lifestyle
What Did You Give Up For Lent?
You’re out with your friends on a Friday night and suddenly you notice that one of them has switched from his favorite microbrew beer to lemonade? Is it time for Lent already?
Giving up something for Lent sometimes evokes head-scratching in non-Catholics, but what might seem like just another Catholic eccentricity can actually be a practice with deep spiritual significance.
Lent, the period of 40 days that precedes the celebration of Easter, has its origin in the early days of the Church. This year Lent began on March 5th and it ends on April 17th.
Converts seeking to become Christian, who at that time were mostly adults, spent several years in study and preparation. Under the threat of Roman persecution, becoming a Christian was serious business, so their process of preparation was intensive. Then they went through a final period of “purification and enlightenment” for the 40 days before their baptism at Easter. The rest of the Church began to observe the season of Lent in solidarity with these newest Christians. It became an opportunity for all Christians to recall and renew the commitment of their baptism. Continue reading
Let Color Be Your Daily Inspiration
We can use colors to help us in daily growth. Applying different colors can create significant shifts in our everyday life. Having colors in our life can help us to see how we can achieve are personal goals.
Green is gives us balance from our head to our heart. It offers us a more positive outlook in life.
Blue gives us a strong sense of right and wrong. It empowers us to make better judgments and smarter decisions. It also teaches is not to overreact to many things in life.
Orange brings warmth and happiness into our life, and offers emotional strength in difficult times. Continue reading
Text Messages From God – Part 1
I love to meditate, I do it often. It’s one of my favorite pass times. I also like to set an intention before meditating. This afternoon my intention was to get a ‘text message’ from God, or rather an answer from God to a certain question.
My intention was to find out why Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is on the increase in our society. It’s uncanny. These day I’m even hearing how teachers are being diagnosed with ADD, as well adults from all walks of life. I wanted to know why there seems to be such a prevalence of this disorder going on, including an array of prescription drugs to medicate it with. It just makes me sad, because I personally feel it’s a symptom of our toxic, information-overloaded society. Continue reading
Would Turning Your Fantasy Into Reality Be Wise?
How many thoughts do we have per day? Nobody seems to know for sure and the experts don’t agree, but they all seem to concur that it is ranges somewhere in the thousands. We also have many daydreams and fantasies that cross our minds on a daily basis.
Many of these thoughts and daydreams we would never share with our mates, friends, or family. Many of us never act on our fantasies, for various obvious reasons: we want to stay married, or we want to stay in the same job, or we fear failure should we attempt something new and different. Some of us may even fear that we could end up behind bars in extreme cases. Continue reading
Would You Rather Be Right, Or Happy?
A recent unethical experience with a large company prompted me to ask a few people from various walks of life if they would rather be right, or happy? Most, including my husband, said they would definitely prefer to be right! The unpleasant incident caused me stress and considerable expense, but in the end, I’m glad I chose the latter – to be happy.
I purchased a power generator with a twenty hour backup at an ultimate cost of about $2,300 dollars, including installation and subsequent lawyer fees. I dealt with a salesperson at the retail outlet who told me the unit was too simple to warrant them installing it, and that if I could use a laptop, I could install the unit myself by following the instructions on a compact disc. Continue reading
Do You Drink The Water?
For as long as I can remember, I have absolutely hated the taste of water from the faucet. I’ve been saying for years, that I can taste the chemicals in it. So many of my friends and family have laughed at me, telling me I am crazy.
The taste and smell of water that comes out of my kitchen faucet, repulses me to the point that I refuse to drink it. I have found myself in the hospital for dehydration more times than I care to admit.
So, I began wondering… what chemicals are used to treat the water that we drink? Well, I found that it’s not so much the chemicals to clean the water that may be the problem. It is the fluoride that is added to our water. Continue reading
Simple Ways To Restore Daily Balance
Every day, I try to find balance in my life and put it into action, but sometimes it is hard to do. And sometimes it’s hard to see the whole picture of what you’re wanting to do, to have that sense of happiness and well-being in your life.
I find what works best to get me back on track is to center myself mentally first, before I take on any of the daily challenges of life. I admit that I often need a pop of the good old caffeine to get my mind and body going in the morning, but experience has taught me it is much more constructive to focus on something positive at that time. Once you start looking for alternatives to get your mind going, you will be surprised at how many things are easily available for this purpose. Continue reading