Always strive to reflect God even more but still be real and not a flake or a jerk

When I first posted this goal I didn’t want to be like so many people I’d met that had turn me off to God, church, religion etc. I believe in the bible they are referred to as hypocrites.

I’m not perfect but I don’t think I turn people off either. This person who led me to God doesn’t even know she did it. I saw her example. I saw how after she started going to church and reading the bible she transformed into a completely different person. A person I actually enjoyed working with. Before that she was no picnic to work with. I wanted some of that peace and strength she had acquired over the last three months.

That’s the kind of witness I try to be. I try to set a good example.

more often than not this goal ties very closely into my goal of being patient with people that annoy me. Today has been (and hopfully will not continue to be)one of those days where I realize I still need to work on these two.
sigh
You know…....the kind where there really is no major event good or bad that has happened but rather a flood of really rediculous incremental things snowball and you feel like you’re being nibbled to death by a duck. The kind where you sit there and wonder if those stories of the Twilight Zone were really just fiction…....the kind where you try to talk to people and as you speak they morph into that “deer in headlights” lump, so you stop midsentance and just decide to do it yourself.
sigh
I’m getting better at this though….when I realize I’m not making progress,instead of verbalizing my frustration by making a potentially snide remark I just take a deep breath and walk away. Still gotta work on the whole patience factor but at least I’m not being a bad example of my faith by saying things I’ll regret later.
I told my husband when we get home tonight I’m going to need a good long hug.

i’m really struggling with this right now. i don’t think i am doing a good job with my friends from med school being my whole self – particularly the part of my self who believes in God and Jesus. it was so much easier when i was in college, and immediately post. i had more passion and saw everything through the prism of faith. i lived more intentionally. i’m in a dry patch now, which affects everything of course, but where i notice it the most is in my peer interactions. i remain silent when i should speak. i just don’t know if my med school friends know all the things i value. and if i was being completely authentic, they would. right? (now i’m definitely not talking about converting people, and they do know that i’m Christian and attend mass regularly…i’m talking about how i’m a Christian and how it affects my life and choices. that’s what i don’t represent well).

I did it. I maintained my calm and didn’t reflect something I didn’t want to reflect. THANK YOU LORD!!!

Hmmmm…......where the rubber meets the road is what’s on my mind at the moment. You know how sometimes it’s the little things that trip you up? Here’s my littel thing at the moment…only I’m typing this in an effort to not let it trip me up. We’ll see if it works.
We ordered lunch about an hour and a half ago…no closer to two hours ago. We’re all hungry and starting to get “gripey” and just plain irritable. My temptation is to snap at the delivery guy when he finally, if ever, shows up.
Do I do it and get my feelings vented and feel better
or
Do I be kind and understanding to him in spite of the inconvenience and give him the benefit of the doubt that there must be a reason why he’s so late and avoid it happening again by simply not ordering from them in the future.
Hmmmmm…......in an effort to keep with the goal the answer is obvious…let’s see if my heart can overcome my emotions.
we’ll see…..typing this has cooled me off a bit…..I’ll update on what happens.Of course praying quietly under my breath is also helping.

Found this through checking out AC’s ‘things’. A good day to see it, too. I’m on my parish’s adult religious ed team, and we met today to talk about the upcoming year. We’re not a ‘normal’ Church – our pews are largely filled by those who might be shunned at churches elsewhere.

So this year, for our program that initiates people into the community, we’re stressing that it’s all about learning how to love, and learning how to love others. God loves us, we love each other, and in doing so, reflect God’s love. So simple. So challenging.

So good to see this. thanks.

to this thing because, well frankly, Frannie Girl put it so succinctly, and it also speaks my heart in far more detail than the ‘be more spiritual’ thing, which I’ve since removed. Not that there is anything wrong with that goal either, mind.

Good on ya FG; a very well articulated and heart felt desire. One which, as you well know by now, I share. :)

Sometimes this is just easier said than done….feel like I fail more than succeed. Thankfully God doesn’ expect me to be perfect….....wish I could just stop expecting perfection of myself. sigh.........well, time to get up, dust off and try again.

My deepest heart desire is to reflect clearly my faith and my passion for God. However I can’t stand when Christians get a “Holier than thou” attitude about it becasue that’s what causes the world to hate us and God and everything we stand for. We must be real and accesible….the people we are when it’s just us and our closest friends. That is what being Christian is all about. BEing transparent and growing from our mistakes and helping others do the same. Not acting all holy like we never make mistakes or we never get tempted or we never fight or act like jerks. That’s not real….and God knows the ugly details about us anyway. So be real and reachable and
THAT will truly reflect His love.