Only one thing is needed

God-Shaped Hole

by Plumb

Lyrics:

Every point of view has another angle
And every angle has its merit
But all comes down to faith
That's the way I see it

You can say that love is not divine and
You can say that life is not eternal
'all we have is now'
But I don't believe it

There's a God-shaped hole in all of us
And the restless soul is searching
There's a God-shaped hole in all of us
And it's a void only he can fill

Does the world seem gray with empty longing
Wearing every shade of cynical
And do you ever feel that
There is something missing?

That's my point of view...


♬ Plumb: God Shaped Hole

An important part of friendship: JUST PLAIN OLD PUTTIN UP WITH EACH OTHER

My nurse's aide just opened up the subject. And this very definitely is the next step we take as true friends. I've talked for a long, long time about what makes a good friend, and how to develop good friendships. But this here must be a component in friendship if we want a friendship to last: tolerance.

You see, I treated my aide unkindly last night, and I feared that today she was going to be angry. I'll back up and say, I could tell that my words and actions hurt her feelings. And it was wise of her to allow me to see that. You see, I had already opened up on the subject of my insensitivity, that I was aware of it and concerned about it. So today I wanted to let her know that I felt bad for hurting her.

What she answered I felt was the essence of friendship. She said it was fine, that she was familiar with how I get sometimes, and you gotta take the bitter with the sweet. She expressed that she valued me as a friend, and was not going to allow the way I behaved to make her feel bitter towards me.
...and I have to confess, this was the next step in my recovery! I needed someone to stop using my weaknesses to threaten me! To stop making me feel as if I was hugely indebted to them for putting up with me!

And so, a very important part of friendship is that when love is sincere, it cannot be shaken by one or the other person's mistakes. Mistakes are part of being human. If we really wanna have friends, real friends, than part of keeping a friendship going is resolve. And the tough part of this is knowing there will be times when they will hurt our feelings. There will be times when we hurt them. But we keep it going.

 ♬ Suzi Quarto and Chris Norman: Stumblin' In

Being our own friend --anyone actually good at it?

I will answer this question as for myself. Surprisingly, though I have been very loyal to myself, there have been too many types of situations where I have not had the boldness to say and do what is in my own best interest. But we have a God who adores the humble. There is a verse which reads, "He raises up those who are bowed down". So in other words, when we do not have any strength left, He pities us, and takes over.

You see, realistically, on the ground level, we cannot love ourselves. But our shame is provided for. It is not just words, that Jesus Christ substituted for us at the Cross. He wiped away all uncleanness from us.

This is why I often say, "you have a criticism of me? Take it up with the man who gave His life for me, I no longer work in that department."

And so, yes, we struggle with self-esteem. It is something none of us has mastered. We all grope with questions about what we should do and say. What set of beliefs we should adhere to. What rule of thumb we should be applying to our lives. Me? I would recommend taking it to Jesus. But I will be fair and say, it works for me. You might have something you feel works better, and I'll respect that.

♬ Mr. Mister: Kirie

Climbing the steps to feeling loved

ll well well! It's been almost a full month since I last produced a blog, and I'm sure some of you must have wondered, what on earth has happened to her?

Well, as I look at it all now, all I can say is, I was having terrible terrible equipment problems. The device that I was using to create was so old and antiquated that I was really having to sweat it out every time I wanted to do the smallest thing.

Finally the battery went caput, and a few days later, my Dad went and bought me a brand new, top of the line phone. Well, I can not believe how much easier it has made my life!

So anyways, the subject I wanted to talk about has already been expressed in an episode of a TV show that appeared on a channel called, PAX-TV. PAX-TV was a truly family friendly channel, and it aired a series called, Twice in a Lifetime. Twice in a Lifetime was a lot of fun to watch, and there was always something heartwarming to be learned from it. But this particular episode specifically expresses my take on what I have experienced of late, and it pertains to friendship as well. I would really love you to try to take a look at it.

♬ Gloria Estefan: Coming Out of the Dark