Saturday, November 23, 2013

That's what life is ― adjustment.


“Life is similar to a bus ride. The journey begins when we board the bus. We meet people along our way of which some are strangers, some friends and some strangers yet to be friends. There are stops at intervals and people board in. At times some of these people make their presence felt, leave an impact through their grace and beauty on us fellow passengers while on other occasions they remain indifferent. But then it is important for some people to make an exit, to get down and walk the paths they were destined to because if people always made an entrance and never left either for the better or worse, then we would feel suffocated and confused like those people in the bus, the purpose of the journey would lose its essence and the journey altogether would neither be worthwhile nor smooth.”  ― Chirag Tulsiani


True. Life is a lot like a bus ride. Am not a frequent bus rider and I get to be really impatient inside a bus. But, I think I've learned some worthwhile lessons in the every ride I make. 

As in a bus ride, in life, we meet various kinds of personalities. Some we easily get along with. Some don't find us appealing ...and no matter how we try and be friendly to them, all they're after's to reach their destination. Some will start small talks and then out of nowhere stop talking. And these are just but to name a few scenarios, which are undeniably true in life. 

We should realize that it's not life that is difficult. It's relationship. Life is pretty simple, in fact. It's like riding a bus ― getting along with other bus riders and relating to them as they are WITHOUT imposing our own agenda. Just, it's not how we do things, though. We try so hard to shove ourselves down people's throat only because they're in our path. At times we want to stop them from leaving because we've already started feeling comfortable around them. We resent whenever they snooze along the trip leaving us without a companion. What we must realize is, many people simply just want to ride a bus ―  to live (and to be given the right and freedom to do as they wish) and reach their destination. Most of the time, it's not about us. It's not about them finding us uninteresting or what. People have their own personal issues and concerns just as we do have our countless issues and concerns. And, we just gotta let them be. 

Let's not be surprised if some people leave by choice or by fate. We own NOTHING. The sooner we realize and accept this, the more we're saved from unnecessary disappointment, anger and pain. God gave all us free will. If He does not get in the way for us to practice our freedom, then let's not get in the way for others to live the way they want. We can't expect people to live the way we see best for them and enforce it on them. Life is in itself a teacher. The best lessons are better experienced. And we must be selfless enough to allow people live freely without emotionally manipulating them just to get what we want. If they wake up one day feeling like escaping from the world, then let us not feel so badly that we address through a gesture how we didn't like their present decision. It's their life. Live yours. Don't make them walk on eggs.  

...and there are people who really make our ride uncomfortable and this is inevitable. Sometimes, we also play this role. For some reasons, there are people who find satisfaction in inflicting pain to others. But we are without options. Our stopovers, like school and Church, equip us to have the right attitude. We can simply ignore them and choose what battles to face ― remain composed and not be affected by their behavior; we can move to another seat; or we can drop off the nearest station and take another bus. Maybe there are more options, in fact. Just the thing is, we need to help ourselves enjoy the ride. ^_^

So, let us simply enjoy life. Live independently with others. It is a choice. It's our privilege!





 
  

Friday, November 8, 2013

We can be mended. We help mend each other.



“Because that happened to me when I was little, this is how I will now treat other people"; "Because so and so beat me up and hurt me a long time ago, that gives me the right to treat people the way I treat them, today"; "Because life was hard on me, life should be hard on everyone else around me"— does this sound/ look familiar? It's called victim mentality. When people choose to be the direct product of everything that happened to them, the direct product of every single pair of hands that hurt them. And the world, to these people, must bend over backwards in order to accommodate their wounds. Some people don't want to be loved; they just want to make the world pay.” 
- C. JoyBell C.


If God even exists, why is there so much hatred and injustice in the world? Why would a loving God allow too many bad things happening instead of going down and change all that?

Typical questions but pretty tough to answer. Agree?

When I heard of these questions one time again, I thought of the hatred certain people I personally know of have in their hearts and how much they won't let go of it. How they refuse to allow themselves to just forgive. No matter how long has it been in their hearts and so many wonderful things happening in their lives at the moment they still hold on to that feeling of hate.

Am not saying they have no basis for feeling the way they do. In fact, they have all the reasons to be angry. They'd been done wrong. And if I were in their shoes, am sure it's gonna be hard for me to just let it pass. There are even petty offenses that I find hard to forget. I'd often think how certain people just can be so reckless with another's feelings. Should they be bailed out as easily as that?

Justice shouts and echoes in our ears. We all think we DESERVE justice...for the things people done wrong to us. We want them to be punished for hurting us. We want them to suffer the way we did for inflicting us pain.

Evil exists in this world. And it's evil in the hearts of people that makes them do bad. And evil is done to multiply evil. When another heart is broken, there conceives hatred. It's just a matter of time that it gives birth to evil through actions and reactions.

I believe God offered FORGIVENESS so the problem of hatred will be solved. He first forgave us and He expects us to also forgive. He used to punish people in the ancient times for their wrongs almost immediately or required them to offer sacrifices to be forgiven. But, those didn't work. Their hearts were still filled with evil desires. They continued doing wrong as they pleased.

He sent LOVE into the world in the form of Jesus. The life of His Son showed how to defeat hatred. It's by denying Himself each time He's wronged. Denying His right to retaliate and defend Himself. It's giving importance to relationship than self. It's about selflessness. Love is humility. Love is accepting that the world is mad and crazy. That the world could cause so much harm because of evil that is in it but it shouldn't anymore be multiplied. It has to DIE [end].

Forgiving is ...evil being done to you, but you don't have to pass it on. It has to die in you. Hatred need not conceive and give birth to more evil. It can stop by choosing to forgive and let go and then repaying it with LOVE. This way, though evil may still exist, hatred need not multiply.

Now, how about INJUSTICE? Don't we all agree that injustice is done when the offender gets away with whatever evil he does? This is practically why we can't stop spreading hatred. Because we think offenders need to pay. But, God doesn't think that way. Truth of the matter is, we all need to pay for something. But, He doesn't meet us everyday thinking about how He can punish us just like how we go about our lives every single day thinking about how someone has done us a terrible thing and we require justice. We carry with us every single day the offense and the offender. Only later to realize that they're not the only ones we'll bump into in this world. There'll be more offenses and offenders along the road. All are just the same like us--HURT. So, we collect so much hate until we are consumed by it.

God wants us to renew our minds and replace JUSTICE with LOVE. Hurt people hurt people. They are not about relationships. They are about getting even. They just want repayment. That's why many people find it hard to TRUST. Because they're so filled with collections of offenses. Not knowing they're collecting junks. Things that are of no worth and eventually rot. So, they live every day of their lives stinking and unaware of it. But, those around them get affected.

When we don't forgive, hatred only grows bigger and bigger until it can't anymore fit in our hearts and it starts manifesting in our lives. We start rotting inside and the stench starts coming out. All the people we come across with receive this hatred through us--by hurting them or by being reckless with them. Usually in the form of harsh words, judgment, slander, stealing, bullying, snobbing, through animosity and hostility...and many others. Eventually, these people also end up broken. And they go out in the world bumping into other people and multiplying hatred.

Forgiveness puts an end to hatred. Where there is no hatred evil will not persist. We have been offered forgiveness. We also must be willing to offer it to help heal the world from the damaging hatred.   



 “The opponent strikes you on your cheek, and you strike him on the heart by your amazing spiritual audacity in turning the other cheek. You wrest the offensive from him by refusing to take his weapons, by keeping your own, and by striking him in his conscience from a higher level. He hits you physically, and you hit him spiritually.”  
- E. Stanley Jones, Gandhi: Portrayal of a Friend




 

  

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A Love with a promise of permanence.

"...if any hear MY voice and open the door,  I will come into their house and eat with them,  and they will eat with ME." ...

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