Wake. Pray. Carpe. Repeat.

“Keep alert and pray. Otherwise temptation will overpower you. For the spirit indeed is willing, but how weak the body is!” Matthew 26:41

 

Oops. I did it again. Went to bed feeling low and woke up under the same poop cloud. So, I prayed and … POOF!! …everything was unicorns and cupcake sprinkles.

Just kidding.

My only thought was the words on a t-shirt I saw hanging on a rack at the mall: “Carpe the heck out of this day.” 

I’m not sure who created the shirt but it felt like my own little personal cheerleader. It’s a paraphrase of Horace, a Roman poet. To “Carpe Diem” is to “pluck the day, trusting as little as possible in the next one.” To enjoy life while we can. Today.

But, sometimes, we just don’t feel like carpe-ing anything but a strong cup of coffee, a good book, and a bag of Cheetos.

We all have days when our mental and physical energies are low. And we need to rest. But, aren’t you glad we aren’t just random thoughts, and hormones and flesh and bone? 

God created us with the desire to be more than the sum of our biology and human experiences. We are spirit. And that’s the most resilient part of us. So, we know when it’s time to get up. We know when our resting becomes wallowing. We know when it’s time to get real and get unstuck. So, why don’t we?

Because it’s hard. Left unchecked, our brains will choose what seems easy. Even if it’s killing us from the inside-out. Thoughts are powerful. They dictate our emotions. And emotions, left in charge, control our actions. Or inaction.

Let’s face it. Change is scary. So, we ride the loop around crazy town wanting change but not changing ourselves. Our desires and decisions to move forward collide with  resistance. And resistance is evil. It may be subtle. It may be loud. But, it’s always straight from hell. It brick walls us from living life in our divine design.

I know. I have a couple fresh bumps on my forehead.

So, it comes down to this. The pain of staying stuck has to become more painful than moving forward. Change is a choice. And we can only change ourselves.

Let’s look at what isn’t working ~ what keeps the stink cloud over us ~ and try something new. Now. To shake up our days and stir up our faith.

Now is the time to put pride aside and look at how we treat people.  Maybe instead of making demands, it’s time to make amends. Now is the time to say sorry and back it up by changing the way we roll. It’s okay if they don’t get it. Just do the right thing because it’s a battle for your spirit.

My friend, we are God’s children. We can pluck the hell out of today or we can let it pluck us out of our birthright. All the power and privileges that come with knowing who we are and Whose we are. “The thief [resistance] comes to kill and destroy.” Jesus came to give us abundant life (John 10:10). If we so choose.  And I do. One hundred percent.

Wake. Pray. Carpe. Repeat.

“Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.” ~ Mother Theresa.