Reflection
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,
for your God will be with you wherever you go.
Joshua 1:9
Strength is not in being a stoic but in having the courage to be a full human being. To be whole is to be real with emotions, strengths and weaknesses. Somewhere in our growing up we may have learned to survive by suppressing what is real. Often we are hurt, rejected, disappointed or suffering but we put all our efforts into convincing ourselves and others that nothing is wrong. We deny ourselves the relief of facing what is real and verbalizing it. We try to be “strong” and instead we slowly deplete our inner energy. Reality enables us to say I am hurting because of what you said or what you are suffering or how I have been treated. I am disappointed because my expectations have not been met, my hopes have been thwarted, and this situation is draining me. To be strong is to admit the truth and have the freedom to seek healing.
Prayer
Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
John 14:27
Action
Reflect on what your real feelings are in your life situation. Admit them to yourself. Analyze the causes. Try to make a habit of this.
Suggested Readings
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Psalm 73:26
That is why I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
2 Corinthians 12:10
Do not wish to be anything but what you are, and try to be that perfectly.
Hope has two beautiful daughters: their names are anger and courage. Anger that things are the way they are. Courage to make them the way they ought to be.
St. Augustine
It is worth remembering that the time of greatest gain in terms of wisdom and inner strength is often that of greatest difficulty.
Dalai Lama
Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them – that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.
Lao Tzu
Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.
Soren Kierkegaard
The most important kind of freedom is to be what you really are. You trade in your reality for a role. You give up your ability to feel, and in exchange, put on a mask.
Jim Morrison
Love is the only reality and it is not a mere sentiment. It is the ultimate truth that lies at the heart of creation.
Rabindranath Tagore
Don’t let someone else’s opinion of you become your reality.
Les Brown
Never apologize for showing feeling. When you do so, you apologize for the truth.
Benjamin Disraeli
Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom.
Thomas Jefferson