Contentment

Last night I couldn’t sleep. I decided to read a little booklet titled “Acceptance”. I read that “….contentment consists not in getting what (I) want but in enjoying what (I) have.”

What!?!? You mean enjoying even my most difficult trial? That person or circumstance in my life that is like a constant dripping faucet? That situation that pounds relentlessly against me like the surf of the sea?

Well, let me think this through. What about the fact that this very trial, more than anything else, has driven me to the arms of my God? Maybe if my situation were more pleasing to me, I might think that I didn’t need God.

If I think this through, I really wouldn’t trade what I have for what I thought I wanted. It’s not been easy, but slowly, ever so slowly, I’m learning to be content.

A Pearl

Oysters are craggy and rough looking on the outside. But inside, they often contain a pearl. This pearl forms when a tiny grain of sand enters the life of the oyster. Ever so slowly, shimmering layers coat this ever-present irritant. Were it not for the grain of sand, a pearl would never result.

My life often contains irritants that I would rather not have present. Circumstances, people, things or institutions may intrude in on me. I would rather be rid of them, or better yet, not ever experience them in the first place. However, my Higher Power may allow these irritants to remain.

I can choose to respond with anger or resentment. Or I can also choose to respond with acceptance and surrender. I can choose to believe that I would not have things otherwise even if I could. It is when I choose these attitudes that my God can work wondrous miracles. He can build a pearl in my life that would otherwise not be possible

The Monument

Many of you knew Jesse L.
It's been several years since he passed away.
I found this poem on his desk the day of his memorial service.
I'd like to post it in his memory.


The Monument

God,
before He sent his children to earth,
gave each of them
a very carefully selected package
of troubles.

These,
He promised smiling,
are yours alone.
No one else may have the blessings
these problems will bring you

And only you
have the special talents and abilities
that will be needed to make these problems
your servants.

Know that I love you
beyond all measure.

These problems that I gave you
are a symbol of that love.
The monument you make of your life,
with the help of your problems,
will be a symbol of your
love for me.

Your Higher Power