Disclaimer

Today is Thursday, July 14 & I've spent most of the day writing blogs about a God-centered life. I posted the first today, plan to post the next ones on Monday & Tuesday. Having written them all today, I feel the need for a disclaimer. So I'm writing this now, to post tomorrow.

My life is now glorious & wonderful, but not because I am. I feel safe because I know I have God's work to do, now & ahead of me. I have a lot of God-given talents that I enjoy & that I'm getting to use now. But I'm far from unique, & I wouldn't be telling you about any of this if it was exclusive to me. I'm telling you because someone has to tell you what wonders can be yours!

The life I have is a matter of choices, attitude, where I put my attention & intention, & my actions. It's something virtually anyone can do who has a workable IQ, & at any age. I also know lots of people who have what I have.

We are all given a great variety of talents & gifts. It's up to you to realize them as such, appreciate them, be proud of them, make the most of them. I couldn't program a computer for any amount of money but I have certain kinds of problem solving capabilities. I'm in awe of those who can program computers, troubleshoot them, & especially of those who can do computer forensics. Wow! I'm pretty good at math but am truly in awe of those who have a real talent for it. I'm in awe of those who have a greater talent than me at anything I do, because I know what goes into it. I'm not good at any sports but love to watch a talented sports player in just about any sport. We're all given important talents. Mine happen to mostly be in creative pursuits, which end up being more showy & admired, more often recognized as talents. I don't believe I have a huge amount of talent in any one thing but I've been given a passion to go with some of my talents that has led me to develop them to a point. It was actually a burden growing up with a wide variety of talents & passions. I always felt like a "jack of all trades, master of none." And I did that horrible thing people do to themselves - measured myself against "greats" & found myself wanting to the point that I often gave up. I didn't value myself or any of my talents enough to work at them enough to make them pay off. I denigrated & relegated them. Now I'm not doing that. I'm elevating them to see which ones I need to be using now in what way. I'm trotting them out before God, who gave them to me, to see what I should do with them. And that's one of my sources of great joy, because it fuels those passions.

God has special work for each of us to do, if we choose to. He has given each of us a set of traits, abilities, & talents so that we will be drawn to & prepared for the work He has for each of us. I know I keep repeating "each of us" & that's not good writing but I'm doing it for a purpose. Because I truly mean EACH OF US. I'm not special or different - I've just said "yes" & keep saying yes on a daily basis. He calls each of us & each of us has a choice to make every time He calls. I tried & failed to answer "yes" many times over because I had mistaken thoughts about what saying yes would mean, was still too stuck in my own life & circumstances before. Most of all, I never felt worthy before. Even when I wanted to say yes I doubted myself & doubted the call because I didn't feel worthy, certainly didn't feel equipped for the task. Now I know that to doubt yourself in this is to doubt God. He wouldn't call you for something He hasn't equipped you for!

One of the biggest problems people face who want to serve God is hearing religion vs. God. First, let me again say that I love church & churches, & many church goers. There's a Methodist church in Maryland that's one of my favorite places in the world, full of some of my favorite people! But even there at various times I heard religion calling to those in the congregation to do things that weren't for me to do, & I didn't hear my true calling clearly. I didn't learn to talk with God or listen to Him in church, didn't develop a relationship with Him there. You have to develop your own one-on-one relationship with Him before you can know what He wants of you. Disengage your head & open your whole heart to Him. You can start with words but then be quiet & listen to your heart & soon you'll be able to feel Him. The more you do that, the faster you'll get here! And if you have questions, I'd be glad to help!