Written on 12/4/10......

I am doing a research project with my neighbor. He has this book called "The Passion Test". I revised it a bit. The idea is to reach your ideal life. But I changed my question a tiny bit. My "passion statement" says, "When my life is ideal I am living for God by..." The idea being that you reach all your ideal goals, my point being that I am going to live my life through, with, and for God now. My top five goals were very interesting and kind of unexpected. For instance my top goal is "being happy". It really doesn't take a lot to make me happy. Happiness is fairly easy for me. A coca-cola to drink, my cat to pet, hugs from Julie, something good on TV. But "I am living for God by being happy" brings on an entirely different meaning. How often do you experience that kind of pure joy, pure enlightenment? Nirvana. I feel that way when I see a beautiful sunset, when I feel waves and the sand on my feet, look at a tiny individual snowflake. I do truly relish in those moments of beauty, when I feel closest to the Lord who created it all. So then it stands to reason that I should see the beauty and magic of everything and be happy in it because God created it all. In 1 Thessalonians 18, the King James Bible states, "In every thing give thanks for this is the will of God in Jesus Christ concerning you". I will do well to remember this as I strive toward reaching my ideal goals from my "Passion Test".
Another one of my goals is to be of service to people. I WANT to do that. I once had a minister ask me if I had ever thought to go in to the ministry because I have such a testimony to share. I know he meant my backstory: the dead parents, the home invasion, the rape, the miscarriage, the theft, the surgery, the arrest. Each of these scars on my soul is a lesson from God. But i believe that the true story, the true testimony and witness, is what is happening now as I bond with and grow in my relationship with God. This is the story that I want to share with the world. The story of how I went through everything that I have been through, found my relationship with the Lord, and how everyone, no matter what they have done or what they have been through, can grow in their relationship with God just like I am.