Revitalize Your Church

Sometimes, when climbing out of bed I must remind myself of Psalm 118:24: “This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it.” This exercise is especially helpful on days when there are major challenges before me, and serves as a spiritual/emotional reset button for a “faith lift." This is the Day: Today really counts. In fact, it’s the only day I have. I don’t have yesterday. It’s already gone. There’s no guarantee about tomorrow. But I do have this golden opportunity called today to treasure and I can make the most of it! John Wesley said “redeem the time, for that’s the stuff life is made of.” Moments are precious. Every breath we take is a special gift. This is the day to live! Some folks live in yesterday's regrets; others live in the dread or wishfulness of tomorrow; but, we are called to live today. Make today count! The Lord Has Made: I realize that I’m not in charge. Every morning, when I rise, the Lord has already made my day! A guaranteed path to ...

Dear Lord and Father of mankind, forgive our foolish ways; reclothe us in our rightful mind, in purer lives thy service find, in deeper reverence, praise.  In simple trust like theirs who heard beside the Syrian sea the gracious calling of the Lord, let us, like them, without a word rise up and follow thee. O Sabbath rest by Galilee, O calm of hills above, where Jesus knelt to share with thee the silence of eternity, interpreted by love! Drop thy still dews of quietness, till all our strivings cease; take from our souls the strain and stress, and let our ordered lives confess the beauty of thy peace. Breathe through the heats of our desire thy coolness and thy balm; let sense be dumb, let flesh retire; speak through the earthquake, wind, and fire, O still, small voice of calm! --  John Greenleaf Whittier

There is a pervasive form of contemporary violence . . . activism and overwork.  The rush and pressure of modern life are a form, perhaps the most common form, of its innate violence.  To allow oneself to be carried away by a multitude of conflicting concerns, to surrender to too many demands.  To commit oneself to too many projects, to want to help everyone in everything, is to succumb to violence.  The frenzy. . . kills the root of inner wisdom which makes work fruitful. --  Thomas Merton  (From Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day by Pete Scazzero)

I saw an interesting sign on a box a while back-- "Warning, contents may explode under stress!" Don't you wish volatile people had labels like that? "Warning -- This person is stressed out and ready to explode!" Then, we'd all know when to steer clear. Of course, from time to time, we all need a label like that, because stress is common to everyone. Life is stressful. The day you're free from stress is the day they carry you away in a coffin. We can't expect to be stress-free this side of heaven. Businessman, Malcolm Forbes recognized this when he said, "If you have a job without aggravations, you don't have a job." We can learn to deal with our situations, however, so the stress won't get the best of us! Here are a few thoughts on beating stress in your daily life: 1. Try to take life one day at a time. Poet Robert Frost said, "Just take things as they come, and handle them the best you can." 2. Remember tha...

We live in an anxious age where stress is epidemic.  It is impossible to live a stress free life, but there is a healthy way to navigate.  Allow me to suggest seven healthy ways to reduce stress and anxiety in your life. 1.  Embrace the demands. I have discovered that it takes much more emotional energy to dread and avoid difficult situations than it does to just dive in and accept them.  At least half of the emotional drain comes from worrying ahead of time. 2.  Ask, "Why am I doing this?" Busy activity tends to accumulate, especially for people who have trouble saying "no."  Review your commitments regularly, looking for unnecessary burdens.  Is this a part of your mission in life?  Does your schedule reflect your priorities and purpose?   What activities bring delight?  Which ones drain you?  It is ok to drop unmeaningful duties that drain you. 3.  Build breathing space into your schedule. Busy peop...

Whatever you're stewing over isn't worth the stomach knot. I t's not worth the knot! I've found, from personal experience, that worrying doesn't help matters one bit. It just makes the burden heavier. We all know we shouldn't worry -- but circumstances beyond our control set us off. Anxiety is toxic waste oozing through our mind and body. It's contagious too. You can get a whole room full of people to start fretting with just a few negative fearful words. The crazy thing is -- most of the stuff we worry about never happens. And that's a fact. The other day, I came across my worry file. Several years ago, as I was trying to quit the worry habit, I would write my worries down and place them in my file. Now -- over a decade later, I've unearthed my pile of worries. Guess what. Of the dozen or so worries I had placed in the file, NOT ONE OF THEM happened!! I had spent restless nights, and hours of inner churning for nothing!! One wise guy figured it o...