Start Looking Forward To Better Days

How good are you at stuffing? I’m not talking about cornbread, nut, turkey or herb stuffing. I’m talking about emotional stuffing. You know, that embarrassing experience that still makes you cringe each time you think of it and pray to God no one else remembers?

Maybe it’s the pain of rejection. I totally get that one . As an author, I have to deal with rejection, failure and the dream of becoming the next Jan Karon http://amzn.to/1S9jPmb or Karen Kingsbury www.karenkingsbury.com pretty much on a daily basis. I’ve always thought it might be fun to use the rejections letters I’ve received to wallpaper my office and, when I make the New York Times bestsellers list, have my photo taken standing in front of the wall.

Seriously, I deserve better than continually having to stuff the pain of rejection. Whatever you may be emotionally stuffing: unforgiveness, anger, shame, heartbreak, injustice, jealousy, embarrassment, inferiority to name a few… you deserve better too.

I know life can really stink – and I’m sorry if you’ve been hurt. I know healing take times and grief can’t be rushed, but I also believe we’re hardwired by our Creator to bounce back from pain. Our painful experiences weren’t meant to linger or become the focus of our lives.

So what are we supposed to do? Slap on a happy face and just keep going? Stick our head and the sand and just ignore the problem? No! That never works. As Ruth Graham, wife of evangelist Billy Graham has wisely said, “Every cat knows some things need to be buried.”

THREE DOS AND DON’TS FOR DEALING WITH PROBLEMS

Do face it. Begin the process of getting rid of it.

Don’t keep recycling it. You won’t get better, you’ll just get bitter, if you don’t deal with what’s wrong. Stop stuffing your problems and LOOK FORWARD to better days.

Do pray.

You know The Lord’s Prayer, right? “Our Father, Who art in heaven….” Matthew 6:9-13

Don’t mindlessly mumble it.

Really think about what you’re saying. “For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, Amen.” Wow! Don’t miss that, because try as we may on our own, we need the power of God to help us remove the mental, emotional and spiritual stuffing we have rotting in our souls. Only He has the power to remove our deep-seeded pain and relocate it to the realm of soft shadow memories forever, Amen.