I'm Different "What Now"

Recently I found out that I am much different from what I thought I was. As I sat in what is normally a very safe place for me, I began to hear those who spoke, make jokes about men who do the things I do and for the first time, I became embarrassed about who I am and what I do. I am sure that many of you out there have felt the same at one time or another, or maybe you feel that way all the time. So what do we do? If you have been a follower of my blog or facebook page for long, you know that I don't quote scripture to often, but I believe that this is a time where we need to see how God views us and what He thinks about those who are "different". This comes from a sermon that our Pastor recently delivered here is the scripture:

Romans 12:

³ For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. ⁴ For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, ⁵ so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. ⁶ We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your^[a] faith; ⁷ if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; ⁸ if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead,^[b] do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. 

Wow, how awesome is that, I'm different and God made me that way. Our Pastor showed us a picture of a neighborhood filled with houses that all looked the same and to tell you the truth, it felt good to see the picture, it was safe, it was unified, it was "normal". Then he showed a picture of a neighborhood filled with house's of every kind, large, small, beautiful, different, the picture did not bring the peace of mind that the other picture did, but the truth behind the pictures was the question that our Pastor asked "which of these pictures should the church be represented by?" My first thought was the first, it felt good, it looked unified, it was "normal", but in light of the verse above, it was the second picture. The second picture was still a neighborhood, it was still filled with people, but the difference was, that everyone was allowed to express themselves as they saw fit within the rules of the neighborhood.

God made each of us different and the reason for this, was so that we weren't all doing the same thing, but instead, each of us have a roll to play and therefore, all of us are needed. The sermon went on to show Scripture saying, "The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!", the truth is that all of us need each-other and if one part of our body is missing we are handicap.

So the title asked the question, I'm Different, "What Now", I say, find a place that needs your unique and wonderful qualities, plug yourself in and be the best "you" you can be. Don't be embarrassed about being different, it is those differences that God uses to make the body whole. More than that, remember that many will not accept or enjoy your differences, but know that without you, they are crippled. It's not easy being different, but anyone who has lost a toe or a finger, knows how much harder life is. However, before losing that part, that person probably didn't even give that finger or toe any notice at all, but it certainly made life a whole lot better. You matter!!! You are needed!!! So your different, good, get out there and "Make the Change"!!!

What Can I Do???

Happy New Year!!! Everyone who has a family or loved one's has probably felt the sting of the holidays on their checkbooks. For many going into debt is just part of the holiday tradition. This can cause serious problems for many people and it may be affecting those you know right now. The high interest rate on credit cards can make paying back all those great and awesome gifts you gave this year pretty hard. So you might ask yourself the question, what can I do about it???

Well, I have found a number of ways to help my friends, family and even neighbors out of a few financial struggles by giving them my talents for free or at a very generous rate. Just before the end of the year, I was able to use some spare parts I had in my basement, to help fix a computer of a couple who were looking at buying a new one because theirs wouldn't work anymore. My extra parts and talents saved them an extra 3 or 4 hundred dollars, since now they don't have to buy a new computer. I have also done many other things with my gift's, talents and skills to help over a dozen people or more this past year. I didn't do all of it for free, but I saved all of them a ton of money by giving them a parts only price. I am not saying this to get a pat on the back, but showing you that a poor guy like me, that is very limited on money, can give hundreds of dollars to people, without spending a dime. Another thing that we did this year, was make blankets, scarf's and hat's for all of our relatives for Christmas. Now you might think that cost a lot of money, but in fact, we barely had 40 dollars into all of the materials, because we found a company that was throwing away brand new fabric, two huge boxes full and we got the yarn for the hats and scarfs for barely a dollar a roll. This helped in two ways, it saved some of our relatives money on hats and scarf's this year, but it also allowed us to stay in the black this year and not go into debt at all during the holiday.

So when you consider helping someone, you don't always have to think, well how much money do I have to spare this month, but instead, find people who need your talents, gifts and skills and bless them with a monetary gift that didn't brake your bank, but helped save them from having to burn a hole in their pocket, due to a repair bill or winter gear they needed to buy. Remember, now is a great time to "Make the Change" in your little part of the world. Go ahead, what are you waiting for???!!!

A Caroling We Go

     The family and I have made a tradition out of going Caroling every year at Christmas time. A lot of people miss great opportunities for Making the Change in the lives of many people who are unable to get out of their houses for Christmas. We visited 9 homes and a Rehab center for those who have had a stroke. I can tell you that it was the greatest time we have had so far this Christmas season. Seeing the smiles and tears from those we sang to was incredible. The greatest thing about Caroling is that you don't have to know how to sing. We had a group of about 41 people when we went and the great thing is, that there were some great singers who had nice loud voices and those who thought they couldn't sing, were able to sing without hesitation. No one really cares how good your voice is, it's the thought that you came out to spend time with them this season. A lot of healing and Joy comes out of caroling, not only for those who receive the songs, but also for the friends and family who participate. So what are you waiting for, get a group together and go "Make the Change" in your little part of the world!!!

Self and Self-Confidence

Today's thoughts I heard from a family member and it made a lot of since, it deals with self. Self is the main reason for so much of our circumstances in life. Self can bring us to our knee's in despair, or raise us to the top of mountains. It is self that motivates us to the highest achievements or dooms us to failure for lack of Self-confidence. Now for those of us who believe in God, we also know that He can overcome our "self's" if he chooses, we see that in the life of Moses for instance, but how we "feel" about ourselves and how we choose to react to circumstances in our life, will go a long way in determining how we live and how we seem to those around us. There are those we see as "to" happy, or those we see as always gloomy, or those who are always negative, or those who are always sick, or those who seem to be so confident and those who seem to always get the best in life, everything they touch turns to gold. All of those people in our life have in some way or another, made a decision about how they will view "self" and it affects everything they do. So how do we deal with self in a good and positive way that helps us "Make the Change" in the lives of those in our families, neighborhoods and communities, here is a good start:

If you are right then there is no need to get angry, and if you are wrong then you don't have any right to get angry.

Patience with family is how we show love, Patience with others is how we show respect, Patience with self is how we show confidence and Patience with God is how we show faith.

Never think hard about past failure, it brings tears, and lack of self-confidence

Don't think more about what the future will bring, it brings fears and trouble

Live this moment with joy and contentment, it will bring cheer to you and those around you and will help you to "Make that Change".

The Golden Rule

Everyone has heard the Golden Rule and many people live by its principles, but for those who don't know it, here it is: Do onto others, as you would have done onto you. In other words treat others as you want to be treated. ...A key element of the Golden Rule is that a person attempting to live by this rule treats all people with consideration, not just members of his or her in-group.

This rule played itself out in a current episode of the reality show Survivor. One of the Survivors this year is a very small, nerdy looking, wimpy guy, who has since day one been the butt of his tribes jokes and has had to humble himself and work like a dog in order to make happy his other tribe mates so that they wouldn't just vote him off. They treated him with disrespect, no loyalty and made him know that he was always the "next" to go, if he didn't do what they asked. However, the tide turned when the tribe merged and it became a one on one game and the two tribes were equal 6 tribe members a piece. They told the wimpy guy to act as a spy and gather information about the other team, get their trust and then they would burn the other tribe at tribal council. The problem was, the other tribe understood the Golden Rule and treated the wimpy guy with respect, compassion and friendliness that compelled him to turn on his tribe and vote off his greatest nemesis, in a brilliant move.

We have people in our lives every day that look at how we treat them and learn to respond in like manner. Kids are the biggest litmus test of the Golden Rule, because they tend to mirror our actions and we get to see from them who we really are, often in those "kids say the craziest things" moments. So who are you, are you someone who is living by the "Golden Rule" treating those in and out of your circle of friends and family with respect and kindness? Or are you like the tribe who is always picking on the little guy, stepping on feelings and following the crowd when it comes time to poke fun at the odd guy or gal in the group. Remember, that sooner or later, our actions and words come back to haunt us and it may end up costing you more than a game in a reality show, but a friend, job, marriage, or worse. How about you, are you Making the Change in your life to live by the Golden Rule and change people’s life’s in your actions, your words, your deeds and your faith?

Make the Change!!!
Scott

What to do with Adult Trick or Treaters

This is a good question and one that will be handled good or bad tonight for sure. Our neighborhood is having more and more adult's coming to our door each year. I talked with a neighbor that lives behind us and his solution, he puts a gun ......in their face and tells them they have 5 seconds to get off his porch or they will have their heads blown off!!! WOW, that is really extreme and in my opinion down right WRONG!!! It did show me however, that people are fed up with their neighbors and neighborhoods, crime is up, pay is down and that creates a problem with many people. Just this past week, my family watches a show called in the middle, very funny and many times has a pretty good lesson at the end. Well, this past week was one of those times. The family was considering walking away from their home and moving into an apartment. Their house was falling apart and the roof was leaking everywhere, but in the end, their neighbors all banded together and helped them re-roof their house, each neighbor giving what they had to help. They saw then, that hey they didn't just live in a house, they lived in a neighborhood, with neighboors, who would help them and be there for them when they needed them. So, when that adult shows up tonight, just give them a piece of candy, wish them well and remember, you live in a neighborhood, not just a house, someday you may knock on their door and want something from them and they will remember your kindness and most often return it!!! Make the Change this Halloween!!!

Scott

Spend More Time With Me

We hear it all the time, I need more hours in the day, I just don't have enough time in the day, I wish the days were longer. All of these excuses we use to explain why we don't spend more time with our family, friends and acquaintances. We also use them to comfort ourselves when we know that we should spend more time in other areas. Interestingly enough we find hours to spend watching our favorite TV shows, or our Sports Teams. If something comes up that interests us, we find time. There are people in your life everyday that would love to spend more time with you, kid's who beg you to spend more time with them, spouses that pray for more time together. Will you "Make the Change" in your life and make a decision to turn off that TV, say no to those extracurricular activities that just come up out of the blue and spend more time with those in your life that need you?!!!

Make the Change,
Scott