A Life

It's time for Tuesday 4 started by Toni Taddeo and kept up in her memory by Annie of the blog, Cottage by the Sea.

This week's topic is about spending time

1.  Are you currently reading a book you'd like to tell us about? Maybe a TV program you can recommend to us?

 I just finished reading the late Cecily Tyson's memoir Just As I am. A few weeks after I heard about her book she passed on at the ripe age of 97. I didn't really know much about this actress only that she seemed to be a powerhouse in her field. I immediately got the book from my local library and was looking forward to it. Her life's story held many revelations for me and in that sense I enjoyed it though I cannot really say I was a fan of the writing style. Given Ms. Tyson's longevity and accomplishments as an actor, I would highly recommend her book.

2.  Are you a Jane Austen fan? So many seem to be. If you are what is your favorite book and who is your favorite character.  If you aren't a fan, is there an author you especially like to read? Favorite character, etc.?

I am absolutely a Jane Austen fan and it is hard to pick favourites as I've enjoyed each and every one of her books. If I really had to pick a favourite I would choose Mansfield Park though I cannot remember now if I read this book first, or whether I read Pride and Prejudice first. You can watch Mansfield Park as a movie right now on YouTube for free. I don't really have a favourite character in any of Jane Austen's books. I love each and every one because together they all add to the wonderful stories she writes.  I will say that most of the television adaptations of Jane Austen's books do not give me the same enjoyment as reading the books though some of the big screen movies do.  For example I really loved Sense and Sensibility with Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet.

3.  How do you spend your time during the day?  Do you set apart time to read, watch TV, study?

Yes I do all of the above. I very much enjoy reading and watching good television or YouTube videos. I also enjoy crafting (knitting, crochet, sewing, and from time to time a few other handcrafts) during quiet times. 

Here is the last large crochet project I made. It is a crochet blanket large enough to cover a tall man in a twin, hospital bed. I made it for one of my uncles. He just passed on today. I pray he is enjoying his reunion with loved ones in glory.

 

 

The green items are knitted dishcloths I recently completed. I really enjoy making these because they are quick and also very practical for personal use and as gifts.

 

 

Spending time almost daily, with my charitable mission to Kenyans, a grassroots effort to bring humanitarian helps and hope to a number of destitute Kenyans, is also something that occupies my time. It is my belief that it isn't enough to say we believe in God as Christians. I believe we must show our belief through actions.  Though actions and works won't save our souls, actions and works are a demonstration of the fact that God's Holy Spirit lives in us and that it is alive and real, not dead. 

God is love so we too must be examples of love to others. Not because people deserve it but because God is love and he loves each and every one of us. If we say we love God but have no demonstration of it especially to the very needy, yet we make sure we meet all of our own needs, I don't think that is love. Love demands a sacrifice from us. Not so we can become martyrs through sacrifice but so that we truly understand what God has given to us and how he has sacrificed so that we might have salvation and a hope of a wonderful eternal future.

These few thoughts don't capture the totality of my beliefs in this area but they will at least give a glimpse. Often when I share these thoughts people will jump to defend themselves and say that giving is not only about money or that there are people in our own backyards that need help too. I agree with both of these statements. God doesn't limit us to helping here or there. Each of us has opportunities to stretch ourselves both at home and abroad especially in this present day and age. We just need to be open and alert to those opportunities and also willing to use the creativity through the ideas that God gives to each of us to find ways to do what he wants. We also need to be open to hearing him when he is speaking to us in that often still and small voice.

4. Have your beliefs changed in your life time? New religion.. new politics? Or are they the same as they were growing up? Do you spend time thinking over the important things of life to take stock in your life?

Neither my political nor my religious beliefs have changed in my life time. I have always been a Liberal (in USA that would be a Democrat). Though I know many Christians support Conservatism (Republicanism) I am of the belief that God made every one of us a free agent to live and choose how we will live and whom we will serve. I do not believe in penalizing people for how they live unless they willfully harm others or disobey laws that are there for the protection of all . One day each one of us will be judged by a power much greater than a human being.  

I grew up believing in God long before I ever went to church (my parents were not Christian or church goers until much later) and learned about him in a formal way.  I did not always go to church as for a time. In my late teens and early twenties,  I did my own thing.  But God always called me back to him and in my adult life I have not strayed from the path.  I have to say that being a believer in God and casting my cares upon him has really helped me in every way. Some of my old friends called my belief in God a crutch but I don't care. " I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able. To keep that which I've committed, unto Him against that day" (from the song I Know Whom I have Believed). I am a strong person so I do not need a crutch. 

 

 

My faith is in God because I know he loves me and has saved me from a life of ruin.  Those are not just words but have great meaning and I'm writing them in humble gratitude for how he gave me a hope and future from the background in which I grew up.  It was not an easy life for me or any of the generations before me in my family, but praise God, he made a way for me and for many others in my family.  I am truly grateful for that.  A life with God brings me a lot of contentment and inner joy. I want to use my life and whatever I have left of it to bring glory to God and as thanks for everything he has given to me.

I do spend a lot of time thinking about the big issues in life and also spend a lot of time taking stock of my life. I do this and try to improve myself here and there and make sure I am on the right path for me. When I was younger I spent an awful lot of mental energy on these activities.  We go through various stages of growth and now that I am older I still do a lot of deep thinking.  But I probably spend more time doing and acting. As we age, we have the sense and awareness that time goes by so quickly. I don't want to waste too much of the time I have left and ask God to help me to make the best use of my time, to even extend my time and to open doors that he wants me to enter.

 

 Thank you for visiting my blog and for taking time to read my thoughts.

I'm joining in at Tuesday 4.

May God truly bless you in unimaginable ways.

🙏🙏🙏