“One day at a time, sweet Jesus, that’s all I’m asking from you…. Teach me to pray, Lord, teach me the way, one day at a time."

Sometimes, when I sit and pray I don’t feel like God is listening to me, Why do I think that? Well, you see, I feel like I don’t get an answer. I’m a concrete person. I want to be able to reach out and touch my answer. Sometimes we get a material sign that our prayer has been answered, but more than likely the answer we get is a sign that has meaning to only us. What happens when we can’t hear or aren’t listening carefully for an answer?

Is there a difference between “can’t hear” and “not listening”? I do believe that there is a big difference. When someone can’t hear that indicates that something or someone is drowning out or blocking the message. But not listening, that’s all about me. When your not listening, you are not quite settling down and being quiet and letting God’s messages come to you.

Quieting my brain is occasionally the hardest thing to do. At times I have so much on my mind there was no way to block it out, so instead of fighting it I have learned to write down my thoughts. And then go back to quieting my mind, till another thought comes. By writing my thoughts down I don’t have to worry I will forget something.

Other times if I sat still for 5 minutes I would fall asleep, no really, I would feel bad, here I was trying to pray and I could not even stay awake. Well I’m in good company, weren’t there another group of 12 who could not stay awake and pray? As a parent I’ve come to understand God as a loving parent who want the best for His children. If a nap is what I need, I believe God is holding me while I sleep, much as I did when my babies were small. I imagine God looking down on my sleeping face, and talking to me as I did with my babies, telling me of His great plans for my life. As He whispers in my ear He IS teaching me the way, His way, one day at a time.

Music, words from the spirit

Music is so special in my life, and when I awake with a song running through my head, well, I can only guess that is my message or mantra for the day. Whether it’s from God, the Angels, or my guides, I’m sure it’s the information I need to get through my day.

Why is it in my head when I wake up? Maybe my mind is just too busy when I’m awake to hear the message. And possibly, just maybe, it’s there when I first wake up so that I can’t doubt it’s a message sent from above. If it’s in my head when I awake, I could not have consciously put it there. All I can ascertain is that God put it in my head as a message to me.

But why is it always a song? Especially a song I love and am very familiar with? I think that is an real easy one, so I don’t forget it, so I’m up long enough and awake enough to really remember it and to start my day off on an up beat. As I move around and start my day, it reverberates like a prayer, it is with me as I wash up, dress and eat my breakfast. And it’s with me as I start my daily work. Is it there to guide me in my work?Or more likely it is to remind me God is always with me?

What else can go wrong? How much worse can it get? What now?

I do not believe we have a God that punishes us when things get tough. I do believe we have a loving and forgiving Father, a caring Brother who gave His life for our sins, and a Spirit that gives us the most amazing thoughts and words to live by. I do believe our God not only walks with us in times of trouble and strife but He sometimes carries us though the crisis. When faced with adversity why do we turn on God and say “What did I ever do to deserve this?” or “Why me?” why are we looking to blame God when something goes wrong in OUR plan for OUR life? Well that’s an easy one, it’s not our plan for our life it’s Gods plan for our life. And if what we want and what God knows is best for us, is the same well then, that’s great, but it doesn’t always work that way. Many times God’s plan is no where near how we plan our life. Rather than being in dialog with God and asking how our life should be, we decide we know what is best for us. We don’t converse with God, we dictate how we want things. We don’t always listen.

I feel our time would be better spent thanking God for the good in life. Now don’t tell me you have nothing to be thankful for in your present condition. Plenty of people are worse off than you are right now. Maybe your life is not going the way you want it to go right now, if your health is your trouble, look at the young mother in the terminal cancer ward. Your relationship giving you problems? The Army wife with young kids would love to have your problems. Are your children giving you gray hairs, tell your troubles to the parents who just lost their only child. Somebody is always worse off than you. Should that make you feel any better? Well yeah, when you concentrate on others, suddenly you don’t feel so bad.

That does not explain why bad things happen to good people, why some are given more burdens to carry through this life. Sometimes you just have to trudge through the clouds and the rain and storms, or in some cases a hurricane to appreciate all the good in your life.

Or maybe it’s the devil causing you to stumble and question your faith. I once heard something about the devil tempting you the most, the closer you got to God.

I think a gratitude journal is can be you new best friend. Now this may sound silly but at one time when my kids were small and we were going through a rough patch we had a happy book. Any time something made someone happy we recorded it in the book, with words, pictures or drawings. And each week we read the book together going over what each of us enjoyed. So each spend some time recording what makes you happy and things you are grateful for. Get an old notebook or a pretty new journal it really doesn’t matter. Spend 15 minutes each day recording things that made you happy or that you are grateful for. I like to be able to go back and see the good in my life, when I start reading and then add to it I feel like I am not quite so down. On my worst days I may be only able to add simple things such as I got out of bed on time, went for a walk or enjoyed an uninterrupted bubble bath or even someone smiled at me.

The line from this song was stuck in my head all day yesterday “I will raise you up on eagles wings…..hold you in the palm of my hand.” That was my sign, things will not be easy but they will work out! How do I know this is my sign? I just do! And you too WILL know your sign.