Roses and thorns

I woke up this morning hearing my mom's voice calling my name and saying "Stephanie, you forgot to put the alarm clock on, get up!" "What day is it?" -I was that lost.
I got ready in record time and only thanks to Jesus I didn't miss my bus. But before I ran out the door I somehow managed to get a quote from my quote bottle, I read: "He who would have nothing to do with thorns must never attempt to gather flowers." I pictured a rose bush in my head and smiled, bearly thinking on the deeper meaning of that quote. I put it in my pocket for later examination.
In a few hours I was in school engrossed in a book, but I let my thoughts twirl downwards and with them went my feelings. It was like losing reasons to smile, reasons to sing, reasons to be happy. It wasn't the thought of one problem that troubled me, it was the thought of them all. I couldn't believe that even the beautiful day couldn't make a change in my mood. "I guess so" I thought. I excused myself, left my book and went to the bathroom to pray. Yes, to the bathroom. I told Jesus I didn't know what was happening to me, that I didn't want to just lose it, lose my joy and crumble at the thought of my little troubles that felt so big to my emotional side. I told him about one in particular, how I was missing someone very much, a person who most likely won't ever think of me as I do of him. When I was done explaining the matters of my heart, I waited for him to do the miracle in my heart and help me.
He did so wonderfully.
I decided I'd work on a project pending. I searched in my computer for something and the results showed a list of poems and stories about gratitude. No idea how it had anything to do with what I was looking for, but yes with what was in my heart. I remembered the quote about roses and thorns I had read in the morning, I had my answer.

I've been countin' up my blessings,
I've been summin' up my woes,
But I ain't got the conclusion
Some would naturally suppose.

Why I quit accounting troubles,
For I had half a score,
While the more I count my blessings,
I keep a finding more & more!

There've been things that weren't exactly
As I thought they oughtta be,
And I often growled at problems
For not a peppin' me.

But I hadn't stopped to reason
What the other side had been,
How much of good & blessing
Had been thickly crowded in.

For there'd been a rift of sunshine
After every shower of tears,
And I found a load of laughter
Scattered all along the years.

If the thorns had pricked me sometimes,
I've good reason to suppose,
Love has hid them often from me
`Neath the shadow of the rose.

So I'm gonna still be thankful
For the sunshine & the rain,
For the joy that's made me happy,
For the purgin' done by pain.

For the love of little children
For the friends that have been true,
For the Guiding Hand that's led me
Every threatenin' danger through!

Beautiful, no? I think so. And it's every bit true in my life.
George Matheson wrote:
"My God, I have never thanked Thee for my `thorn'! I have thanked Thee a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my `thorn'; I have been looking forward to a world where I shall get compensation for my cross as itself a present glory. Teach me the glory of my cross; teach me the value of my `thorn'. Show me that I have climbed to Thee by the path of pain. Show me that my tears have made my rainbow."

There's no roses without thorns.

Pondering today...

We decide to accept the gifts of love given to us. That we don't choose to take in the love doesn't mean we aren't loved.

I told him: "I need someone to make me believe in love again." (love between couples)
And there He was, telling me that someone was He.

"It's amazing what love can do", my mom wrote. "It makes you feel alive, like you can accomplish anything, like nothing is impossible."

Why do we run away from love? Why do we try to hide from it? Is it because we're so terrified of being vulnerable? Is it because we think we can't handle it? Is it because we are afraid it'll crush us when it's gone? Is it because we want to prove we can be strong without it? Is it because it makes us feel and look like fools? Or is it because it's so great it frightens us, and it's so simple it scares us even more? We can make loving complicated, but love is in fact simple. And it's what makes life worth living.
God is love.

Yesterday's tomorrow

Couldn't have been said better

Today is Yesterday’s Tomorrow
By Jim Rohn, Oct. 4, 2010

The problem with waiting until tomorrow is that when it finally arrives, it is called today. Today is yesterday’s tomorrow. The question is what did we do with its opportunity? All too often we will waste tomorrow as we wasted yesterday, and as we are wasting today. All that could have been accomplished can easily elude us, despite our intentions, until we inevitably discover that the things that might have been have slipped from our embrace a single, unused day at a time.
Each of us must pause frequently to remind ourselves that the clock is ticking. The same clock that began to tick from the moment we drew our first breath will also someday cease.
Time is the great equalizer of all mankind. It offers opportunity but demands a sense of urgency.
When the game of life is finally over, there is no second chance to correct our errors. The clock that is ticking away the moments of our lives does not care who succeeds or who fails. It does not care about excuses, fairness or equality. The only essential issue is how we played the game.
Regardless of a person’s current age, there is a sense of urgency that should drive them into action now—this very moment. We should be constantly aware of the value of each and every moment of our lives—moments that seem so insignificant that their loss often goes unnoticed.
We still have all the time we need. We still have lots of chances, lots of opportunities, lots of years to show what we can do. For most of us, there will be a tomorrow, a next week, a next month, and a next year. But unless we develop a sense of urgency, those brief windows of time will be sadly wasted, as were the weeks and months and years before them. There isn’t an endless supply!
So, as you think of your dreams and goals of your future tomorrow, begin today to take those very important first steps to making them all come to life.

Radiance

A dear friend wrote this for me. I didn't think it'd come to mean so much and be a pick-up for my heart when I was in such need. Ricky wrote it months before some happenings in my life would give it a lot of meaning. It came to be the arms of love and friendship wrapped around me.

Shine on bright, make a sign
I know you can do it

Hold on tight, forget the pain
You can fly to His arms

Take the change, radiance
We know we'll be strong

So now, it seems like everything is gone
But Tomorrow you'll find your Own
Take a look at the sun, 'Cause there's no storm
We'll keep on going on

Step by step, we'll make the way
And our feet won't feel heavy.
When we get there, you won't repair
your damaged and worn-out clothes.

I know you're eyes are not lying
I wonder How could they lie?
When eyes are just little windows
Where we can see what's going on inside.

One thing I would remember when walking along was: "Take a look at the Sun, 'cause there's no storm." And that was for sure. I had been making storms in my head, wallowing in the negative thoughts I'd get. But with Jesus' sun at my center my world was warm, bright and full of light. I had to stop looking down at the puddles of mud formed by tears and take a look at the sun to see the world for what it really is, mud piles, rocky cliffs, ocean and shine. Thank you for the radiance of your friendship Ricky!