Steph’s GEE Spot

"Once in a while you have to take a break and visit yourself ." - Audrey Giorgi

It’s something I do once in a while, just to get attuned to my inner self - taking a break from it all.  I find that we’re so easily distracted by mundane tasks that often amount to so very little in the big scheme of things - how easily we become so enveloped in the things we have to do that we forget the things we need or want to do - like give ourselves a moment of quiet or say a silent prayer.

I think we all need that sort of vacation sometimes.  Thinking and handling so many things all at the same time can be so tiring.  Sometimes, I tend to lose myself in the things that don’t matter just to stop thinking about the things that do.  Introspection can be wearing.

What does it really mean to take a break and visit yourself?  I think it means to empty our minds/souls of our thoughts or burdens or ideas - and I mean EMPTY.  I find that during quiet/alone times, most especially while waiting for dreamland to take over, that’s the time that my mind really wanders and all sorts of ideas pops out - which renders me sleepless.

Taking a break and revisiting ourselves means we take time to really examine our conscience without the added burden of resolving all worries or conflict or solving all problems. We just allow ourselves for however long to be still; we just allow God to look at us.  Sometimes, it’s nice to just resign to the quiet of your own mind and let God look at you, rather than trying to conjure up some eloquent prayer or find the words to thank Him for everything you can bring to light or apologize for, just letting your words be few: simply clearing your mind for a while and resting in the peace that you are SAVED no matter how dire your circumstances may be.

Thought for the day:
If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it.
If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it.
He sends you flowers every spring.
He sends you a sunrise every morning.
Face it, friend - HE IS CRAZY ABOUT YOU!

One moment of uninterrupted quiet may be the best vacation there is….

Happy weekend y’all!

BRRRRRRRR.

The heater in my bathroom is not working properly talaga.  Ay mali, the heater right outside my bathroom pala, ewan ko ba how Indonesians make it, pero basta, almost all of their heaters are unreliable.  *sigh*  I was thinking of getting the heater replaced already. But then, I decided to surf the net for info about hot and cold shower.  Alas, it’s really proven that cold shower is definitely way better.

So even if I have to take 1 full minute to compose myself before pushing myself into the water each and every time I shower, I think my sacrifice will pay off in the long run.  J

Cold Water Massage Therapy is one of the healthiest and inexpensive of therapies.

Cold showers have the following positive effects:

* Brings blood to the capillaries, therefore increasing circulation throughout the body.

* Cleans the circulatory system.

* Reduces blood pressure on internal organs.

* Provides flushing for the organs and provides a new supply of blood.

* Strengthens the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems.

* Contracts the muscles to eliminate toxins and poisonous wastes.

* Strengthens the mucous membranes, which help resist hay fever, allergies, colds, coughs.

Generally speaking, hot showers are not good as they tend to depress the various physiological systems of the body.

So… cold shower and I…have to become the best of friends.  J

Source:

http://www.earthclinic.com/Remedies/showers.html

http://www.alive.com/3193a6a2.php?subject_bread_cramb=83

*yawn*  Sunday morning dawned bright and clear.  J  But I feel like I needed the extra sleep cause I’ve been waking up early for the whole week, my body felt stressed out and really really tired.  But…God won’t have it.  I couldn’t go back to sleep even how hard I tried, it’s like God is talking to me – get up sleepyhead!  Time to go to church!  It’s so easy to slack off, ang layo2x kasi ng church, tapos ang mahal2x pa ng taxi dito.  But finally, I pried myself out of bed.  Getting up and out of bed is always the hardest thing for me (and I guess for most everyone), but once I’m up and about, I feel grateful just to be alive and well!!!  J

As I hailed a cab, I can’t help noticing right after I got in that the cab driver is cross-eyed – he’s good though, and his name is SA-KE.  What do you know?!?!  =P

I am sooo glad I went to church, we had a guest speaker today at church and his message blessed me so much, I want to share it with you.  J

TOPIC: 1^st chapter from the book of Isaiah.

He used Aristotle’s’ Ethos, Pathos and Logos principle to get his point across.

ETHOS – What is the ethic that you are living by?
-          People are always ready to give up their values for want of “better things”
-          People have the misconception that if you take away good morality, you gain more freedom
-          Some people question: Can you afford to be moral?  The question should be: Can you afford NOT to be moral?
-          It is simply impossible to break God’s moral law, you end up breaking yourself trying to break God’s moral law, and in the process, you sometimes unknowingly hurt the people around you as well

PATHOS – What is it that fuels your life?  What is the passion you are living for?
-          Although people try to do the right things, the heart is not there
-          God is not interested in our religious acts – for the reason that you may be doing it but your heart is not there
-          God commands us to delight in him
-          Do you go to church because you love God?  Or do you do it more as a duty?
-          There’s a difference between duty with love and duty without love
-          When you are in love with somebody, don’t you want to tell them and show them how you feel?
-          Do you have that passion for Christ?

LOGOS – Logic.  What gives life meaning?
-          We need God’s word to give our life meaning – to guide us – to appeal to our logic
-          When you read God’s word from beginning to end, your life will be transformed

Last note: Whenever you hear God’s word, do not just “hear” it and leave it as soon as you step out of church, implement it as soon as you get out of church, and afterwards for each and every day of your life.

That’s it.  I hope this touches your heart as much as it touched mine.  J

Funny thing happened din at church today, I flew to Singapore last week and on the plane, a 4-year old girl sitting in front of me kept smiling at me so I started chatting with her.  She was flying with her mom and grandma.  We had a good, long chat then said our goodbyes at Chang-I airport.  I never thought I’d see them again.  Today at church, the lady beside me kept smiling at me and finally introduced herself and asked for my name.  Then she started reminding me that I was chatting with her daughter on the plane.  Gosh!  What a small world!  What are the chances diba? 

J  She also told me that the girl was just talking about me yesterday.  Ha ha  This time, we exchanged numbers.  I don’t know yet why we kept meeting but I’m very sure God must have a plan for me and them.  J  We’ll know in the future.

After church, I went to the local marketplace for the first time – naks!  Feeling localized Indonesian na talaga.  Ha ha ha

Signing off now…
Have a blessed, productive and prosperous week to us all!

Everyday… it’s all about risks - which is best explained by Willian Arthur Ward.

To laugh is to risk appearing a fool,
To weep is to risk appearing sentimental
To reach out to another is to risk involvement,
To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self
To place your ideas and dreams before a crowd is to risk their loss
To love is to risk not being loved in return,
To hope is to risk despair,
To try is to risk to failure.
But risks must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.
The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, is nothing.
He may avoid suffering and sorrow,
But he cannot learn, feel, change, grow or live.
Chained by his servitude he is a slave who has forfeited all freedom.
Only a person who risks is free.
The pessimist complains about the wind;
The optimist expects it to change;
And the realist adjusts the sails.

- William Arthur Ward, "To Risk"

A lot of times, it’s really hard to take risks, but to not risk is to not live at all. 

Moods of a Woman:
An Angel of truth and a dream of fiction.
She’s afraid of a wasp, will scream at a mouse, but will tackle a stranger alone in the house.
Sour as vinegar, sweet as a rose.
She’ll kiss you one minute, then turn up her nose the next.
She’ll win you in a rage, enchant you in silk.
She’ll be stronger than brandy, milder than milk.
At times, she’ll be vengeful, merry, and sad.
She’ll hate you like poision and love you like mad.

Moods of a Man
Hungry, sleepy, bored.

Agree? ha ha =P

I recently suffered from the worst diarrhea I’ve had…ever!  Imagine going into the bathroom 34 times in 24 hours!  It’s like literally cleaning my guts out!  I thought I’m gonna be a goner.  Thanks to friends’ prayers, I’m well and very much ALIVE! J *whew*

If there’s a world record for such, I could be the winner, whaddyathink? =P

To my friends who are…..SINGLE
Love is like a butterfly.  The more you chase it, the more it eludes you.  But if you just let it fly, it will come to you when you least expect it.  Love can make you happy but often it hurts, but love is only special when you give it to someone who is really worth it.  So take your time and choose THE BEST!

To my friends who are…..NOT SO SINGLE
Love isn’t about becoming somebody else’s “perfect person”, it’s about finding someone who helps you become the best person you can be.

To my friends who are…..ENGAGED
The true measure of compatibility is not the years spent together, but how good you are for each other.

To my friends who are…..MARRIED
Love is not about “it’s your fault”, but “I’m sorry”.
Not “where are you”, but “I’m right here for you”.
Not “how could you”, but “I understand”.
Not “I wish you were”, but “I’m thankful you are”.

To my friends who are…..HEARTBROKEN
Heartbreaks last as long as you want and cut as deep as you allow them to go, the challenge is not how to survive heartbreaks but to learn from them.

To my friends who are…..POSSESSIVE
It breaks your heart to see the one you love happy with someone else, but it’s more painful to know that the one you love  is unhappy with you.

To my friends who are…..AFRAID TO CONFESS
Love hurts when you break up with someone.  It hurts even more when someone breaks up with you.  But love hurts the most: When the person you love has no idea how you feel about him/her.

To my friends who are…..STILL HOLDING ON
A sad thing about life is when you meet someone and fall in love, only to find out in the end that it was never meant to be, and that you have wasted years on someone who wasn’t worth it.  Let go and let live.

To YOU: My wish for you is a man/woman whose love for you is: God-loving, honest, strong, mature, never-changing, protective, encouraging, rewarding and unselfish.