Faith

If you ask most people, they will tell you about their faith in God, faith in the country, faith in their family, and faith in themselves. These are faiths that they keep and hold dear, tell others about, and sometimes make a big showing of, particularly as long as things are going well

For example, if they have faith that their financial situation will improve, or their love life, or their job, etc, they expect it to happen. Usually they expect this to happen immediately, with little to no effort from them. When it doesn't, they start the blame-game, which leads to a loss in faith and they become sad, depressed, and many times, very angry individuals.

I sometimes think people equate faith with magic. They expect, because of their faith, that no harm will come to them, everything will be easy, and their lives will always be without pain or discomfort. What these people want is a magic shield to prevent them from having to deal with the discomforts of life. None of us is guaranteed a perfect life.

In reality, faith is the continued belief, whether supported at present by facts or not, that something will happen, or that it is right. It's not a shield that prevents things from happening to us; rather it's a lifeline that pulls us through those things

Faith in God means that you believe God will be there to assist you through the rough times, not that he is going to do it while you sit there and watch.

I heard a good line once: Faith can move mountains, but you better bring a shovel.

This is the faith that I follow. It's the belief that if I am doing all that I can (my part), and I continue to do that, then great things will happen around me. They may not always be what I thought I wanted, and probably not in the timetable that I set; but they are usually much better than I ever expected, and happen at a time where I am better able to appreciate and deal with the success.

So if you are out there and having a rough time, if your faith has been tested time and time again, just remember to keep working at it, doing what's right, and never doubt that things will improve. It can and will happen. It may not be on your timeline, but you will enjoy it when it comes.

And don't worry. I have faith in you!

Todays View

If you listen to the experts, you will find that men and women communicate on different levels. Women share feelings, read body languages, and are cued into small differences in voice inflection and tone. Men, on the other hand, hear what they want to hear. So sayeth the Lifetime channel, anyway.

What becomes apparent is that men and women can take the same statement in totally different ways. For example, if a woman says “I find you interesting” to a man, he immediately thinks she just said “You are gorgeous and I want to fulfill all of your fantasies right now”, which can make him feel rather uncomfortable, particularly if they are in the grocery store.

On the other hand, if a man says to a woman “I find you interesting” the woman immediately thinks “Wow! He actually listens to what I am saying and feels that my views have relevance and meaning”, when what he actually meant was “I want to get it on right here in the fruits and vegetables, but I have too much class to just come right out and say ‘I want to get it on right here in the fruits and vegetables’, so I will use fancy words to hide my true intentions. Did I mention that I want to get it on right here in the fruits and vegetables?”

Now this is not to say that men only think about sex. No, they only think about that when women are around. When it’s just guys around, men’s words have completely different meanings.

For example, a guy might say to another guy “I find you views interesting”. That of course, means that one finds the other guy’s view to be interesting. Amongst 2 guys of course, neither would say “I find you interesting”, least he be shot. Why?

Because guys don’t talk to each other about what they think of each other. You won’t hear “Bill I think you are wonderful”, but you will hear “Bill, I think you are a total idiot”. “What’s the difference” you may ask?

As a general rule, guys get things their self worth from things that they do and how successful they are at them. One guy calling another guy an idiot rarely has anything to do with feelings, but instead is a review of how things were done/handled/built. And that’s how most guys take it.

So to review, when a calls another guy an idiot, he’s reviewing his performance. When a woman calls a guy an idiot, she’s reflecting what she thinks of his personality. And when a guy calls a woman an idiot, he usually gets hit with a frying pan.

Return of the Redneck (no need to bow just yet)

Well, after a 5 year absence, I am now returning to blogging. Be prepared to be amazed, dazzled, impressed, or possibly bored to death. And if you like what I have to say, we may both need therapy....

I'm Back!

Out of retirement, and ready to Blog again! Be prepared for the latest from an older, wiser redneck. Ha! there is no such a thing!