The TOO much bunch.
The other day I was surfing channels and this preacher I liked was on, so I stopped and listened to her sermon. It was one of those days, weeks, months where you keep hearing the same message & know it is meant for you in that moment. I wanted to share it with all of you in hopes that it may help you the way it helped me.
Sermon Title: The "Too Much Bunch" Joyce Meyer Ministries
For an article on this sermon click here: ( http://www.joycemeyer.org/OurMinistries/Magazine/0612/Reducing+Your+Frustration+Factor.htm)
We have too much to do, too much debt, too many commitments, too much clutter and as a result we have too many frustrations!
I believe that the majority of our feelings of frustration are a result of distortional expectations. In other words, we expect people and circumstances in our lives to be a certain way, and when they're not, we're disappointed. When our expectations are not met, anger and impatience are often added to our frustration. Not only do these feelings keep us from enjoying our lives, but they also increase the risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity. The good news is that we can eliminate most of our distorted expectations by reprogramming our minds and hearts. Let's look at some examples of how frustration affects our bodies and what we can do to reduce it.
I recommended two very important things for you to do to get free of frustration and anger. First, I encourage praising and worshipping God with a thankful heart. Those who develop an attitude of gratitude and a strong trust in God have far fewer feelings of frustration, anger and resentment. To do this, one must distract themselves from the situation with wholesome activities such as Bible reading and good fellowship. We must also stop rehashing the story of what happened and trying to figure out why it happened.
The second and most important thing I encourage is take control of your thinking by choosing to think God's way. Peace is released when we meditate on things that are true...noble...just...pure...lovely...of good report? (Philippians 4:8 NKJV**). What is the opposite of frustration? Peace. How do we get peace? Change the way we think!
** Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.**
I have been suffering from blogger's block for MONTHS now. I couldn't find anything to write about from my heart, and that is when I most enjoy writing. I become so consumed in the emotion of what I put here that I lose track of typos and entire chains of thought. I realized that this happened because I have become consumed frustrated. So I am going to share my frustrations in a list form (not in any specific order), and hopefully move on to a new way of thinking from here.
And for a few extra gratitudes:
* That I woke up this afternoon, or quite simply that I am alive.
* That my life has been full of adventures both good & bad.
* That my HP always reminds me that life is short even if it hurts when he does it.
* That I have been fortunate enough to be loved by one & by many.
* That I have received and give respect.
* Random acts of kindness, both given & taken.
* That I have not one but two HOMES.
* That I am a mother.
* That I have 60 hours of potential "sickation" time...that definition is for a later post.
* That a good friend taught me that you have to MAKE it a great day.
* That another good friend taught me to to be grateful for "All those taken for granted things I no longer take for granted", and for "This old house and everything in it."
* That I could call anyone of my friends any minute of any day and if I needed them they would be there for me to the best of their ability.
* That I have both known and lost love.
* That what you live through makes you stronger.
* That my cousin said to me "It always amazes me when people pray and think God didn't answer their prayers. It seems to me they have failed to see that he did answer, and that they have not realized how much worse it could be."
* That I have a very big family.
* My wife.
* My son.
* For reading past posts of mine that made me both smile and cry. They also reminded me what it is like to be consumed with emotion and inspiration. See this archived post:http://poetryplanesmotherhood.blogspot.com/2005_11_01_archive.html
* That I know when I have become long winded.
Sermon Title: The "Too Much Bunch" Joyce Meyer Ministries
For an article on this sermon click here: ( http://www.joycemeyer.org/OurMinistries/Magazine/0612/Reducing+Your+Frustration+Factor.htm)
We have too much to do, too much debt, too many commitments, too much clutter and as a result we have too many frustrations!
I believe that the majority of our feelings of frustration are a result of distortional expectations. In other words, we expect people and circumstances in our lives to be a certain way, and when they're not, we're disappointed. When our expectations are not met, anger and impatience are often added to our frustration. Not only do these feelings keep us from enjoying our lives, but they also increase the risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity. The good news is that we can eliminate most of our distorted expectations by reprogramming our minds and hearts. Let's look at some examples of how frustration affects our bodies and what we can do to reduce it.
I recommended two very important things for you to do to get free of frustration and anger. First, I encourage praising and worshipping God with a thankful heart. Those who develop an attitude of gratitude and a strong trust in God have far fewer feelings of frustration, anger and resentment. To do this, one must distract themselves from the situation with wholesome activities such as Bible reading and good fellowship. We must also stop rehashing the story of what happened and trying to figure out why it happened.
The second and most important thing I encourage is take control of your thinking by choosing to think God's way. Peace is released when we meditate on things that are true...noble...just...pure...lovely...of good report? (Philippians 4:8 NKJV**). What is the opposite of frustration? Peace. How do we get peace? Change the way we think!
** Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.**
I have been suffering from blogger's block for MONTHS now. I couldn't find anything to write about from my heart, and that is when I most enjoy writing. I become so consumed in the emotion of what I put here that I lose track of typos and entire chains of thought. I realized that this happened because I have become consumed frustrated. So I am going to share my frustrations in a list form (not in any specific order), and hopefully move on to a new way of thinking from here.
1. My finances.
2. My lack of family time.
3. My commute to work.
4. My weight gain, and lack of exercise to fix it.
5. My not getting the job I wanted.
6. My guilt over a close friend's death.
7. J's anger about my lack of a mother figure.
8. Not seeing my Dad as much as I would like.
9. The Bengal's season & arrests.
10. My often-unacceptable forms of communication.
11. My temper.
12. My more often that not impatience toward D.J.
13. My recent lack of self-motivation.
14. My current schedule is over taking my life.
15. My HUGE inability to hear (one specific person in my life's) words because of hurt feelings from long ago.
16. People stealing from me.
17. People breaking into my car & my HOME.
18. My friends and their decisions to stay in unhealthy relationships.
19. My feelings of inadequacy in many facets of my life.
20. Not being able to have a song in my heart recently.
As the sermon states you must take on an attitude of gratitude to change your frustration. So I am going to turn the 20 items above into gratitude.
I am grateful that I
21. posses the ability to gain control over my finances and vow to do so no later than February 28th.
22. can create time to do simple things with my family that hold a deep meaning and build upon our morals and values we have instilled in our child.
23. can get on a plane and fly for almost nothing, anywhere, anytime.
24. have begun to eat healthier and want to exercise to gain some control in my life and over my future heath.
25. have gotten the opportunity to re-apply for the position as well as an additional position of interest.
26. realize Steve's death is not my fault, and that his pastor taught me an ENORMOUS life lesson. It's not about the years of life, it's about the life in the years. (WOW that's deep!)
27. have a mother.
28. have a father who stopped drinking and began enjoying life including me, and his grandchild.
29. was told that there is always next season, and that the Bengal Nation & players are fed up with their teammates behavior.
30. am trying very hard to break the abusive circle, and that I am succeeding more often that not.
31. am able to feel, and realize that I just acted like a damn fool and make amends for being an idiot. I am also grateful to be smart enough to know that sorry doesn't always make it better, and that pushes me to better control myself in the future.
32. can explain to D.J. that Mom is part of the "too much bunch" and that he will forgive me and tell me how to better serve his needs.
33. have discovered the reason for my lack of motivation and can begin to move forward and gain inspiration daily in all facets of my life. I am also grateful that I have not regressed to depression and being once again inverted.
34. am only on these midnights for one more week.
35. this person is willing to help me change and to change with me so that we become better people and more productive in society and in our personal fellowships.
36. am financially stable enough to not NEED to steal to support my family.
37. am slowly regaining comfort in my own home, and that I don't have to answer to my HP for these actions.
38. am not in an unhealthy relationship, and that I can choose not to particapate in this aspect of my friends lives.
39. realize that I have to institute the changes that will allow me to feel fulfilled.
40. getting past my blogger's block and frustration will make room for the jukebox.
2. My lack of family time.
3. My commute to work.
4. My weight gain, and lack of exercise to fix it.
5. My not getting the job I wanted.
6. My guilt over a close friend's death.
7. J's anger about my lack of a mother figure.
8. Not seeing my Dad as much as I would like.
9. The Bengal's season & arrests.
10. My often-unacceptable forms of communication.
11. My temper.
12. My more often that not impatience toward D.J.
13. My recent lack of self-motivation.
14. My current schedule is over taking my life.
15. My HUGE inability to hear (one specific person in my life's) words because of hurt feelings from long ago.
16. People stealing from me.
17. People breaking into my car & my HOME.
18. My friends and their decisions to stay in unhealthy relationships.
19. My feelings of inadequacy in many facets of my life.
20. Not being able to have a song in my heart recently.
As the sermon states you must take on an attitude of gratitude to change your frustration. So I am going to turn the 20 items above into gratitude.
I am grateful that I
21. posses the ability to gain control over my finances and vow to do so no later than February 28th.
22. can create time to do simple things with my family that hold a deep meaning and build upon our morals and values we have instilled in our child.
23. can get on a plane and fly for almost nothing, anywhere, anytime.
24. have begun to eat healthier and want to exercise to gain some control in my life and over my future heath.
25. have gotten the opportunity to re-apply for the position as well as an additional position of interest.
26. realize Steve's death is not my fault, and that his pastor taught me an ENORMOUS life lesson. It's not about the years of life, it's about the life in the years. (WOW that's deep!)
27. have a mother.
28. have a father who stopped drinking and began enjoying life including me, and his grandchild.
29. was told that there is always next season, and that the Bengal Nation & players are fed up with their teammates behavior.
30. am trying very hard to break the abusive circle, and that I am succeeding more often that not.
31. am able to feel, and realize that I just acted like a damn fool and make amends for being an idiot. I am also grateful to be smart enough to know that sorry doesn't always make it better, and that pushes me to better control myself in the future.
32. can explain to D.J. that Mom is part of the "too much bunch" and that he will forgive me and tell me how to better serve his needs.
33. have discovered the reason for my lack of motivation and can begin to move forward and gain inspiration daily in all facets of my life. I am also grateful that I have not regressed to depression and being once again inverted.
34. am only on these midnights for one more week.
35. this person is willing to help me change and to change with me so that we become better people and more productive in society and in our personal fellowships.
36. am financially stable enough to not NEED to steal to support my family.
37. am slowly regaining comfort in my own home, and that I don't have to answer to my HP for these actions.
38. am not in an unhealthy relationship, and that I can choose not to particapate in this aspect of my friends lives.
39. realize that I have to institute the changes that will allow me to feel fulfilled.
40. getting past my blogger's block and frustration will make room for the jukebox.
And for a few extra gratitudes:
* That I woke up this afternoon, or quite simply that I am alive.
* That my life has been full of adventures both good & bad.
* That my HP always reminds me that life is short even if it hurts when he does it.
* That I have been fortunate enough to be loved by one & by many.
* That I have received and give respect.
* Random acts of kindness, both given & taken.
* That I have not one but two HOMES.
* That I am a mother.
* That I have 60 hours of potential "sickation" time...that definition is for a later post.
* That a good friend taught me that you have to MAKE it a great day.
* That another good friend taught me to to be grateful for "All those taken for granted things I no longer take for granted", and for "This old house and everything in it."
* That I could call anyone of my friends any minute of any day and if I needed them they would be there for me to the best of their ability.
* That I have both known and lost love.
* That what you live through makes you stronger.
* That my cousin said to me "It always amazes me when people pray and think God didn't answer their prayers. It seems to me they have failed to see that he did answer, and that they have not realized how much worse it could be."
* That I have a very big family.
* My wife.
* My son.
* For reading past posts of mine that made me both smile and cry. They also reminded me what it is like to be consumed with emotion and inspiration. See this archived post:http://poetryplanesmotherhood.blogspot.com/2005_11_01_archive.html
* That I know when I have become long winded.
posted by KC in KY @ 11:22 PM
2 comments
