How’s That Mask Right Now?

No, not the mask you might be thinking of…this is not that kind of blog. I’m talking about the “mask” you’re wearing to show the world you’re doing great when, in reality, something much different may be true.

We all do this, by the way. There is no shame in it. I’m simply asking because, well, I wear one on a regular basis and I know what it’s like to hide behind something to avoid revealing your true self.

For me, it’s making jokes. I’ve used humor to mask all kinds of hurts and pains in my life and still do to this day. After all, it feels better to laugh than to cry, right? Perhaps you can relate.

Maybe for you it’s a different kind of mask. Being busy all the time? Substance abuse? Social media posts showing your life looking perfect, even though it’s in shambles?

Just being real…and that’s the point. Too many times in my life, I haven’t been real because I didn’t want to reveal the extent of sadness or something similar in my life. Sound familiar? If so, know that you are not alone.

In the end, wearing a mask can temporarily keep you from having to feel pain or hurt. Fake it until you make it, right? Well, no. Wrong, because it doesn’t really get us anywhere to keep doing this.

So, what’s the point, here? Honestly, I don’t know because I just started writing some thoughts that were on my mind. But, if there is a point, I think it would be to make it a habit of being real – with yourself and with others.

Sure, being real can lead to you feeling some deep emotions and it could hurt a bit. It can be scary to be real. But, the alternative is to keep kicking the can down the road on some potentially significant things in our lives that probably would be better if they were addressed and dealt with sooner than later.

Thanks for letting me be real with you, here. Have a great day.

Why?

It’s the question we’ve all asked since we were little kids. Why?

If you’re like me, it’s one you find yourself asking a lot in life. Why?

If you’re like me, it’s one you find yourself asking God sometimes, or perhaps more often, depending on the circumstances. Why?

Why is there so much hurt and pain, God? Why would You allow this to happen, God? Why doesn’t it make sense, God? Why haven’t You made it clear, God? Why isn’t something changing, God? Why?

I like to know the answer to this question. It can get pretty frustrating when the answer doesn’t seem clear. You too? Alright, glad it’s not just me!

Well, if that is you, then let me challenge you with something I heard the other day. It challenged me, in a good way.

“None of us will ever fully understand God and His ways. If we could, He would not be God and we would never need to learn to trust Him. It is not wrong to want to understand, but our understanding must be secondary to trusting the Lord.”
-Derek Prince

Time for me to start moving the trusting Him thing up to #1 on my list. Something tells me He will reveal the answers at just the right time, in just the right way.

Thanks, God…looking forward to it!

Have a great day.

The Only Antidote for Revenge

Are you mad at someone right now? Have you ever been?

Alright, it’s a guaranteed “yes” for the second question; but it’s very possibly a “yes” for the first question, too.

They should pay for what they did. Right? Face it, we just tend to feel that way in some fashion – at least for a moment or two – when something happens that makes us upset.

But, what does that really gain for you, if the other person suffers? Nothing.

It doesn’t change the hurt that you feel. It doesn’t change the lack of peace from what happened.

So, what can change that?

Photo credit: Nuccio DiNuzzo / Chicago Tribune

Longtime Chicago sports national anthem singer Wayne Messmer was shot in the neck in April 1994.

Read this article for the full story. Here’s an excerpt:

Around 1:50 a.m. after a Blackhawks victory that April night, Messmer walked the 1 1/2 blocks to his car after leaving Hawkeye’s Bar and Grill at 1458 W. Taylor St. When Messmer attempted to drive away, two men approached the vehicle and one, a 15-year-old, shot him in the neck from point-blank range with a 9 mm pistol.

Somehow, Messmer drove back to the bar where he stumbled out of the car and into an ambulance that rushed him to Cook County Hospital. The “Save The Children Foundation” tie they used to stop the bleeding from Messmer’s neck until they reached the hospital now hangs in a frame on a wall at his home. After 10 hours of surgery and 2 1/2 days asleep, Messmer woke up feeling like the luckiest man in the city. One doctor later told Messmer he had no medical explanation why he survived, and with his voice intact.

“When you get that close to death, you get past why did it happen and ask why did I get better? What am I going to do with this gift?” said Messmer, who also still has the leather Blackhawks jacket with a bullet hole in the collar. “It was nothing short of miraculous. So I can’t possibly have a day I’m not totally grateful.”

With that spirit of gratefulness, Messmer visited the men who were responsible for his injuries and personally forgave them. This is what he had to say about that experience:

“I discovered that the only antidote for revenge is forgiveness.”

Amen. Thank you for the inspiration, sir.

Have a great day.

Promises, Promises

Oh, this one can be a tough one, can’t it? I’m reminded of that one 80s song with the same title as this blog post…

“You made me promises, promises knowing I’d believe. Promises, promises you knew you’d never keep.”

Too often as people, we make promises that we can’t, or sometimes don’t even intend to keep. Big ones, little ones. I’ve done it. Chances are, you’ve done the same.

And, what happens when we do this? Nothing good, that’s for sure. Promises get broken and then the damage comes.

Trust can be damaged and lost. People can get hurt. Like I was saying, nothing good.

The verse in the photo above was today’s daily selection on the Bible website I check every morning. There are certain verses that really just have a way of making you think, and this one falls into that category.

So, just a reminder today to also think…before you make a promise. Are you willing to commit to fulfilling that promise? Are you even able to fulfill it?

Those are questions you need to ask yourself and make sure you have a good answer to *before* making the promise, because…

It’s better not to make a promise at all than to make one and not keep it.

Have a great day, everyone.