Upstream – Downstream

As I stated last time, I’m starting with personal responsibility and then moving to interactions with others. One reason for this is because we can only change ourselves, not others, and another reason is that we can’t give what we don’t have.

You know how during airplane safety speeches they say to secure your own oxygen first?  This applies in most areas of life!  We can give love if we don’t have love.  We can’t help others if we neglect our own self-care. We can’t share the gospel if we haven’t experienced it ourselves.

Self-care is a main ingredient of recovery. AND one that therapists ask about at EVERY visit!!  Sometimes our reaching out to others has to be put on hold so we can move to a place of being able to reach out once again. We have to become free of our addictions.  We have to establish our own firm foundation on Christ. We have to admit that we need help and move toward solutions or managing the difficulties.  Once we’ve done these things, we can use our experiences to help others from a place of wellness.

A while back, a dear friend explained this in a very descriptive way.  She said life is like a stream of water.  Water is flowing from upstream just as we receive mentoring, encouragement, teaching, friendship, love from others.  The water flows downstream from us as we mentor others, encourage others, share our experiences with others, love, exhort, witness, comfort, etc.

The Bible speaks of this in II Corinthians when it says…”Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. (II Cor 1:3-4)

Think of what happens when we cut ourselves off from being taught or counseled, when we isolate ourselves, or think we have it all figured out.  It’s like the water is dammed up upstream from us.  Eventually we’re going to run out of water to send downstream and become a dry barren riverbed.  Likewise, if we dam up the river down stream of us by not helping others, eventually we’ll overrun our banks and cause problems with those around us.  We become self-absorbed, needy, or dependent on others instead of giving as we’ve been given.

Let’s allow ourselves to be loved, taught, mentored, challenged, etc. and then let’s ask the Holy Spirit to guide us where there’s opportunity for us to pass that on to others.  Oh, this brings another thought – the river flows in the riverbed, not over all the land.  God would have us to do the things He’s ordained for us, not to try to do it all.  If the river ran over all the earth, it would become shallow and not allow for its created purpose – support fish and other sea life and move water from where it begins to the next river or to the ocean.

Again, the Bible speaks of this also – Ephesians 2:8-10 says,
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ
Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”

Achievement (Morning Reading)

Woman must not accept; she must challenge. She must not
be awed by that which has been built up around her; she must
reverence that woman in her which struggles for expression.
~Margaret Sanger

Our desire to grow, to make a place for ourselves in the world of our friends, to know
that we have counted in the lives of others, is healthy and necessary to our existence as
whole women. The inner urging to move ahead, to try a new approach to an old problem,
to go after a new job, to learn a new skill, is evidence of God’s eternal Spirit within.

Our meaning in this life is found through following the guidance that beckons us toward
these new horizons, perhaps new friends, even new locations. We can trust the urge.
we can reverence the urge. It will not lead us astray, provided we do not try to lead it.
We each have a special gift to express in this life among those to whom we’ve been led.

For years, many of us quelled the inner urge out of fear; but, fortunately, it didn’t desert .
us. To be human is to have a constant desire to be more than we are. The fears still come,
but as we move through them, with the support of other women, other friends, the program
gives us the thrill of achievement. We know there is meaning in our existence.

The need to grow, to change,
to affect the world around us is
part of God’s plan for each of us.
I will trust the urge;
I will let it guide my steps.
~ From Each Day a New Beginning

 

 

 

Patience (Morning Reading)

Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.
~Lida Clarkson

We all want life to unfold according to our plan. After all, we are certain we know
what’s best for us. But hindsight quickly reminds us that few, if any, of us had included
recovery in a Twelve Step program as part of our life’s plan. Yet here we are, and we
are now more content than we’ve ever been in our lives. How did this happen?

We have come to accept that God has worked in our lives in spite of ourselves. We
have been protected and guided all along the way, even though on occasion we stubbornly
attempted to force open doors that were not beneficial to our growth. Fortunately, God never
gave up on us. We will fulfill our purpose with all the help we need when the time is right.

Remembering that opportunities come to us
when their time is right allows us to wait and trust.

My patience will pay off today. I can be certain
that what comes to me today is on time.
~From A Woman’s Spirit

 

 

 

 

 

Check out my new list –
Why I Dislike Summer!
I need a lot of patience right now!!