Optimism.

I grabbed the book of the top of Mack's dresser this afternoon. I hadn't looked at it for a while, and while I was quickly grabbing his shoes and socks, it caught my eye.

Lord Bless My Child continues to influence, inspire and mold me. {probably more than my children} I know this sounds a bit goofy, but every time I open it, the page I open to is just what I need to read.

I don't see it as chance.

It's God speaking to me.

I know it.

And when He's speaking to me, you get the opportunity to {listen} to Him too.

Lucky {us}.

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Some key points from Bill and Nancie Carmichael's book:

♥ It's always refreshing to be around people who are positive.
Colossians 3:1-2 says, {If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.}

♥ We must remember that optimism is the first cousin to faith, and pessimism is the first cousin to doubt.

♥ {It's not so much who you believe in, as who believes in you!} ~ Henrietta Meyers

♥ A person with optimism, with faith in the God of the impossible, is a person who can influence his or her world.

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This world we live in is negative enough.

Don't add to it.

Just don't.

I catch myself on bad days, tiring days, overwhelming days, exhausting days on the verge of seeing the glass half empty and then I remember 1 Corinthians 13:7. {LOVE bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things}

I know that I need to {I must} have an "unshakable confidence in Christ and believe that all things work out for the good."

Who am I, a teacher, wife, mother, friend, freckled, blessed woman, to influence and inspire others?

Truth is ... I am nothing without Him.

He gives me the words.

He speaks to my heart.

He shines brightly through my spirit.

And I write it down.

All of it.

Whether it makes total sense or not because I know that He's calling me to.

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Today & many, many days to come I will pray with my whole entire being that my children {my two beautiful boys} will see the positive side of life.
~May they have that rare ability to look for the best, even in the dark times.
~May they be men who see opportunities in problems.
~May they bring sunshine where there is rain, courage where there is fear, and hope when there is despair.

If I'm doing my job as their {optimistic} mother, they will.

I know it.

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One of our best cows had a beautiful calf today. 2 hours later, after {licking her baby off} and giving the colostrum her little heifer needed, she died.

We don't know why.

We can't begin to understand why this year of calving has been so very, very difficult & trying.

We're frustrated.

We're tired.

We're flat worn out.

But, we continue {all of us} to be optimistic.

If you're any kind of farmer or rancher, you have to be optimistic.

And if you're lucky enough to be the wife of that farmer or rancher with a run of {not so good luck}, you have to be willing to see the best in everything.

Optimism.

Let it define you.