The Burn Waste Theory

(DISCLAIMER: May not be suitable for those with weak stomachs.)


Okay... so I tend to complain a little bit here and there when things don't seem to go my way.  Because of this I have noticed that my attitude isn’t always so pleasant.  In an effort to move pass this chapter of my week (yes my week) I decided to seek counsel from a co-worker who seems to always be in great spirits. Every time he comes by my desk he has a positive quote or a story about how things are not as bad as they could be. 

Just today he was telling me about some of his daily routines while stationed in Iraq.  One of the routines involved disposing of his waste (yes, his waste). He was in the middle of the desert so there weren’t any showers, running water, or restrooms. He and the other soldiers built a wooden porta potty in order to “handle their business.” They'd cut a barrel half in to and place it inside as their toilet. Once the “toilet” was full they had to dispose of the waste to prevent illnesses (my assumption) since they would be sleeping nearby as well as to get rid of the odor.  They would pour gasoline and water into the barrels and set them on fire. Oh, but wait, it doesn’t stop there! Someone would then have to stir the waste until it dissolved into nothingness. 

So, you see how blessed we are?!?

After hearing his story we created the “Burn Waste Theory.” This concept reminds us that no matter how bad we think things are going, at least we don’t have to burn our own waste. 

Be blessed,
Christy

“In everything you do, stay away from complaining…” Philippians 2:14

Soldier pouring gasoline into wastefilled barrel

Soldiers burning waste

Soldier stirring waste

I know people in a rut...

What talent has God given you? A few years ago I completed the Dale Carnegie training course.  During the course we had to memorize a quote for one of the class exercises.  It went a little something like this, "I know people in a rut, who will stay in a rut simply because they don't use their abilities to get things done."

1 Timothy 4:14-15 says: "Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecies spoken to you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you. Give your complete attention to these matters."

That statement reminded me of the skills and talents that I've acquired over the years.  I was pretty good at playing the clarinet and tenor saxophone, however, after years of neglect I can barely recall how to play a simple scale.

This is what the elders were trying to teach Timothy in the passage above.  If we don't utilize our talents and skills we will eventually find ourselves in a "rut" where our talents are slowly wasting away...


Be Blessed,
Christy

God, me, and Annabel Lee...

My eighth grade English teacher once gave us an assignment to memorize and recite the poem Annabel Lee by Edgar Allen Poe.  We had the entire weekend to read the poem and on Monday morning we would review with the rest of the class.  For whatever reason, I didn't memorize the poem and felt terrible after watching classmate after classmate deliver the lines proudly in front of the class.  When my time came I struggled to remember few lines and of course my teacher could tell that I wasn’t prepared.  Instead of giving me an incomplete for the assignment she gave me the option to try again the following day.

That evening I read the poem over and over again until I had memorized every stanza.  The next day during English class I stood confidently in front of my classmates and told the story of Annabel Lee. My English teacher taught me two lessons that day. 1) Allows be prepared for a test and 2) if given a second chance take full advantage of the opportunity.

Often times in life we find ourselves in situations where we are not prepared for a test.  God will give us chance or chance and opportunity after opportunity to fix things that may seem broken. It is up to us to take full advantage of every opportunity and try our best to learn from the experience in an effort to reduce the chances of them happening again.


Be blessed,
Christy

Difficult people are a blessing from God...

Yesterday I took a training class on how to deal with difficult people. The instructor provided us with key tools to use whenever we encountered such people.  The thing that I struggled with the most was remembering to use the tips in the heat of the moment. I had several encounters today where I could have utilized my newly acquired skills.  My first thought was to just breathe, but I was so distracted by the special individual in front of me that all of my training went out the window.  After regrouping I pulled out my training manual to brush up on my skills. Before I knew it I was faced with my second difficult person of the day. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and thought back to my training. The encounters continued as the day went by.  I found myself silently praying to God, “Is it me Lord? It’s got to be me…”  I thought back over my life and how many times I’ve stumbled upon hard-to-get-along-with people. I even made a list just to see how far back I could go. There was the teacher from high school, the college professor, the new boss, the even newer boss, and the boss newer than the last.

My high school teacher’s reputation preceded her. When I was in elementary I would hear the horror stories from the older kids about how difficult her assignments were or how she would fail you for simply being late for her class.  By the time I entered her classroom, I was ready for the challenge; and boy did she challenge us.  We had to write term papers, book reports, essays, and memorize Shakespeare.  Even though the teacher was stern, obsessive compulsive, and a little bit moody I walked away with an A out of her class as well as a new found respect for Shakespeare. 

The college professor was cut throat and even worse than the teacher from high school.  He taught one of the core required computer programming classes for my major. His exams were impromptu and we weren’t even allowed to use computers (go figure).  We had to hand write (I don’t miss this at all) COBOL programs (an antiquated programming language that is hardly used in the professional world these days) and he would decide if what we had written would actually work if we were to process the code through the computer system.  Long story short I aced the class not because I was super smart or loved programming, but because the professor challenged me. He was one of my favorite teachers from during my college years.

I won’t go into too much detail about the different bosses that I’ve had over the years; but what I will say is that each one of them taught me more than the one that came before.  This realization made me look at all difficult people as blessings. God had placed them in my life to teach me valuable lessons.

At times it may seem as if we encounter the same people or situations over and over and over again, however, if we don’t learn our lessons the first time God will continue to send us tests along the way until we get it just right!

Be Blessed,
Christy

“It must be done, because we must do everything that is right.” Matthew 3:15

It all started with two simple words...

“Because of your faith, it will happen.”  Matthew 9:29

Webster’s dictionary defines the word divine as follows: of relating to, or proceeding directly from God. Order is define as: a definite plan. So I interpret those two words together to mean that there is a definite plan for our lives that comes directly from God. 

A few months ago I was talking to a close friend of mind about all of the things that we had gone through in our lives… Some of the stories had happy endings. Some of the stories weren’t so happy.  All in all we realized how each of the situations brought us closer to God and to understanding our purpose.  As we continued to talk the words divine order popped into my head.  I thought back over my life and how God had been there at just the right time.  I immediately felt a sense of relief. I had been delivered from my past. I was currently being carried through my present, and God had shown me visions of a victorious future. I couldn't complain...

*I can recall being down to my last few dollars during the very cold winter months of Northwest Arkansas. My heating unit in my house stopped working. My first thought was to cry like a baby. My second thought was to call my mom and complain about how I hated being so far away from family or how I longed for someone to live closer to look after such things as these. Without hesitation my mother provided me with the funds needed to repair the broken heater. I hated to ask my mother for help, but I didn't feel like I had anyone else to turn to. (Or so I thought.)

*There was the time that my transmission went out on my Saturn. I absolutely loved that car! I am known for always being on the go, so when I was stuck at home and had to catch rides with co-workers and friends I was not a happy camper. Again I called my mother. This time it was just to hear her voice and receive some much needed words of encouragement. In about a week, I signed the paper work for a brand new vehicle and I was back on the road again.

I can’t help but to smile as I think back on how I use to think or the things that I use to do.  It took me awhile to realize that it wasn’t just my mother coming to my aid. No; it was God working through her.  Nowadays when things go wrong I rarely jump to conclusions to quickly or call home to mama. Nope. Instead, I call up to Papa! He's all I need.  God has answered prayers for me before I can even utter the words and for that I can’t help but to be thankful as well as patient while I watch Him work in my life.

Divine Order…

Those two simple words comfort me when my money is low, when I'm feeling down, or when I just feel like giving up.  You may be going through some difficult times right now. Just know that God has a reason for every storm. Just look at each storm as another chapter to your life story with a happily ever after waiting for you at the end.

Be blessed,
Christy