Choice

Each morning begins differently, this morning I awoke with a song in my head and as it played over and over I began to meditate on the lyrics.  "You've got to get up every morning with a smile on your face and show the world all the love in your heart. Then people are going to treat you better and you'll find, yes you will, that your beautiful as you feel" of course this song was written by Carole King and though it was released in 1971 the lyrics still ring true today.   I have taught my child that she is in charge of herself, while my husband and I can tell her what to do, ultimately she has the final choice whether or not to do as we ask.  This is true for all of us, we are responsible for our own actions, our own feelings...these are our choices.  We cannot say so and so made me do something, this is merely not true, we may have fallen into peer pressure but the choice to do whatever rests upon our shoulders and our shoulders only.  I understand that our world is filled with pressures to conform; pressures to dress a certain way, to look a certain way, to eat certain foods, the list goes own; but it is in the conforming to such social pressures that we actually lose ourselves, lose touch with our own person for masked we don't even recognize our own self.  What if we woke up with a smile on our face, not a contrived smile, but a genuine smile which came for ok beaming love, love so overwhelming that we could not help but smile?  Think this love is impossible?  This love is not only possible it is within our reach every single moment; this overwhelming love is God's offering of Himself to us.  He loves us more than we can fathom and while we are critical of our shortcomings, He embraces us with love, shortcomings and all.  While we browbeat ourselves for decisions of the past, God whispers songs of love into our heart hoping we will eventually silence our mind and just listen, letting God heal our brokenness.  Newton discovered that for each action there is an equal and opposite reaction.  We can directly apply this theory our lives as well.  If we choose to accept God's love, then we become filled with love, so saturated that we, ourselves, become love.  As love, we act as such toward ourselves and others, thus becoming a ray of difference among a conformist society.  With love as our base, our intentions pure and our heart open to becoming the person God created, no more guises; rather all masks torn leaving the our true self exposed for all to see.  At first, we think ourselves vulnerable and our precious skin, once protected by layers of masks, susceptible to burns as it has never seen the light of day.  But love is a powerful protectant, not only is our vulnerability tossed aside with no fear of being burnt, we are empowered to be who dwells within, we are empowered to live a life of faith, a life of hope, a life of love.  This is the power of God's love among us, this is the truth of His love alive in our lives but this, too, is true...we have to accept God's offering, we have to believe in His conditionless offering and understand that with our humanity comes flaws, but also beauty for we are a beauteous creation of the Father and should live as such.  This is not to say that we should be conceded and look down upon others; the contrary actually, embracing God's love permits us to love as God does, to put no conditions on the love we offer to others thus giving them the freedom to explore within themselves without fear of ridicule and rejection.  A single smile can change the course of a day, of a week, of a lifetime; look into a mirror and smile, your choice, your day, your week, your lifetime.  In each smile God resides for backed by each smile is love.  Understanding couples with knowledge that we may completely reap the benefits of true love; love without conditions, love with a promise of always, nothing, anything and everything for each of us in every moment, in every situation.  Why, if this is God's offering, do most reject it and live a life haunted by loneliness and plagued with rejection?  Most choose to wake up in the morning without a smile in their face for the love in their hearts is buried, surrounded by fear, anxiety and stress to the point where love is but a fantasy.  Discerning the truth in our society is difficult, every commercial spouts nothing but deceit, most products contain hidden ingredients, and many people lie to get what they want, regardless of hurt feelings.  The stress of our world can negatively affect our relationship with God, if we let it.  We can put the same parameters, the same sleuthful methods used to engage in society can be placed upon God and then of course we will question, of course we will be cautious and doubtful; this our choice.  Intimately we connect with God, we feel His love from within, we know Him without words; let us embrace this connection without doubt, embrace this connection without fear for this connection bears our being, bears our soul.  Innately we understand this world is not forever yet we know, too, life continues forever.  How is this possible if it not for the love of God, if it not for our connection to ultimate love...God.  He opens His world to us that we may partake in His love, that we may accept His love and become love that others, too, may feel His love.  Connected we are, connected we will be whether we choose to accept this connection, accept this gift, well, that is up to us.  We can wake up with a smile on our face and love in our heart or we can wake up with a frown and hatred in our heart, it all comes down to a choice; our choice.  I have to say one thing, I do not believe the majority of people will treat you better when at first you wake up with a smile.  People are suspicious, people are critical of change.  Just know when you accept God's love and your heart changes, creating a smile on your face, a permanent smile, people will not always be kind.  Some may be kind on the surface, others just down right mean but let this not deter you from being consumed by the love of God, by becoming saturated in His gift of Himself.   Become overwhelmed with love, let the smile become a permanent fixture of your being and then nothing, no negative comments, no societal pressures can sway you into choosing anything but love.  Evil exists in this world, one such disguise is lack of responsibility for our actions, the idea that is was not my fault, I was made to do it.  This evil is so prevalent in our world, it is so widely quoted that most do not even recognize it as an evil as they have forfeited their choices to be driven by another.  Now is the time to unmask this evil that everyone may see its long term effects on love, on our relationship with self, others and most importantly, God.  Let your beauty shine, let all the world see the beauty of you...wake up with a smile on your face and love in your heart.  Accept your gift today and make difference in your tomorrow.  Love, choose it, accept it, live it, be it for today, tomorrow and always God will wrap you in His love and your life will become whole.  Wholeness starts now...what will you choose?