If you have ever struggled to forgive someone that has hurt you deeply for reasons underserved and unexplainable, the book, "Victory in the Pea Patch”, is for you. The author, Cleola Irene Spears, unfolds her true story going back generations to give you full insight into her life in its entirety. In the pages, you will see how she was destined for greatness, yet it did not come without tragedy, victory, regrets and other life lessons of wisdom. She allows the reader to not only read words, but to imagine and feel the world she lived in as words become an experience. After reading “Victory in the Pea Patch”, I was encouraged to know that God’s plan will prevail, no matter what comes into my world; He who started a good work will complete it, no matter how dismal it seems. If you are facing life challenges that have you down and you need a miracle, I believe this book will give you answers, perspective and insight to continue your journey forward. Make this investment. You won’t regret it. At certain times in life, it seems like we spend a lot of time on a street called “Disappointments” that may occur one right after the other. Once I think I am over one disappointment, here comes another. What’s going on? A tag team or something? Disappointments come when our expectations, spoken, understood and/or assumed, are not met. Seemingly within seconds of a commitment, people undue the commitment for various reasons. The best thing I can do to ease the effects of disappointments is adjust my expectations as much as possible. If there is a thorough understanding of who will do what, when, where, how and their limitations, this will curve the emotional roller coaster when disappointments occur. Accepting things as they are is another way to deal with disappointments. Some things and some people are not going to change; and if they do, it probably won’t be when you or I want change. I found that when I consistently embrace the words of the Serenity Prayer, disappointments are not as devastating. Now, there are times, not matter how much I do to adjust myself, a disappointment will come out of no where. There were no signs or warnings. I may have done what I could to adjust my expectations, but the unexpected happens. I just simply cast the disappointment on the Lord. Because of I Peter 5:7, I am assured that He cares about any and everything I care about. In addition to casting that care on Him, I must forgive the one who has caused the disappointment. The last tidbit about disappointments - I’ve focused on disappointments with others, but in reality, we can be disappointed with ourselves. We can say and do things that are disappointing. I can raise both of my hands on this one. I have responded to circumstance in ways I thought was “mature”. When the truth of my heart was revealed and opened to the Holy Spirit’s scrutiny, I was disappointed that I behaved or responded in an immature way and I say to myself, “Could I have done better? Acted more mature?” Many times the answer is “YES”, but I did not. We all tend to have a high expectation for ourselves and when we fall short of the self-expectation, we become disappointed. Guess what, we even have to forgive ourselves. We are all on a good journey with Christ. So, let’s make a critical decision to learn from life and keep moving. Don’t get stuck on the street called “DISAPPOINTMENTS”. Blog post adapted from The Encouragement Newsletter - "The D's of Life". Last summer I started having problems with my right shoulder. I thought it would go away, but after several months, the pain intensified and I could not perform certain motions without pain. My pain did not allow me to reach up without pain. I could not place my hand above my waist when reaching behind my back. By the end of the year, it was evident that I could not continue and I had damaged something. After going to my primary care physician, I was given a referral for physical therapy because I had some damage to my rotator cuff. My first appointment with the therapist consisted of observing my motion and the lack thereof. The therapist pulled my arm in many direction and most of the time I was in pain. She stated to me, “You are stiff” and I was because of my limited mobility. In my first session, she laid out an 8-week plan to return my mobility and gave me some exercises start at home right away. When I returned for my next session, I began by doing the same home exercises with a few more added exercises to my regimen. To be honest, my initial thoughts were "I can do this at home instead of leaving work early, taking leave, commuting from downtown DC and paying a co-pay". I was feeling like this will be a waste of time until the therapist said, "Veronica I am going to work with you after you finish those exercises". I had no idea what "work with you" meant, but I would soon find out. I laid on the table; she took my arm and began to "work with me". It was very painful as she pulled my arm, rotated my arm, rubbed my shoulder, applied ice and electrical stimulation to the shoulder area. Each session included pain and more pain as she worked to restore my arm. I have a high pain tolerance, but I was almost in tears. In one of the early sessions as she "worked with me", I thought I was going to jump off the table because it was so painful. From the very first session until the 6th or 7th session, she would gently place my arm in a position and say, "Just let it go. I got you". Most of the time, I was anticipating pain and I was not relaxing. So her soft voice would help me relax. From day one, I heard the Lord speaking to me with those words. I was not putting it all together, but after my therapy session, I would learn why her words were resonating deep within me. About a week six, I was feeling much better and experiencing more mobility and a lot less pain. Although I still had pain reaching behind my back, I could reach up without pain and the aching was pretty much gone. In my closing session she said, “Oh you are much better, do you feel this has worked”. My answer was, “Yes!” She conducted the same test from the first session and observed me. She wrote notes and took some measurements of my ability to reach and compared them to the measurements from my initial session. She then said, “You were really bound when you came, but you have really good movement”. She provided me with more exercises to do at home and encouraged me to see a specialist if I felt I needed further attention. As I stated, the words “Let it go” and “I got you” resonated with me, but I did not know why. Well, a week or two after my therapy sessions ended, for some reason, a not so pleasant life event of my past came to mind as I was having a morning talk with the Lord. As the thoughts came to my mind, I heard the words, “Let It go. I got you”. I began to weep and cry unashamedly. It was in that moment that I was able to let go of the effects of that event. All because my Father had me, just as the therapist had a gentle hold off my painful arm, and worked within me. I could fully rest in His healing power. Painful events are a sure part of our life experience and they cause us to be bound. Some events will have a greater effect than others. Some will be more traumatic than others. Perhaps, as you read this account of my life, you instantly recalled a painful event. I say to you “Let It Go” because “Your Father has you”. He has brought you to this moment to heal you. Let go of the pain, shame, offense, deep hurt and all of the negatives of that event or events. God has the healing balm and will apply it to that painful area, move it from you and you will be made whole. That pain no longer has me. I can recall it, but that pain no longer has me because I “Let It Go”. Because of this God encounter, I am assured all the more that He’s Got Me and whatever unpleasant events that comes my way, I can “Let It Go”. Did you discover something you needed to let go as you read this blog entry? Now, my journey is your journey, so let’s dialogue about this. My intentions were to begin my blog in January, but the year that started slow, took off swiftly and this was delayed. Well, here is the first post. I pray that you are blessed and I would love to hear from you as I embark on this expansion of The Encouragement Place.
There are so many voices crying out to you and me every day. They will never cease their crying out. I have found that I must pay close attention to the power of the voices I hear each day. Why? Because of the influence of voices. The voice can cause an action or a response, which can cause the emotions of excitement, fear, joy, peace, despair, depression and delight. The voice has so much power is because the voice carries words. The Word of God tells that death and life are in the power of the tongue. (Proverbs 18:21) In other words, the words bring death or life. The daily news is an example of a voice. The broadcasters report one event after the other. Have you ever noticed how quickly they go from story to story. The words spoken have the power bring a daily burden as the words of crime, economic collapse, the Congress and the fiscal cliff, shootings, killings, panda’s born, sequestration, US Supreme Court DOMA hearings, global warming, high profile scandals, etc. Other voices are voices of fame, selfish ambition, voices that promise to make you somebody (in Christ we are already somebody), voices crying out to do this, do that, go here and go there. Positive and the negative are an every day event for all of us. This is why we need to take the time to hear the voice of Jesus speak. In St. John 10:27-28, Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” Hearing the voice of God is not always a big dramatic occasion. The prophet Elijah heard lot of noise, but the still small voice, not anything dramatic, was where he heard God speak. (I Kings 19:11-12). When we take time to hear his voice and silence the other voices, there is much to be said. He will speak clear direction, comfort in the time of trouble and peace to the troubled soul. When was the last time you really heard His voice? When searching for directions, don’t forget to listen for his voice more than the voice of others. Not that the wisdom of others won’t be great gain, but when He speaks, you and I are much stable in what we believe as truth. Have you ever had to make a decision and solicited the advice of friends and loved ones? In the end, sometimes it can be so confusing and you’re worse off than before you asked. I have found a remedy and that is to get in a quiet place and pray to hear the Lord’s opinion on the matter. After he speaks, rise up in peace and go forth. At times, this has been easier said than done for me. Therefore, I do not speak as an expert. I speak as a woman that is a work in progress with a passion to really hear His voice and do His will. My journey is your journey, so let’s dialogue about this. My Journey is Your Journey
What I've come to realize is this, my journey is intertwined in many ways with the journey of others and vice-versa. What I've experienced, the question's I have or had, my frustrations, doubts, fears, faith, anger, joy, sadness, love, peace and concerns are similar, if not the same as another. So that's what this blog is all about - because My Journey is Your Journey. My ultimate goal is to encourage and build up each reader in some way in their journey. Because the goal is to encourage and uplift readers, comments will be closely monitored to keep this goal at the forefront of every post and response. Only comments that edify and build up will be released for public viewing and further comment. I extend an invitation to you to join with me as we commence Bloggin' The Journey at the E-Place beginning January 2013. |
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Welcome to Bloggin' The Journey @ the E-Place where there will be a variety of blog posts for you to both read and provide wholesome comments for the encouragement of others. Archives
November 2017
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