JoAnna Lynn Oblander's Blog, page 60
May 16, 2016
Faith…
Faith is like a hollow leg. Just when you think you have enough – a space opens up demanding to be filled. I have had many people tell me that I have great faith. The truth is that while I may have developed great faith in certain areas, there is always a demand for more and greater faith in my life. I feel comfortable with that because I know that faith is an incredibly important part of the purpose of this life. Like a child turned loose without his parent’s imminent presence, we have been “turned loose” in this world to grow independent of our Creator’s constant presence. The more we develop faith, the more that we will feel God’s presence in our lives. His presence is always available but we must develop both the desire and the faith to utilize his guidance. We often think we know best but I have found that those times that I think I “know” are most often comparable to a toddler sitting on white carpet while playing with the lid of his sippy cup of grape juice. Despite the warnings of his parents, it is usually just a matter of time before he(I) have a mess on his(my) hands that could have been averted if he(I) had just been willing to listen!
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May 12, 2016
Forever…
If there was one gift that I could have brought back with me from heaven, it would be to allow you to see yourself as God sees you. I promise that that vision of yourself would leave you forever changed. In my book I share that I was able to be reunited with my real self. That experience, for me, was not just life changing for me – it was eternity changing. We – you and me – are amazing beings with even more amazing potential and gifts. It is not conceit to believe in yourself and in your potential – it is allowing yourself to believe in the truth and to then act accordingly! Conceit is believing that you are better than others. There is no room for scarcity mentality here – I hope you will believe the truth about yourself!
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May 11, 2016
May 10, 2016
May 9, 2016
Start the Week with Humor!
I hope you will find humor in each of your days!
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May 8, 2016
Having a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day? …Happy Mother’s Day!
I love the book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst! Recently while surfing the internet, I came across a quote from the book. When I saw it, I just knew I had to use it for my Mother’s Day Meme! It may seem odd to you but the book about Alexander reminds me of motherhood. On this day when we celebrate our mothers, I am reminded of many who have mothered children but could not have their own. I also think about children from dysfunctional mothers. I think of children who, through no fault of their own, have had to grow up without mothers. Last, but not least, I think of those days as a mother when I thought that early retirement might be a good idea! I am grateful that God created families with both a mother and a father. Both are important and essential. Children do not come with a manual – I know because I have searched high and low for the manuals to my children and nobody, including me, has ever laid eyes on them. So, either they don’t exist or the security surrounding them makes Fort Knox look like a toothpick sculpture. Not all mothers are wonderful and all children come with their challenges. However, in spite of all of that, there is one truth about moms and motherhood that supersedes all others. God has entrusted the mothers of this world with the welfare of His children. No one else can do the job they do. No other person or force has greater influence on a child and the life they will live. Fathers are amazing and their job is no less important. However, a mother’s influence begins at conception and a child innately looks to the mother to determine if they are loved and it is the interactions (or lack of) with the mother that will mostly determine the child’s self-concept and emotional health. Have you ever noticed that the first parent an adopted child seeks to find is the mother? There is no coincidence in that. It is from our mothers that we each, innately, look to to determine our worth and our value. A mother who abandons a child physically or emotionally creates a child who will eventually have to address his abandonment in order to achieve a healthy sense of self. I remember a conversation with a therapist I once had regarding one of my adopted children and the emotional issues that they dealt with because their birth mother had not properly cared for them. She said, “Who knew that when we were changing the diapers of our babies and they were screaming at us for doing so, that we were communicating to them that we loved them and helping them to know that we would keep them safe.” As the mother to both birth children and adopted children, I understand the worth of mothers. Those days and moments when we want to retire early from motherhood are not for us – they are for our children. I know that it can often seem like the payback moments of motherhood have ditched us for someone else. However, every time you celebrate a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day along with Alexander, know that what you are doing is priceless and that, in your own special way, you are making our world a better, happier, healthier and more loving place to be! I want to give a heartfelt thanks to every woman who has mothered a child and helped them to feel loved and cherished. To all women who have nurtured and loved children, Happy Mother’s Day!
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May 6, 2016
Do the Impossible!
I am going to really date myself today. Some of you will be able to remember, like I can, when Neil Armstrong took his first step on the moon. I was young but it was such an amazing accomplishment that my elementary school teacher brought a television to school and we all watched man’s first step on the moon together! I have been amazed at the ability that mankind has had to see a need in the world and then to develop some “miraculous” device to help with that need. Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone to assist the deaf. Now look at what telephone’s can do and the availability they provide us. I can still remember when the greatest reach you were going to get with a telephone was a really long telephone cord and party lines! (Dating myself again) I’m still in awe of the fact that I can call someone with my cell phone (no cords) who is around the world and hear their voice as though they were standing right next to me. So many good things have become a part of our world because of love; someone loving another enough to work to provide some means for that/those loved ones to be able to function or function better. I know that God is a part of all those good things. I know that all that is good comes from our Creator. I also know (because I have witnessed it first hand) how much God desires to assist us in creating wonderful things – including a wonderful world. We truly are capable of creating miracles when we utilize God’s strength and guidance!
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May 5, 2016
Now…
Living in the here and now may be my most difficult personal challenge. I am always trying to figure out how to figure out now so that my future nows become easier and more efficient. I always have a lot of irons in the fire and sometimes I feel like some of those irons are burning me! Yet, in reality, what I have found to be true is this: if I allow God and his spirit to guide me – then each now becomes right. It may sometimes feel like I am using time for something that is not as pressing as something else on my task list but, in the long run, I always find that it was exactly what I needed to be doing. That is one of the glorious things about allowing God to walk beside me and direct my life! Alone, I would make a mess of things – with God, my life becomes a collection of all the right moments and all the right memories.
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May 4, 2016
Talents…
I loved Erma Bombeck. I loved her wit and her sense of humor. I’m pretty sure that when her time came (which seemed all too soon to me), that she got her wish. I am grateful for the laugh and giggles that she brought to my life. I am grateful for each individual that I share this planet with that uses and develops their talents. I am especially grateful for those who utilize their talents to improve and make better the world around us. One of Erma Bombeck’s great talents was to bring smiles to this world through her unique perspective and writing skills. I am a grateful recipient of her talent. However, there are other talents we can share that are just as important – yet often go unrecognized. Just today I went through a fast food drive through with my son. The young man leaned out the window when he handed my son his bag of food and asked him how his day was. Once my son replied, the young man leaned out towards me and said,”you are being kind of quiet!??” He went out of his way to acknowledge both me and my son and to give us one of his big welcoming smiles. That, to me, is an important talent. I easily acknowledge that I often struggle to be outgoing and welcoming. Yet, I am always grateful when someone shares that talent with me. I am going to keep working on developing that talent and the other talents that I believe God has granted me. What talents are yours to share with this world?!!
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May 3, 2016
What Are You Planting?
When I was going through severe depression, for many months I fought to get my emotional health back. One of the things that I found that I needed to do was to listen. I didn’t need to listen to anyone else – I had to listen to me. Some of those thoughts I found myself having were shocking to me. I found that for years I had had thoughts like I never should have been born or no one can truly love me. Prior to that point in my life, I had believed that I was a person of a positive mind set. Yet, when I took time to listen, really listen to those subliminal thoughts that barely whisper their presence, I heard those vile shocking messages being communicated to the deepest inner recesses of my being. Overcoming negative self-perception is not easy but I know it can be done. We can come to believe the truth about ourselves. The truth is that we are amazing individuals who are capable of amazing things. With God’s help, we can accomplish miracles! So start mind planting the positive things you want to see in your life!
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