Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up.
Proverbs 12:25 New International Version (NIV)
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| Pondering the Colorado River in Austin Texas |
Pandemic Days
There's so much for people to worry about these days that it's difficult to know where to start. Maybe it's best to start by not worrying. Jesus said not to worry (Matthew 6:25-34) and if you don't take any stock in what Jesus had to say then just use common sense. How are you going to make things better by worrying?
If you find yourself consumed by worry then maybe you need to take some action to take your mind off of that worry. After all, worry is essentially an act of selfishness if no action is taken to find ways to remedy that which is worrying you. Worry is wasted effort which culminates in no positive result. If all you do is worry then you aren't working towards personal wellness and your worry can become more contagious than the worst disease.
Would you rather be spreading the negative energy of worry or the positive energy of hope, concern for others, and the mindset that things will get better?
Sometimes children know best. Here's a story that my daughter Ada Z shared recently about my dear granddaughter, Grace, who is seven years old:
My daughter, Grace, had a dream the other night. She said,
“We were sitting around the campfire as a family and God came down to sit with us. He started singing a song about the world. Then he ate a marshmallow. Everything is going to be ok”
“We were sitting around the campfire as a family and God came down to sit with us. He started singing a song about the world. Then he ate a marshmallow. Everything is going to be ok”
I asked her how she knew that it was God. She said, “It was definitely God”.
The smile that she had on her face and the twinkle in her eye gave me so much hope and it has truly gotten me through the last few days.
Thank you for that sweet story, Ada, and bless the wisdom of my granddaughter, Gracie. She put into words with elegant simplicity the advice I've been trying to live by over the past decade or so. Eat marshmallows and sing happy songs. Everything will turn out just fine--or at least the way it's supposed to work out.
Battle of the Bands Results
My Martyr Battle
My most recent Battle saw "Joan of Arc" by Jennifer Warnes go up against "The Martyr" by prog rock group Wally. As some of you might have guessed, my favorite was the song by Wally. However either of the albums that these songs came from are big favorites of mine. The voting ran close at the beginning of the race, but then Wally broke out ahead to capture the win.
Final Vote Tally
Jennifer Warnes 5 votes
Wally 9 votes
Next Battle on Wednesday April 1st
This is going to be a big day in blogging since this will also be the start of Blogging from A to Z April Challenge for 2020. So far nearly 300 blogs are signed up to the official list, but many more will be participating through social media sites like Facebook. If you're basically locked down for the current pandemic then why not join us in A to Z. This seems like the year to do it.
And wait! There's more! April 1st will also be the posting date for Insecure Writer's Support Group. So it's gonna be a whopper of a blogging day. I've pulled all these together in one post in previous years so I guess I can do it again.
Please be well. And don't be afraid.
