Week 2/Day 11~ 21 days to a Positive Attitude (Wednesday March 12)

Day 11 - Wednesday

1) Every day write down 3 good things that happened that day for which you are grateful.

        

A.  The Physical Therapist who is part of the in home rehab, trying to get me ready for full steam ahead physical therapy, has been the same one the who time, unlike the visiting nurse.  She informed me, worked around my TBI symptoms of anxiety and depression, which are ever present, saw what I needed to do, and wrote the plan for therapy that would allow me to accelerate and not destroy myself.  Individual care. Awesome blessing.  Plus she loved on my daughters kitty's. What more can you ask. 

B. My daughter has taken to my wife's and my Kenpo Instructor like water to a lake.  She finished Short 4, the master form for Ed Parker Kenpo, today, and even understand that now the learning begins, as she fine tunes both the moves and their applications.  It is a blessing when you students, and more so your daughter, take to something you hold dear, and then accelerate past you like you are standing in cement.  I am blessed by good friends (and Instructors) and and Awesome Daughter.

C. Today I discovered how much has changed at MAK in the last 2 weeks, and the teaching team is not only making it ok, they are making it better.  This blessing is from God's People who have happened, or chosen, to associate with us.  I thank God for them, but more directly, I thank them for them too.  

2) Journal about one positive blessing. One of the three, and explain why that good thing is better than the bad things that happened.

I am a control freak, and yet I know my limitations.  For other control freaks, that last statement is an anathema, as they can not conceive of any weakness they might have or limitations they might accept.  They teach "You can do anything, if you want to badly enough."  I agree, I can, but I am noticing during my rehabilitation that doing it, and doing it well are far different things.  I have skills that I was gifted by the Holy Spirit and I have skills and talents that I have developed by my own effort, and I tend to want to use them all.  This surgery is forcing me to notice that those around me also have talents and skills.  Like the body, you would be in deep do do if your hands hand to do the job of your feet.  You could make it work, especially if you had not feet, but if you have feet, your feet are your best feet.  That is the lesson I am learning this month is seems.  I need to focus more on my own talents and trust those around me, and that is point C above.  I am blessed with awesome friends who also teach karate with me, and I am only now noticing just how awesome they really are.  Thank you God, for putting me here, and I would like to thank them for choosing to be at MAK.

3) Meditate and detach from multi-tasking, by focusing on scripture~ read it, research it, think about how it might impact your life.

Today I was continuing to read Forgotten God by Francis Chan, and I continued to learn some of the things that a control freak like me can do to justify their behavior, rather than follow the Holy Spirit as we are asked to by Paul. The Holy Spirit is not for tomorrow, or next year;  He is for here and now, and I have to lay my will down for him.

Galatians 5:16 (CEV):"If you are guided by the Spirit, you won’t obey your selfish desires."

 Click the book picture for information on this awesome book.

4) One random act of kindness a week. You can do more. (Try one a day)

not today

5) Pray. Lay down the hurtful things and gather strength. 

Done
________________________________________________

Rules for 21 Days to a Positive Attitude Click here

Day 2: Click Here. Day 3: Click Here. Day 4: Click Here.
Day 5: Click Here. Day 6: Click Here. Day 7: Click Here.
Day 8: Click Here. Day 9: Click Here. Day 10: Click Here.

Week 2/Day 10~ 21 days to a Positive Attitude (Tuesday March 11)

Day 10 - Tuesday

1) Every day write down 3 good things that happened that day for which you are grateful.

        

A.  After the huge amount of pain, due to the vanishing pain pill debacle, I still managed to get sleep, due to the fast thinking of my Wife.  Though, at the time, all I did was yell and scream in pain, I eventually did what she was suggesting, patiently and sometime not so patiently, but kept going. Finally I accepted her advice, took the drugs, changed my position, new ice, higher knee. ...  Sleep.  So you would think the blessing was sleep, but today's #1 blessing was my wife. 

B. Knee scar keeps getting rave reviews from the medical people.  It looks scary to me, but that's just me.

C. The Karate school continues to grow, due in large part to my daughter stepping into her gift of teaching.  An an example to the rest of us.  She uses her gift, with scary humility, approaching ignorance of the gift, to bring the love of the Lord into other peoples lives.  Many of them do not worship the Lord, but Barbi is all about Love your neighbor.  

2) Journal about one positive blessing. One of the three, and explain why that good thing is better than the bad things that happened.

I have been married since December 21, 1979.  When I got married, I had a very high IQ and a job in physics.  I had an awsome potential for a top .05% intellect in the United States who had college degrees, Eagle Scout and documented business and non-business leadership ability.  I had the cards and the gut to make it happen.  That's what my wife married.

The the accident took it all away.  According to my doctor, I should have been dead, divorced or in jail within a year of my brain injury.  He forgot to factor in my wife.  This is a women who has "Words" from God and vision too, but does not spread it around.  Why, because the bible says they are for the benefit of the Church, and so she uses them that way. No fanfare.  This is a women who could have walked away when I was hurt, and no one would have questioned it.  Yet, she stayed.  And last night she put up with constant neverending verbal abuse due to some outstanding pain, and got the job done.  Then she went to bed.  That, people, is called a blessing, and in this case, it actually and emotionaly made a bad thing go away.  Thank you Anne.

 Click this Icon for the Story of God and my Injury and how Anne and I Stood in the Storm

3) Meditate and detach from multi-tasking, by focusing on scripture~ read it, research it, think about how it might impact your life.

Luke 7:9 (ESV) - When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”

Luke 7:9 can also be found in Matthew 8:10, and still uses the same word, "marveled."  

A similar story, about the sick women touching his clothing, and drawing power from him, surprising him, is another example of Jesus be surprised. Matthew 15:28.

The word for marveled from a greek lexicon is G2296 and translates marvel, wonder, have in admiration, admire, marvelled.  The primary use for the word is Wonder or to Marvel and the second use for the word is admire or admiration.  It is translated in all versions I have access to as surprised or marveled, no where admire.  So it appears that Jesus was surprised.  That would mean that when he was incarnet, a human, he did not have the knowledge of all things unless it was granted to him, by the Father, through the Holy Spirit.  In other words, he was human.  Fully human.  This question is most often asked about Mark 13:32 and most often answered the same way.

4) One random act of kindness a week. You can do more. (Try one a day)

not today

5) Pray. Lay down the hurtful things and gather strength. 

Done
________________________________________________

Rules for 21 Days to a Positive Attitude and Day 1.  Click here

Day 2: Click Here.    Day 3: Click Here.    Day 4: Click Here.
Day 5: Click Here.    Day 6: Click Here.    Day 7: Click Here.
Day 8: Click Here.    Day 9: Click Here.

Week 2/Day 8~ 21 days to a Positive Attitude (Sunday March 9)

View This Starbucks Product.

Day 8 - Sunday

1) Every day write down 3 good things that happened that day for which you are grateful.

        

A.  I went to Church at 9:00am, sat with my wife when she finished service, participated in the Lord's
Table and more.

Click for More Information

B. I did some traveling with my wife, adding up to some 3000 feet or more of walking, including: Movies (we watched Sherman & Mr. Peabody), Starbucks (Trinta Passion Fruit Tea), B.J.'s Wholesale Club (I did walking, Anne did the shopping.) Was Awesome on the exercise side though on the pain side it was also Awesome, combining into way more than I had a right to expect.

C. Did Tai Chi Quan 24 2 times without any physical support, like crutches, canes and cranes.

2) Journal about one positive blessing. One of the three, and explain why that good thing is better than the bad things that happened.

Today I have selected number A, as my Kenpo instructor says, to expound upon the power of the blessing, and NO I did not pick A because it has to do with Church, and therefore a more "suitable" blessing.  If you know me at all, you would know that it is surprising that I picked to talk about church. Anyway, it bible is pretty clear that you are not support to share in the Lord's Table if you have unresolved sin between you and another brother or sister.  I might.  The director of Church School, the Jr. Pastor who has left my request to be of any service at all the the church and the person who complained were all sitting right in that room. However, from my perspective, there was no sin or anger between us any longer.  I understand where the director believes she is protecting children and is not yet capable of doubting her interpretation of scripture.  It says what it says, and it means what it means, and that's it.  There is not room for translation issues or historical context, cultural context or downright bigotry.  If there was an error, it was in me, so she did her job correctly, as far as she is capable today.  That is, actually, a blessing. The Pastor doesn't understand TBI and it's not his job to, so he is just doing is job, waiting for the right moment and right service to arrive.  Finally, the person who turned me in for being a biblical friend to Gays really is a bigot, though like the director of Sunday School, is unaware of it.  Can't really blame her either. So I have fear that I might have to talk to them, and that would require me to Lie about what I believe, to prevent strife coming into the community, or explaining where I am actually coming from.  In one case, that would take years; in the other two I lack sufficient education and skill to teach them and they lack sufficient theology to even begin the conversation.  All I would do is Lie or Anger, and neither seems right.

So, I just went, hoping, praying, that God would show up and do his thing, if I just did mine.  Mine is to worship, study, obey and spread the word.  So I came, and only good came from it!!

3) Meditate and detach from multi-tasking, by focusing on scripture~ read it, research it, think about how it might impact your life.

 Ecclesiastes 2:24 - The best thing we can do is to enjoy eating, drinking, and working. I believe these are God's gifts to us.

This is one verse from today's sermon by Pastor Fred Massie on Learn to be Content - The Year of Change.if you want more on this sermon, click HERE or above, to be taking to my notes.

4) One random act of kindness a week. You can do more. (Try one a day)

Today I hung out in the "Oasis Room," my churches room for old people like me to hang out in.  Never been there before, but I wanted a place to hang out while my wife finished her Church School service.  So, with my giant knee hanging out and pain at level 0 on a 1 to 10 scale, I assumed that my awesomeness would be shared or ignored.

Boy was my humility in need of being checked at the door. First off, they all knew my name and they knew me. Second, they came, greeted, small talked, even prayed over me. Today, God decided to send me some random acts of kindness in my continuation of learning how to accept help from other.s

5) Pray. Lay down the hurtful things and gather strength. 

Done
________________________________________________

Rules for 21 Days to a Positive Attitude and Day 1.  Click here

Day 2: Click Here.    Day 3: Click Here.    Day 4: Click Here.
Day 5: Click Here.    Day 6: Click Here.    Day 7: Click Here.

Day 7 ~ 21 days to a Positive Attitude (Saturday March 8)

Day 7 - Saturday

1) Every day write down 3 good things that happened that day for which you are grateful.

        

A.  Today the visiting nurse took off the dressing.  We were told 5 days after I was released, but it turns out to be 5 full days after surgery.  So ... Bing Bang, bandage off

B. Along with being allowed to walk around without the dressing, I can TAKE SHOWERS. 

C. The level 10, put me down on the ground, desire to be put to sleep with penethol until healed .. that pain seems to get gone.  Yea. I also get to see the spectacular bruising on the knee - and I gotta tell you, I can now wrap my head around the pain.  I see the reason.

2) Journal about one positive blessing. One of the three, and explain why that good thing is better than the bad things that happened.

Today I choose to write about B, the ability to take showers, as the blessing that trumps today's evil.  Before I do, however, I want to note that I have begun to feel the psychology of this particular system, 21 Days to a Better Attitude.  If I am focusing on the Good, especially when there is so little good to find, I start converting what I used to see as bad into something I can now frame as good.  For example, it would be far more direct to complain about my pain, using the 21 Days to a Horrible Attitude, but since I have now spent a week at this, it's getting harder to even find an evil event that approaches the bar of curse.

Anyway, imagine for a moment, not having had a shower in 6 days.  You have been given the opportunity to wash on Wednesday morning, but no shower or bed bath on Tuesday was offered.  Worse, bed baths always leaves some soap on the victim.  You are never quite clean enough to stand in your own skin and not cringe.  That was Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Yuck.  Saturday was a shower.  As frightening as it was, and as much pain as my knee was as we bent it to get into the shower, it was all "washed away" with the actual shower.  Small blessings indeed.

3) Meditate and detach from multi-tasking, by focusing on scripture~ read it, research it, think about how it might impact your life.

In my continued effort to discover what relationship with God actually is, I have been lead over and over to the Holy Spirit. From Chan's  "Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit," I read this quote:

This is one of the tests of a real relationship, is if you trust the other members of your team, family or group.  If you are always doing it yourself, you are the groups God and you don't have a relationship with God.  If you are letting the Holy Spirit tell you what to do, than you have a relationship.

This link will bring you to where I bought the book - Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit

4) One random act of kindness a week. You can do more. (Try one a day)

Today we went to Starbucks.  I took the opportunity to walk up and down Starbucks long hallway.  Must have walked 3-4 hundred feet on crutches.  Pretty cool.  On the way out, there was a mother escorting a son who was challenging her ability to control her children.  He ran to the door, in front of which I was standing.  He looked at me as if I was evil, but there I was, crutch man in the way.  Eventually the mother got to the door, which I opened for her and her son, doing an awesome job of crutch karate to get out the door, out of the way, and still give her and her child room to exit.  It wasn't until they were 10 feet away from the door that she notice I was using crutches to open the door for her, and that Anne was helping we decide how to get down the 1 step curb.  That was pretty cool.  

5) Pray. Lay down the hurtful things and gather strength. 

Done
________________________________________________

Rules for 21 Days to a Positive Attitude and Day 1.  Click here

Day 2: Click Here.
Day 3: Click Here.
Day 4: Click Here.
Day 5: Click Here.
Day 6: Click Here.

Day 6 ~ 21 days to a Positive Attitude (Friday March 67)

Day 6

1) Every day write down 3 good things that happened that day for which you are grateful.

        

A.  Local sports team that are in the minor league systems, and there are 5 in our area, are always looking for ways to sell more tickets.  One way they employ with karate schools is to allow them a 10 minute show in front of the 3 - 10 thousand fans at their games.  Originally we did it for the schools exposure, but have discovered that local events that help local people is a far more effective way to involve ourselves and our students in the communities we serve.  

We continue, however, to do the local minor league professional teams as they give our students exposure to large format performance.  Imagine how much confidence you would have if you had performed in front of 10 thousands screaming fans a dozens times in your life. Friday was one of those days, where MAK was performing by the Providence Bruins request at their home ice.  I could not attend, not yet being able to stand or walk from total knew replacement surgery 4 days earlier, but the reports were that the team was well received, performed for 1000's and enjoyed themselves.  Plus they got to watch the P Bruins play.

B. I found out that I continue to be way ahead of recovery schedule.  Feeling the pain, but feeling the growth.

C. I slept for the first time since surgery, longer than 4 hours without waking up from the pain or having to pee.

2) Journal about one positive blessing. One of the three, and explain why that good thing is better than the bad things that happened.

Today's blessing supreme was the performance quality and reception of our team performing for the P - Bruins.  You always run the risk that there will an inadequate audience, a bad audience or a bad performance.  Everything we had turned up roses for MAK.  Not saying it was a miracle, and we worked hard to get it there but with the 1000s of things that can go wrong, non of them did go wrong.  That's a blessing. God was watching our for us, our team member and our coaches.

3) Meditate and detach from multi-tasking, by focusing on scripture~ read it, research it, think about how it might impact your life.

I am continuing to explore where and how we find God in our daily lives.  We have spent most of our lives trying to justify how science can explain most things, so we don't need to bother God as the explanation of why those things happen.  Chan suggest that we have walked away from God by not looking for his ACTION in the center of our day to day existence.  Perhaps your car, that has 156,000 miles on it, even though that care normally only makes it to 150,000 might actually be the hand of God.  Even mechanics don't know what keeps one car on the road for ever, an the other in the junk yard.

The name of the Book is "Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit." 

This link will bring you to where I bought the book - Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit

4) One random act of kindness a week. You can do more. (Try one a day)

No Random Acts Of Kindness Today - still house bound

5) Pray. Lay down the hurtful things and gather strength. 

Done
________________________________________________

Rules for 21 Days to a Positive Attitude and Day 1.  Click here

Day 2: Click Here.
Day 3: Click Here.
Day 4: Click Here.
Day 5: Click Here.

Day 5 ~ 21 days to a Positive Attitude (Thursday March 6)

Day 5 - Thursday April 6

1) Every day write down 3 good things that happened that day for which you are grateful.

        

A. Once we got to my daughters house, as mentioned in day 4, one of the simple things that emotional entangles me easily

was repaired.  I have a really personal kitty named dragon show to the left.  I missed my kitties and more important, I missed any kitty sleeping on me.  10 minutes on the bed, and Audrey, my daughter's oldest kitty, decided I was a good kitty person, and moved right in.

B. I discovered that I could walk with the crutches the same distance I could walk with the walker, 1 week ahead of schedule.

C. I discovered that I could go up the twenty stairs to the bathroom, and did not have to use the commode as a commode, unless no-one else was in the house.

2) Journal about one positive blessing. One of the three, and explain why that good thing is better than the bad things that happened.

The counter point that represents Thursday's evil is that the home nursing company my hospital chose to use to give me injections lied to me at the hospital.  One of the reasons we stayed at my daughter's home was because when we asked if I could have a friend, one of our black belts no less, who worked for them, be our nurse.  The told us that we defiantly could.  This accomplished 2 things. First, I did not have to reintroduce myself and TBI to yet again another health care provider, which is one of the worst self debasing and humiliating things I have to do every time I see one. Second, this nurse has been a rock in my life.  Her church treated her like garbage at exactly the same time I was discovering Christ, so as I grew into the light, she began walking in the darkness.  The problem is, there is more Godly fruit in this persons life than nearly any Christian I know, and I owed her. So, this would have been a blessing I could have sent her way.  I was emotional destroyed by this companies lie, and it was going to get worse, because I had not yet started answering all the freaking questions.

The blessing that countered all the Bad for day 6, the source of light that brought shining brightness into my dark world was the simplest one.  My daughter's kitty.  I was unconditionally adopted, (as unconditional as you can get for a cat) by my daughters kitty.  She made me her bed.  She trusted me.  She changed the light in my world.  The littlest things sometime really do matter.

3) Meditate and detach from multi-tasking, by focusing on scripture~ read it, research it, think about how it might impact your life.

I a continuing my exploration of the Holy Spirit and relationship to him, and today's reading from this awesome book, and consequently the bible supporting his research knocked hard at one of my God given gifts, Leadership. Today, I was reminded that I MUST be able to follow if I am going to lead, and it is not just and idea, but a daily reality for the Christian Leader.  This is a quote from that book:

The name of the Book is "Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit." 

This link will bring you to where I bought the book - Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit

4) One random act of kindness a week. You can do more. (Try one a day)

No Random Acts Of Kindness Today

5) Pray. Lay down the hurtful things and gather strength. 

Done
________________________________________________

Rules for 21 Days to a Positive Attitude and Day 1.  Click here

Day 2: Click Here.
Day 3: Click Here.
Day 4: Click Here.

Day 4 ~ 21 days to a Positive Attitude (Wednesday March 5)

Day 4 - Wednesday April 5

1) Every day write down 3 good things that happened that day for which you are grateful.

        

A. I got to leave the hospital. Downward of 50% leave on day 2, Wednesday, and I was one of them.  Yea.

B.My daughter allowed us to stay at her home for the beginning of my recovery, as going to CT would put my wife in a position that would be uncomfortable; running the school and looking out for crippled me.

C.Today I walked around the living level of my daughter's condo using crutches, which I am not supposed to be able to do yet.

2) Journal about one positive blessing. One of the three, and explain why that good thing is better than the bad things that happened.

This last week or two has really been less than happy in my life.  My paraoid reaction  to almost everything has gone up an order of magnatude.  Because my church removed from teaching Sunday School because I dared to utter that I may not read a line of scripture the same way they do.  The spirit within me has been yelling at me for some time to tell the truth, so I did.  I expressed doubt that the "clobber" phrase in the bible did in fact mean that gays were committing sin.  And, worse it seems, even if they were, that I was unwilling to remove their civil rights because of that.  We are all, if I understand Paul and Jesus correctly, sinners.  When I wrote that as a response on a Facebook wall, and a homophobic member of the church read it, I got removed.  My daughter, a better natural teacher than I, and my wife, both have positions in the Sunday School wing.  Me expressing my feelings and faith in the Lord Jesus endangered their positions and their reputations too, and even with that, my daughter still opened her life and home to invasion by her parents because of my surgery.  I am blessed with the best wife and daughter that God could provide, and I am beginning to understand it.

3) Meditate and detach from multi-tasking, by focusing on scripture~ read it, research it, think about how it might impact your life.

Because of my recent run in with my church, I have begun inspecting every bit of doctrine I hear and combining it with common sense, tradition and my own exegesis on the verse or verses used to support that doctrine.  One of the churches pastors recommned a book about my current study, which is all about "Personal Relationship with Jesus," which I can't find in the Bible, and a relationship with the Holy spirit, which appears to be all over the bible.  Today I began my education on the power of the holy spirit.  The name of the Book is "Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit." 

This link will bring you to where I bought the book - Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit

4) One random act of kindness a week. You can do more. (Try one a day)

No Random Acts Of Kindness Today

5) Pray. Lay down the hurtful things and gather strength. 

Done
________________________________________________

Rules for 21 Days to a Positive Attitude and Day 1.  Click here

Day 2: Click Here.
Day 3: Click Here.