On my heart......

I heard something the other day that made me stop in my tracks, and really look at the things I do for others, I am always trying to fix the lives of those around me, but maybe instead of investing the time and effort (and often times money) into the lives of people who seem to not be willing to help themselves, maybe it is time that I take my hard earned money, and time, and love and fix my own life, start minding my own business. I dd not make the choices that put others in their situation, I made the choices that put me in mine. Every time we tell some one about their own weaknesses it brings them down, but if you can give them one compliment when you want to condemn you will lift them up, bring them willing to change, instead of refusal. So, as  I pondered this information and prayed about it, this is what was put onto my heart: We are often quick to go to God when things are not headed our way, or have gotten so out of control that we cry out to God "WHY" or "HELP" but when the going get tough, we are sure to get going, as long as God is doing what we want, we are fine with him, but as soon as something happens we don't think is "fair" we turn our backs, and we pray when in need, but how many of you pray to just pray? When you do pray, how many hours, days, or weeks go by before you decide this "isn't working" he is not answering me....Maybe it is not that God is not answering you, but that you refuse to listen. The bottom line is that you are going to put up with some crap in life, Jesus did not say follow me and I will take away your problems and suffering, Jesus in fact PROMISES us that we will hit rough waters, ITS GONNA HAPPEN! So, if you were to look at your self, would you say that you are mad because of what life gave you, or because of what you made of it? We ignore God and his calling or will for us, because that is much easier then picking up our cross and following him. Bearing the weight of our own choices is often too much for us to be willingly take responsibility for. It is easier to say God doesn't answer your prayers then to admit that we are selfish and self absorbed and don't want to listen to what is right, because doing what is wrong is so much easier. A very wise teacher once told me "We do what we want to do and we don't do what we don't want to do and all the excuses in the world won't change that," so when you are justifying all the many reasons, you don't go to church, you don't pray, you don't read the bible, whatever it may be, the bottom line is, that list of stuff you are not doing, mirrors the list of stuff you don't want to do. We choose not to have that personal relationship with God because his word is hard to swallow sometimes and even harder to live by. It is so much simpler to point our fingers at all the people in our world who has done us wrong, and complain about all the things that they could have done to make our lives better, it is easier to point our finger then it is to forgive, listen, and teach each other. We hate admitting our own faults and weaknesses yet we very blatantly can point out the many faults of others with no remorse. (it is one thing to help some one see a reoccurring pattern in their lives, it is another to judge them for it)   We seem to have this ability to justify telling someone their faults because if we don't tell them, then how will they know to change it, well like most of us, we know our faults, as I am sure they do. Be honest with them, but don't degrade them. If you truly love, then in love compliment, in love empower. For every negative word is a negative response.