Words To Nourish The Mind

I have had quite a tough period physically, emotionally and spiritually. The demands of modern life had got to me. I had to take stock and re-evaluate, as the way I was dealing with current issues remained unsustainable and unmanageable. Forgiveness is a subject that I am constantly coming back to. The whole back and forth notion was draining the life out of me. When I am offended - whether it be bullying, abuse, lack of consideration, lack of empathy  - the memory of that offense is attached to that person, in how they made me feel- my emotion. I built a wall around myself, as I no longer felt safe in their presence. In doing so, I was indirectly keeping myself imprisoned by the offense. As the saying goes forgiveness doesn’t make it right, but it does make you free. I also note my response conflicts with the Word of God – Love one another, including your enemies. I had a discussion with another believer and she suggested that I focus on the positives of the perso...

This is the final part of Time is of the Essence series. This week I wanted to give two specific examples of how Christ helped me to become better and not bitter. I chose these two because they could have become one of my biggest time eaters had I allowed it. I realised that time is simply too precious to be taken up in this way. My first example is having a very short tolerance level to mistreatment of any nature and typically I tend to be passive or aggressive in response to this. The Holy Spirit prompted me to realise that the people who have mistreated me will not be the last. The problem isn’t the problem - it is my response to the problem. I need to focus on what I can control, which is my response. This involved a lot of soul searching and prayer.  I had a few situations where the desire to help others has become more of a liability to my well-being and wellness. The Holy Spirit prompted me to take stock and I realised it’s not wise to continue and that I nee...

I pray this blog post is a blessing to you.  I made a conscious effort this year to be more mindful of how I use my time. As discussed in last week’s blog post. My reason for doing this is whilst we may have come from backgrounds that could have disadvantaged or limited us in some shape or form. Feeding on this negativity can only paralyze us into thinking we are powerless, which isn’t necessarily true.   Time puts us all on a level playing field, it is something we all have that is the same; it is such a precious and priceless commodity and once it’s gone, it’s gone. No amount of money can buy more or buy back time. Despite this, most of us underestimate the value of time and its ability to change our lives depending how we choose to use it. Mindlessly wasting my days are no longer an option. Somehow my days were consumed with everything else apart from driving myself forward.  There was a time when my world was consumed with the little things. ...

I am on a mission this year to focus on what can be changed (future) and to be at peace on what cannot be changed (past). Last month’s blog post series was all about clearing out past, hurts, pain and wounds.  This month’s theme is building on how we see things that influence how we use our time. We all have varying stories from our makeup to circumstances, which can be put into the following opposites: Advantage or disadvantage Opportunity or obstacle Aspiration or adversity Triumph or trials In other words, most things, if not all things in life, are relative. What one deems as an advantage can also have a drawback(s). Life has a habit of swinging in roundabouts through seasons of joy and moments of pain. The differences in our lives set us apart and mould us into the people we are today. Good or bad, we are human - prone to hurt and make mistakes. Our perceptions of life may not always be accurate, but we all have a t...

This is the final blog post on the New Year, New Beginnings & New You series.                 I recently had one of those ‘aha moments’ and felt compelled to share as this quote caught my attention: ‘If we do not heal from the wounds of the past, we will carry on bleeding into our future.’   Iyanla Vanzant We live in a broken world and nobody is immune to brokenness and the darkness that lies within that. Unprocessed pain, wounds and hurt over time turns into anger, bitterness and resentment. These can slowly steal your peace, joy and your ability to truly live in the moment because a part of you is still consumed with the past. I do think this is human nature to do so (I wrestled with it long enough), the injustice feeds the ache and this can only be changed through God. Incidentally, I watched a drama that centred on a single mother and her 3 children who struggl...

‘Forgiveness is giving up the hope that the past could be any different’-unknown. As I dwelled on the above, it became clear to me that holding on to the past has no purpose other than a point of reference to guide us into doing better. There is a difference between rehearsing and nursing past offenses and reflecting and learning from past events. Our hearts need to be filled with love, so we can see it from a place of empathy because the reality is that hurt people, hurt people. It’s not usually human nature to respond in compassion rather than contempt. When we have been hurt in the process that represents a challenge in itself.  Living in the past holds you down to yesterday’s troubles, wounds and hurts. I had a recent conversation that made me take stock of my response to people, who have caused offense to me. I may have forgiven but I became so guarded that I was subconsciously consumed by the offense. This triggered a reminder of similar past events; the bitterness h...

I was drawn to the quote below as it echoed one of the biggest life lessons   I learnt, which is there are never endings, just new beginnings because every day is a new day for us to evolve, thrive and flourish. To be driven by possibilities and not the past because the past has ended and the future has yet to come. Therefore we can only embrace the moment, the here and now to shape our tomorrows. ‘The first step into getting anywhere is deciding you are not willing to stay where you are’ John Assaraf. Acknowledgement in wanting better instigates change and influences your next moves, without this it makes progress unlikely as you are not motivated by any reasons to do differently. Typically we all wish for a better life and not many for whatever reason do anything about it. I was no different to the norm at one point, until my circumstances forced me to face my fears and embrace life. In the midst of my lowest ebb, I realise that all   that   I deemed as my ...