Can't Change It

    As I was driving home on I-40 this afternoon, I came to a "one lane ahead" construction area. As I inched along, I was reminded of a podcast I listened to recently.  The speaker, Hal Elrod, has leukemia, but he told his listeners that his perspective made all the difference. If you can't change your situation, then instead of getting upset and frustrated, use the opportunity to add value to your life or to the world. So instead of complaining about the slow traffic, use the stop and go moments to change the music on the radio/cd player or enjoy the flowers planted in the median.

There are things in life that you can't change, that seem unfair. But if you just say CAN'T CHANGE IT and look for a way to use the situation to add value instead of getting mad or anxious or frustrated, your life will be better.

      Recently one of my friends was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. As I held her hand and encouraged her, I was actually grateful that I could be a comfort to her because I had that same surgery nearly 20 years ago. One of my favorite Bible verses is Romans 8:28 "All things work together for good to those who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose."

There are times that I surely don't understand His purpose.  But I do believe that good can come from anything if we just look for it. Maybe you lost a job -- but then got a better one.  Or were late for work at the Pentagon, like my friend Bob -- and avoided the 9/11 tragedy.  Or couldn't get a visa approved to go back to Jerusalem as a missionary, like my nephew Zachary, but then got called to serve as senior pastor at a church where his sermons are broadcast on the internet and he is able to reach many more for Christ. Or, like my husband, got wounded in Vietnam and airlifted out the day before a big battle where many of his fellow soldiers were killed. All these bad situations were examples of God working things out for good.
        It was certainly not fair that Jesus suffered and died on the cross. He was totally innocent and did nothing to deserve that. But because of His unfair treatment, we can have an abundant life.  So whether we are stuck in traffic, or diagnosed with a dread disease, let's look for the good!

God Blessed America

  I love America. As we celebrate the birth of our great nation, I've been thinking about blessed we are to live here.   I have been lucky enough to have opportunities to travel to many places in the United States.  The south has white sandy beaches and tall palm trees and it is always exciting to drive there.  We loved the rocky coast of Maine and watching the lobster traps being hauled aboard the boats.  Alaska was breathtakingly beautiful with the snow covered mountains and it was a thrill to catch a glimpse of the moose and grizzly bears.  The Midwest had miles and miles of flat farmland -- endless cornfields.  The Grand Canyon was so incredible, and I loved seeing all the Joshua trees in Nevada and Arizona. My home state of West Virginia has beautiful hills and valleys and rivers that I love, especially in the fall when the leaves are spectacular.
I wonder how some people can think for a moment that there is no Creator.
Oh, Lord my God,
When I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds thy hands have made...
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to thee
How great Thou art!