"A gunman, Omar Mateen, who claimed allegiance to the Islamic State, killed 49 people and wounded 53 more in an attack at a crowded gay nightclub in Orlando, FL. early Sunday. It was the worst mass shooting in United States history." taken from a Times news report.
As the mother of a gay man,....as a mother....as a human being.... my heart goes out to the families of those murdered. So how do I make sense of this with my previous post to "make it a good day."
You have to.... or things won't get any better. In the blood and ashes there is still good. Memories, love, concern for those who still live and must go on. Hope for a better tomorrow.... That is in our hands to produce. Positive thoughts, and actions.
Another verse left to me by my mother was "In all things give Thanks." for what? you say.
Perhaps in the thought voiced by my son in his Facebook post last night.
"On June 24, 1973 an arson attack at the Upstairs Lounge in New Orleans left 32 gay men dead. Local radio made fun of the victims, family members were ashamed to pick up the bodies and churches refused to bury the dead. As tragic as today has been I feel grateful to know we have evolved to a point where society as a whole mourns with us rather than mocks us."
Life will always be good and bad, but only we can make it better, if we continue to "give thanks in all things, and with God's help, do what we can to make it better."
Make it a Good Day
That was always my father's statement if someone told him to 'have a good day.' He would respond with "I always have a good day, because I make it a good day." and he would continue by telling the person that it is within ourselves to have the kind of day we want. We choose how we will respond to what comes at us. In essence, we control how we feel about things.
When I married my past husband he had a saying on the wall written by his father. "Happiness is not having everything you want, but wanting everything you have."
I have tried to keep these two ideas upper mind and since my husband died this past March, 2016, they have sustained me even more. It would be easy for me to wallow in my losses, whine, and pull a big pitty party, but it would all be an act, as with these two thoughts and one other, as a rule to my day, I find myself waking up, ready for what I need to deal with. The other? It is from Joshua 1:9
"Have I not commanded you. Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified, Do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you where ever you go."
I found this verse in a box of devotions my Grandmother had left with my sister for me. She had forgotten about it and sent it to me. As it happened it arrived on a day when I was totally devastated by what was going on around me. As I read that verse, I felt challenged and uplifted. My God, is an awesome God, and I had nothing to fear. As the days and months turned into years, I have never found this to be untrue, but instead my resolve to live the life God is giving me is even stronger. He gives me what I need, I need only to trust and make it a good day, for myself and those I meet. My attitude must reflect His Spirit within me. My mother had left me with the challenge, "In all things give thanks". The good things sustain me, the bad are there to strengthen me. How can I not 'have a good day.'
When I married my past husband he had a saying on the wall written by his father. "Happiness is not having everything you want, but wanting everything you have."
I have tried to keep these two ideas upper mind and since my husband died this past March, 2016, they have sustained me even more. It would be easy for me to wallow in my losses, whine, and pull a big pitty party, but it would all be an act, as with these two thoughts and one other, as a rule to my day, I find myself waking up, ready for what I need to deal with. The other? It is from Joshua 1:9
"Have I not commanded you. Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified, Do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you where ever you go."
I found this verse in a box of devotions my Grandmother had left with my sister for me. She had forgotten about it and sent it to me. As it happened it arrived on a day when I was totally devastated by what was going on around me. As I read that verse, I felt challenged and uplifted. My God, is an awesome God, and I had nothing to fear. As the days and months turned into years, I have never found this to be untrue, but instead my resolve to live the life God is giving me is even stronger. He gives me what I need, I need only to trust and make it a good day, for myself and those I meet. My attitude must reflect His Spirit within me. My mother had left me with the challenge, "In all things give thanks". The good things sustain me, the bad are there to strengthen me. How can I not 'have a good day.'
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