The Big "If Only"

Have you or others said "if only I had" or "if only I was"? Life can be filled with "if onlys"  It seems like we are always looking for that next goal. There are a myriad of categories of "if onlys" that seem to tug at our imaginations and hearts. Let's look at a few.

If Only I Was Smart and Educated:

There are many in the quest for knowledge and education so that they could either show others or progress in a better way in today's world. While this is a good thing to want, it's a never ending journey with constant thirst for more. Many people get stuck in a cycle for more knowledge and credentials.

If Only I Was Great Looking:

There are even more folks that desire to be attractive. This is what drives a significant amount of marketing and advertising. There are whole industries that are driven by our wanting to be desirable. While this a a good thing if handled with some reason. The fact is we will all age and look worse over time makes this a bit futile.

If Only I Had Enough Money:

We all want to be debt free at some point and have enough money to buy the desires of our heart. While more riches many help, it also is a drug that addicts. If you have ever watched the very rich, they always want more and contentment is elusive. The love of money is the root of all evil.

If Only I Had a Life Partner:

Everyone want to be loved. Sometimes it's hard to admit, but we need others. If it is a close loved one or a circle of good friends, we want and need close interaction. Some hop from person to person seeking that perfect match, but many prefer to settle in on a deep and stable partnership.

If Only I Had Health and Energy:

We all wish to be well at a minimum level to function without pain and sorrow.  Many seek to have that perfectly cut body, but most of us want to enjoy ourselves and stay in a good body tone zone. We want to feel good about ourselves and our ability to enjoy our physical world greatly. If might be great journeys (a nice walk for me now) or great adventures (free climbing in my younger years) enjoying our bodies to the fullest. We don't want our bodies to betray us, but eventually bodies die.

THE BIG IF ONLY:

The most important, in my mind is to know what happens when we are done on this earth?  Will God approve of my life. I have chosen the free Grace that God gives to forgive the fact that I am not perfect nor will I ever be perfect. God loves me no matter what I say or do. I have put my faith in His grace and mercy to help me have a time for eternity with Him when my body finally gives out. I wouldn't want to say "If only I would have trusted God for his grace and mercy?"

We all like free and God gives this mercy to all of us for free. We certainly like free especially if it is from God. He gave us our lives and gifts, now he offers eternity with him. It won't be boring. Only If we all had eternity with God. That's my big "If Only"

Sleep Walking Our Lives Away

Today's society has us so hypnotized we often miss the importance of the basics in life. While we all would say our family, friends and relationships are most important, but really act as if they are important. We would all say we enjoy the peace of  nature when we go on holidays, but do we still pursue the beauty of the world as a priority? What has us so distracted that our top priorities suffer quite a bit?

Hypnotized by Our Pace:

We are under such pressure at work and home it's really hard to keep up. The bosses always want more. Your family and friends always want more. Sometimes it seems we are on a treadmill that we can't get off of at any time soon. Maybe this explains the need to temporarily escape from the pain of the pace. We are Obsessive Compulsive to a Disease level (OCD) about getting the most out of every role of our lives.

Hypnotized by Our Phones:

We are always looking at our electronic devices, especially our phones, to keep up with our social links, our work emails, the next destination we are traveling to at the moment. People can't walk without collisions because of phones much less driving in cars. We are expected to be available in real time at all times. We are OCD about missing anything aka Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)

Hypnotized by Riches:

We all want the best we can get as we think we only go around once in life. Men want the most expensive toys and homes to prove their prowess. Women want the best wardrobe and eternal bodies to show their attractiveness. Both are trying scratch and crawl over each other to have riches to trust for the rest of their lives. We are OCD about our money

Hypnotized by the News:

We all know CNN was created by Ted Turner, who couldn't get enough news, much less real time news. We have to know the latest to be able to protect our investments and appear to be "up" on the latest. We are being trained to be OCD on the news.

Hypnotized by Reality Drama:

Many are so captured by watching others live through conditions and events that would rattle the best of us. We want to live out the lives of rich people without being rich. We want to live out the lives of pioneers in  the remote part of the world without being there ourselves. We want to pan for gold and cheer on vindictive women as they kick and punch each other. We are OCD on drama.

Hypnotized by Carnal Beauty:

Many are captivated by big butts and lusty men or women. Our children are sexting in the dark because they are possessed with knowing all that is carnal. Porn of all imaginable kinds are pushed our way, hidden under ads. We see a rise in sexual preditors in every corner of our lives. We are OCD about lust.

Hypnotized by Self Image:

Many want to appear better than we really are, so we work at our digital personas like they are super important. This goes beyond watching what we say online to avoid a bad reputation, but to projecting an image that is desirable to others. We are OCD about our public image.


What are we missing?

We are sleepwalking following these false goals and we really don't attain many of them. What our lives really are missing is God. We need to open our minds and hearts to who God is and what he has done for us with his mercy and forgiveness. The hope of God and his provision for us destroys the despair of unattainable goals and even takes the sting out of death with a promise of spending the rest of time with Him.

Bottom Line:

Seeking God in everything is the real important thing to do. We can see God in nature and children. We can see God in others and the inventions of man. God had given us so much, including the understanding of science to make our lives better. It's time to wake up from our sleep walking.

2017: Seeking A Better Self

2016 ended and we all sighed with relief. We saw some of the most famous and gifted pass away, especially at the years close. These celebrity deaths affected all generations this time as some were heroes of the younger generations. There is not much of a silver lining in these deaths other than all of us need to embrace our lives with better relationships. Love is the answer to a 2016, where so much hate was visible and so much death was witnessed. We all will likely seek a better 2017, but there is an opportunity to seek a better self to help assure a better year for us all.

A Better Self with Spiritual Depth:

Have you ever felt the peace of a sunset, the beauty of nature or the solitude of a quiet time. These are moments that speak to your spirit. Seeking these experiences will grow your spirit and give God a chance to speak to your heart. Separation from the hustle, technical immersion, and business of life will be a key for a better 2017. This works in good or bad times.

A Better Self with Loved Ones & Friends:

Deepening your relationships with your closest peeps is a proven way to have a better life thus a better 2017. This may mean being less prideful and more vulnerable than you have in the past. Expressing positive thoughts and making these statements out loud to your loved ones always pays dividends. Being kind, to even strangers, never hurts. Now if we could only be kind to those who cut us off in traffic :)

A Better Self with Thankfulness:

No matter who you are and what circumstances you are experiencing, you can find something to be thankful for. It just takes a moment to focus on what is good in your life. Don't look at the rich and famous who have it all, but look at those who are needy or suffering to be thankful. There is always someone who has it worse than you and they are not hard to find. Be thankful for something as often as you can.

A Better Self with Service:

You can always express your love and increase your self worth by helping others. Giving to charity is an easy way to get started, but the real payback comes with spending time and talent to serve others. When you actually see and feel the impact of your service, the value to your self image is extraordinary.

A Better Self with Investment:

You also need to invest in yourself. Maybe its taking time for one of your favorite hobbies, maybe it's learning something new, maybe it's meeting some new people or deepening your relationship with others. Setting some small doable goals and accomplishing them is key. Once success is experienced, repeat the process again and again. Don't cruise, but keep investing and stretching.

Bottom Line:

2017 can be a better year for you despite your circumstances, if create a better self. If circumstances are great there is a multiplier effect. We hope your 2017 is better and would appreciate if you shared other self improvement approaches. May God bless you richly in 2017.

Rogue One: Is Destruction Imminent?

There are several threads of the destruction theme through out all of the Star Wars movies. Rogue One is no different. There is the every day threat of being captured because of being a rebel. There is the "big threat" of the Death Star. This is a strong parallel to our lives today. There are the daily threats of survival all around us and this drives both a conscious and unconscious threat in our minds. There is the threat of feeding and housing ourselves at a base level and a threat of poor health that accelerates as we age leading to death.

In a time of conflict, a group of unlikely heroes band together on a mission to steal the plans to the Death Star, the Empire's ultimate weapon of destruction. This key event in the Star Wars timeline brings together ordinary people who choose to do extraordinary things, and in doing so, become part of something greater than themselves.

The Threat of Not Thriving Well:

Every day we work to keep food in our tummies and some kind of shelter over our head. We may be in a bad job with the pressure of performance or "see the door".  Even if our job or role as a student is going well, things can upset the balance and worry can consume our minds. These daily pressures can cause some to crack, even if its a temporary moment of rage when someone cuts us off while we are driving. We face daily threats of succumbing to life itself.


The Threat of Not Being Understood and Accepted:

We all try hard to be accepted by family, friends, associates and sometimes strangers we meet. While it generally is not imminent destruction, a constant felling of rejection can whittle away at our self worth and encourage us to self destruct. We think everyone else is doing well and being accepted and it is just us. We face daily threats of succumbing to life itself.

The Threat of War and Death:

Today there are wars and rumors of wars that make us uneasy. All of this is in our face at the same time we know that our health will eventually decline leading to death.  Enough on this depressing thought.

Bottom Line:

Destruction seems imminent to us all at some point in time. Are you like me that just ignores it an carries on? Are you like others I know that get gripped by the fact that destruction is in our future like the rebels in Rogue One. In Rouge One, the power of community and with a crafty plan executed by the brave souls wins out. Is destruction our fate too or is there a peace that passes all understanding in the face of destruction?  Our answer is God providing a way out through his son Jesus Christs death and atonement for us. All we need to do is let go of our pride and humbly accept Gods solution to our ultimate destruction.

Other Rogue One Articles: Click on Links

Extraordinary People
Fear vs Faith

Rogue One: Fear Vs Faith

The excitement of the release of Rogue One has us in great anticipation. The story line of Rogue One seems to parallel our times in significant ways. This is the first in a series of four posts that will pick some key themes in Rogue One and discuss openly the threads entice us. We hope you will enjoy the movie and the discussions :)

In a time of conflict, a group of unlikely heroes band together on a mission to steal the plans to the Death Star, the Empire's ultimate weapon of destruction. This key event in the Star Wars timeline brings together ordinary people who choose to do extraordinary things, and in doing so, become part of something greater than themselves.

We live in days of great uncertainty and conflict. You can see it world wide as we all grapple with a growing population, competition for remaining resources and the economic extremes that exist. It seems we are living in a time of rumors of wars and conflict. It is pretty similar to the pressures we see on the rebels in Rogue One as the ultimate oppressor is preparing a weapon of awe in the Death Star. There are two ways to respond to these pressures. One is fear and the other is hope. We see the rebels ultimately opt for hope. We should do the same, but what do we put our hope into these days?

Fear:

Natural human tendencies are to let fear grip us and cause reactions that don't really work. We can run away and get as far away from the threat, but that hardly works. We can boldly lash out in the face of an overwhelming dark side of  "The Force:" and pay the consequences. We could make sure that others succumb first buying us time. we don't think this really works for the long term. Our suggestion is hope that the rebels chose.

Hope:

Hope is only as good as what the hope is placed into for resolution.  You can place hope in your family and friends. You can place your hope in community. You can place your hope in your investment portfolio. You can place your hope in your own efforts. The rebels put their hope in working together guided by the good side of  "The Force".

Bottom Line:

What or whom you put your hope into is a big bet for your life. It's a matter of life and death as it is in the movie. Where does your hope lie? Our lies in the proven and great God who sent his son "Jesus Christ". We are excited about celebrating Rogue One, but we are even more excited about celebrating Christmas as the birthday of the One we our hope in today and for eternity.

We All Need Acceptance

We all, as humans, want to belong and feel apart of something. To that end, this new blog is being created to discuss acceptance and how we can be part of something even if it is discussing this blog site. Officially the definition of acceptance is "the action or process of being received as adequate or suitable, typically to be admitted into a group"  Our hope is to spur folks to discuss contemporary and current topics as they relate to being human.  The first series will be discussing the new Star Wars Movie Rogue One as it deeply raises great discussions around what folks can do as a group or a collective. 

Please join in on the discussions as we hope this blog becomes one of interest over time. We are certainly open to discuss topics of your interest and create a sparking post to get things going. Please comment on topics that would help you with acceptance and personal growth or send us an email at Acceptanceone@gmail.com. Perhaps this blog can be a good place to show acceptance. We look forward to what sprouts and grows here.