I Choose Today...

I Choose Today to Wait

There is purpose in the waiting; there is purpose in the pain. There is an expression “it will be worth the wait.” Well, God ALWAYS shows us that His timing is worth the wait. The account of what happened when Lazarus dies (falls asleep) (John 11:1-44) shows us so much about Jesus and the power He has over death. He wanted to illustrate a point; He wanted to show the people (of the time and all those since) that He alone has the power and was sent to conquer death. It showed His divinity. But He also showed His humanity and love by having compassion for His friends’ pain. Which by weeping with them, showing compassion for them, comforting them, He illustrated how He would do the same for us. He was showing us how He responds to our pain. It seems to me that it is easy for us to understand that Jesus conquered death and that He is compassionate and understands our pain. But the waiting? We don’t get it. Am I on target or am I the only one who has a hard time understanding it? Just as Jesus was illustrating a point of His power over

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I Choose Today to be an Influencer

I have been reading a book by John Maxwell called Developing the Leader Within You. John spoke about influence and how it makes an impression on our everyday lives. He quotes, “No one can understand that mysterious thing we call influence… yet… everyone of us continually exerts influence, either to heal, to bless, to leave marks of beauty; or to wound, to hurt, to poison, to stain other lives.” Maxwell’s concept of influence extends beyond our awareness, shaping our choices and interactions every day. Recently, a simple trip to the grocery store underscored this truth for me The other day my husband and I went to a specialty grocery store to get a particular bread for an event. We bought 10 packages of this bread. The gentleman that was having his stuff checked stepped away for the register to add six packages of the same bread to his purchase. He told us that when he saw how many packages we were buying, he knew that bread must be really good! So, even though he didn’t know us at all, he was influenced by us enough to blindly buy the bread. At that moment, we were influencers and he imitated us

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I Choose Today to Ride the Storm

Have you ever been in an intense storm? You know, a storm that consist of high winds you cannot stand up against and heavy rains that you can’t see past? Paul and his captors experienced a storm. But in the midst of this dangerous, frightening storm, God was there. ”For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me, and He said, ‘Don’t be afraid… What’s more, God in His goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you.’ So take courage! For I believe God. It will be just as He said.“ ‭‭Acts‬ ‭27‬:‭23‬-‭25‬ ‭NLT‬‬ God’s presence during Paul’s storm illustrates His faithfulness in the midst of adversity. Similarly, when I faced the tumultuous storm of losing my son, I discovered firsthand the solace and strength that come from relying on God. I find comfort in this account from Paul’s experience. My comfort is in knowing God is with me through my hard stuff, my mess, my storms; He will bring me through it. I once had a friend who, after learning about my loss, said she couldn’t believe I was still standing; still smiling; still had joy in my

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I Choose Today to Ask Why

I am a project manager by trade. One of my favorite things to do when faced with an unknown challenge is to find the root cause.  Then I can strategize and make a plan to solve the problem. Project management methodology has several ways to find the root cause, but my favorite is the 5 Whys. The 5 Whys involves repeatedly asking ‘why’ when faced with a problem, aiming to uncover the root cause by moving beyond surface-level symptoms. This method not only applies in professional settings but also holds significance in our personal interactions. Let’s face it, we tend to judge the symptom rather than finding out the root cause of the symptom. For example, serval weeks ago, I told you about a gentleman I met who found himself addicted to drugs and living on the street. When we encounter people who are living that reality, we tend to judge them instead of getting to know the why: the root of their pain. God knew the root cause of people’s problems; the reason for their despair, hopelessness, animosity: sin and the separation from God because of the sin. But God had compassion on His creation, so He had a

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I Choose Today to be Seen

A few weeks ago I wrote about loosing my cool with a customer service representative. I wrote about how God can use my mistakes to teach me. Well, I had the opportunity last week to put my new lesson learned into practice. I was coming home from a trip and had a carryon that was my personal item. The airline decided my bag was too big (even though it wasn’t on my first flight), and I would need to pay almost $100. I was frustrated as I getting onto the plane. The flight attendant approached me and ask me what was wrong. After the initial frustration, I found myself faced with a choice during the flight; to take out my frustration on the staff of the airline, or be kind to the flight attendant. I choose the latter. During the flight, the flight attendant told me I could probably get my money back if I email the airline. She asked for my email so she could give me the information. I handed her one of my “I Choose Today” business cards with my email on it. She walked away. She came back a time later and asked me what “I

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