What do you do when the unthinkable happens?Life is plagued by crisis and trials. Loved ones die. Eventually everyone experiences the gut wrenching loss of someone close to them passing.
Mom, dad, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, grandpas and grandmas, friends...people we love. The pain is real. It physically tears the lining of your gut, that kind of emotional stress. It also causes short term brain damage- making remembering and concentrating difficult. How can we move forward in the pain and use it as a catalyst for growth? When we look at the natural world, death is a part of the circle of life. When something dies the cycle continues and there is new growth. This can be true for our lives as well. As nature models for us... new growth can come out of death. The book Grief 2 Growth, Planted, Not Buried: How to Survive & Thrive After Life's Greatest Challenges, provides readers with a clear path to success. Brian D. Smith: author and life coach, offers a grief program of simple and effective habits like "start with gratitide," and "feed my mind," to get our brains to process through the pain and emotions. As well as "exercise" and "meditation" to support the physical needs of the body. I love the holistic nature of the program Smith offers. For those of you interested in more of what Smith has to offer you can check out his website. The book is a compact and easy to read guide to dealing with your own grief and Smith shares many of his own ideas about the grief he experienced losing his daughter at 15. Having walked through a season of grief in my own life, I see value in being equiped with tools like Grief 2 Growth discusses. At the time I experinced loss, I was not educated on the grieving process and held onto a lot of anger that was not healthy. I know now that it is important to embrace the grieving process to keep yourself healthy, processing the pain so that it doesn't get stored in your body. This is a great book to educate yourself on how to turn tragedy into a growing experience. The more we educate ourselves, the more resillient we can be in the face of trials. You can pick up a copy of the book on Amazon. #Grief2Growth Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Speakeasy. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
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We are standing at a crossroads...The last couple of weeks I have felt a deep heaviness, as I know many others have felt.
Heaviness that comes from our world as we knew it being shaken with the onset of the global "pandemic" and injustice that is all too common-place in the United States between races. My son, my African American son turned 13 last week. What should have been a great time of celebrating my oldest coming into his teen years was overshadowed by the reality he is growing into. Having a darker complexion and being male makes him a perceived threat to some people in our country. It weighs heavy on my heart. Beyond the racially charged state of our country still lies the "pandemic" situation we are supposed to be growing accustom to... Settling into our "new normal". Now I can't say that our previous normal was good, but it was better than this prescribed "new normal". It makes me sad to see so many people falling in line and blindly obeying the requirements of health organizations that contradict good science. It surprised me that many people have given up thinking for themselves and accepting everything they are being told as ultimate truth. Many people have taken to the street to stand up and demand justice for the African American community. I stand with them. God created all humans equal. We breathe the same air and pump the same blood through our veins. I would love to see this type of grassroots movement to stand up for our health too! I wanted to take a moment and remind you that you have a choice to make. You are standing at a crossroads. I am there with you. We have the option of following the government and other global entity regulations, giving them the ultimate control of our health and wellbeing... or, we can stand up and think for ourselves. The same organizations that promote the "new normal" stand to profit from you getting sick and becoming a life-long pharmaceutical customer. Do you think they really care about your health? Let me remind you that God created your body with amazing healing abilities. You have an immune system that needs germs, bacteria and virus interaction to develop and adequately protect you. God created you to live as part of nature, to tend the earth, and utilize its resources for health and wellbeing. A simple virus is not what is going to kill you in this world. It is living apart from the Creator's plan. It is eating unnatural- processed foods, polluting your body and environment with man-made chemicals, ignoring the God of the universe, and living apart from the natural world that will wreck your body, mind and spirit. I can tell you what way I am choosing... The Light Way. The way God intended for us to live and thrive on this earth. I will continue to do what I know will keep me healthy, happy and strong:
I am taking the ancient paths... I will NOT be vaccinated. I will NOT live in fear. I will NOT forget that God created my body with the need to come in contact with viruses and bacteria. What path will you take? Standing at this crossroads has given me a deeper resolve to stand up and speak up about the Truth. I have knowledge that can help people struggling with poor health and chronic conditions. I cannot stay silent. I will use my voice to dispel myths and share the Truth. If you want to join me on the ancient paths, but don't know where to start, I can help. My book The Light Way gives an overview of God's tools for health, happiness and longevity. You can purchase it on Amazon. You can download The Light Way Action Guide to help you implement new habits. I also work with people one-on-one creating a personalized health protocol for their unique health concerns and body chemistry. If you are interested in working with me in this way book a consultation. You can be healthy without vaccinations, without social distancing and without wearing a mask in public. What you need is the Truth and to take control of your health. No one will do it for you. You have to do it for yourself! Why do bad things happen to good people?Suffering. It is a part of life as we all know, but it is just a word until you experience it for yourself.
Suffering brings with it many questions: Why did this happen to me? Where is God in my suffering? How would a good God allow me to suffer like this? For those of you who know me well, you know I am no stranger to suffering and questioning God in it. Suffering is a part of my story and while it was painful to walk through, it helped to shape my perspective and be able to relate to others enduring it. I recently read The Mystery of Suffering and the Meaning of God by Anson Hugh Laytner. Anson endured years of suffering, loosing many members of his family too soon from this world. The book was his way of working through the suffering and finding peace in the midst of his pain. Anson’s first point of reference in His suffering was to relate to Job. The book of Job is a classic example of suffering and questioning God in the pain. If you are not familiar with the story, here is a quick summary: Job, a blessed and upright man endures suffering upon suffering when God allows Satan to test him by bringing disaster to his household. As Job endures the suffering, his friends try to do what many people today do in the face of hardship; reason that hardships are a form of punishment for sinning against God. In the end what Job needed was a change of perspective. To take his eyes off the suffering, and step back to see the fullness of God. In The Mystery of Suffering and the Meaning of God, Anson writes about two significant lessons from his low point amidst the loss. The first was to “expect the unexpected, to let go of my plans and to lie as fully as I can by seizing the moment… Second, my sense of powerlessness in the face of suffering made me aware of my need of other people.” (p. 77) These are lessons I relate to and also learned walking through suffering. We make many plans in life but nothing is guaranteed. When we hold onto our plans loosely we are able to weather the storms of life better, especially if we have friends and family by our side. Through Anson’s suffering his core beliefs were shaken, as mine were upon loosing many of my loved ones too soon. He went back to foundational truths like who is God? Coming from a Jewish background, YHVH, the unutterable name of God was a starting point. Anson explains “the name YHVH suggests that God’s essence is forward looking and future orientated.” (p. 97) YHVH was the name God used when speaking to Moses. When Moses asked to see God, he is only allowed to see His back. Anson takes this to mean: “You can only see where I’ve been, but that’s not me, for I am in movement, always in the present/future.” (p. 97) I had never heard this meaning given to Moses only being allowed to see the back of God. In fact, there were many new to me, ideas presented in the book. While I don’t agree with many of the theological ideas Anson gravitates toward, I appreciate reading a book from the Jewish perspective. In a world where we can now selectively choose the perspective we get our information and news from, I believe listening to a different perspective is important. Even if we do not agree with a perspective, we can learn and appreciate where they are coming from. Listening to others who disagree with you is a skill I fear we are quickly loosing in this world. Anson shares also some universal truths on the subject of suffering and grieving. For anyone who has walked through a sustained season of grief, you know re-embracing life is often a struggle. For Anson it was a conscious choice, an expression of his hope for life renewed, and a fight against the urge to check out of life. My favorite quote from the book that summarizes the conclusion of suffering is this: “One cannot deny the reality of grief. It just has to be lived through and slowly integrated into your being until hopefully you re-emerge somewhat haled and somewhat whole- and always somewhat broken. But life goes on and that is good,” (p. 129). I have found that true for myself. The wounds of suffering remain long after the rest of the world has moved on. Embracing the brokenness, allowing yourself to fully feel and remember that life is good, regardless of the suffering experienced. We must be forward oriented like YHVH. Accepting what has passed and pressing into the the present and the future. Trying to rationalize suffering does not help us or others. Our human minds cannot find logical reasoning for the the suffering many good people endure in this world. But we can ease some of the suffering as we come together with others grieving, supporting them in the process of healing. #TheMysteryOfSuffering To grab your own copy of the book, find it here on Amazon. Connect with Anson Laytner on his website or Facebook. Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Speakeasy. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. |
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AuthorJessica Mutunga is passionate about good simple living that focuses on relationships, food and creating a supportive healthy environment. She is The Light Way Coach. Archives
May 2022
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