SimplyLife

 The article below has been getting a lot of hits lately, and I thought it may be time to repost it. A couple of weeks ago, I took the picture below. I thought it pretty much sums up our life journey. We never know what's around the corner for us.  Circumstances change in seconds some days. Whether the circumstances of life are good or bad, we're fond of blaming them for how we behave and think. Here are a few of the well-used excuses:  "I'm a victim of circumstances.""The situation is impossible." "The circumstances are beyond my control." "Under the circumstances"...fill in the blank. Funny how principles, self-control, and  positive thinking can go out the window when we're "under the circumstances."  And lest you think the author is above blaming circumstances, she is not. I've used most of the excuses above, whether spoken or unspoken.  An imprisoned and wrongly accused Jewish C...

For the last few years, I've asked the Lord to give me a focus at the beginning of the new year.  In 2011, He gave me Joshua 1:9 "This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go." Little did I know of the changes that would happen at the beginning of January 2011. First came a change in my job, which significantly reduced our income, and a change in our church membership. We were evacuated for five days from our home when a wildfire threatened our area. Then illness and surgeries came along for both my husband and myself. None of those things were very pleasant, but Joshua 1:9 was always in front me. By the end of that year I was ready for a break from the string of trials that had tracked through our lives. But God had supplied all of our financial needs--He still is. He had gotten us through the surgeries without complications. Our home was untouched by fire. He had given us a new ch...

A couple of weeks ago, I took the picture below. I thought it pretty much sums up our life journey. We never know what's around the corner for us.  Circumstances change in seconds some days. Whether the circumstances of life are good or bad, we're fond of blaming them for how we behave and think. Here are a few of the well-used excuses: "I'm a victim of circumstances.""The situation is impossible." "The circumstances are beyond my control." "Under the circumstances"...fill in the blank. Funny how principles, self-control, and  positive thinking can go out the window when we're "under the circumstances."  And lest you think the author is above blaming circumstances, she is not. I've used most of the excuses above, whether spoken or unspoken.  An imprisoned and wrongly accused Jewish Christian  talked a lot about circumstances in a letter to some men and women in the ancient city of Philippi roughl...