Christian Living

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The Drop Outs
>
> By: Pamela Perry, [email protected]
>
>
> I know a lot of people who sometimes just "drop out" of sight. I believe
> it's a sign of the times. Too much pressure. Too many expectations.
> Too much stuff going on. The only way people seem to handle the stress,
> strife and struggles of life is to hide.
>
> I guess that's normal. If you knew a storm was coming, you'd hide. If
> there were a tornado outside, you'd go in the basement. When a
> caterpillar wants to turn into a butterfly, it wraps itself up in
> cocoon.
>
> When someone drops out, I make a point to pray for them. There is so
> much I don't know about what they're going through. They could be
> dealing with illness, financial struggles, depression, self-esteem
> issues,
family
> crisis, work stress or just plain burnout!
>
> The problem is that when someone is out of sight - they're out of
> mind. If someone who used to be on our radar suddenly disappears, an
> alarm should go off inside of us that says, "they must need some
> support." But rarely do we process our thoughts this way. We spend
> so much time in the "me, myself and I" mode that we rarely thing of
> anything or anyone else.
>
> Is life that hard that all our time and all our energy is spent on
> selfish tasks? Sometimes we have so trouble in our lives is because
> we don't take the time to sow good things into the lives of others. We
> reap what we sow. When we plant prayer and good deeds into others -
> we
get a blessing
> in return. True joy in life comes from giving. It is really more
> blessed than receiving.
>
> When you are a giver, you push aside your issues and let God handle it.
> We can't figure out our own lives anyway. By trusting on God and heeding
> His voice, our lives run smoothly. God has a divine plan and purpose
> for all of us. When we work His system and follow His paths, we have
> good success. By learning to be a channel and not a reservoir, we
> allow the good in life to flow to us easily and smoothly. In
> contrast, by being selfish, self-centered and self-absorbed, we block
> up the dam. Nothing gets in and nothing good gets out.
>
> Let's unplug. Write out a list of those you haven't seen or those you
> miss because they've stopped calling. Make it a point to lift them up
> in prayer. There is more to life than just being busy. Others are
> experiencing things we can't imagine. It may be rejection, grief or
> "drama that they can't even tell their mama."
>
> If time permits, send a card or shoot an email. Let the other person
> know you're thinking about them. God just may use you to pull someone
> out of a pit. And the next time you hit a curb, and go sailing down
> yourself, God will send someone to help you out.
>
> Know this - it's not just bad manners when someone "drops out" - there
> are some issues going on. Learn normal from abnormal in your friends.
> Pay attention. Instead of criticism, offer support and encouragement.
> If God gives you signals, take your cues and help the drop-outs.
> There's more to situations than you realize. Nobody is that busy. And
> we always have time to pray.
>
>
>

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