“What is Christmas? It is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future. It is a fervent wish that every cup may overflow with blessings rich and eternal and that every path may lead to peace.”
–Agnes M. Pharo
Free will...
When I was 12 I walked down the aisle of my church and stood beside my pastor at that time and prayed with him to accept God and his Son Jesus in my heart. And to this day 30 years later I still hold that belief close to my heart. It is best to know that I wasn't dragged into the decision, It wasn't because friends at the time nudging me along. It was because of the enlightenment of God's grace that salvation came to me. Not some radicalized belief system beat into me.
So having said that... I want a White House that honors God's option of free will and offers inclusivity to all beliefs and religions that are respectful to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I know that not everyone will share my personal beliefs of Christianity and God's grace, and that's ok. If they haven't come to love the same God that we both know and love, you love them anyway. You cannot force the divine grace of God's love on someone, they must see it, experience it, and through a free will and personal decision, accept it within their heart.
The love you take, is equal to the love you make.
I think this was a quote from Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma University head football coach
It's okay if all you've done during lockdown is 'survive'
(borrowed words but true to its intent)
I don't know about you, but I often feel pressure to 'be the best'.
I don't know about you, but I often feel pressure to 'be the best'.
People talk about the things they've done over the lockdown period, or the skills they've learned... There's a ton of adverts online about courses and 'getting ahead' or 'catching up' during this time. And that's cool.
I don't think a global pandemic needs to be a competition of 'who has used their time most productively'.
The truth is, the vast majority of people haven't learned fluent Spanish during the lockdown. They aren't now suddenly masters of a crotchet or totally Python literate. Sure, some people have had the energy to fill their time with courses, but a lot of people haven't. A lot of people have started a course and then abandoned it. A lot of people have just played video games and tried to stay sane.
We're all different, you are not worthless if you haven't 'achieved' as much as your friends or people on social media. Our needs are not the same. Our energy is not the same. Our emotions are not the same. Our situations are not equal.
Surviving is a success. It's okay if you've 'Just survived'! Keep going, be kind to yourself.
The miracle of love
Love is one of the only miracles God has given us daily proof of on earth and while we do our best to disprove the idea, Love is there to better us but you must work for its blessings. Love and the creative life it burns are a small sweet sign of God's divinity within us. - UNKNOWN
My view on state of Social Media... especially Facebook
For the past couple of months, I have been so indifferent about my views about "social networks." On the one side, I see it as a portal for bringing old friends together and finding new friends together in a centralized location. Yet on the other side, I see it as a place where people of ill intentions have a closer easier grasp on you. And for that, it makes me somewhat cautious about what I personally share online.
I remember in the early 90's when I bought my first computer at the Midwest City, OK Sears. It was an Apple Performa 405 and with that, I bought Hayse 2400 baud modem that got me on the information superhighway which was called AOL at the time. I tried other services like Prodigy and Compuserve and it wasn't until a year later I was on a direct to the internet service like it is today (yet only so much faster.) This initial experience of getting on the internet allowed me to get to know some great people and connect with some awesome people I still know today. It allowed me to grow and become secure in the person I am today.
These days you hear about more and more bait conspirators bringing up propaganda and bring it into places that in the past we would we would hold it to a small lull of a Sunday morning church conversation. But these days we post it in our news feed, sometimes with ALL CAPS TO MAKE IT STAND OUT AS "HEY I AM TRYING TO GET A POINT ACROSS... YA HEAR ME?" What I have found out is that we indiscriminately throw those opinions out not understanding how the importance of a lead into a civil conversation, For Example... you see a headline and it shocks you to want to speak up, how far do you go into that story?
- Do you read past the first paragraph? Often news writers will write in a catchy title to bait you into a story. And it is their job to compel you to read further and further. Its what they do.
- Do you trust the source? In the day of the internet peoples with opinions and something to say can throw a really small amount of money and create a site that looks like an established news source. Although I dont prfess my
I remember in the early 90's when I bought my first computer at the Midwest City, OK Sears. It was an Apple Performa 405 and with that, I bought Hayse 2400 baud modem that got me on the information superhighway which was called AOL at the time. I tried other services like Prodigy and Compuserve and it wasn't until a year later I was on a direct to the internet service like it is today (yet only so much faster.) This initial experience of getting on the internet allowed me to get to know some great people and connect with some awesome people I still know today. It allowed me to grow and become secure in the person I am today.
These days you hear about more and more bait conspirators bringing up propaganda and bring it into places that in the past we would we would hold it to a small lull of a Sunday morning church conversation. But these days we post it in our news feed, sometimes with ALL CAPS TO MAKE IT STAND OUT AS "HEY I AM TRYING TO GET A POINT ACROSS... YA HEAR ME?" What I have found out is that we indiscriminately throw those opinions out not understanding how the importance of a lead into a civil conversation, For Example... you see a headline and it shocks you to want to speak up, how far do you go into that story?
- Do you read past the first paragraph? Often news writers will write in a catchy title to bait you into a story. And it is their job to compel you to read further and further. Its what they do.
- Do you trust the source? In the day of the internet peoples with opinions and something to say can throw a really small amount of money and create a site that looks like an established news source. Although I dont prfess my
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