One definition of revival is a restoration of force, validity, or effect. There are times in our life when we go through revivals of spirit, of purpose, of direction. These times can be due to the effect that other people or circumstances have on us, or they can be a result of purely our own decisions. Either way, we come to a cross road where we have to chose how to react.
There are many ways we can chose to react. Our reaction is indicative of the type of person we are. We can chose to react out of anger & seek revenge if we were wronged. We can internalize our shortcomings as failures & act out of anger in self-destructive ways. We can self-medicate to try to cope with the things that have happened. Lastly, we can reach-out to others to help us deal with what has happened that has upset us.
The thing is that people aren't stuck in one band. People can change & can begin to make better choices. The force that drives us all is LOVE & that is what life is all about. It is when we lose focus on the LOVE we always have within us that we begin to act out of character & make bad decisions. Many times, I believe, we try to put life into a box with our presumptions & expectations. The fact is that many times we cannot know exactly how things will look until we find them. I believe that the better avenue is to focus on staying open to the fact that things may not always look exactly how we thought.
This focus on openness allows us to more fully experience all that life has to offer to us. It allows us to be able to embrace all of the revivals we will have in our lives. The fact that we have revivals does not mean that we, at some point, lost our direction or made a mistake but maybe more that we needed to discover or experience something more to allow us to fully experience & accomplish all that our God has set out for us. So, for all of the revivals to come in your lives I cheer for you & your ability to fulfill your eternal destiny. Peace, Love, & Happiness to you all!!!
Bless You!!!
Thomas
Monday, August 24, 2009
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Dying to Live
I believe that it is very easy to get into the groove of life & just go day to day. We begin to live below our potential. Without fail, this begins to wear on us & lessens our happiness. We can either choose to go on in our current mode of life or make a change. The choice we make will shape who we become, but what remains constant is who we truly are inside.
The fact is that sometimes we have to die to our current mode of life or direction we are headed to begin to live again & realign our direction with who we truly are. We cannot be perfect 100% of the time, but what we can do is learn from where we have been & what we have gone through. Realignment does not mean that we necessarily made a mistake, but does mean that we have learned & are taking steps toward becoming what have the potential for.
It is not always easy to die to your current mode of life either, because sometimes it takes you making a couple of steps back in faith to make the leap forward. I recently made the decision to give up the comfort of my current mode of life to journey down a different path that I felt I was called to do. I do not have all of the answers to how everything will work out, but I do know that I have the faith & ability to succeed at whatever life brings. I wish you all the strength to endure what you must, courage to change the things you need to, & wisdom to know the difference. Peace, Love, & Happiness to you all!!!
Bless You!!!
Thomas
The fact is that sometimes we have to die to our current mode of life or direction we are headed to begin to live again & realign our direction with who we truly are. We cannot be perfect 100% of the time, but what we can do is learn from where we have been & what we have gone through. Realignment does not mean that we necessarily made a mistake, but does mean that we have learned & are taking steps toward becoming what have the potential for.
It is not always easy to die to your current mode of life either, because sometimes it takes you making a couple of steps back in faith to make the leap forward. I recently made the decision to give up the comfort of my current mode of life to journey down a different path that I felt I was called to do. I do not have all of the answers to how everything will work out, but I do know that I have the faith & ability to succeed at whatever life brings. I wish you all the strength to endure what you must, courage to change the things you need to, & wisdom to know the difference. Peace, Love, & Happiness to you all!!!
Bless You!!!
Thomas
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Too Thick of Too Thin
There is a definite balance between these days between spreading yourself too thick or too thin. A recent movie totally reinforced this... The movie is "I Love you Man," because it focuses on the relationships outside of the whole marriage relationship. It is a very funny movie, but it is also a much deeper movie that focuses on the deeper level of same sex friendship.
This is not a male or female specific issue, because friendships outside of your marriage relationship are important too. Everyone has someone that they can call & talk candidly. It does not matter if it is a brother/sister or just a true friend that they can share their innermost fears or doubts with. It is important that we have relationships with the same sex we can just open up with & communicate with, without fear of reprise. These relationships give us the autonomy to gauge our true feelings.
The importance of these relationships is completely valid & significant. If you are wondering about your close relationships, take a look the ones you have. If you think you could use one more friend, I challenge you to make one. I have been blessed with a great group of true friends that I know I can open up with & completely feel comfortable with. I wish you all the same success in your relationships & as always the same Peace, Love, & Happiness.
Bless You!
Thomas
This is not a male or female specific issue, because friendships outside of your marriage relationship are important too. Everyone has someone that they can call & talk candidly. It does not matter if it is a brother/sister or just a true friend that they can share their innermost fears or doubts with. It is important that we have relationships with the same sex we can just open up with & communicate with, without fear of reprise. These relationships give us the autonomy to gauge our true feelings.
The importance of these relationships is completely valid & significant. If you are wondering about your close relationships, take a look the ones you have. If you think you could use one more friend, I challenge you to make one. I have been blessed with a great group of true friends that I know I can open up with & completely feel comfortable with. I wish you all the same success in your relationships & as always the same Peace, Love, & Happiness.
Bless You!
Thomas
Monday, August 10, 2009
Shooting Stars
Shooting stars are amazing & at most fleeting. Much like shooting stars, life & many of its moments are fleeting at best. So, we have to ensure that, while we are learning from our past & planning for the future, we take time to live in the present enjoying the time that we are given to enjoy our friends, family, & friends we are still to meet on our journeys. I have noticed that some of the best times & most amazing people go much before I would ever wish them to.
There is one saying that, "life is what happens while we are planning." I do not know exactly who said it, but it captures the same point that we cannot plan everything out & it is just as important if not more to be present & actively live in the present. This ensures that we don't miss all of the great moments & people that are set to touch our lives. I believe that I am here to help others & don't feel a strong need to worry about money, success, fame, or any of the other things that are pushed so hard in the media that is all around us. I have made it to this point in my life, in my opinion very successfully, putting my focus on doing the best that I can with integrity.
I know that whenever my candle goes out, my light will shine on in the lives of all those I have been graced to come to know or meet. So, I don't live in fear of the end because I live saying what I need to & making sure that those in my life know how I feel. I make sure to embrace those fleeting moments & relationships with Love & Happiness. Today, I challenge you to have those tough conversations with the ones that you love that you tell yourself... I can do that tomorrow. We are not given any guarantee on our time here, so let's make sure we take advantage of the time we are given & when we do we can feel all the joy of living to live & not living to die. Peace, LOVE, & Happiness to you all!!!
Bless You!
Thomas
There is one saying that, "life is what happens while we are planning." I do not know exactly who said it, but it captures the same point that we cannot plan everything out & it is just as important if not more to be present & actively live in the present. This ensures that we don't miss all of the great moments & people that are set to touch our lives. I believe that I am here to help others & don't feel a strong need to worry about money, success, fame, or any of the other things that are pushed so hard in the media that is all around us. I have made it to this point in my life, in my opinion very successfully, putting my focus on doing the best that I can with integrity.
I know that whenever my candle goes out, my light will shine on in the lives of all those I have been graced to come to know or meet. So, I don't live in fear of the end because I live saying what I need to & making sure that those in my life know how I feel. I make sure to embrace those fleeting moments & relationships with Love & Happiness. Today, I challenge you to have those tough conversations with the ones that you love that you tell yourself... I can do that tomorrow. We are not given any guarantee on our time here, so let's make sure we take advantage of the time we are given & when we do we can feel all the joy of living to live & not living to die. Peace, LOVE, & Happiness to you all!!!
Bless You!
Thomas
Walk for a Cause, Run for a Purpose
There are times in life when we chose to walk toward or away from things & there are other times when we feel the need to run. Our reasons for going in either direction can be surface deep, preferential, or deeply personal. The fact is that with all situations & experiences when we strip away all that we have invested we are still left with the emotion & feelings from these times. In these times of change we have to be courageous & let our clarity & integrity define us.
When we are going through tough times, many if not all of our supporters try to steer us toward putting things behind us, moving forward, & looking back less. I know from experience that it is all together too easy to just focus on what we feel we have lost & not realize that, while we may have lost something or someone in a physical sense, we do not & have not lost the most important part which are memories from the times that gave us feelings of Love & Happiness. Like "Little Wonders," these memories & feelings are always ours to remember & use to learn, grow, & perpetuate in others. There are millions of people in the world that battle crippling sicknesses & diseases that we can help cure.
This past weekend, I participated in the annual Susan Komen 5K run/walk in my city to help fight breast cancer. The event raised over 1 million dollars, had over 28,000 people register, & over 2300 runners that chose to be timed. I had a leg injury that did not allow me to run for over a month & a half before the race, & I only got well enough to begin to prepare for the race the Monday of that week. During the race, I had to fight internal & external battles to keep myself going toward the finish line. At least 5 times, I had to slow down to a walk during the relatively short 3.1 mile distance. In honor of all those that have to fight this very serious disease & in honor of myself, I did not give up & would return to running as soon as I could catch my breath.
I finished this event 192nd of the timed runners, 27th in my age group at 22 minutes & 58 seconds, & knowing that next time I will do better. The fact is that I finished & I did not give up. I did so for all of those who have fought this disease valiantly but lost their battle, those who are winning their battle, those who will battle this disease, & to prove to myself that I could win my internal battle to finish proudly. Whatever you have to or chose to walk or run toward or from, remember all of the "Little Wonders," that make you Happy. When you do & that smile crosses your beautiful face, remember this & pass it on. Peace, Love, & Happiness to you all.
Bless You!
Thomas
When we are going through tough times, many if not all of our supporters try to steer us toward putting things behind us, moving forward, & looking back less. I know from experience that it is all together too easy to just focus on what we feel we have lost & not realize that, while we may have lost something or someone in a physical sense, we do not & have not lost the most important part which are memories from the times that gave us feelings of Love & Happiness. Like "Little Wonders," these memories & feelings are always ours to remember & use to learn, grow, & perpetuate in others. There are millions of people in the world that battle crippling sicknesses & diseases that we can help cure.
This past weekend, I participated in the annual Susan Komen 5K run/walk in my city to help fight breast cancer. The event raised over 1 million dollars, had over 28,000 people register, & over 2300 runners that chose to be timed. I had a leg injury that did not allow me to run for over a month & a half before the race, & I only got well enough to begin to prepare for the race the Monday of that week. During the race, I had to fight internal & external battles to keep myself going toward the finish line. At least 5 times, I had to slow down to a walk during the relatively short 3.1 mile distance. In honor of all those that have to fight this very serious disease & in honor of myself, I did not give up & would return to running as soon as I could catch my breath.
I finished this event 192nd of the timed runners, 27th in my age group at 22 minutes & 58 seconds, & knowing that next time I will do better. The fact is that I finished & I did not give up. I did so for all of those who have fought this disease valiantly but lost their battle, those who are winning their battle, those who will battle this disease, & to prove to myself that I could win my internal battle to finish proudly. Whatever you have to or chose to walk or run toward or from, remember all of the "Little Wonders," that make you Happy. When you do & that smile crosses your beautiful face, remember this & pass it on. Peace, Love, & Happiness to you all.
Bless You!
Thomas
Saturday, August 1, 2009
A New Beginning
I am sure you have all heard the saying it is never too late for a new beginning. I believe that this phrase holds a great deal of truth especially in America. It is very common for people to change their tastes, careers, or even spouse. The generations before us were very different in this aspect. In these generations, people would make a decision on these sort of things & live with their choices.
I cannot say exactly why earlier generations made decisions & stuck with them. From my interactions with people that made their decisions work, they seem to have a pride for the decisions they made. On the flip side, if things happened that set them back or if they had to they had no problem starting over. I have found myself at a similar crossroad in my life & have made the decision to try to do more & not settle in the middle mode of life. I believe that I have much more to give & the only way to do justice to myself is to let go of the middle mode of life I am in.
In three weeks, I will begin down the road to becoming a physician so that I can help people even more than I do currently through marketing & selling software that helps improve the efficiency & safety of the care process. The past two years with my current company have helped me evaluate many different medical specialties. I have two interests which are dermatology & surgery. I have identified the school I want to go to as well, which is N.Y.U. in Manhattan, NY.
I am very excited about my upcoming journey, but cannot lie & say I am not a little nervous. I have been thinking about & planning this for over a year now. I also have to laugh a little, because I wanted to even more after being exposed to how challenging the medical profession can be. I have always been attracted to a challenge & not surprisingly have always managed to attract them. I am also excited about getting to live in NYC because I have been attracted to the city ever since the first time I got to visit it. Some people are intimidated by the energy & atmosphere, but I find it invigorating.
I am 28 years old & I am letting go of the of the strings that hold me in this middle mode of life to become what I believe I was truly meant to be. I am doing so because I believe that it is never to late to begin again & never too late to make a good decision. Maybe you will just see this as a story about someone else, or maybe this will inspire you to do something good for yourself that you have been holding back on doing. Thank you all for reading & choosing to follow my posts. Peace, Love, & Happiness to you all!!!
Bless You!
Thomas
I cannot say exactly why earlier generations made decisions & stuck with them. From my interactions with people that made their decisions work, they seem to have a pride for the decisions they made. On the flip side, if things happened that set them back or if they had to they had no problem starting over. I have found myself at a similar crossroad in my life & have made the decision to try to do more & not settle in the middle mode of life. I believe that I have much more to give & the only way to do justice to myself is to let go of the middle mode of life I am in.
In three weeks, I will begin down the road to becoming a physician so that I can help people even more than I do currently through marketing & selling software that helps improve the efficiency & safety of the care process. The past two years with my current company have helped me evaluate many different medical specialties. I have two interests which are dermatology & surgery. I have identified the school I want to go to as well, which is N.Y.U. in Manhattan, NY.
I am very excited about my upcoming journey, but cannot lie & say I am not a little nervous. I have been thinking about & planning this for over a year now. I also have to laugh a little, because I wanted to even more after being exposed to how challenging the medical profession can be. I have always been attracted to a challenge & not surprisingly have always managed to attract them. I am also excited about getting to live in NYC because I have been attracted to the city ever since the first time I got to visit it. Some people are intimidated by the energy & atmosphere, but I find it invigorating.
I am 28 years old & I am letting go of the of the strings that hold me in this middle mode of life to become what I believe I was truly meant to be. I am doing so because I believe that it is never to late to begin again & never too late to make a good decision. Maybe you will just see this as a story about someone else, or maybe this will inspire you to do something good for yourself that you have been holding back on doing. Thank you all for reading & choosing to follow my posts. Peace, Love, & Happiness to you all!!!
Bless You!
Thomas
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