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Sweat Bullets

Sweat Bullets

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Sweat Bullets-sweat on foreheadFew of us like to sweat bullets – physical or emotional.

After a hard day of physical work, giant drops of sweat the size of bullets drip from us. We get:

We long for a cool breeze, swim, or shower to help us feel better.

To sweat bullets also refers to emotional stress.

We become:

  • Anxious
  • Nervous.
  • Distressed
  • Fearful

We turn into worry warts.

Many stresses result from our circumstances.

  • Physical illness
  • Death
  • Job loss
  • Financial problems
  • Natural disasters

Other stresses come from within us.

We worry about:

  • An unknown future
  • Our purpose in life
  • Life after death

Whether external or internal, we tie ourselves in knots.

Next week we will look at a better way to deal with life’s stresses. Until then, stay cool, physically and emotionally. Seek God’s peace and purpose for this life and the next. Enjoy the possibilities of every day.

“Don’t fret and worry—it only leads to harm” (Psalm 37:8 TLB).

Thanks to Ann Maniscalco for the suggestion.

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Bite the Bullet

Bite the Bullet

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Bite the Bullet-bullet between teethI recently had to bite the bullet. In one week, I made two major house repairs and replaced the brakes on my car. I was out of town when the brakes stopped working.

I did not enjoy any of those events. Yet, they had to be done.

A friend talked about having to bite the bullet when she learned to operate a new computer program. Many of us have had to do the same.

To bite the bullet is to accept a difficult situation.

Although not pleasant, we:

  • Prepare ourselves for what lies ahead
  • Do what must be done
  • Act brave whether we feel brave or not
  • Learn to live with the pain

This phrase may have originated with soldiers biting a bullet during painful medical treatment.

Without anesthesia, they would bite a bullet to prevent:

  • Crying out in pain
  • Biting their tongue

As with most of life, we choose our response.

When life gets hard, will we get down in the dumps? Or will we bite the bullet and make the best of a bad situation?

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV).

Thanks to Carole Fite, Janna Babak, and Ann Knowles for this suggestion. Thanks to Travis Gosser for the photo.

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Salt in a Wound

Salt in a Wound

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Salt in a Wound -container of saltYears ago, people treated many medical emergencies at home. One common remedy was to pour or rub salt in a wound. That solution often caused more pain than the original problem.

Salt in a wound hurts.

 Although salt (or saltwater) helps heal or sooth certain conditions, it causes damage to others. Even if it helps, salt on an open sore stings.

To pour or rub salt in a wound means to make a bad situation worse.

 Our words or actions hurt rather than help.

  • A friend loses a contest, and we praise the winner.
  • Our neighbor’s boss fires him, and we brag about our promotion.
  • A relative’s wife leaves him, and we talk about her handsome boyfriend.

Whether deliberate or not, we increase the person’s hardship, shame, or sadness.

Rather than rub salt in a wound, let’s serve as salt of the earth.

 When other people feel down in the dumps, let’s lift them up. We have the privilege to share their sorrow as well as their joy.

“Being happy-go-lucky around a person whose heart is heavy is as bad as stealing his jacket in cold weather or rubbing salt in his wounds” (Proverbs 25:20 TLB).

Thanks to Pat Childress Conner Stapp for the suggestion. Image courtesy of  Pixabay.

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The Pits

The Pits

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The Pits-overflowing bowl of cherries and knifeMany in the world have faced difficult circumstances in recent days. A few describe their situation as the pits.

One problem stacks on top of other problems.

  • Illness
  • Storms
  • Difficult relationships
  • Job loss
  • Death

Troubles never seem to stop. Each day people wonder what will happen next and wait for the next shoe to drop.

The pain and uncertainty of life occasionally overwhelm.

People wonder where to turn and what to do. They feel like they are dealing with the worst of the worst. At the end of their rope, they want to give up in despair.

The pits can refer to a situation or a place.

Either way, no one wants to go there or stay there.

The origin of the pits remains uncertain.

Possibilities include:

  • Cherry or other fruit pits
  • Holes in the ground
  • Armpits
  • The service area in a car race
  • Coal pits

 None of these sound like a good place to stay.

Most people eventually get out of the pits.

  • They recover from illness.
  • Storms pass.
  • Relationships improve or they find new ones.
  • Other jobs become available.
  • Faith offers hope for life beyond death.

Whether in the pits or on top of the world, we have access to God who offers hope in every circumstance of life.

“I called on your name, Lord, from the depths of the pit. You heard my plea: ‘Do not close your ears to my cry for relief.’ You came near when I called you, and you said, ‘Do not fear.’” Lamentations 3:55-57 NIV).

Thanks to Debbie Tapscott for the suggestion and the photo.

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Ox in the Ditch

Ox in the Ditch

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Ox in the Ditch--cow in water behind treesMy friend Phyllis recently had an ox in the ditch. She and her husband dressed for church. Then they noticed a cow having trouble birthing its calf. Their cow needed help. Putting first things first, they helped their animals. They arrived at church late but with an attitude of gratitude for a healthy cow and calf.

An ox in the ditch is not usually an ox.

Examples of an ox in the ditch include:

  • Sick people who need a doctor
  • Crime victims who need the police
  • Buildings on fire that need firefighters

An ox in a ditch means an emergency.

 The need demands:

  • Immediate action
  • Total attention

A great need replaces a good plan.

The Bible says Jesus healed a sick person on the Sabbath. Work was forbidden on days of worship. However, Jesus asked if people would not pull an ox from a ditch (or well) on the Sabbath. Another time Jesus said, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27 NIV).

God expects people to rest and worship one day a week. However, God also expects believers to put feet to their prayers – to meet needs when they arise.

“Then [Jesus] asked them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?” (Luke 14:5 NIV).

Thanks to Phyllis Patton for the suggestion and Bart Woodrum for the photo.

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Up a Stump

Up a Stump

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Up a Stump--stump I always thought up a stump meant the same as stumped. My friend Patty Cooper Emerson explained a difference in the two.

Stumped means confused or puzzled.

We cut a few trees in our back year. I was stumped about what to do with the stumps. Should I:

  • Dig them up
  • Burn them
  • Leave them alone

Up a Stump--honeysuckle-covered stumpWith one stump, I let nature take control. Honeysuckle grew near it. I allowed the honeysuckle to keep growing. Now, it covers the stump and blooms all summer. Problem solved.

No longer stumped, I have a pretty stump.

Up a stump means a situation too big to manage.

I cannot solve the problem. I:

  • Have no choice
  • Must live with it

Patty gave the example of a young man who arrives 30 minutes late to work every day. If he is my sister’s son, I might feel up a stump – like I can do nothing.

What makes me feel up a stump may not make you feel that way.  

  • You may be comfortable firing your sister’s son.
  • I may feel comfortable with a problem you cannot manage.

Nothing leaves God up a stump. Rather than tying myself in knots or becoming a worry wart, I can take all my problems to God. So can you.

“A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump; a God-shaped life is a flourishing tree” (Proverbs 11:28 MSG).

If you use up a stump and stumped, do you mean the same? Please comment below.

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You Can’t Squeeze Blood from a Turnip

You Can’t Squeeze Blood from a Turnip

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You Can't Squeeze Blood from a Turnip--basket of turnipsYou can’t squeeze blood from a turnip means something is extremely hard to do.

You may also hear:

  • It is like getting blood from a turnip.
  • You can’t draw blood from a turnip.
  • It is like getting blood from a stone.

All usually deal with efforts to get money or information from someone.

 The person:

  • Has what we need but will not share or help
  • Or has little or no money or information

Often a person has a bill but no way to pay it.

A few businesspeople understand. Others do not.

During my social work years, a doctor cared for a couple and their children. One day we discussed their many needs. The doctor said, “You can’t squeeze blood from a turnip.” He knew the family was poor as a church mouse. They would probably never be able to pay his bill.

However, the doctor continued to treat the family. He also gave them the same respect he gave everyone else. The family paid him $1 every month. He admired their effort to pay what they could.

You can’t squeeze blood from a turnip. You can treat everyone with respect.

 Count your blessings. Then share those blessings with others.

“Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God” (Proverbs 14:31 NIV).

Thanks to Rhonda Wade Royster for the suggestion.

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That’s Life

That’s Life

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That's Life-tree with hard lifeWe can’t control everything in our lives.

  • Both good and bad happen.
  • We celebrate, and we mourn.
  • Everything can change in an instant.

That’s life.

This tree reminds me of life. All wrapped together, we see:

  • Healthy limbs
  • Dead limbs
  • Missing limbs
  • Injured limbs
  • Other plants pulling life from it

The poor tree, a victim of many storms, looks terrible. Yet, it stands. It:

  • Continues to grow
  • Refuses to fall
  • Still offers shade to everything and everyone under it

We can control parts of our lives.

Like this lovely old tree, we may have suffered much.

  • We probably caused part of our pain.
  • Others may have hurt us.
  • Life storms often leave us scarred.
  • We feel in over our heads.

That’s life.

In spite of our suffering, will we choose to stand? Will we:

  • Stand tall
  • Continue to grow
  • Refuse to fall
  • Still offer help to those around us

Will we pick up the pieces of our lives, give them to God, and keep going?

Life and death
Struggles and scars
Beauty and ugliness
All wrapped together
That’s life.

“[God] comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Corinthians 1:4 NIV).

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Down in the Mouth

Down in the Mouth

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Down in the Mouth-sad puppy between two smiling scarecrowsWe all get down in the mouth sometimes.

Down in the mouth and down in the dumps mean almost the same. We feel:

  • Sad
  • Depressed
  • Hopeless

In the middle of smiling faces, we still feel bad.

We may be able to hide how we feel when we get down in the dumps.

Usually people know when we feel down in the mouth.

Happy faces disappear. Smiles turn upside down. We:

  • Frown
  • Cry
  • Have nothing good to say

Hard times often make us down in the mouth.

We have trouble with:

  • Relationships
  • Jobs
  • Health
  • Daily life
  • Bad news of any kind

We don’t have to stay down in the mouth.

Sure, life gets hard. We all have problems. However, good can come from the hardest times. God offers hope in both good times and bad.

Therefore, let’s remember to always:

  • Count our blessings
  • Learn from tough cookies who have gone through worse times than ours
  • Look to God for guidance

“My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you” (Psalm 42:6 NIV).

Thanks to Brad Leverett for the suggestion and to Gosser Farms for the photo.

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Senior Moment

Senior Moment

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Senior Moment--child tying string around an adult's fingerReady to sing, I stood before the crowd in my aunt’s church. However, the first words out of my mouth were, “I forgot.” At three-years-old, I had a senior moment.

Actually, I had a bad case of stage fright. That fear made me pull my skirt to my mouth and forget the words of my song.

A senior moment means we forget something or make a silly mistake.

As senior (older) adults entering our golden years, we may:

  • Forget where we put our glasses and then find them on top of our head
  • File something in a safe place and forget where that safe place is
  • Fail to remember a good friend’s name
  • Tie a string around our finger to help us remember but forget why we tied the string

 As we age, we forget more often.

We can get upset about those egg-on-our-face moments, or we can laugh.

Like the people at my aunt’s church, most of us laugh. However, we want to laugh with, not at, one another. Never make fun of someone with memory problems.

Any of us can have a senior moment.

In addition to age, we forget because of:

  • Fear
  • Too much on our minds
  • Excitement
  • Illness or medication
  • Accidents

From seniors in high school to senior adults, we forget. Why not accept that fact and enjoy every moment?

“Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalm 103:2 NIV).

Thanks to Carole Fite for the suggestion and to Karen Atwood for the photo.

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