An Abundant Heart and Awareness

Abundance, an overflow, a whole lot of something that is stored in the heart, will come out of the mouth. If a lot of love is stored in the heart (from years of practicing a love for others), then love will be felt and seen by others. The same holds true for cuss words and insults if they are practiced. A person’s mouth will reveal the contents of the heart without the communicator being aware of what’s being transmitted.

One day I was shocked by the cuss words that came out of the mouth of a new co-worker. It seemed that every other word was something foul. I learned that this kind of talk came natural for him. A couple months later I was so tired of hearing him cuss that I took a chance and interrupted him. I got in his face and looked him square in the eyes and said: “You have a very limited vocabulary.” There was no question that he was surprised. He was speechless.

The good that came from this is that from that moment on, he worked on trying to eliminate some of the words from his speech, especially when he knew I was around. The habit was so strong that he could not help himself and when he caught himself saying these words, he apologized, adding that he didn’t know why he cussed.

This man probably grew up in an environment of cussing relatives and friends. He was surprised when I spoke to him because no one had called it to his attention before, and he did not get upset about what I said to him.

On the other hand, there are people in the world who would have rejected my complaint and resolved within themselves to cuss that much more whenever the opportunity presented itself–especially in my presence.

To be in charge of what comes out of the mouth is to be consciously aware of what is communicated to someone else. To  maintain control of one’s communication may require giving up things like certain TV shows, movies, internet and anything remotely related to pornography and such.

The heart not only plays a major role in life, but it’s like a dictionary of our vocabulary where it stores up as many words as we can remember. And the collection of words ought not be offensive to anyone.

We are the keepers of our own mouth and tongue; nobody else can keep them for us. We have the choice to exercise self-control over the mouth. We should not say whatever we feel like saying. Sometimes we want to sock-it-to somebody because of what they said or did, but we should not.

Words can build us up or tear us down; speak love or speak hate; breathe hope into the body or discourage the heart; speak fresh clean thoughts into the mind or corrupt what is good; feed the soul or starve enthusiasm; speak a challenge or speak avoidance; speak war or speak peace; speak blessings or speak curses; speak healing or speak illness; speak deliverance or speak bondage. Words have the power to change our destiny; they also have the power to render something invaluable; and they even have the power to kill pysically, mentally, and spiritually.

Great care should be taken when we choose words that come out of our mouths because someone will be affected by them. And in the end, we will all be held accountable for every single one of them that proceeds from our own mouths.

Seeing more clearly,

wbfreelance

http://www.willettebelieves.blog

 

 

 

 

Unseen Uncertainties

Photography by B4wellness58

During the period 1985 to approximately 1990, I worked as a realtor in California. I received an enormous amount of sales experience during that time; experience that many realtors and some brokers wish they had. Only one thing separated the position of realtor from the position of broker. A broker can arrange mortgage loans and the realtor cannot. That’s all.

From time to time, a homeowner who wanted to sell a property would ask the question “Why do I need a realtor to represent me? I can sell it myself, and keep the commission. It’s too much to pay just for filling out a piece of paper.” And realtors will answer, “The commission isn’t enough for the headaches that can energe from a transaction.”

The amount of experience gathered is determined by the number of transaction variables and types of personalities involved all around–from the seller, buyer, realtor, title company, loan company, inspections, potential of repairs, and more. These uncertainties can present problems at any level of the transaction because there is no way of knowing  in advance what will come up when the research begins. Variables are the unseen and fickle differences that must be worked out before a transaction can end favorably. Anything can happen to cause the transaction to cancel.

Personality is what the human adds to the transaction; a person can be cooperative and pleasant or a real bear to deal with. The personality of a participant in a transaction can change without a moment’s notice–making power plays to see who will sweat first, or play king or queen of the hill, or a changed mind about purchasing or selling because they saw something better in another area or town.

If a realtor has personal outstanding obligations that need to be paid immediately, a lot of praying has to go on. I prayed everyday! And the Lord answered in my favor.

Seeing more clearly,

wbfreelance
http://www.willettebelieves.blog

 

 

 

The Connection-many have heard about

Christians are like plants that grow in a field crowded with weeds. After all, God did make the weeds too, and that means that they are good for something, or used to be good for something. And they use the same resources that all other plants use.

God provides good soil and good seeds that will grow up into plants, so that the plants can provide nourishing food for all of His creation: man, animal, bird, insect, fish and many others that we have yet to learn about. He also provided water, oxygen (air), and sunlight-the things that are necessary for healthy growth. And man has the task of taking care of these resources so that the cycle of life can continue.

Everything and everyone is connected to God; God provides the soil, seed, water, air, sunlight, and caretakers; the plants provide the food for God’s creations. Cooperation and coordination are key requirements in order for God’s creations to survive.

A weed grows where nothing else grows, and some weeds can “cast” their own seeds if they are touched. Seeds from the top of the weeds will fan themselves  into the air and settle in the area next to it. They don’t need the caretaker to do anything for them. Weeds cannot come up in the same spot occupied by another plant because no two things can occupy the same place at the same time. If a yard is full of weeds, it is because enough grass or plant seed was not put down; nor were steps taken to eliminate those weeds that did grow up.

Gardeners and homeowners would love to have a weed-free garden or yard. The weed is an outcast because, under that name, it has no value. Or rather, its value has not been discovered yet. Once the purpose of the weed is discovered, a value is declared (usually but not always) and a name is assigned so that it is no longer called a weed.

A number of years ago, mustard greens, and other green plants like that, were called weeds until people had to resort to eat these weeds for food, or starve. The people who cooked and ate the weeds survived and were healthy and no one died from eating them. A value was then placed on them and the weeds were given individual names. Later, researchers learned that these weeds were indeed high in nutritional value.

Like weeds, non-believing, non-God fearing people are all around us in this world. They grow up fast, and are easy to detect. A number of them are difficult to uproot because they have been stuck in their worldly belief and way of doing things for a long time They have never developed strong values by which to live their lives. They are quick to cross the line in anything, anywhere. They are the ones that the righteous, seemingly, more often than not, run from rather than run to.

The Great Commission was commanded by Jesus to reach out to somebody somewhere (Matthew 23:19-20). If a non-believer does not connect up with a believer, it will be like the weed that will continue to grow and reproduce itself as long as it is allowed to do so, while using their share of resources for their own purpose which is to continue in their quest for survival.

The non-believers’ true value may never be discovered, nor will they benefit from being in the service of the Lord. When value is determined, the resources that the non-believer used for worldly things can then be combined with the resources of God’s people to help better the world. The resources that were given to the lottery, casino, tavern, and other similar places can be redirected to spread God’s Word to all who want to hear, and to help others in need in the Name of Jesus.

God knew the value in Abraham and He not only changed his name to Abram, but made him the “father of many nations”(Genesis 17:4). Abraham made the connection with God, took care of the weeds in his household, and lived a long and blessed life while fulfilling God’s purpose for him.

Many folk heard about Jesus, and they wanted to experience Him for themselves by attending His preaching and teaching sessions, and they wanted to hear more about God. They wanted to see Him and touch Him. They wanted more of Him-His miracles-and to be fed with both the Word of God and food. They were willing to experience the discomfort of long distance travel and hunger to be near Him. Believers and non-believers came together for a Word feast. They wanted to make a connection with Him.

Every non-believer should have the opportunity to not only hear about God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but see God’s work in action through the lives of believers. There is a need for the seed of God’s Word to replace the seed of folly in the world. The frequent availability of the Word of God on a face-to-face basis will help reduce the number of non-believers that will come up in the world with a variety of distorted views about how the world and everything in it came to be.

“If anyone has an ear, let him hear”(Revelations 13:9).

Seeing more clearly,

wbfreelance

http://www.willettebelieves.blog

A Kodak Moment

One summer day, I was on my knees piddling around in the flower bed out back, clearing out little weeds and grass that had sprung up around my plants seemingly overnight. I noticed a robin had come to visit, and was perched on the fence about fifteen feet away from me. It was the first time a bird had ever come that close to me in my backyard; however it was still a safe distance from an unpredictable human; a safe distance from which to observe my doings. This bird knew that there was a possibility that worms and bugs would be exposed, and it was willing to wait for me to move out of the way.

Soon, there was movement beneath the earth and then a little exposure from a couple bugs; then a worm showed up. Robin left the fence immediately, landed on the ground closer to me, and then took a step towards me as it looked at me and then the earth, and back at me again, and back at the worm and bugs. Robin was ready to feast but was not sure about what I might do.

As I continued to dig and pull up weeds and grass blades, the bugs scampered quickly for cover, and more worms became exposed, wiggling back and forth as in wonder about where their cover had gone. As far as they were concerned, they were experiencing an earthquake and they needed to find cover.

Robin was anxious to start feasting. I greeted the bird in a soft tone as I slowly moved backward, still on my knees, so that Robin would feel more comfortable about feasting in my presence. Robin cocked her head to one side as though giving me its undivided attention. Perhaps it was changing its lens to make sure my intentions were honorable.

Within seconds, Robin was no less than one foot away from me and the feeding spot; one eye on me and the other on the fodder. And then it happened. Robin felt a certain amount of safety present and began feasting. This beautiful creature was extremely hungry and it ate to its heart delight. In fact, so much was consumed that her stomach appeared to bulge noticeably and  I reminded the bird that it would not be able to  launch back into the sky if it didn’t stop, and Robin seemed to understand what I said. She looked at me as if to give some thought to what I had just said, and then went back to feasting.

Finally, she picked up a long, fat worm by its mid-section and held it by its beak. She was so full that she could not eat any more. It almost seemed like both her eyes and belly were bulging. She looked up at me with the worm hanging from her mouth, and appeared to say “Thank you for making my job so easy today.” The look was a picture-perfect moment, and I knew we connected. For roughly ten seconds, we looked at each other without uttering a sound. If only that moment could have been captured on film.

With the worm still hanging from her mouth, Robin took flight–probably back to her nest where she may have had babies waiting for food. I thanked the Lord for using me to help Robin find food.

And then I reflected: Robin was the provider for her family. She knew she did not have any food at home, and she took flight looking for a spot where food might be found. She saw me working in the yard and knew that this was an opportunity that had the potential to solve her problem for the day. She had her “faith” cap on, and I learned later that it was active and worked well for her.

She came in for a landing, took a closer look at the situation, and decided to invest some time in waiting on development. Her reward for waiting was more than enough food for the day.

From the recesses of my mind, there came forward another story about a bird and food. It was about Elijah who was fed by ravens in 1 Kings 17:1-6. Elijah was in hiding by the Brook Cherith when “the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening…” Elijah was fed by the most unlikely bird imaginable, the raven, because it was declared unclean in Lev.11:15. And this came as no surprise to Elijah because God had already told him who the “special delivery boys” would be.

God will use anybody and anything to bless us. We could easily miss a blessing if we turn up our noses at someone who has peculiar habits or dresses funny, but, unbeknownst to us, it is a person who has a big heart and wants to bless us. What is strange looking to us could even be a God-sent angel. Elijah would have starved to death if God had not warned him in advance about how the food would be delivered.

As children of God, when we find ourselves in a survival mode, we must acknowledge what has happened and then, what it will take to survive the situation–just like the Robin did. It is no telling how long she had been searching for food that she could call a meal. Her faith was backed by determination which was driven by her situation. She had faith that God would provide for her and her family, and she was determined to find the blessing of food; her situation demanded that she put forth the effort. She left her family and went foraging for food that day, believing that God would provide food for her. All she had to do was to get out and find it.

Elijah, on the other hand, also had faith and trust in God that He would keep His promise of providing food. In this situation, Elijah was in hiding for his life and he could not go out looking for food. He was in no position to be particular about how God would feed him.

God gave us choice. Survival mode does not mean giving up; and giving up is not an option if we love God. It means looking for the way out of the situation that the Lord approved for us to take. After all, He allowed the discomfort in our lives to happen in the first place–for His purpose down the road.

We can choose to invest our time in exploring all kinds of options; those that are available and those that we can create; or we can choose to consult with relatives and friends who do not know how to help us and have no suggestions to offer because they are in the same boat. We can become lazy and sit around watching TV waiting for something to happen–expecting something for nothing. Survival mode is a serious mode and requires all the thoughtful consideration one can muster up. We do not want to admit it, but this is another way that God wants to get our undivided attention.

If Robin had stayed at home instead of going out to search for opportunity she would have starved. She had no time to waste in unproductive socializing. She did not wait to ask advice from other robins nor did she go begging them. She knew what she needed and she took flight to get it.

This type survival can be a test that God might put before us that will demand we seek out opportunities to explore, come up with a plan, and nurture it into action. We should be willing to do whatever morally sound thing it takes to make it work; even spend as many hours per day as humanly possible to give the plan a chance to work.

God is the provider for all of His creation, and He is always on time. Sometimes it may seem that He comes at the eleventh hour and fifty-ninth second, but He comes! He wants us to trust Him to take care of our needs during tough times, in the same way that He does for the wild birds, animals, and fish that trust Him. On the other hand, if we don’t get the answer we’re expecting to get, just know that it is not what He wants for us and that we may not be in the right lane to receive His blessing.

The snapshots of how God cares for us is something to always remember.

Seeing more clearly,

wbfreelance

willettebelieves.blog