Bible in a Year, My Meaning, Chicken, Paradise Paintings, and a Great Day
54 Days!!!
I'll start off by saying that I fully expected that I'd not keep in the habit of reading the Bible every day. I've technically been in the Word for the last 146 days. However, my Bible in a Year plan is currently sitting at 54 days.
So far, I've been through all of Genesis, Job, Exodus, and Leviticus. I'm currently in Numbers. Genesis and Job are always easy to consume. Most of Exodus is also easy to consume. But the latter half of Exodus through all of Leviticus is so hard to comprehend. There are a lot of rules and laws there...hehehe
Numbers is starting off pretty dry for me too. Then again, there is so much meaning underneath the words of Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. The next time I go through these books, I want to do an in depth study so I can better understand the meaning.
Again, the goal this year is to actually get through the whole Bible in a year. Not for any sort of "race" to finish. But for building a habit. It is all a part of my small sustainable changes initiative. This new habit that is built from a small sustainable change will eventually evolve into a wonderful lifestyle.
Books
I was never a book reader. Prior to this year, I think the number of books I've actually read can be counted on my fingers without repeating any of my fingers...so 10 or less...hehehe Some of my favorites were Charlotte’s Web, Animal Farm, and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Basically, children's books...hehehe War of the Worlds is in there somewhere too...LOL
I don't really set any New Year's resolutions. And as such, did not make a resolution to read anything this year. Today is February 23rd. I'm happy to say that I finished my second book of the year today! That's right, I've read 2 books in their entirety this year! Woohoo!!!
The first book I finished was Unseal Your Worth. The second, and the one I finished today, was The Wild Heart of Florida. I've already started Your One Life and my next book is The Wilder Heart of Florida. And with the fact I didn't plan to read at all this year, that's pretty cool!
By didn't plan to read, I really mean that I didn't have any notion of specifically reading. That doesn't mean I wouldn't have read something anyway. But with the fact that I have finished 2 entire books already this year, it has now become a goal of mine for the year. Not a specific number of books, but more of a goal of reading as much as I can.
This has become another new thing for me to engage in this year. Yesterday, I mentioned Major League Baseball. Today, I'm happy to talk about actively reading books.
So far, all of the books I've mentioned are non-fiction. I tend to gravitate to non-fiction. Even the Bible is technically non-fiction; although it is a religious text. Yet, some of my favorite books from childhood were fiction.
Now that I've set the goal of actively reading books this year, I think I'd like to seek out a book of fiction to read this year. I probably won't give too much thought to this. That way I don't put too much pressure on myself for it. After all, it wasn't even a goal until this week...hehehe
This all brings back to memory one of the oddest parts of my childhood. I won't go too deep into it now, but I was a horrible student. I could pass a test in class perfectly. I just didn't enjoy the repetitive nature of homework. When I wasn't doing well with my homework, my father would punish me by having me read books.
Since it was a punishment, I really hated it. And in hating books, I found myself unable to engage in what I was reading. As such, I would often fall asleep. This only made matters worse with my father. I recall many times when he would check up on me and I was fast asleep. From my point of view, he was yelling at me...hehehe But I was a stubborn son. I fought back with him.
Eventually, if I recall correctly, my mom convinced him that this particular punishment wasn't going to work. However, the damage was done. For years, reading reminded me of this tug-of-war I had with my father. So reading was a hobby I could never get into.
Now that I'm growing and overcoming my past struggles, it seems only natural that something like reading would suddenly become so easy for me. I started to read last year. But it was a chore then. This year, it is energizing me! Having worked past the trauma of my father, I can read without growing tired at all!
By the way, I'm being very surface here. My trauma with my father goes wwwaaayyy deeper. This is barely the tip of the iceberg. So I'll just say that my being able to enjoy reading this year is a huge deal for me!
Worry
Lately, it seems as though more than 90% of my worry is completely in my head...LOL Very little of what I worry about is actual reality. Perhaps that is what Jesus was talking about when He says not to worry about tomorrow.
Some days I wake up with anxiety about what it is I must do that day. As I go about the day, those things I was worried about seem to melt away. Why is it that I even worry in the first place?!
I'm working on training my brain to lean towards the less than 10% that is actually something to worry about. By that I mean, that the other 90+% needs to loose focus completely.
Since this is easier said than done, it will be a process. A process that I fully welcome. Considering all the other aspects of my life where I have grown, this is one that has needed some attention. I'm glad that it is finally getting attention.
Watchman
My parents gave me a very specific name. Gregory means watchman. It is something I was taught at such an early age that I've always known this to be true. I have not always known the full gravity of the meaning. But in looking back over my whole life, it seems to be the most appropriate name for me.
The most recent thing to bring this to mind is my MBTI personality type. I was recently asked if I knew what mine was and I did not know. In discussing this, it seemed like mine is INFP. Their questions led us to that conclusion. I later took a free test and it pointed to the same result. I would imagine if I were to take the official assessment, INFP will likely be what I am.
I am an idealistic diplomat who is more interested in being a peace maker than being a peace keeper. I'll mediate just about any situation to find a harmony between parties through clarification of points of view. Finding the equal ground is more important to me than anything else.
There are certain weaknesses in that. But we all have weaknesses...hehehe I don't need reminded of my weaknesses. I also already tell myself those. I'll focus on the strengths of this personality type as I see it. I appreciate the opportunity to begin thinking about this.
One of the things that has helped me in recent years is being able to define the traits that make up who I am. The more I discover about myself, and being able to define what I discover, the more I can then apply wisdom. Having answers to my life's questions is a life changer.
I'm sure there will be more to come on this topic. For now, I must say that I'm grateful for these past few years of discovery. Discovery lends itself to understanding. And understanding can lead me to a satisfying life of loving who I am.
CHICKEN!!!
So, I've been craving chicken as of late. I'm thinking about reintroducing chicken into my diet. I'm not really scared to do so. I've been in fear of pork and beef. But chicken has been a completely different story.
I've been sticking to a pescatarian diet really well since October. During my 21 days of prayer and fasting, I was mostly in a traditional vegetarian diet. My social media following seemed to be extra interested in that part of my journey. I wonder how they'll feel when I start to add chicken back into my diet...LOL
Social media concerns aside, I'm really excited about the idea of adding chicken back into my diet. I never intended to stop eating animals. I was simply listening to my body. It seems as though it is wanting chicken again...LOL
That said, I am not actually worried about what my social media followers will think about that. My social media presence is about positivity. It just so happens that I talk about other things personal to me. I highly doubt anyone will have issue with my next diet change when it happens. Until then, I wonder what my first chicken dish will be?!?
Paintings from Paradise
As I was looking into moving to Florida, I observed as many details about Florida life as I could. One thing that caught my eye were these paintings I saw at a local restaurant near me. They were painted on large palm tree pieces from parts of the branches that fall from palm trees.
In my apartment complex, the palm trees are quite young. So pieces of branches that fall off during storms are pretty small. Also, my favorite paintings I make are the 4x4 inch canvases I do. These small palm branches are about the same size in the area that I would paint on them. So I'm planning to make some mini paintings on these little palm branch pieces...Yay!!!
I'm thinking about calling them Paintings from Paradise. They will all likely be paintings of beaches or Florida like scenes. If I do any Disney paintings with them, they'll be characters enjoying a beach or something. They will all be from my heart and will all be paradise themed. Paradise being what I view as paradise.
Each of these will be special for me. Although I will keep a few for myself, most of them will go to other people. I have so many of these little palm branches that I may end up selling some of them. I don't have enough people in my life to give them all away as gifts. I have several people I feel I really want to give them such a painting. Just not enough for the number of palm tree canvases that I have collected so far...hehehe
Vitamin G
I almost didn't do a Vitamin G post today. The sunrise was perfect and my morning coffee selfie was cute. I just wasn't sure I felt inspired. After some prayer, though, the words came to me. Today's comes from Isaiah 26:3, which reads...
You will keep whoever’s mind is steadfast in perfect peace, because he trusts in you.
I have found that if my attitude is focused on making a day great, it will be a great day. It doesn't matter what the day's events bring. What matters is how I handle those events or respond to them. Good or bad, the day is great simply because I hold firm in the belief that it is a great day. God has been teaching me this for quite a while now! So that, and the above passage, led me to say:
May your heart hold true on this being a great day 🙏 In doing so, you will find peace 🧘♂️ The day’s quality is not based on the events, but rather the condition of our hearts. Stand firm on showing this day how great it can be 🙌
You know what?! Today was a great day! I loved today!!!