Random Thoughts: Beliefs

Every once in a while, out of the blue, random thoughts will enter into my head. There have been times where I have waken up, with a start, in the middle of the night because of these random thoughts. I don't know where they come from. They are not thoughts I would try to think up on my own. Maybe I heard them before and tucked them away somewhere. Who knows where they come from.

Anyway, today I was driving around town, not thinking about anything in particular, and one of those random thoughts popped into my head.

"Everyone has their own set of beliefs, and that's perfectly fine. A good solid belief is one you can really hold on to. Good solid beliefs can be proven true, over and over again. A good solid belief is not going to leave you feeling let down."

Cherished Sins

Our pastor has been doing a series of sermons on praying. Yesterday’s service was fantastic. He talked about our cherished sins. These are the sins we hold on tightly to with clenched fists, in an effort to protect them, cover them up, hide them from everyone else. Cherished sins are those sins you won’t talk to anyone about, not even God, even though that sin can’t be hidden from God. Ironically, these are the sins God wants to talk to you about. Talking about these sins builds your character, sets you free from guilt, opens your heart up to receive forgiveness.
I recently finished a bible study to go along with the concept of “cherished sins.” It was a Beth Moore bible study called Sacred Secrets. There are several different YouTube videos to watch about it. When I first started the class, I didn’t think I had any secrets. I’m pretty open to talking to people about anything I’ve done whether it’s good or bad. But there is one thing I have that I do not talk about unless someone else brings it up first. I have talked to God about this sin I have. I have come to terms and learned to accept the consequences of my own actions. I have also told people that are close to me about this sin. I’ve talked to others who aren’t close to me about this sin. But it is not a topic I have ever brought up on my own.
Luckily, God doesn’t expect us to share these secrets with everyone. He only expects us to share them with Him and when you share your secret sins with Him, He will reward you. Everyone has secrets, it doesn’t make you a bad person. What matters most is what you do with that secret. When you hold on to this secret sin with fists tightly closed, that sin becomes your baggage. That sin becomes a weight on your shoulders.
I challenge you to spend time thinking about your secret this week. If you feel brave, visit the website http://postsecret.com. It is a place people go to share their secret to help let go of the burden of carrying the weight of the secret around. Maybe seeing other people’s secrets will help you feel better about your own.

Why are you fighting?

Why do people fight? Is it because they are trying to stand up for something that is noble? Are they fighting because someone hurt someone else they love? Are they fighting to protect their own selfish ego, maybe they fight to protect someone else’s selfish ego?
There are many reasons people fight. I won’t fight to protect a person’s ego. In my experiences, a person fights to protect their ego when they have done something they don’t want to be held accountable for. When you fight to protect someone’s ego, you are only enabling their behavior; therefore you are adding to the problem. You are giving them permission to act that way again.
About a year ago, I lost a friendship because I refused to fight to protect someone’s ego. I wasn’t going to sweep the problem under the rug and pretend nothing had happened. I tried to confront her about the problem but she got angry. Looking back, I can recognize the time where I should have just let it go and walked away. But that isn’t what I did. I tried to have a conversation with her about the problem, but she wanted to shut me out. She wanted to be in control of the conversation and use the time to speak but not take any time to listen. I used the internet and social media to confront her when she tried to control the situation by shutting me out. She had no intentions of dealing with the issue and nothing I did was going to make her change her mind. Now I know I should have accepted that, walked away, and moved on.
Today I have moved on. I’m sorry that our friendship will never be what it once was or what it could have been. I’m grateful for the doors that have opened up to me in the past year. I pray daily that she will find whatever it is in life that she is looking for. I pray for her relationships with others and with her family. I pray she finds someone she is willing to fight to keep in her life when times get tough. After all, what kind of relationship is it if you don’t have the desire to fight to keep it alive?