A Few Thoughts at Christmas 2017

I feel very blessed to be happy & eager about Christmas. One present that is constant is my wonderful wife, Julie. She will be off work from December 22 thru New Year's Day.We have a special Christmas & Holiday Season in general planned but nothing will top simply enjoying time together.


I also look forward to unplugging from social media for a few days. The first of the year will be busy enough with the release of The Preacher's Letter on January 9.


This is a different type of blog than I usually write. It is just some thoughts to share. Please don't take them as being written to you but rather this is about us. Anything I write it is a safe bet to say that I struggle with the same, or I have at one time, or I will in the future.

1. Hate- Let's do away with this word regardless of how strongly our opinions can be.
 

2.  Church Leadership- It is easy to criticize those in leadership roles in our churches. Let's pray for our leaders far more than we find fault with them.

"Criticizing others is not a calling. What are you doing to help and serve others?"

Louie Giglio

3.Social Media- We don't have to engage in endless arguments that solve nothing. I am no different in that I read something that makes me irate & I can't tell you how many times I have typed the comment & before hitting the send button the common sense portion of my brain kicks in & I have to ask what if anything am I going to accomplish.

4. Before-  If you insist on ignoring #3 at least read & listen thoroughly before responding & verify your so called facts before issuing them. Don't use them as facts simply because they line up with your point of view.

5. Introspection- Be able to look inside & search yourself before going on the attack. I find it always helpful in any source of conflict to ask God how I might proceed. And always give yourself plenty of room to be wrong.

6. Name Calling- Don't resort to name calling just because someone does not see things the way you do.

7. Division-  We live in a very divided country. It is not the sole fault of one political party. It is the fault of both. But we don't have to allow it to divide us as a neighborhood, work place, church..etc One of my favorite quotes. We can disagree without being disagreeable.

8.Fairness-  If we could care more about being fair than being right we can really put a dent in #7. No one wins an argument.

9. One- Never underestimate what we as one person can do.

10. Kindness- It doesn't have to be something big. You never know what a kind word or smile can mean to someone who is suffering. I have suffered mightily in my life at times with depression. Trust me when I tell you how much it means when someone is kind to you. It is a light in the darkest of places. Encourage others. It is the greatest of the spiritual gifts.

11. Dismissive- Don't be dismissive of others just because it is not part of your world.

12. Understanding- Try to understand someone's viewpoint even if you disagree. Your opinion is just that. Don't mistake it for truth. Warning- This could lead to real conversation.

13. Grow- Regardless of our age- never cease trying to grow.

14. Simple- The simple things in life are truly the most valuable. A dog that insists on touching you while she sleeps. A sunset over the nearby river. The quietness of the beach that you find this time of year. Sometimes while walking Teke in the woods at the nearby State Park I will stop & just listen to the stillness. Holding hands in church or anywhere else with your spouse.

15. Peace- If you have this there is not anything I can think of that is worth giving it up for. Let the conflict go. Life is fast paced enough. Hold on to any stillness that you may be blessed enough to enjoy.

Hebrews 12:24 Pursue peace with everyone...

16. Competition- Run your own race. Don't waste time measuring yourself against others. 

17. God hurt me. No, He did not. It was probably some religious person or even a wayward church that caused the pain. Don't judge God by them. 

18.  One thing-  If there was one thing I would want people to understand about Jesus Christ. It is about relationship not religion. Your head knowledge of religion will always miss the mark. How is your heart? 

Luke 12:34

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Jeremiah 29:13

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

The last scripture. It does not say you will find me by perfect church attendance. By living a certain way. By following a set of rituals.  

 

May God's peace that passes all understanding flow down on you without measure.

Merry Christmas 

Billy, Julie, & Teke

 

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Sunday Inspiration: Christmas Reflections

December 10, 2017

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Billy Beasley

Christmas Reflections

By, Billy Beasley

Christmas proves to be a time of reflection for most of us. Christmas memories tug at our heartstrings and those that are no longer with us frequent our thoughts more often.

There was a time I truly hated Christmas. It was a memory that I even wrote in a story about a character that finds his solace during the Holiday season to escape to an isolated cabin in the mountains. I never did that but I wanted to.

That is not the case now. I love Christmas. I love that my wife, Julie transforms from a woman in her forties to a small child.

The Christmas movies, songs, and shopping for the tree. The photos and picking that perfect shot for your personalized Christmas card. Yes, I am even part of one of those families now.

What stands out to me this Christmas, as I reflect back over this year and my life in general, is if you would have told me that at age twenty, thirty, or even a few years ago that my best year would be the year I turned sixty-one-I would have asked if you had temporarily taken leave of your sanity.

But it is true that while I am in the Fall of my life this has proven to be the most happy and peaceful year of my life. There are several factors that add up to this being the best one yet. One very nice luxury is that for the first time since I was fourteen years old I did not work a job at anytime this year. Julie and I decided late last year that rather than continuing to work low paying jobs that I did not really derive satisfaction from that it was better to supplement my pension with some savings and enjoy life.   

I even have enjoyed a year in which, thanks to a mild winter, I was able for the first time in my life to take pleasure in the beach days at Carolina Beach, every month of the year. I even found it warm enough to venture into the ocean on those days.

Julie and I also have enjoyed our best year of marriage. We look forward to celebrating our fifth anniversary next April by returning to the same cabin we honeymooned in. All our years have been good but this is the best.

We have fewer arguments and we know each other better. Julie would add that we have learned to fight fair. Now, if I have disappointed any of you by sharing that our wonderful marriage is not always perfect than I apologize. It is really good and I am happier with Julie than I ever dreamed I could be in a relationship.

Despite my rocky road in life in regards to relationships I am not surprised that we have such a good marriage. I took comfort going into it that we had two wonderful things in our favor. We both did not seek our happiness in each other. That is too big to put on anyone, anyone but our Father that is. He was and still is first in our lives. I also knew that we understood what was important in this life. That it was truly the simple things in life that count so much more than chasing things. The trappings of this world, be it bigger houses, fancier cars, larger bank accounts will never bring you peace and happiness. You will enjoy them for a season but soon you will desire something bigger, faster, sleeker, and younger. It is like the hamster on the wheel. Running relentlessly but winding up in the same place.

And while not being tied to a job I don’t care for, or enjoying my wonderful wife, and being free to enjoy working with our dog, Teke—she and I are in the Park woods, near our home, so much that the staff knows us by name.

Add in the unseasonably warm beach days that I have enjoyed. All of this is not the main reason for this year being the happiest and most peaceful.

It would be because this was the year I allowed God to stretch me spiritually to places that at the beginning of this year I would have said, “No way. I am not going there. I am not your man, God.”  

I would have stood by this being the best year of my life even without something occurring late in the year that has been so important for so long. The second paragraph of this column, I mentioned a character that chose to hide in the mountains during the Holidays. It is no longer just a story but a story that a publisher has said yes to. The Preacher’s Letter will be traditionally published next month.

I get out of sorts at times and my wife always wants to know why. Lately, during those times she has quizzed me. “Is it about the book?” And I can scarcely believe I can honestly answer each time, “No.” I will work at it and give it my best chance for success but ultimately God holds the final decision on where it goes or does not go and I am okay with that.

Because even if The Preacher’s Letter sells thousands of copies and is turned into a major motion film, it will not alter the following. I am happy. I am at peace. I am loved. What more does a man really require?

Meet the Author

Billy Beasley resides in Carolina Beach, NC with his wife Julie and their Australian Cattle Dog, Teke.  They are active members of Lifepoint Church in Wilmington, NC.

Billy is the author of The River Hideaway- a traditionally published work of faith based fiction. He shares two simple beliefs with his favorite character in this novel. Faith in God and a conviction that ‘Hearts have no color’. 

Like his author page on Facebook. Check out his blog. Also, you can follow him on Twitter.

You can read Billy's "Sunday Inspiration" column here at Pandora's Box Gazette the 2nd Sunday each month. 

Sunday Inspiration-Stretched

This is my first column for Pandora's Box Magazine. Click the link below.


Sunday Inspiration-Stretched

What Color Christian Are You?

As a little boy, growing up in the South in a Southern Baptist Church. I recall one Sunday morning sitting in church, our city gripped in racial turmoil. I can't recall any message that day though I would venture a guess that restraint & prayer was part of the message. What was not a part of the message was let's open our doors to anyone regardless of the color of their skin. Let's go meet with other churches of the area that are just as segregated as we are & talk.

I remember sitting in that long uncomfortable pew thinking isn't this where we should seek peace? I knew in my heart we were talking about the same God & even as a child it resonated with me that church should be a place of peace & not division. Specifically I remember thinking, "Isn't this where we should all come together?"

I told no one of course. I was after all a small child & I grew up in the South as a white boy & I was guilty of many of the same stereotypes that if not taught directly certainly were not discouraged.

It still disturbs me that in my childhood the church taught racism-again if not directly-they certainly did nothing to discourage it. I recall my mother telling about a traveling choir coming for a visit with one person of color & people left-even some of the deacons of the church. People that perceived themselves as very religious. They had followed all the steps to salvation. They held positions in the church yet held this notion of separation in their hearts. I even heard it said many times, "Well, of course Jesus loves them but we are to stick to our own kind." I guess they taught us to sing Jesus loves the little children but we were not suppose to live it.

Why was this in me as a little boy to make such an observation? Coming together in church? God knew one day that He would reach out & touch me in dramatic fashion. I emerged from my Damascus Road in my nineteenth year & without explanation I knew & accepted in my heart that God sees no color. He does not view me as his white, Christian child. He views me as  his child. Period. That is who I am. I am a child of God. Scripture, if you believe in that & I surely do, substantiates that.

Fast forward to today & like many I am troubled by the events in Charlottesville this weekend. Hate has no part of Christianity. How can anyone in their right mind say I love my God while hating another person? 

What disturbs me greatly & not just this weekend but for quite some time now are these statements by Christians saying the White Evangelicals or the Black Evangelicals, White Christian Church, Black Christian Church needs to do this or that. People I love have said this. It breaks my heart. Should we not follow God in the way He does things? Do you think our Father in Heaven looks down upon this mess & says, "My White Evangelical Church, My Black Evangelical Church. My White, Black, Church." There is no way that can be true. Not the God I know intimately. We are His children. End of sentence. No other descriptions & for the love of our God no labels.

I love to tell the story about a visiting minister we had at Lifepoint a few years back. He is pastor of a church in Baltimore. God told him to integrate his church. He followed that direction & he was met with quite a bit of resistance. Some members departed. Some in his family left. He proudly stood before us & stated that their church is now 20% integrated. You with me? Here is the part that I love to tell when people are listening. He was pastor of an African-American Church.

Great story but I wish we were beyond stories like that.  Are we still a church of a certain color as we were in my youth? Why have we all not moved beyond that time?

I don't have all the answers but I know division & labeling is not a cure for anything. I do know who has the answers & we should be seeking Him for guidance. Forget any wrong teachings we were raised in. I have. 

My most proud line in The River Hideaway, "Hearts Have No Color." I believe it & I will live it till the day I die. 

If you feel the need to label me as a White, Evangelical Christian, feel free but that is not how God sees me & it is certainly not how I view myself. I am a child of God.

Be part of the solution-not part of the division. 

Let's remember who the Church belongs too. It belongs to Jesus Christ. 

FREEDOM CONFERENCE (Past, Present, Petty)

Many years ago, my director was new in her job & it was also her first stint as a manager. She would go away to seminars & return like the next Tony Robbins. Upon her return an immediate staff meeting was called & she would be gushing about all she learned & what changes we were making. None of the changes that I recall made it to the end of the work week & truthfully by Friday she was on to the next thing. Maybe booking her next conference. It reached a point where one day I pleaded with her. "Please don't go away to any more of those motivational conferences & return to make all these changes that won't last two days." Believe it or not she laughed.

One of her first moves as a young director was to take a veteran staff & put them through one of those team building classes. Full confession. I hate those things. I am pretty certain she was the only one excited about it. It sure didn't improve morale as we had more issues in a dysfunctional work environment than a Ropes course was going to repair.

Don't we as Christians do this as well? We go to the next big teaching & everything is going to change for us. Sometimes months later I can't even remember the name of the conference/teaching I attended.

This spring I attended a 13 week work shop at our church, Lifepoint. It was the Freedom Conference offered through the Church of the Highlands. I heard terms like what a game changer it would be. Full disclosure I hear that term & I immediately think about all the times I have heard that before in church & it turned out not to be true. It is like when someone views a new movie & goes on & on about how great it is. By the time you see it you might walk away thinking it was really good but it had been built up so big that in essence the movie is a let down.

I won't say that about Freedom Conference. The first twelve weeks were good, not earth shattering but the final day was the culmination of it all & that day did not fall short. In fact, it met the conference build up for me. No small task.

I attended the last day with the attitude of I have come this far. I might as well take the final step even if it means all day on a Saturday when the beach weather was great for the first time in days. But my attitude as I arrived that morning was if this is suppose to be a big purge of my soul with a bunch of strangers they can forget me participating. Hold that thought.

Someone like my group leader Randy could explain just what Freedom entails far better than I. It has been hard to put into words when I have been asked. My attempt to explain here is probably lacking terribly but I will give it a try.

Empty your spirit of any past things that may still be hindering you. At the end ask for a filling of the Holy Spirit to replace what God has removed completely. Walk away that day ready to make the Word of God more prevalent in your life as you encounter situations.

As I went through the steps that day my attitude shifted. My heart was open. There were things in my past that while not  bragged about they were spoken about with my wife, Julie. She has lived a good Christian life for all of her life. I have done anything but that. My past far more checkered. I probably did more bad in one day than all her days combined. That is not meant to be an overstatement. It has not been a real problem for us but it has been joked about, especially in regards to my sexual history.

By the time we reached that step. Remember this is the guy that went there to reveal little. I approached one of the prayer leaders & with tears streaming down my face I said, "I really want all this gone. I want to feel as if I belong to Julie & her alone in this lifetime. I want my past gone."

We had been encouraged to write down names of our past before the prayer. Where as I once would have wrote down those names in a bragging way. This was anything but. (Disclaimer- no one looks at what you write. It is between God & you what you reveal & what you don't.) After the prayer we were to tear them into little pieces & leave that part of our past scattered on the floor. I went one step more. I walked to the Cross in the room & tore it up at the foot of it.

I came home exhausted. Collapsing in my bed. I found out the next day I was not alone in that act. I told Julie there were to be no more jokes about my past in that regard. It was in the past & we were going to live in the present. I belonged with her, to her, & to her alone.

As I moved forward I wrote three things on the chalkboard we have mounted on the wall by the front door. Past, Present, Petty.

We were allowing ourselves to get way too bogged down in the pettiness of this life. It is easy to do & I am pretty sure we all do it. The word petty means- of little importance; trivial.

If we believe in our God to be so colossal isn't much of what troubles us-petty? I am not discounting real struggles by any means. At this moment when I pray there are four people I know in a battle with cancer. But what about the other stuff? Unexpected car repairs. How about driving? How about that driver that in a traffic jam can't clear the intersection drives forward anyway because the light is green? They sit in the middle of the intersection unable to move & the light changes to red & then the other people can't drive because the intersection is blocked. That probably should be a capital offense. But regardless of how strongly I feel about it, isn't it a minor thing in our day? Even a petty thing to get upset about?

So I came out of Freedom, shared all this with Julie, & we have just been so above being petty now for weeks. Yeah, right. I knew as soon as I made that declaration we were going to be tested & boy have we been. Right away there was a situation with Julie where we felt like one set of rules had been applied to her & a different set for a newcomer. I can take being slighted, well I try anyway but don't slight my wife. The gloves come off then. But we recognized it as a test & we pointed out all the valid reasons why her situation was handled differently.

As I look back we have allowed many petty items to return. I don't like it. I want to always remember that one word, petty, that I came out of Freedom with.

I have been traditionally published once for my novel, The River Hideaway.   There were countless rejections along the way. I have other stories written & I remember long ago an author I read saying that they were disillusioned by the thinking that once they were published one time it would get easier.I guess there was a reason that has stuck with me all these years.

A few weeks ago a writing friend told me of a publisher in North Carolina that might be a good fit. I followed directions. I shared of the successful book signings at Barnes & Noble & how I had an open door to return to their stores. I shared of the magazine article that was published nationally last year. I tried not to but I got my hopes up. They asked for the first twenty pages. The rejection letter came this week & I was not in the area they are interested in. This one hit harder. Maybe I am losing hope. Maybe I am beginning to think no matter how much my heart's desire is to be a writer it may not be God's plan for me. Is the writing a big deal to all of us that write? Yes it is. But my reaction of going into a funk was petty. Julie knew when she came  home what was wrong even though I share little of my writing world with her. I don't want to disappoint her so if I ever land another book deal she will be the first to know but only after it is a done deal. Contracts signed.

Today at Lifepoint as I was listening to Pastor Jeff the story of Mary & Martha came to me.

⁴⁰ But Martha was very busy and distracted with all of her serving responsibilities; and she approached Him and said, “Lord, is it of no concern to You that my sister has left me to do the serving alone? Tell her to help me and do her part.” ⁴¹ But the Lord replied to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered and anxious about so many things; ⁴² but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part [that which is to her advantage], which will not be taken away from her.”

Couldn't Jesus just as easily be saying, "Billy, Billy, you are worried & anxious about many things? Or insert your name into the scripture. Maybe we should do that more. Insert our name into the passage. 

A wonderful friend in our small group, Dennis has shared his story about coming to Jesus. The preacher was quoting, "Lazareth come forth," as he sat in church. That is not what he heard. He heard clearly, "Dennis, come forth."

This morning I was reading Mark Batterson's book, Play the Man. There was one line that jumped out at me & reminded me of how petty I can be. 

One of the dragon's most insidious lies is that God is holding out on you.

That will probably leave a mark. I could easily say, "Well great for you to write that. You have the writing break you desired." Truthfully, I have thought that about others but never in jealousy. What someone else has is of little concern of mine & it will add nothing to my statue by resenting their success. It cost me nothing to be happy for them & I am particularly glad that Mark received  his break because I have read almost every book he has written. He is my favorite Christian writer.

Believe it or not my one deal being traditionally published & all the money I made :( (maybe $1500.00) brought out jealousy in other writers that never have been able to be traditionally published. Some would hint to Julie & to me. "Now did Billy pay the publisher anything?" It reached a point where I thought about producing my contract which stated I would never be asked for $$$$. But then my pettiness might match theirs. Let people think what they want. There is a short list of people I need approval from & as long as I keep God at the top of that list everything else will fall into place. 

I do not know if I will ever be published again & it is my heart's desire. That is nothing small for any of us. But the way I react is. I can take it in stride & believe God has other plans for me or I can act petty. The choice is mine. I can continue to seek & follow God's path or go my own way as I have most of my life-telling God just how He should use my gifts along the way. 

During a particularly frustrating time, I exclaimed, "Rather a thousand copies with You God than a million without You." It shocked me that I meant that. I still do. In fact, I will add, "Rather no publishing contract ever with You, than a million without You." I have learned things gained without His hand will never be what I desire them to be.


I think it is time for those three words to go back on the chalkboard as a reminder. Our God is bigger than any words to describe.

Past- Leave it there. Don't bring it back up.
Present- Each day is a new day with our Lord. Let's treat it that way & not get too far ahead. (I am guilty of that one as well.)
Petty- Keep the small stuff small. Don't let it interrupt our walk with our God. 

Update- One month later I signed a publishing contract for The Preacher's Letter.

A Letter to my Son

It is hard to believe that my son, Micah, will turn 30 next month. Last week I had a long ago memory visit of my one goal as a parent that I often said when he was a child. It was not that he would be rich, educated, a ballplayer. I had one very simple goal that I don't think I ever shared with him until I wrote it in a card for him this week.

As an adult, will he when faced with a troublesome issue think I can talk to my Dad & he will listen? He will help me sort this out. My thinking was that if he did that than I had done okay as his Dad.

I knew even when he was little I would not be that parent with a desire to control my adult child's life. That kind of defeats the purpose. You raise a child & then you let them go, or at least that is my philosophy. You will always be their parent. Always be there for them but it is their life. Will they fail at times & make wrong choices? You bet they will but didn't we as well?

I wrote my son this week, not asking for a pat on the back but an honest answer. Did I meet my one goal? Do you think that my Dad can help with this problem? Do I listen thoroughly to you or do I start dispensing advice before you finish?

Lots of parents routinely do that with their adult children. Some are even a big part of failed marriages because their children are not wise enough to live out all of Genesis 2:24..

² For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.

I always loved the part of the two becoming one...the intimacy. But after one particular failed relationship I realized the importance of the first part of this scripture.  There comes a time to leave your parents & forge your own way. A husband & a wife need to run their own race as a couple. Seek advice from your parents-yes. Allow them a voice in your marriage-no.

I wrote to my son that if I am failing in this regard both now & in the future, tell me. I will correct it. Life is to short & often the things allowed to remain unchallenged in a family become the very matters that construct walls that imprison families. It is difficult to break habits & often hard to see our own bad habits in how we interact with our family. Some find it easier to fashion the Norman Rockwell painting that they know did not ever exist. I never could buy into that. It is only with dealing with the truth in any relationship that we can break down the barriers & reach a better place. Pretending things are better than they are is like putting a band-aid on a deep wound.

There is another thing I wrote in that card. I want Micah to learn not only from the good things I have taught him but I want him to learn from the things I did wrong. There are many important life long lessons I have taken to heart from my Dad that were anything but positive. The things he did I knew were wrong & even as a child I swore I would not be that way with my own child when that day came. 

My Dad was a good man but he was like a lot of men in that era. They left the parenting to the Mother. But I still learned because they were still failures on his part. He could not apologize & admit to being wrong. Never once to me in my entire life. But I learned. Maybe in reverse but I learned & I am grateful. Grateful that I often said to my son, "I am sorry. I was wrong. Please forgive me." 

Micah also never went to bed at night without hearing I love you. Even to this day. Every phone call, visit,  ends often in multiple I love you's exchanged. Again I learned this in reverse from my Father & Micah it is okay that you learn in reverse from me. I failed often. I realize that. I own it.

As I have written before that my idea for The River Hideaway came from watching one of my favorite movies. A Time to Kill.

There is a wonderful exchange between the young attorney, played by Matthew McConaughey & his mentor, Donald Sutherland.

Jake Tyler Brigance: I can't be you, Lucian.

Lucien Wilbanks: Don't be me, Jake. Be better than me.

I  have thought of that line often in regards to Micah. Don't be me. Be better than me.

I love you son.

My adult son. My best man on Julie & my wedding day. 

Kathy Griffin...& Fairness

I place no value on being Democrat or Republican. What I value is fairness. What Kathy Griffin did was wrong & I would feel the same regardless of whose image was displayed.If you think that it is okay because you dislike Donald Trump so much than in the sense of fair play how would you feel if it were Hillary, Obama, Bernie...take your pick? Be honest. Honesty, especially the ability to be honest with yourself is something I value greatly.

There are people who excuse her actions because of their hatred of President Trump. I hesitate to write anything even remotely political. Last year during the craziness of election time I posted nothing on the race. I made a couple of comments on other people's page. Nothing in support of one candidate. I was mistakenly called a liberal & another told me they were disappointed in me. Both mistook my comments to mean something they did not. That is what happens when you become zealous about politics or anything else for that matter. You react first..You think later..One person apologized. One did not. That is okay.  

At one point this year I took several weeks off from Facebook. I grew weary of the ugliness. One astute poster wrote that they found they were spending so much time on blocking or deleting people because of their comments. I found myself doing the same.

Post about politics if you must but try to be fair. If it is okay that a bloody photo of  a dead Trump is posted  than I expect you to feel the same if it is Obama, Hillary, etc. If you are okay with it being one of them but angry if the same thing is done to someone else than you have lost me. 

Occasionally, I think about posting something political, not in support of a candidate but just in a sense of fair play. The edge people perch on is so precarious that no doubt I would be called names & judged even if they thought for a moment that I did not agree with their entrenched stance. 

For instance if I were to comment about  people who say if Trump is elected I am leaving the country. My comment would be, "No you are not. You are being overly dramatic." 

But I feel the same way if anyone was to say if Hillary were elected I am leaving the country. But when people are just waiting to engage they don't take time or at least ask if that is what was meant. Shoot first. Ask questions later.

Personally, I find it hard to believe that you could look at our state of politics today & be proud of either party. I am still waiting for one of our senators or representatives to say we receive way too many perks & that money could be better spent. Where else can you spend such a short amount of time & receive benefits for life? 

So take time to think before you respond. Being a Democrat or a Republican or an Independent like myself does not make you right. It is your opinion. Don't value it more than you should. 

 

I don't know if someone has said this before or maybe said it better but I posted a short comment on my Author Page not long ago. I would like to think it contains some wisdom.

"Imagine if we respected other's opinions as much as we value our own."

I wish we could all live by the above statement. Be kind to each other. Respect other people's opinions even if they don't coincide with our own.  Imagine if our politicians would try to live that way.

As for me I will return to posting puppy photos or trying to encourage people. During my absence from Facebook I was touched that a few people contacted me & said they missed my encouraging posts. That was very humbling. My dear friend, Nicky, once said that being encouraging is the greatest of spiritual gifts. There is a lot of wisdom in that & I have come to agree with my wise friend.

But I sure wish we could start a Facebook Friendly Friday. No politics. 

Teke says, "Hi."

My Regrets

Have you ever met someone that stated boldly that they have no regrets? It sounds good to say that but do you believe it? I don't. Oh, I get the thing about experiences shaping us & how we learn from our mistakes. All of that is true. But I made some ill fated choices that hurt people. Am I forgiven by them, by God? Yes. Do I regret the pain I inflicted? Yes!

Turning 60 has brought so much to light. Don't get me wrong. I believe my best days with God are in front of me. I hope one day to look back 20 years from now & say, "Wow, God. What a journey. The final chapter of my life was the greatest." My prayer is that I will be a living example of the scripture. Corinthians 1:27.

But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;

My regret today is that I hung on to what I wanted-what I thought I needed & despite a dramatic Born Again experience at the age of 19 I never really let go of the wheel of this life & placed God above all else. I was always holding on to something. My hopes, my dreams...for many years even holding on to my anger toward Him. My disappointment in Him. 

I marvel at people at Lifepoint Church who are decades younger than me. They are so sold out for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. A young couple we know scrapping it all to go into the mission field in a far away country. Leaving behind all the comforts of home. A young man who has befriended a homeless man & devotes his time to helping him be clean, offering him encouragement...hope..friendship.  So many examples. They humble me.

First above all. Not a relationship you cling too that you know you need to let go of. Not religious practices that grant temporary comfort but not real relationship. Not money, things. If only I had this or that. First let me get this. I was the poster child for that line of thinking. No...First....surrender...

I only wish I would have started sooner.  

https://billybeasley.blogspot.com/2013/02/what-is-holding-you-back-dad.html