Hearing Voices

I hear voices…all the time. Do you hear voices? I imagine so, especially if you are a woman. These voices are intrusive at times, other times they are quite helpful. The trick for me is learning to orchestrate these voices. The music of my brain is under my direction…I just have step up and pick up the conductors wand. 

For women this can be particularly difficult, more so than with men. Why is this? I have attached a wonderful short video that everyone should watch. It is a great description of the male and female brains by Mark Gungor. I promise it will make you laugh, but it does explain why women in particular allow stressful, negative thoughts to run amok through their heads.

My biggest problem is allowing the voices of negativity and worry to take over the airwaves in my head. They tend to be the loudest and most repetitive of all the voices swarming around in my brain. They also tend to have a great amount of perseverance. Beating them into submission is not an easy task.

So what to do when these negative, stressful thoughts come knocking at my door? Turn to Him…

Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things

 ~Colossians 3:2 NIV

Once I have done that, be it through prayer, reading God’s word, or singing His praises, I find the negative voices have receded. Filled with His Spirit there is no room for the negative, and peace can be found. My brain may still be filled with the notes of voices…but ultimately I control the direction the music takes.

In Him ~Marla

Perspective

I know this is shocking...but occasionally I throw little pity parties for myself. Woe is me, life is not following my perfectly choreographed plans. Really! I have this all figured out God! Can't you see how perfect my plans are? Why must I suffer so? And then God lets me in on a little secret...my life is amazing! My problems are nothing compared to so many around me! My plans do not enrich my life one little bit!

So, what to do when you are focusing way too much on your on life? When you  forget how very blessed you are. My anxiety level was slowly climbing up and up. What could I do to take my mind off myself and start focusing more on others, and Him? Pray. Simple enough. Devote that time and energy towards something positive.

Prayer is a wonderful communion with God for someone of faith. A chance to turn your eyes upward instead of inward. A chance to reach out to someone hurting or afraid. A chance to make a difference in the lives of others. You can touch the life of someone you may never meet, and they may never know of you...but you can reach out in prayer.

Prayer doesn't have to be eloquent, or even grammatically correct. God hears your prayers with His heart, not His ears. He feels your prayers...and they bless Him. Wow! He covets our prayers...what an amazing concept!

Let my prayer be counted as incense before You, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice! ~Psalm 141:2 ESV

In Him ~Marla

Simply Overwhelmed

I haven't been writing much lately as I have been too overwhelmed to sit and put my thoughts into coherent words. I realize there are many people who thrive on stress; I am not one of them. Too much stress has the opposite effect on me...I simply shut down. That has been the last few weeks of my life. All the hoopla of getting the house on the market and beginning a search for a new home has made it difficult for me to function. When it gets to be too much a nap seems the best solution to me. Bipolar and Anxiety Disorders tend to go hand in hand...and it is not a happy partnership.

So today I am just reaching out for a little help from my friends. If you have a moment to spare, please say a little prayer for me. I would really like to have this entire move behind me and perhaps begin to function a little better again.

~Marla

Everyone Struggles

Today I have been thinking about and praying for several friends who have health issues. It seems I am doing that a lot lately. I suppose part of it is my age. As fifty looms around the corner, my circle of friends age as well. Death and disease seem to be much more frequent visitors in my world. I have noticed that when these struggles enter our world, that many turn their focus more towards God. That is a good thing, but are we turning all of our struggles over to Him? Or just the really scary ones?

What about the people struggling to make it from paycheck to paycheck? Do we lift them up continually? Families for whom one serious setback would send them spiraling towards bankruptcy.

What about families struggling with discord with their spouse or children? Families full of anger and resentment towards one another. Families that are on the verge of being torn apart.

What about people struggling with upheaval in their world? A job loss or change. The stressors of selling their home and moving to a new city. An elderly parent moving into a care home. The loss of a driver’s license as their eyesight dims.

What about people struggling just to function from day to day in a world that doesn’t see their illness? Mental illness can be every bit as debilitating as a physical illness. Are we lifting them up?

My point is simply this; we all struggle. Our struggles may vary over time, even from day to day, but they are there. So the next time you take a moment to spare a thought or a prayer for a loved one, remember, even the little things can take their toll.

Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Matthew 11:28 (NIV)

~Marla

Wake Up Call

Before cell phones people used an item called an alarm clock. When traveling, instead of an alarm clock, they often relied on a wake up call from the front desk of the hotel they were staying in. The wake up call served an important purpose. It made sure the traveler continued his journey in a timely manner. Without it precious time would be lost as they slept, their destination still far away.


My wake up call was of a different sort. I haven't been asleep, I have been busy. Too busy in fact. Too busy to slow down and spend time in devotion to Him. Too busy for prayer. Too busy to write. My wake up call was a call to stop and re-evaluate my priorities. 

Last week one of my dearest friends had a cancer scare. The breast cancer they thought was gone was possibly now in her lungs. As I prayed for her I began to question the usefulness of my prayers. Though my faith reassured me that God was listening, I began to consider the question...why should He? I have not been seeking Him lately, I have been too busy to take the time. Why then should He take up His time to listen to me? 

Today I began a new daily devotional called "Jesus Calling." The devotional was recommended by the same friend I had been praying for. The words had spoken to her, and He had carried her, during those scary few days before it was discovered that the cancer was not back as they had feared. The passage I read today opened my eyes even more to the importance of making the time to focus on God. Based on John 4:23-24 and Psalm 100:4, were the following words.



Your praise and thanksgiving are distinctly audible in heaven. Your petitions are also heard, but it is your gratitude that clears the way to My Heart. With the way between us wide open, My blessings fall upon you in rich abundance.


Young, Sarah (2004-10-12). Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence (p. 196). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. 



My resolve is to keep that path clear. To take time out of my busy life and devote time to things of worth and meaning. And to Him.


~Marla

Living in Denial

I have spent the better part of my adult life living in varied states of denial. I figure as a parent you basically have two choices: Denial or constant worry. I decided before my first child was born that denial was the best choice for me. This isn't the naive denial of a teenager who takes serious risks because they believe the are invincible. This is purposeful denial, because to do otherwise is too terrifying. When I was pregnant I did not spend time worry about the health of my unborn child. When my children were young I did not worry about every sniffle or whether they would develop childhood leukemia. It was not that I really thought these things could not happen to my child. After all when I was 20 my 8 year old nephew was taken by an unexpected illness practically overnight. It was more of a conscious decision to not waste time dwelling on possibilities I had absolutely no control over. I did, however, pray. I prayed like crazy! But then I turned it over to God and continued on in my cozy state of denial. When my son was playing high school football and getting tackled every other play. When my daughter went off to college and was on her own for the first time. When my son started competing in track in college as a decathlete, and was pole vaulting over 16 feet in the air. When my daughter bought her house and was really on her own. Through all of this denial has kept me sane and my blood pressure low.
Tomorrow marks a new state of denial for me. My son is graduating from the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center. As he begins his new career as a police officer I will pray for him daily, for his safety, for his decisions, for his colleagues. And I will slip comfortably back into my state of denial, trusting in the Lord for all things, and hopefully avoiding worry lines. I am proud of you son.
~Marla