Intolerance = oh no!

Im re-posting this from a note I put on Facebook. I feel like Im growing more in life... just dont want to be seen as "one of those religious people" who "try and put their viewpoint on others"... This journal entry is simply to demonstrate that its ok to have a strong opinion, and be ok with it in the end.

Creating a Better You, strives to bring you ideas on what you can do to improve the very person who is important in life -- YOU!

Felt a bit annoyed by someone yelling loudly and preaching in people's faces on the light rail today. Had a bit of fun disputing their claims to what they thought was "right". Also felt a bit upset when this particular person verbally bantered and attacked a person with a ton of tattoos... basically telling him he was not a good person or saved. I immediately asked, since when does it matter how many tattoos a person has? Isnt it about Gods grace and our relationship with him? The preacher man on the light rail seemed to become irritated and frustrated with me all at once. Usually I would have not said a word or backed down, but I contined on with defending the people he was attacking and screaming at. Who is to say it was my duty to do this? At best, I did what I thought was right in the moment.

Im just glad that God does not look at the outward appearance of what I look like or the things that I often do, but at the heart. I suppose I should know more about the 7th day adventists, but I just had enough to keep on asking that man questions about Grace and asked him to tell me chapter and verse of all he was spewing out of his mouth. Guess you could say I was far from being patient today and I felt intolerant *gasp*, especially since he was yelling into all of our ears

My intolerance was perhaps a bit unruly on my part to even want to go to the place I did. I felt a bit of unjustice and stood up for what I felt was good. I dont think Ive ever done this before with anyone, and for some reason, it felt good. Maybe I was trying to defend those who were just in the process of deciding on who God might be in their lives or those who are searching. I dont think it takes someone preaching fire and brimstone on a light rail with no way of escape.

I know the man who was preaching from his 7th day Adventist beliefs thought he was 100% right in his viewpoint, but that nagging sense of the annoyance and the moment really had me step up and ask him questions.

He said that I was not worthy or ready to receive anything from God, wanted to know if I had been baptized and if I was even saved, since I actually got bold enough to question his questions, and dispute what he was saying.

A few people around us were clearly annoyed. One wished he would get out on the next stop, while others seemed to join in. I told the man that noone was interested in hearing him, since his apprach was not out of getting to know anyone on the light rail, but oddly enough I had one person tell me that he liked what this man had to say....

Next came the, you "have to " follow the 10 commandments, and you should really "not get anymore tattoos", you "should do this" and you "have to go to "his" church... just seemed like there were a bit too many rules and regulations and obstacles in order to get to God from what I was hearing. Or maybe its the mindset that we have to be "perfect" before we come to God. That doesnt resonate one bit with me. God takes us as we are, and lets us make the necessary steps along the way to become more like Him. Even at our worst moment, God is still ready and available for us. This of course was not what I was hearing.

In the end, I guess this is more of a rant on my part, and am looking back at the moment in question. Maybe I will be bolder in my approach with other things in life. Maybe my questioning and defending will at least encourage some of the people who were taking it all in, and the man in question will look at his approach as well, knowing that there just might be another way to apprach people in order for them to be perceptive and want to make the necessary changes to their lives and hearts.

Funny thing is, my dad was there on the light rail with me, and he didnt even blink an eye, and in the end just said it was about grace and people making their own choices in life. I was somewhat proud of the fact that he was there with me today, and even in my moment of being just a bit intolerant of the annoyance of this man preaching condemnation, I felt ok with what I did in the end...

And let me just appologize in advance just in case you happen to share the same faith belief as the man in the light rail. The purpose of this is not to offend, but to share about my chance to have a bit more courage and boldness, soemthing I didnt think I had in me :)

Creating a Better You

Creating a Better You --

What does it look like to improve yourself? Are there particular approaches that work better than others? Do you start from the outside or the inside of who you are, or do you create a better you by working on both aspects of your life? Yes, I know these are somewhat simple questions to ask yourself but if you really took the time to listen to what your life has to say, then your initial answer may need to be looked at again. Creating means you have the opportunity to make mistakes, take risks, and grow in the process.

In this blog I will attempt to write about some ways to help in the "creating process" of life. I am always open to new ideas and suggestions and its a way for me to grow as a person as well.

Goal setting

What exactly does this look like to you? Many times in life we dont experience life at its fullest, because we did not take the time to dream and to put it down on paper. I might like to make a lot of money and give it away to those in need, but if there isnt a plan in place not too many people will be able to benefit from what I can give.

It first begins with a dream... Think about the things you like to do the most. What things do you need in order to accomplish your dream? Money, people, time, connections... only you know exactly what you need to bring your dream to life. It starts from an initial concept of what you like to do and then expanding it to the point that you dont believe you could ever do it yourself. This is where you need to set a goal and work on it.

Here is a quote I like to think about when it comes to dreams and goals in life:

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Lao-tzu, The Way of Lao-tzu

Chinese philosopher (604 BC - 531 BC)

If its your dream, then no one else can do it for you. Taking the first step outside of your comfort zone may feel like a big risk, but with each step it will become a bit easier, especially when you have set an attainable goal.

Need help to visualize what your goals are for your life? Here is a great tool I found to help establish goals:

http://www.cignabehavioral.com/web/basicsite/consumer/educationAndResourceCenter/articleLibrary/working_person11.pdf

I will be writing more about goals in a future post, but would like to know what you do while setting goals, and what goals have you accomplished so far in your life?