Come Home Running

This song was introduced to me by my friend Susan...the song speaks to me and I enjoy listening to it, especially when I'm feeling lost! Enjoy!!

Come Home Running- Chris Tomlin

Oh heart of mine, why must you stray?
From one so fair you run away
And one more time you have to pay
The heaviness of needless shame

Oh heart of mine, come back home
You've been too long out on your own
And He's been there all along
Watching for you down the road

So come home running
His arms are open wide
His name is Jesus
He understands
He is the answer
You are looking for
So come home running
Just as you are

Oh child of God so dearly loved
And ransomed by the Savior's blood
And called by name, daughter and son
Wrapped in the robe of righteousness

So come home running
His arms are open wide
His name is Jesus
He understands
He is the answer
You are looking for
So come home running
Just as you are

Freedom = PEACE!

I learned over my 6 week Freedom journey that Freedom to me = PEACE! I truly believe that God wants me to be at PEACE.....I believe he wants us all to be at PEACE here on earth.
I'm going to share the lyrics to one of my favorite hymns called Come to Jesus by Chris Rice. I recommend you read the words then go to You Tube and take time to listen to the song. To me this song is so calming and peaceful....it is a beautiful song.

Chris Rice - Untitled Hymn (Come To Jesus) Lyrics

Weak and wounded sinner
Lost and left to die
O, raise your head, for love is passing by
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus and live!

Now your burden's lifted
And carried far away
And precious blood has washed away the stain, so
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus and live!

And like a newborn baby
Don't be afraid to crawl
And remember when you walk
Sometimes we fall...so
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus and live!

Sometimes the way is lonely
And steep and filled with pain
So if your sky is dark and pours the rain, then
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus and live!

O, and when the love spills over
And music fills the night
And when you can't contain your joy inside, then
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus and live!

And with your final heartbeat
Kiss the world goodbye
Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory's side, and
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus and live!

F.A.T. to F.I.T.- Part 4- No Longer A Battle

The Battle of My Son........is no longer a battle!!! I spent many years fighting this battle, fighting others to get them to understand Jake. Below is the battle that I fought for many years and my thoughts about what I needed to do to stop this battle......

Battle of My Son
Trying to understand my son, getting my son to comply. Getting others to understand. Fighting with my son. I need to look at the big picture. Look at my son as a whole, instead of focusing on one part of him. Let go of expectations that I set and work with him to achieve the goals that will help him be successful today and tomorrow.

Part of the problem was that I was focusing on one part of him, it was all about how well he was doing in school. We got him tested, re-tested and tested again. I have a 2" binder filled with test results and meeting notes. I could write a book about the battles that I fought with teachers, administrators, Dano and with Jake.

Last year, I came to the realization that I wanted Jake to succeed more then Jake did. I was trying to keep his head above water and not realizing that I was drowning myself. So, I let go. I quit checking his grades on a daily basis, I quit fighting with him about doing homework. I came to the realization that he was the one who was going to have to pay the consequences for not doing his work.

Fast forward to where I sit today. I let go and here I sit a very PROUD mother of a young man who is a B student! He has worked hard to get to this point. He decided it's what he wanted. He wanted to get good grades so that he could go to college. He asks for help from his teachers when he doesn't understand, instead of not doing the work. He has established goals and is working towards them. He is proud to announce to me his grade point average and how well he is doing in school. We discuss his struggles and his successes, instead of me yelling at him and telling him what he needs to do.

I can't even express how very, very proud I am of Jake. I am soooooooooooo proud of him. School does not come easy for him....he has processing issues. Dano and I have worked with him to advocate for himself, to communicate to his teachers, to have goals, to understand that some things don't come easy and that in order to be successful in life you have to work hard!!!

Jake is not only doing well in school, he is a great athlete,and a very caring, sensitive and determined young man. Yahoooooo! Way to go Jake! I am soooo proud of you! Hard work does pay off! Love you! Mom

Good Quotes to Live By!

A few quotes I'd like to share! Happy Day!!!

Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine. ~Anthony J. D'Angelo

Attitudes are contagious. Are yours worth catching? ~Dennis and Wendy Mannering

Life is a shipwreck but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats. ~Voltaire

Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference. ~Winston Churchill

Every day may not be good, but there's something good in every day. ~Author Unknown

If you don't like something change it; if you can't change it, change the way you think about it. ~Mary Engelbreit

I've decided that the stuff falling through the cracks is confetti and I'm having a party! ~Betsy Cañas Garmon

Why not learn to enjoy the little things - there are so many of them. ~Author Unknown

Free*- Unchain My Lie!

Short and sweet- I continually overflow my plate, this is the baggage that I'm trying to set FREE. My belief is that I have to continually show my worth by doing things--the busier I am the more worth I have. This is starting to take a toll on my mind and my body!!! (The old grey mare, she ain't what she used to be!)

This week at church, JW talked about the 4 B's!

The BLAHS
Realizing and knowing you are trapped......yet staying trapped because you know your crap and you know what it is all about. Fear of Change! You don't change when you see the light, you change when you feel the heat ~ unknown

The BREAK
Deciding to make the change! Being the person God created me to be!
Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself. ~Leo Tolstoy

The BLUES
Getting used to the changes you've made. Looking at things in a different way. Feeling resistance from others because of the change that you are making.

The BLESSING
Being FREE...surrendering yourself to God. Feeling true security....true security only comes from God.

Part of our small group discussion this week was coming up with an action plan to change the one belief that we have. I shared that I was going to stop overflowing my plate to prove my worth.
The next part was what I was going to do to stop overflowing my plate, this was my answer:
--I'm going to restore balance in my life by focusing on the following areas
--family/friends (companionship)
--prayer/God time (peace)
--exercise, eating healthy and enjoying me time
--I won't say yes to every opportunity that comes my way
--I'm going to recognize when my plate is beginning to overflow and stop adding to it.
One of the ladies in the group looked at me and said, you are overflowing your plate with what you are going to do to stop overflowing your plate...how are you going to get all of that done! This was a HUGE reality check and a reminder of what I can't see....overflowing my plate with what I'm going to do to stop overflowing my plate!

Working on the lie that I've come to believe.....I have to continually show my worth by doing things--the busier I am the more worth I have.
I'm chained to this belief and it sucks!!!!!

My prayer is to unchain myself from this lie!
Unchain my lie, let me not believe
Unchain my lie, please help set me free......

Yabba Dabba Do!!!!

Ok.....I decided I had to add some silliness to this blog. So, when I say Yabba Dabba Do...who do you think of??????? Fred Flintstone? Yes...that's who I was thinking about too.
The Flintstones my FAVORITE cartoon when I was growing up. Loved how they used their feet to power their cars, the people who played in the jazz band, pebbles and bam bam, the fact that no one ever changed their clothes, the garbage disposal was an animal under the sink.

Flintstones... Meet the Flintstones,
They're a modern stoneage family.
From the town of Bedrock,
They're a page right out of history.

Let's ride with the family down the street.
Through the courtesy of Fred's two feet.

When you're with the Flintstones,
have a yabba dabba doo time,
a dabba doo time,
we'll have a gay old time

Thinking back.....their feet had to hurt and so did their backs. Sleeping on rocks would not be very comfortable. Can you imagine having to use your feet to make your car go? Could you imagine having a dinosaur as a pet? Or was Dino a dog? dogasaur? Have you ever wondered what Yabba Dabba Do meant? Good question.....no one really knows. Some of the rumors are that it means Yippee, Hooray or I love you. Those all work for me! In the song it says you will have a Yabba Dabba Do time....so it may mean good or fun, because gay back then meant happy!

Flintstones... Meet the Flintstones,
They're a modern stoneage family.
From the town of Bedrock,
They're a page right out of history.

Someday, maybe Fred will win the fight,
And that cat will stay out for the night.

When you're with the Flintstones,
have a yabba dabba doo time,
a dabba doo time,
we'll have a gay old time

"Wiiilllllmmmmmmaaaaaa!!!" bang bang bang

Loved the Flintstones and the Rubbles too!

Part Three- F.A.T. to F.I.T.

What battles do you fight? Is there a particular battle that you continually fight? We all battle something, it's a part of life. Trying to figure out what the battles are and why we continually fight them is part of life as well. The best thing about the battles, in case you don't already know this, we can choose to fight them or try to come to terms with them and sign a peace treaty! Your choice, no one else but you can make this choice!

Okay...now on to where I am with the battles that I fight!

Battle of Myself
This is the hardest battle that I fight, that we all fight!
I need to be content with myself- this is what has happened....when I become content with myself, I begin to overflow my plate. It's like the song that never ends. I feel good for a while, then BAM.....I start piling things on, volunteering for this or that, making commitments I shouldn't make. Soon I have so much on my plate that I become paralyzed. I see all the stuff on my plate and I don't know which task to tackle so I tackle none of them. The next thing I do is stress because I have so much to do. Stressing leads to a busy mind, which leads to being reactive, which leads to not communicating my feelings, which leads to pressure building inside of me, which leads to having to letting off a lot of steam, which leads to this freak that lives inside of me and she is an ugly freak! When she comes out it is not a pretty thing to see----she resembles Linda Blair in the movie The Exorcist!

Stop stressing, live for today!--- I aspire to get to this point all the time. I do allow myself to go here, it is freeing when I can concentrate on this quote and truly allow myself to live in the moment.

Let Go and Let God---along the lines of stop stressing and live for today. I have given up a lot of my worries to God. Especially situations I have no control over. Allowing things to happen, instead of trying to intervene. I've learned to do this with my teenage son and it has worked out pretty well. I will delve in to that more when I get to where I am with the Battle of My Son.

Let other know how I feel and what I expect (communicate) ---I do okay with this piece. I can do better....goes along with the plate overflowing and not trying to rock the boat. The people pleaser in me.

If I was going to grade myself on how I'm doing with the Battle of Myself, I would give myself a C+. There is definitely room for improvement. The most important thing is I recognize what my battles are with myself, now I just have to work to make a peace treaty!

Do you fight the "Battle of Myself"? Think about the battles you fight with yourself. What can you do to stop these battles? Recognize the battles and come up with a plan to make a peace treaty with yourself!

Quote!

I thought this quote was very appropriate for the blog today! It couldn't have arrived in my inbox at more convenient time!

"The battles that count aren't the ones for gold medals. The
struggles within yourself -- the invisible, inevitable battles
inside all of us -- that's where it's at."

-- Jesse Owens

F.A.T. to F.I.T- Part Two

The Battles continued......

Battle of a Full Plate
Thinking there is too much on my plate. When my plate is not full, filling the plate until it is too full. Still eating after I'm full, another serving will help make me feel whole. I need to look for other ways to be content instead of filling my world with too much busyness. Stop and pray. Lay down and take a nap. Go on a walk and enjoy the scenery. Spend time with Dano. Listen to music. Read a book. Be okay with not being busy. Stop and look inside. Work from the inside out. Live in the moment.

Battle of Making Mountains out of Molehills
Stressing, obsessing, worrying, beating myself up. Thinking too much. Making more out of a situation then needs to be made. Being reactive instead of proactive. Being a victim instead of a survivor. Feeling sorry for myself. I need to put on a different pair of glasses and look at the situation in a different way. I need to look for solutions. I need to have more than one plan. I need to let go of expectations and try to work through things as they happen instead of trying to fight before and after a situation happens.

Part Three will focus on how I've dealt with the Battles over the past few years and where I am now with each battle.......stay tuned!

Going from F.A.T to F.I.T.- Part One

I wrote this a few years ago. When I'm struggling, I take out this piece that I wrote and read it over and over and over again.


Being F.A.T. (Frustrated, Anxious, Tense) makes me want to fight, drains me, makes me tired and clouds my mind. I say things I shouldn't, scream out when I should stay quiet. I continue to fight the battles after they are finished, thinking about them, talking about them, reliving them, not letting them die.
There are many battles that I fight........

The Battles that I Fight- Part One

Battle of Myself
Being reactive. Holding on to past mistakes. Not forgiving myself, Starting battles in my mind before there even is a battle to fight. Trying to control by making others happy. Keeping the peace. Not rocking the boat. I need to be content with myself. Stop stressing. Live for today. Learn as I go, not go as I have learned. Let go and Let God. Let it be. Let others know how I feel and what I expect (communicate).

Battle of Trying to be Perfect
I want everything to be perfect so that I can be content or I think everything has to be perfect so I can be content. Reaching perfectionism is an unattainable goal. I need to focus on progress not perfectionism. Begin content with who I am ans where I am. Realizing that I will not reach the point of having a perfect life. Understanding that I'm the only one who is holding me back! I need to embrace live, instead of holding it at arm's length.

Battle of My Son
Trying to understand my son, getting my son to comply. Getting others to understand. Fighting with my son. I need to look at the big picture. Look at my son as a whole, instead of focusing on one part of him. Let go of expectations that I set and work with him to achieve the goals that will help him be successful today and tomorrow.

More Battles to follow.........

HOPE

HOPE is putting faith to work when doubting would be easier. ~ unknown

Never deprive someone of HOPE, it may be all that they have. ~ H. Jackson Brown

Once you choose HOPE anything is possible. ~ Christopher Reeve

Today's blog is about HOPE!
This is what I HOPE for (in no particular order).......
sunny and warm days
less stress
a clear mind
safety and love for innocent children
a day to do nothing
world peace
hope for those who are struggling
comfort for those who are sad
to have a mind like a child again
to be able to do a front hand spring or back bend
slow drivers to get out of my way
fast drivers to slow down
white chocolate raspberry cheesecake to have no calories
safety for the men and women who fight everyday to keep us safe- God Bless you all!

That is all that comes to my mind at the moment....what do you HOPE for?

FREE*dom the journey....

I know I said I was going to share my journey through the Free*dom series....well I'm on Chapter 3 and I decided that my journey at this point is going to have to remain a mystery! Sorry....for those of you who were looking forward to hearing about my baggage, I'm not even sure there is a whole lot of people who are even reading this blog....but that's okay. I am enjoying writing and maybe someday I will make this blog a book, you just never know!

I feel I owe an explanation as to why I've decided not to share the details of my journey through this series.......ok, I probably don't owe and explanation, but that's part of my make up or maybe part of my baggage!

Chapter 2---the exercise was to dig into the bag a little bit more and examine the pieces...did that, no problem.

Chapter 3---digging deeper in to the core to free myself from the baggage.....that's when the doors started flying open. I felt like I was standing at the top of a long hallway and all of a sudden the doors just started flying open. Part of me wanted to run down the hall and shut all the doors and another part wanted to see what was behind each door.

Okay now that I'm at this point.....I've shared my experience with the book but not the nitty gritty of what doors were opened and why. I guess I can still write about going through the process without sharing the nitty gritty....kind of boring but I recognize that at this point I can't go there, so I'm going to play it safe.

Creating some mystery with my journey to be FREE is where I'm going to leave it at this point!

Link to FREE* series workbook

Hey! If you are interested in checking out the workbook that goes with the FREE* series that I talked about in my blog a couple of days ago here's the link
http://www.crossroads.net/uploadedfiles/freeguide.pdf

You can save it on your computer and type in it, how cool! Ok, I'm amazed by the little things in life!!!

It's Your Choice...........

I receive a quote of the day e-mail everyday....to follow is the quote I received today. I liked it, so I am sharing-

"What do you first do when you learn to swim? You make
mistakes, do you not? And what happens? You make other
mistakes, and when you have made all the mistakes you possibly
can without drowning - and some of them many times over - what
do you find? That you can swim? Well - life is just the same
as learning to swim! Do not be afraid of making mistakes, for
there is no other way of learning how to live!" -- Alfred Adler

Sink or swim? That is what life is all about....making mistakes and learning from them. It's your choice whether you will sink or swim, no one else, but you, is responsible for the choices you make.

Yesterday, I made a visit to a local company as part of my job. In the lobby was the following poem:

The Bottom Line
Face It. Nobody owes you a living, what you achieve or fail to achieve in your lifetime is directly related to what you do or fail to do.

No one chooses his parents or childhood but you can choose your own direction.

Everyone has problems and obstacles to overcome, but that too is relative to each individual.

Excuses Are For Losers: those who take responsibility for their actions are the real winners in life. Winners meet life's challenge head on, knowing there are no guarantees, and give it all they've got.

Never think it's too late or too early to begin. Time plays no favorites and will pass whether you act or not.

Take Control Of Your Life!!! Dare to dream and take risks. If you aren't willing to work for your goals, don't expect others to....BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!!--author unknown

Life, it's your choice what you will do with yours! If you make a mistake, learn from it! You are the one who makes the choice to sink or swim! Rise above your past, rise above whatever is holding you back.....you have to do it for yourself, no one else will do it for you!

FREE*dom!

To be FREE, I mean really FREE.....means not caring what others think about me, means not worrying about things I have no control over. To be FREE = PEACE, to be at peace with myself and the world around me.

Do you ever feel like we are living in purgatory? That we will never be completely at peace until we are called home to heaven? In heaven, we will be free from our bodies and all the aches, pains and heartaches that we endure as human beings. Do you ever think that being human is a test of our strength, courage, and character?

Our life is a book, it's "Our Story". We are all faced with challenges, how we deal with those challenges is part of our story. We are all blessed with many gifts, how we treat those gifts and what we do with them is part of our story. Our stories are filled with many experiences, good, bad, happy, sad......because of these experiences we all have accumulated baggage that we carry around with us on a daily basis. We don't realize it, but the baggage weighs us down and holds us back from living a life of FREE*dom!

We started a series at church last week called FREE*dom, part of the series is participating in a small group where you identify and explore the things that hold you back from being FREE! ...You can choose how much or how little you want to share, it's your choice, no pressures. Side note- this type of group is right up my alley, love to be involved in a small support group. Those of you that know my husband, know that this type of group is not up his alley---I asked him if he would consider being a part of this experience and how much it would mean to me if he would try it----and guess what? He is doing it with me---thanks honey, I love you :)....

TOTAL FREEDOM MEANS LIVING COMPLETELY, FEARLESSLY, PASSIONATELY AND JOYFULLY--REGARDLESS OF YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES, NOT BECASUE OF THEM.

I'm going to share with you my experience through this 6 week series, I'm going to remove the mask and share part of my baggage. Not sure how deep in the bag that I will go, time will tell!

There is a book that accompanies the series..... Part 1 of the series is identifying what things hold you back from being FREE through a self assessment. This is what I identified......
Step 1
I had to choose three statements that I circled in the self assessment that stood out to me the most. I picked the following statements:
-Sometimes I lie to keep the peace
-I crave attention
-You really should ask for help (this is a statement that has been said about me or to me) I had to write why this statement was said about (or) to me and I wrote "I try to do it all, because I know it will be done my way and because I derive some satisfaction out of piling too many things on to my plate, so that it overflows.

Step 2
Next, I had to select the statement that resonated with me the most. I picked- You should ask for help. The reason I picked this "thing" is because it is an area that I continually struggle with....I fall in to the "pile too much on my plate" hole way too much!!

Step 3
Next, I had to figure out why I picked this statement. This is what I came up with..
-**I like things done the way I envision them
-I don't want to be a burden to others
-I see myself as weak if I ask for help
-I want others to think I'm strong
These "why" statements make me realize I might believe, that my self worth is centered around what others think of me. This belief statement takes me one step farther when I add the other 2 responses that I picked into the mix......I crave attention and sometimes I lie to keep the peace. Go to step 4 to see what I realize!

**This "why" statement has to do with control and that is a whole other subject that I will write about at another time!

Step 4
I realize I need to FREE myself of being a People Pleaser! My journey through the next 5 weeks will be focused on freeing my self of the "People Pleaser" baggage.

If you want to learn more about the FREE*dom Journey, I will be posting the website on my blog in the next couple of days........so, be looking for the info!

When you find peace within yourself, you become the kind of person who can live at peace with others."
- Peace Pilgrim

Living with my MUFFIN top and BACK FAT!

I work out on a consistent basis, in fact, I joined a boot camp class and I just finished the 7th week--I have 5 weeks left. The class is 3 days a week for an hour. I know I'm getting stronger, I can feel it....arms and legs are looking and feeling firm. The middle section, now that's a whole other story. Still got my muffin top, you know, the excess fat that hangs over your pants waist. Still got my back fat, the excess fat that hangs over your bra on your back (guys you wouldn't know about that).

So, I asked a couple of trainers what I could do to take care of my middle section. Trainer #1's suggestion is more cardio and more protein in my diet
Trainer #2's suggestion is eat all natural foods, no processed food, less sugar and more protein

My typical day consists of the following food- breakfast:yogurt, banana, egg lunch: salad, triscuit crackers, a piece of Swiss cheese snack: apple dinner: some sort of meat, veggies and I drink my share of water all day long. Every once in a while I add a cookie or some ice cream for dessert.

I think I eat healthy.....ok, maybe not enough protein, so I'll add more to my diet, I'll listen to that suggestion. More cardio? I guess I could add more. All natural food? Can only do so much of that---I need my cheese, my crackers, my yogurt, my dessert....sorry, I work my butt off, I'm going to enjoy some foods. It's not worth it to me to eat tree bark to rid my self of my muffin top and back fat.

So.....I've decided, I will do what I can to try to keep my muffin top and back fat from getting bigger----but I'm also going to live my life and enjoy the foods that I like.

My muffin top and back fat is a part of life, I may not like it.....but it's something I have to learn to live with. My middle section doesn't define who I am......what defines who I am is on the inside....it's in my heart and the love that I share, it's in my actions and the things that I do to help others.

Wacky Wednesday- Are you KIDdiNg ME?

Being silly, hey that's me!
I like to sing, and act crazy!

Do you ever take the time to let the kid in you out? If you do, share with me what you do. If you don't, why won't you allow this to happen?

You know, we all have that kid somewhere in us. I love letting that kid out...it feels good! Some of the things I do to let the kid in me out;

swinging on a swing at the park- one of my most favorite things to do, it is fun and brings back so many memories!!!

singing and dancing- for those of you who know me, this is a daily occurrence. I don't care who hears me, who sees me....I just let it happen!!

coloring- i have to admit, i don't do this very often.....but try it, it's fun!

That's all that comes to my mind right now, so sad...there should be more things that I do to let my kid out. The innocence of being young, not caring what others think, asking questions to learn more about the world, playing games like memory, hop scotch, hide and go seek! Having fun.....nap time.....watching cartoons.....having someone read you a book.....eating whatever you want and not worrying about the calories.......exploring the world, right outside your backdoor.

It's wacky Wednesday......do something to let the kid in you out!

A few quotes.....

Growing old is mandatory, growing up is optional. -- Tom Wargo

There's no point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes. -- Dr. Who

Man does not cease to play because he grows old, he grows old because he ceases to play. -- Drew Lachey

Barb's Sunday Sermon- Daydreaming

It's Sunday....so today I'm going to focus on God!

Today's subject is DAYDREAMING.....I read a couple of daily devotional books, they help me to get my day started. The following excerpt is from My Utomost For His Highest, by Oswald Chambers....
"When our purpose is to seek God and to discover His will for us, daydreaming is right and acceptable. But when our inclination is to spend time daydreaming over what we have already been told to do, it is unacceptable and God's blessing is never in it. Daydreaming after God has spoken, is an indication that we do not turst Him."

This can be hard to understand.....knowing when God is talking to you and understanding what to do.

Are our thoughts, God talking to us, to me? Is knowing I should do something and not doing it, going against what God wants me to do? Not trusting Him?

I believe there are different levels to having a relationship with God. The different levels are...
Awareness Level- Knowing there is a God , Learning about God
Acceptance Level- Accepting God, Following God, Listening to God
Action Level- Trusting God, Allowing God to work through us all the time

I think when you reach the Acceptance level, your thought process changes, you analyze things a little more, you make the choice of following God or going with the odds (doing your own thing) and you are concious about what you choose to do. I am currently at the Acceptance level. I've accepted Him and I am following Him and I am doing my best to listen to Him. I strive to be at the Action level.....really be there, really allow that to happen.

I believe that we all struggle through the different levels of our relationship with God. I do a lot of daydreaming....I am seeking God and trying to discover His will for me.

Where are you on your journey with God? Where do you want to be? Happy DAYDREAMING!

Blindness- ability or disability?

I just finished the book 'I am POTENTIAL Eight Lessons on Living, Loving and Reaching Your Dreams' by Patrick Henry Hughes with Patrick John Hughes and Bryant Stamford.

Patrick Henry and Patrick John are a father son duo who have faced life's obstacles and overcome them! They came to my church in January to share their story.......
Patrick Henry Hughes was born with an extremely rare genetic disorder: arms that could not straighten, legs that would never be able to walk, and most devastating of all, permanent blindness. He had been born with no eyes. www.iampotentialbook.com

Their story is AMAZING!!!! If you are looking for a good book, I highly suggest you take the time to read the book..it is very inspirational! Patrick Henry plays the piano, sings, plays the trumpet in the marching band for the University of Louisville, and is going to graduate from college this year with a degree in Spanish. His perspective on life is AMAZING! His story has touched my life and has helped me see things in a different perspective.

This excerpt from the book sums up how we should live our life everyday.....
When you share your unique gifts, you discover the path to your potential the plan God had for you from the moment you were born.
So live now, give now, love now and laugh as much as you can ~ Patrick Henry Hughes 'I am POTENTIAL'

We are all blind in some way...we choose which glasses to put on to view certain situations in our life or to view the world.

It's so easy for us to see other people's blindness, yet not see our own!
We so often get frustrated or struggle with the fact that other's can't see their own blindness. We need to understand that we may need to change our behavior toward others in order to help them see their blindness. We also need to have the courage to look at our own blind spots and to ask others to help us recognize our blindness.

We must also understand and ACCEPT that some people may choose to remain blinded. I encourage you to focus on your blind spots and to do what you feel comfortable doing to help gain a new perspective on the things you currently do not want to see.

Being blind can be a disability, because you cannot see what is going on....sighted people make the choice to be blind to things. Patrick Henry views blindness as an ability...he can't see, never could, but he is able to use his other senses to view the world, or should I say, use his sense of touch to feel the world around him. Is some of your blindness attributed to what you can see with your eyes? Try to view it with another sense...try to see beyond yourself, your fears, your shortcomings.

Welcome! Willkommen! Karibou!

Welcome to BaRB's Random Blog.......
A random thought came to me this morning while I was journaling......the random thought was that I should share some of my journaling (random Barb thoughts) with the world....so here I am sitting at the computer getting ready to share my thoughts with you!
I call them random BaRB thoughts because this blog will be about my view of life, people, God, and whatever random thoughts may pop in to my head that I wish to share!!!
My hope is to inspire others with my perspective about life and my experiences! I do not wish to push my beliefs on to others, only to share my views, my experiences, and my thoughts. If my blog helps ease one person's burdens then it will serve it's purpose.
I look forward to sharing my world with you!
BaRB

Once you choose hope, anything's possible ~Christoper Reeve