your heart’s desire, when you’re in sync with who you’re meant to be and how you’re supposed to contribute in our magnificent Earth, you feel a shift in perception.  You start to notice that miracles show up regularly.

“Some people call these miracles, coincidences or serendipity.  I like to call them marvelisms.  Because when I’m doing everything I’m meant to do to keep my mind, body and spirit whole (which for me means meditating twice a day, eating healthy, and exercising at least one hour daily), I constantly marvel at how other experiences fall into place.  It’s as though that beautiful line in Paulo Coelho’s novel “The Alchemist” comes true:  ‘When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.’

“It could be something as simple as thinking about tomato soup–and suddenly a producer walks by and says, ‘I picked up some tomato soup at lunch and now I don’t want it.  Do you?  It’s still warm.’

“Or really needing a massage and then, when I’m at Starbucks, running into the masseuse I haven’t seen since last year.

“I try to take no encounter or experience for granted.  Everything happens in accordance with how we think and what we choose.  Yet I do marvel that life, year after year, keeps revealing the best of itself–if we’re willing to see it that way.

“Here’s to staying open to all this year has to offer!”  -  OPRAH”

I found Oprahs words so true to my experience.  The purpose of this blog is to have my readers learn to have the best that life can offer you everyday of your life.  None of us needs to be living under a cloud of “doomsday” mentality.  You can choose to brush that cloud away and be in gratitude that God will start bringing more “sunshine” into your daily life. 

The key to start is believing that you are WORTHY of having an incredible life.  The past is past, the future is yet to be written, TODAY is your PRESENT — enjoy every bit of it!

A blessing and the best of a NEW YEAR to you!

Victoria

As I write this post on the eve of Christmas I spend time to focus on the reason why Jesus was even born.  Yes, we all know the ultimate reason for Jesus’ birth and the ultimate sacrifice He was to make at the age of 33.  Yet, I believe that we really have lost sight of WHY He really did choose to be born of this earth as a fragile human being and to undergo a life of focused dedication and then a death of intense suffering. 

He was born to lead us as an example of how we should live our lives.  Jesus was a brilliant individual.  We know so little of how He grew up and His education.  We are privvy to His life once He turned thirty and began His true ministry in the world.  But Jesus grew up as a beloved child.  He was given the best of educations.  He learned the “the Secrets” of true manifestations that later served Him as He began His ministry.  He was a man dearly beloved, and a real example of the Attraction factor by His kind and loving personality.  He always gave to those who asked of Him.  Along with meeting the required taxes and tithes of His day (for those existed then too), He gave to anyone who approached Him.  He gave unconditional love, shown in the healing miracles He provided when asked.  He never turned anyone away whether they were the lowest of the low in that caste society, a small child, or the richest of men.  If they approached Him with an open and desirous heart, He was there for them.

Because He was such a loving man, doors were opened to Him.  We never read or hear of Jesus’s owning property.  He didn’t need to.  He always was welcomed by those who believed He was the Messiah.  He didn’t need to own anything.  He wanted for nothing.  Anything He wanted was His.  Yet, Jesus chose to live simply.  He was more focused on WHY He was sent to do, then the accumulation of fame and fortune.  He came to be a living example for all of us.

Today and tomorrow we celebrate the birth of Jesus.  We see His birth as a humble tiny defenseless child born in a manger which in Jewish tradition would have been unheard of — but the birth of Jesus was unique.  The life of Jesus was unique. From the moment of His birth to the moment of His human death we can see examples of an extraordinary man who was born and died for us to learn how to be — how to live correctly in this world.  My question to you is:  Was His birth and life in vain?

It’s is so easy to ignore the needs of others until it hits your own home.  Then the hardship of others becomes real.  Today we are living with lots of angry voices and those that choose to ignore what the underlying reason for this anger and outcry.  It is so easy for us to criticize the actions of others if we cannot relate to the pain or their suffering.  It is easy to criticize and make statements like “they should just get a job”, “they shouldn’t have gotten themselves into financial trouble”, “they shouldn’t expect others to pick up the slack”.  These are statements of judgemental attitudes that do not understand that the human suffering we are seeing today is amassed into the millions.  Until it happens to you personally, will the true understanding of this suffering become real.

We are all responsible for the betterment of our society.  We are responsible for one another.  God has given us great lives.  When we are hurt others are suppose to have a heart to help.  We must rely on each other.  Without compassion, without caring, without love we are nothing.  We will never experience true happiness and peace of mind if our attitude towards others is “I don’t give a damn about them”.  Let’s be real — if you don’t care for others this is typically what you’d be known to say behind close doors.  If your life isn’t being affected — you can easily ignore the man with the sign on the street begging for food.  You are likely to belittle or criticize the growing numbers of homeless.  You are more apt to feel bothered by all the noise of crying voices.

The reality is that from one day to the next that can be you on the street.  That can be you needing to ask for a hand to feed your family.  That can be you no longer able to afford medications needed.  That can be you saddled with a disabled spouse, whose income you no longer depend on.  It can happen to anyone of us.  It’s critical to understand this reality.  It is critical to know that if you are not experiencing these difficulties in your own life right now — you are one of the blessed ones. 

This is a season of excess when many of us go into senseless debt to buy gifts for each other.  Instead consider buying gifts for those who have some much less then yourself.  Consider buying toys for a needy child.  Consider providing food donations to your church or food bank.  These are the acts that Christmas and this season are all about.  Even more importantly, take steps to support those less fortunate then yourself even if it just means getting politically or socially involved.  Volunteer your time or talent to a needy cause.  I guess what I am suggesting is to stop being selfish and start thinking and caring for the others in this world that are suffering.  You don’t need to be concerned about what is happening half way across the world — just look across your street and see what is happening right in your own neighborhood. 

The best way to celebrate Christmas is to be Christ-like — be concerned for others.  Remember we are all brothers and sisters in this world.  And a day will come when you too need help.

Who will you trust?  Do you read something in the newspapers or on the internet and accept it all as truth?  Are you so easily swayed by Fox News or CNN?  Will you trust the Word of God or will you be believe the lies of man?  It’s your choice.  You can so easily be swayed by the news media that bombards news (opinions?) like they were translating the words of scripture.  Yet, in our gullibility we take everything that comes from the “box in the corner” as if it were truth.

In Psalm 37: 1-4 “Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away.  Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.  Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

How many of us are willing to accept and believe the Word of God that calls for us to have trust in the good of this land vs. what we are being told by the world that focuses on the evil of a few.  If we allow ourselves to accept that one in thousands, that commits a crime against man actually represents all others, we are buying into the concept that the world at large is evil.  Don’t buy into this idea.  Instead, embrace the words of Psalm 37 that man who delights in the love of God and lives their own life in God’s Word and teachings will have joy and beauty in their lives.  We all experience periods of sadness or doubt, but we experience more days and years of joy and contentedness in our lives then we even give notice to.  This is the life we are promised by God.  When we acknowledge the gifts we are given each and every day of our lives, and give God the gratitude HE deserves – it is then we will live in delight and see more of the desires of our heart manifest in our days.

You have the choice of who and what you are willing to believe.  You can believe in the bad and take what I refer to as a “chicken little” approach to life.  The story of the chicken who ran around the yard warning that “the sky is falling” when it was only a little rain.  Or you can step back and realize that those around you are good and would step up to help you in those times of real need, or maybe if you just asked.  I am of the firm belief that by believing God’s Word, that I will be held in safety, I will overcome harsh periods, I will live more days of joy then sadness, that I will be the person that will attract the better experiences of life vs the bad.  So far I believe I’ve been on the right side of life how about you?

The whole concept of being thankful and having gratitude is our heart’s way of giving honor to God, the creator of all.  Those of us who were grounded in some type of religious upbringing as children may or may not have the same religious identity today.  Sometimes the tenets of a church and religion challenge the faith of those raised by the strict belief and application of those tenets.  In rebellion, or in simple apathy, we find ourselves moving away from the religious strictures of the church of our youth.  We may flounder in search of the meaning of life, nirvana, or any other idea that will resonate in our searching souls. We often find various ideologies that resonate closer to our hearts than the religious upbringing of our parents or grandparents. 

We are all on our own personal spiritual journey.  We will forever be on a spiritual journey so long as we breath the air of this earth.  The journey is completed when we take our final breath. 

Whether we agree on “rightness” or “wrongness” of our parental introduction to religion and faith in our lives, we must give honor to those who provided some type of faith grounding in our past.  We are the lucky ones.  Imagine never being exposed to any discussion about God, about Jesus Christ or the idea of the Holy Spirit.  Imagine never being introduced to these concepts as a child.  It would be much harder as an adult to grasp the full understanding of such ideologies because as we grow older we become harden and cynical not allowing our left-brain logic to accept anything new, especially something of a supernatural basis.  However, if we were introduced in very early years then the concepts are not hard to grasp, after all they were part of our upbringing.  It now boils down to choosing to believe, choosing to grow beyond our childhood understanding about God. 

As adults we choose what we want to believe or not.  We choose to continue learning, we choose to obey or not.  Many times when life’s traumas become so difficult in our lives we take the step toward seeking God again because we know we no longer can do it alone. 

So on this seventh day of a Week of Thanksgiving we give thanks to those who were instrumental to introducing us to God in the first place, and to those that help us to understand the full magnitude of God’s glory in our lives today.  The more we choose to learn about God, about Jesus and about the Holy Spirit, the more mystery of life begins to unfold for us.  The more we learn – the stronger our faith.  The stronger our faith the greater our appreciation for all the gifts of this world.  The more we appreciate the more we are given.  What an incredible concept.  And to all you readers of my blog — I say “thank you” and be blessed! 

No one can deny that life would not be rich without our cadre of friends and acquaintances.  We love our families but our friends are the family we choose.  Those of us with friends that have ridden the bumps and tides of time with us should know how precious their wisdom, love and strength have meant during those turbulent periods.  When the times are really tough your friends are sometimes the only thing you can count on.  What makes life so meaningful is the remarkable ability to make new friends along the way.  Life is made fresh when we can enjoy the dance of friendship.  We laugh our loudest, shed our biggest tears, and can scream our frustrations to those we call our closest friends.  They see the worst and the best in us.  They remember the growing pains, the disappointments and the highest levels of our achievements with a smile on their faces and a glowing sense of pride at being your friend.

For all the friends in our lives — we need to say “thank you”!  Thank you for not giving up on me.  Thank you for always having a open door for me to come home to.  Thank you for being a cheerleader when the times were the lowest.  Thank you for accepting me just the way I am.  No greater gift can be given then to have a dear dear friend.  Good friends know that they may not hear from you for weeks or months at a time (maybe even years), but the moment you reconnect it’s as if time never passed between you.

Good friends are always there when you need them.  They don’t question you or make you feel like you are an inconvenience in their lives.  They open up their arms in support of whatever you need at that moment.  How could you not be grateful for those friends in your life?  They are the cherished gifts GOD gives us to make our life more enhanced and rich.  So take a moment and tell a good friend — how much they mean to you.  You will bless them and you’ll be blessed in the act.