GoodAdvice4Life

The Real Skinny on Fasting from a Cheater Faith and Cheating I never "believed in" fasting. I didn't identify as a person who would fast. I tried once, as a teenager. Well, I cheated actually. My youth group leaders at church arranged for us to have a sleepover at their house. There would be games and movies, prayers and singing that night, and the promise of a delicious big breakfast in the morning. The one caveat was no food that night. It sounded awesome, I thought, except for the fasting. Yeah, the idea of fasting even for one meal sounded like torture, and when I realized there would be movies without delicious hot buttery popcorn, soda, and sweets...nope!  But, Chocolate! I told my friends it was a terrible idea until I thought of a better, albeit immoral idea. I would cheat, and bring sweets. Chocolate candies, sour candies, sweet candies, salty snacks. I had it all! I felt guilty. I felt clever. We snuck into my bag of hidden delights with the confidence of teenag...

Style is a  Verb!   To Style, is to Design, to Form, to Create!  How exciting! How scary?!  It may be tempting, but you cannot buy style. You can buy someone else's style. That is not going to satisfy. It's like buying into someone else's aesthetic, values, and goals. It will leave you spent emotionally and financially. You are better than that. You deserve to style your own life, including your clothing.  But, I'm not that...fill in the blank_.  Is your excuse that you aren't that vain? Yes, you are. Is it that you are not wealthy enough to have style? Yes, you are. Is it that you aren't pretty enough? Yes, you are. Is it that you are not worthy enough? Yes, you are. Is it that you just don't care what people think when they see you? Yes, you do. You may be self-deceiving yourself because it is an uncomfortable truth that everyone, including yourself, judges on appearance. Even if you are blind. Yes, being without sight, does not stop someone from judging ...

Got Problems? Try this Problem-Solving Template Wouldn't it be nice to have instructions for life?  More specifically, a method for figuring out how to deal with issues as they arise and problems?  If you can think of at least one real solution for a perceived problem, then you don't really have a problem, but an opportunity for action.  The tricky part is untangling ourselves from the emotional story we tell ourselves surrounding the issue at hand.  So, get objective, and get curious about your problem. Set down the story at least long enough to run it through this series of questions as a kind of problem-solving template. What is the perceived problem/issue? Just naming it, is powerful. Is it even your problem to solve? Whose problem is it? Maybe it is not your problem to own. Which of your values does it uphold vs. reject? What's your trigger? Is it really about a different issue/problem altogether? Is this a thing or a distraction from the real thing/bigger thin...