I had to repost this today as a reminder to myself to not let people get to me.
I do my best to try to be aware of where my weaknesses are. I know that I am not perfect and that I have shortcomings. Some are obvious and others are less blunt, so I often ask God to show me the areas of my life in which I am failing Him. One of those areas is in dealing with adverse people. Mary Southerland of Girlfriends in God calls them sandpaper people. Don't get me wrong, I am a nice person. I have been told that I am compassionate, genuine, and loving. But, when it comes to the people who seem to exist only to unnerve me, sometimes I fall short in the area of Christian love.

I know this is an issue because yesterday I mentioned to my mother that I may need to work on my people skills. I was in a situation where I found myself getting very frustrated with someone who asked me for help, and then, did not want to listen to me when I tried to give help. I have a feeling that my frustration was very obvious because, just like I do not have the ability to hide pain, I also have very little ability to hide the exact emotion I am feeling. Even though I was talking to my mother about the issue, I have a sneaking suspiscion that God overheard our convo (just in case you are wondering, I do realize that God hears everything).

This morning, when I got to work I saw a person who not only annoys me, but goes out of his way to annoy me. I would prefer to have this person pretend that I am invisible because everything that comes out of his mouth is obnoxious. I have tried to ignore him. I have even tried, as recently as a few days ago, to be nice to him. But, there he was this morning as I arrived at work, pre-Coke Zero, to make another snide remark. I don't even know what I retorted, but I do know that it was accompanied by the yuck face and a possible eye roll.

A couple of hours later I was reading a devotional and it spoke about making peace with people. OUCH!!! "But, I tried, Lord! I was nice to that dude the other day. I even smiled a genuine, not forced, smile. Surely, You can't mean him; he doesn't even recognize when I am trying to be peaceful." Even in the midst of my heart plea, I was wrong. And, I am still not really sure how to fix it. I don't want to brush off the obnoxious comments because I don't want this person to think that it's okay. Ignoring him is not going to fix it. Reacting adversly doesn't fix it either because even though I have had words with this guy and my friends have told him he is a jerk to me, he continues to act foolishly. 

Though I don't know what to do about this particular person, I am confident that God has the answer and He will guide me to it. Nonetheless, the issue is bigger than this one person. I don't want anyone to view God in a bad light because of how I treat other people, so I have to watch my actions and attitude towards others, especially obnoxious others. I figure if God can put up with the way I act and the things I say, I can learn to love in spite of. It is a process and I am sure I am not the only one who has to deal with those people.

One thing is for sure, if you ever start thinking you have it all together and you ask God to point out your flaws, He will make them clear to you. The question then becomes what are you going to do about it. I have a few days to figure that out before I have to deal with this particular person again. But, in general, we have to keep love and peace in the forefront of our hearts and minds because some people are just too willing to let the devil use them to try to trip us up. Don't let the devil win! Ms. EV

I do my best to try to be aware of where my weaknesses are. I know that I am not perfect and that I have shortcomings. Some are obvious and others are less blunt, so I often ask God to show me the areas of my life in which I am failing Him. One of those areas is in dealing with adverse people. Mary Southerland of Girlfriends in God calls them sandpaper people. Don't get me wrong, I am a nice person. I have been told that I am compassionate, genuine, and loving. But, when it comes to the people who seem to exist only to unnerve me, sometimes I fall short in the area of Christian love.

I know this is an issue because yesterday I mentioned to my mother that I may need to work on my people skills. I was in a situation where I found myself getting very frustrated with someone who asked me for help, and then, did not want to listen to me when I tried to give help. I have a feeling that my frustration was very obvious because, just like I do not have the ability to hide pain, I also have very little ability to hide the exact emotion I am feeling. Even though I was talking to my mother about the issue, I have a sneaking suspiscion that God overheard our convo (just in case you are wondering, I do realize that God hears everything).

This morning, when I got to work I saw a person who not only annoys me, but goes out of his way to annoy me. I would prefer to have this person pretend that I am invisible because everything that comes out of his mouth is obnoxious. I have tried to ignore him. I have even tried, as recently as a few days ago, to be nice to him. But, there he was this morning as I arrived at work, pre-Coke Zero, to make another snide remark. I don't even know what I retorted, but I do know that it was accompanied by the yuck face and a possible eye roll.

A couple of hours later I was reading a devotional and it spoke about making peace with people. OUCH!!! "But, I tried, Lord! I was nice to that dude the other day. I even smiled a genuine, not forced, smile. Surely, You can't mean him; he doesn't even recognize when I am trying to be peaceful." Even in the midst of my heart plea, I was wrong. And, I am still not really sure how to fix it. I don't want to brush off the obnoxious comments because I don't want this person to think that it's okay. Ignoring him is not going to fix it. Reacting adversly doesn't fix it either because even though I have had words with this guy and my friends have told him he is a jerk to me, he continues to act foolishly.

Though I don't know what to do about this particular person, I am confident that God has the answer and He will guide me to it. Nonetheless, the issue is bigger than this one person. I don't want anyone to view God in a bad light because of how I treat other people, so I have to watch my actions and attitude towards others, especially obnoxious others. I figure if God can put up with the way I act and the things I say, I can learn to love in spite of. It is a process and I am sure I am not the only one who has to deal with those people.

One thing is for sure, if you ever start thinking you have it all together and you ask God to point out your flaws, He will make them clear to you. The question then becomes what are you going to do about it. I have a few days to figure that out before I have to deal with this particular person again. But, in general, we have to keep love and peace in the forefront of our hearts and minds because some people are just too willing to let the devil use them to try to trip us up. Don't let the devil win! Ms. EV

It was ten o'clock and I was watching television with one eye open. Though the polls in Florida were closed at seven, because of the long lines, the votes had not been counted completely. The screen on nearly every channel had a huge map of the United States and every few minutes a state would turn red or blue. The talking heads pontificated about which states would go which way. It was interesting to see, as I flipped through the channels, all of the different ways people could say the same thing.

At some point, I fell asleep on my couch. I thought about whether or not I should go to be or wait up like I did for the last election. The last election had the potential of creating history, so I think that is one reason that I was glued to my television in 2008. I thought about how I should pay attention in case my students had questions on how things work, but the system has not changed in 200 years, just the details. So, I brushed my teeth, said my prayers and went to bed.

I realized that I could honestly care less about who won the election. I had cast my vote based on my convictions, but so did millions of other people. Thos votes were translated into electoral votes and there would be a winner and a loser, but I genuinely could not think of a reason to care who won. So, I went to bed. And. I slept peacefully, except for the few moments when I randomly woke up and tried to figure out what my nephew's chances of winning homecoming king are (an election that I feel much more passionate about).

I know my position may not be popular. And, trust that I do not knock political involvement or enthusiasm. Nevertheless, as I tried to force my eyes open for another hour of election coverage, I thought, "Will the outcome of this election really change my destiny?" My answer was an emphatic "No!" I had been around for presidents of both parties, united and divided governments, recessions, wars, terrorism, and I have never felt like any one person was more in control of my life than God.

There has never been an outcome of an election that has changed my life for the better or worse. Yes, some decisions by political leaders have affected my daily life, but God has been my Provider and my Protection through every circumstance. Like I said yesterday, I will always vote and make my voice heard. I believe God intends for us to be active participants in our government to the extent available. I just do not believe in trusting man more than God, so, I went to sleep. God never sleeps or slumbers; therefore, it did not matter the outcome because I have peace in Him. Ms. EV

“Is there anything to gain from losing?” After watching the three football teams I love lose this past weekend, that was the thought in my mind this morning. I was trying to formulate an article for NFLFemale.com as the Official Fan Reporter for the Jacksonville Jaguars and once again, I found myself grasping for something positive to say about the team’s latest embarrassing loss. “There must be something positive that comes from this type of adversity,” I thought. Fortunately, today was the day when I would read Romans 8 as part of my devotion time.

I still didn't come up with much positive to say about the Jags, but God opened my eyes and my heart to how losing can really be a sign of winning. Romans 8:17-18 (MSG) says, “We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him! That’s why I don’t think there’s any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times.” The rough times of life--the times when we give our all, but circumstances do not seem to go our way--those times are going to happen. In those times, we may feel like losers. But, as joint heirs with Christ, we will go through suffering because this world is not our home. In times of suffering, we can still have peace in knowing that there are better times ahead. And, this is not about the temporal “good times” the earth has to offer; this is about eternal peace and prosperity.

If you are saved, no matter what trials you go through on this side of Heaven, NOTHING can separate you from the love of God (more Romans 8 wisdom). Every loss that you endure is worked out for your good by the God that you love (more Romans 8 wisdom). You just might lose “your life,” you know, the life you thought you would have by now. I know that I have lost mine. I thought I would be sending my youngest baby to pre-K this year, working as an entertainment attorney, and being a loving wife to my fabulous husband. That was the life I envisioned, and when I stack that life up against my current life, the world might call me a loser. But, I’ll take that loss in exchange for the peace in knowing that a mighty and powerful God holds my life in His hands and He always wins. And, because I am His child, when I surrender and lose myself in Him, I am a winner; not just now, but forever and ever.

So, yes, there is plenty to gain from losing, maybe not for my team, but certainly for the child of Christ. I am a LOSER! I am lost in the depths of God’s love and in the height of Jesus’ sacrifice and in the breadth of the Sprit’s wisdom. Losing! Ms. EV