A choice

by Sharon O | Aug 25, 2010 | Uncategorized

Our pastor has been teaching a series called soul sessions.
It has been challenging.
He was sharing the other morning how subtle things can be for us
and how we can have our souls affected by something in a way we don’t fully recognize.
It is sneaky. It is disguised as something perhaps good… yet very bad for us.
For example… the boss wants you to volunteer for over time. You say: I need the money so you compromise time from family and home for money that won’t be here for very long.
Pastor says something that is toxic to us is anything capable of causing sickness or death.
Using my example: working over time is not bad in itself but is it creating life in a relationship or building souls? He said toxic things can be consuming to us – consuming the life out of us.
I have seen people so involved in things that it removes the potential for relationship. In their process of doing they forget how to live which is where our focus really should be.
To be so consumed by what you might gain for the wrong reason is a sad situation.
The focus needs to be on relationships and asking questions of ourselves and others, “how is your day going and how is your soul feeling?”
When we demolish every thought that might be hurtful or unkind and not edifying to a relationship we take hold of the toxic potential and stop it before it even begins.
Have you ever seen something toxic?
Remember the oil spill pictures on TV and all the ‘death’ it brought to the ocean?
We can be that way too. We can bring death to relationships by allowing the thick gooey layer of toxic behavior take hold and wrap itself around something that was once a positive and beautiful thing.
Have you ever met someone who appeared to be ‘nice’ and then as you begin to talk to them out of their mouths comes words that are negative, offensive and critical. You walk away from them feeling ‘dumped on’ as the debris of their hearts sit near your soul. It is hurtful.
I pray that we learn to take every thought captive before we say anything.
Our Pastor says our souls are always eavesdropping in every conversation.
When our children were little every time the phone rang they would ‘eavesdrop’ on the conversation. They would drop everything they were doing so they could stop and listen. The picture in my mind of our souls leaning over and pressing in to hear every word is impressive to me. I remember saying to our children…”go find something to do”… they would reply …”but I want to listen.”
Our souls are doing the same.
May our challenge be to remember that we can give life or give death…
it is all a matter of choice.

The power of a word

by Sharon O | Aug 23, 2010 | Uncategorized

I often look up words…
and even subscribe to the word of the day on dictionary.com.
It has challenged me to think of what to say and how to say it so the words on this blog can bring life to the story that is trying to be written.
A new word I have discovered is frangible – it’s meaning:
Capable of being broken; brittle; fragile; easily broken or to break; frail; delicate; brittle; dainty; feeble; flimsy; weak.

I moved this meaning or definition into relationships.
How we treat each other should reflect how we see ‘the power of a word’ within our souls and our hearts and the hearts of others around us.
When I was growing up my maiden name was Nichols. I would often hear from someone…”you don’t have enough sense to be a nickel.” I don’t remember who that someone was or where they were in my story but that doesn’t matter. They said it to me and I didn’t understand it for a long time until one day it hit me….”That was not a nice thing to say to a child.’
Perhaps it is the reason why I question my ability to be smart or able or capable of doing something even now as an adult. It became a core issue that was buried deeply and placed on me by someone who carelessly threw out words not realizing the impact they would have on a childs sense of themselves.

God’s word tells us over and over….
be gentle with what you say –
be careful and wise –
for what you say goes into the spirit of another and it is not easy to retract it once it has been said.
I see relationships as frangible.
They are capable of being broken.
They are fragile and delicate.
They can be frail and flimsy.
The balance between caring for each other’s hearts and soul shows us how we are to love.

I don’t think we should be so ‘brittle’ that we shatter at any harsh word said to us…
if that was the case we would all be shattered and broken people.
We will receive criticism at times.
We will receive reviews at work or at home that are not what we want to hear.
We will receive a ticket if we are in violation of the law.
It is all about perspective in the way we see ourselves
and how we let the words affect us.
The truth is: the words we say to one another have the power
to build up or break down the confidence and belief in oneself.
How you see yourself now often is a direct shadow of how you were seen as a child.
My shadow was invisible. If I could be unseen the ‘pain’ level would be less.
My world would be safer and it was easier to cope within the ’empty’ void.
I don’t think it is a sign of weakness to be easily broken.
I think it is the way God created our heart.
If someone hurts us with words it is normal to create a distance
between that person and ourselves.
The saying ‘sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never harm me’ is completely untrue and it is false teaching.
It only takes a second to build up or break down.
Shall we purpose in our ‘hearts and minds’ to become people builders and realize the power of our words.
My challenge for us is to stop… pray… think and listen to what we are about to say.
Is it helpful or hurtful…
does it build or break… is it toxic or healing.
Let this be our prayer:
Psalm 19:14 {Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer}

Sunday Morning

by Sharon O | Aug 16, 2010 | Uncategorized

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzfPHnoT0-0

The morning was not our usual…
we woke up late and went to the second service instead of the first.
I felt unsettled because of the change.
The music was quieter…
The atmosphere different…
We had a guest speaker who was incredible in his teaching and his Scottish accent was wonderful to listen to.
He shared the word so intensely and so detailed.
It was a LOVE story…
a teaching of words so precise they cut into ones soul.
The Spirit was in the room…
one could sense the quiet movement of hearts repenting and prayerful petitions.
As I stood in the room I could feel my own heart calming down into a worshipful place.
The song began…
OH HOW HE LOVES US…
I sang with everyone else till my throat tightened and the tears welled up in my eyes.
The song was one of LOVE… His love for us…
He died for us.
DIED…because of his LOVE for us.
He is jealous for you… the singers sing… God wants us to ‘rest in Him’ and Him alone…
I hear a quiet whisper;
You shall love the Lord your God will all your heart soul and mind….

He is jealous for you….
loves like a hurricane… I am like a tree…
bending beneath the waves of his mercy…
That speaks of power, glory and might a
Gentle Love from a MIGHTY power.

HE LOVES YOU… OH how HE LOVES YOU.