{"id":5001,"date":"2021-12-17T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-12-17T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shop.honestreflections.net\/?p=5001"},"modified":"2021-12-02T10:16:40","modified_gmt":"2021-12-02T15:16:40","slug":"how-catastrophes-will-make-you-cling-to-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/2021\/12\/17\/how-catastrophes-will-make-you-cling-to-god\/","title":{"rendered":"How Catastrophes Will Make You Cling to God"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

2 minute read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Daily Reading: <\/strong>Isaiah 22-24 GW<\/a>; Revelation 9 GW<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Catastrophes happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Big or small, calamities are a part of life.  \u201cThings happen in threes,\u201d a phrase often said in my family.  Whether or not the inspiration for the adage comes from Revelation 9:12, I don\u2019t know.  But I do know, once our Reticular Activating System (RAS) becomes aware of catastrophes, we notice them everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RAS<\/em><\/a> activates the entire cerebral cortex with energy, waking it up, increasing its level of arousal and readiness for interpreting incoming information, and preparing the brain for appropriate action.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ron and I bought a Subaru Outback in January.  A year ago, I never noticed Outbacks or Subarus because I didn\u2019t own one.  Now I notice the station wagon\u2019s everywhere.  Why?  Because purchasing the care activated my RAS, awakening my brain to the existence of Outbacks.  Once you become aware of something, you notice it more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, when catastrophe strikes, your thoughts focus on the negative situation.  Becoming aware bad things happen causes you to notice more calamities.  But if we realize our thoughts are focusing on the negative, we can change them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Capture your thoughts.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou had a bad moment, don\u2019t make it a bad day.\u201d\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Years ago, while talking on the phone, I complained about something, I don\u2019t even know what, to my friend.\u00a0 Stuck in the calamity, Heather reminded me to capture my thoughts.\u00a0 Yes, bad things happen, but so do good things.\u00a0 Her words changed my life.\u00a0 Now, when the internet stops working and frustration begins to build, instead of letting my thoughts turn negative, I remind myself, \u201cIt\u2019s just a bad moment; it\u2019s not a bad day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Catastrophes will happen in life.  From losing car keys to losing your job, no one escapes unfortunate moments in time.  But we must remember, moments pass.  Good things happen in threes as well; look for the positive instead of the negative.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Capture your thoughts. Focus on the positive.  Let the negative go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Check out my new release on Amazon<\/a>. Learn how I used prayer to control my emotions and develop healthier relationships in my life. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Lord, thank You for giving us brains.  Forgive us for letting our thoughts spiral out of control.  As we move through our day, help us quickly move through the difficult moments, experiencing them, then releasing them to You.  Help our minds focus on the blessings in our lives instead of the catastrophe.  All glory, Yours alone.  IJNIP.  Amen<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Question for reflection<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is your RAS focused on today?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Check out my new release on Amazon<\/a>. Learn how I used prayer to control my emotions and develop healthier relationships in my life. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

2 minute read. Daily Reading: Isaiah 22-24 GW; Revelation 9 GW Catastrophes happen. Big or small, calamities are a part of life.  \u201cThings happen in threes,\u201d a phrase often said in my family.  Whether or not the inspiration for the adage comes from Revelation 9:12, I don\u2019t know.  But I do know, once our Reticular… Continue reading How Catastrophes Will Make You Cling to God<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","without-featured-image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5001"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5001\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5007,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5001\/revisions\/5007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.honestreflections.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}