Journey of a Thousand Miles

If you give others control over your decision making, you will never become the person you were meant to be. ( Finding Contentment ) For a long time, I didn't pursue my dreams because I didn't believe I was talented enough. Not only that, but I worried about what others thought of me, and I feared that if I performed my songs, I would make a complete fool of myself. I started playing guitar at 16, writing songs shortly after that, but I didn't perform until I was 28. That's a whole dozen years of worrying too much about what people think! Is there something you're not pursuing because you're more worried about what others think? Don't give them that control over your life. You'd be surprised how good you are at accomplishing your dream when you set out to do it.

I went for a drive to get some thinking out. Actually, I was trying to find a good book store, but there are none in Tomball. So I found myself at Half Price Books in Houston and knew exactly what I was looking for, but they naturally didn't have it (they never do). But I did find two hillbilly guys who were looking for a good cheap movie to buy. I mean, they were so hillbilly that you could barely make out what they were saying through all the mumble jumble and bad grammar. They were middle-aged, very badly dressed, and didn't smell too great either. But they made me happy... because they were happy. I used to work at a job where I was surrounded by rich people all day long. It got really old. So to see these two happy hillbilly guys who thought a movie for $2 was too expensive made me very happy. They didn't need riches. They didn't need fine speech. They didn't need nice clothes. They just had life and a dollar to spend on a cheap movie (on VHS, non...

I guess I haven't been owing God His dues lately. He really has been gracious in my life. I don't always acknowledge all the blessings He's given me because I'm too busy looking at what I think He's withholding from me. So today I would like to do just that: to praise Him for what He has done. This month marks 3 years since I broke ties with my ex, who was very detrimental in my life. Everything about that relationship was destructive, and I am glad to say he is no longer in my present life. There were several times when I tried to permanently let go of him on my own strength, but he always found a way back in through my weakest points. It wasn't until I started Recovery that I was able to use God's strength to finally sever the ties on that relationship for good. God did the work that I wasn't able to do myself. And for that, I am grateful. There have been several disappointments in my life, some of which have come in the form of unrequited love. Th...

When did I stop believing that things would just work out? In my youth, I just had faith that everything would work out for the better. Even if I went through hard times, I just knew that they would eventually turn around. And they did. I was much more carefree in high school. Then something turned around. After a bad breakup with my high school sweetheart and a bad relationship in college, I stopped believing that things would just work out. I started worrying and fearing and fretting. But this only made the bad times worse and the good times worrisome of what was coming next. As I get older, life only gets harder. There are more responsibilities, higher expectations, unanswered prayers, delayed promises... it all starts piling up, along with the fear and anxiety. That's when I have to turn my eyes back to my Source. It's not me who has this all under control. There is Someone better who has this all in His hands, and He's going to take care of me... and you. Mat...

What does it really mean to live by grace? In our social media world, it's easy to put on a false front that our lives are manageable, doing okay, and we are just fine. Pictures of our perfect life are posted proudly with witty banters and taglines. We wait anxiously to see how many people will 'like' or comment on our update and get disappointed when people don't, and we feel we have to redeem ourselves by posting another update or picture that is better, wittier, more popular. It's easy to pretend life is perfect when you're only revealing yourself in a two inch square on Instagram or 140 characters on Twitter. You don't have to look people face to face. What this results in is a lack of vulnerability, honesty, and true fellowship. We start to believe that we can gain our self-worth by how many 'likes' or comments we get on our status updates. Or which Instagram filter we use. Instead of living humbly, we begin to live proudly of our wonderful ...

I used to find my security in what people thought of me. It made me afraid to screw up, afraid to say the wrong thing, afraid of humiliation or rejection. Basically, I was scared alot, and it left me feeling isolated and disconnected from people. But "God's perfect love casts out all fear." That's right, I don't have to be afraid, and you don't either. We think it's wrong to feel good about ourselves, like we are being arrogant or conceited, but there is nothing righteous about feeling insecure. It takes away who God made us to be. He calls us to be secure in His identity of us. It is okay to feel secure and confident in yourself.  It doesn't make you selfish as some folks would have you believe. God made you in His image. He made you to be beautiful and confident and good . Satan will tell you lies, like "you're not good enough" or "you're damaged goods," but these are simply not true. It's easy to get caugh...

God doesn't throw out our prayers. He cares about the details of our lives. If there's something you're praying for over and over, and it's still not being answered, take comfort in the fact that God does care, even if He seems far away. He is working out the details of your life through the circumstances you're currently in.  If there's someone who can pray with you, invite people in. Don't assume that people won't be interested in your prayer just because they're not struggling with the same thing. You'd be surprised how much people care and want to know your struggles. They want to share theirs too and know that they're not alone.  You may wonder if there's ever an end to your suffering. There is. There always is. Sometimes it takes days, months, or years. I was unemployed twice for a matter of six months, and God provided great job opportunities that have built the career of my dreams. I was single for years, and God provided a ...