tmwhalens's commentsComments On: EverythingArticles Blogs Journals Photos created by: Everyonetmwhalens A Day in the Life of a Nurse: Surrounded By Angels - Blog Entry13 Jan 2009 03:12 PM I am trying to get going with a career in nursing. In order for me to get into nursing programs anywhere close to where I live I need a CNA license. In order to get THAT I need about $600, money I just do not have. CNA work can be tough, physically. I did it about 12 years ago. Too much time has elapsed for me to renew my license without having to pay for classes and testing. I have a bi-lateral hearing loss, and this along with terrible mouth sores I suffered from an underactive thyroid (that has since been resolved with medication), were the reasons I never chose a career in nursing (or a career, period, for that matter). I am now at a point in my life where I just do not care about my handicap and I will do whatever is necesary to make up for my hearing loss. I think that being hearing impaired all of my life will allow me to have a level of empathy for others that I might not otherwise be able to have. Can a Messy Home Make you Spend More? - Blog Entry11 Jan 2009 03:20 PM I agree that a messy home causes people to spend more. For a couple of reasons. The primary one is that you can't find what you need. Often an object intended for some other purpose can be the solution you need. (get your minds out of the gutter!) Another reason is that when our lives out of control we tend to sink into depression. And what better, albeit misguided, way put a smile on your face than to go spend money on stuff you don't need? How Can You Tell if You Are Really a Christian? - Blog Entry07 Jan 2009 09:35 PM I think those Christians that are abrasive NEED our love, as much as we should WANT to love them. Abrasiveness is a sign of insecurity, resentment and bad experiences.....in my own experience. I am working to be less abrasive toward others, and God has helped me to feel more secure about myself, less resentful of the way I might have been treated (or perceived that treatment) in the past. The Church In Danger - Blog Entry07 Jan 2009 09:30 PM This article hits on something that bothered me for YEARS. I was looking for 'proof' that God worked. Occasionally I'd hear a sermon and feel the Holy Spirit from within the church. Or something unexpectedly good would happen to me, and I'd think that God was looking out for me. How often do you EVER hear someone famous say "God was looking out for me" when something bad happens to them? How often do famous people point their finger to the sky (in reference to God) when they win a game or a championship? How often do people "Thank the Lord for that!" when they win the lottery? I knew God existed when I asked him to take complete control of my life. I've not been the same since, in fact I don't even identify with the person that used to defy Him. Does it Matter if You Don't Go to Church and WorshipTogether? - Blog Entry07 Jan 2009 09:26 PM There is no question in my mind that my wife was spiritually weak, and that I was possessed by some other than a good spirit. I can say that because in a month's time I went from living in a very dark world to being possessed by the Holy Spirit. There is nothing similar between the two. Never once did my wife or I get the Bible out together. She rarely got the Bible out. Rarely did we go to church together, and when we did neither of us sang for the Lord. Neither of us ever talked about the Lord. Why We Don't Need Signs and Wonders - Blog Entry07 Jan 2009 09:23 PM Dale, thanks for this article! When my wife left (and took our son with her) me just over a month ago it was all I needed in a way of a miracle to show me that God DOES change people for the better. This is the first time I've said this to anyone, but here goes..............and I say this with sadness................I felt 'trapped' in the path I was heading downward from being a male and transforming into a female. The two things that conspired against me were that (a) I had found what I 'thought' was happiness in myself and (b) everyone and my personal history had told me that I was a quitter at everything I did. I NEEDED a way out of the hell I was living in. God released me. That is not to say that my wife was somehow responsible for this, it's just that I can recall thinking more than once along the way "I can't decide if I want to be a man or a woman, I need a reason to stop doing this". God saved my life by taking away my family. He gave me and even better life when I willingly, openly and enthusiastically devoted my life to him. I told Him that I was TIRED of trying to make things work in my own life, that I needed His help. I will be forever grateful for what He has done. A Completely Changed Life - Blog Entry07 Jan 2009 06:44 PM At this time I do not know how much (how many) of my experiences with men were because I was/am (still not sure) bisexual, and to what degree it might have been caused by not having a father figure growing up that actually spent time with me (instead of always working). For whatever reason when I am around men I do feel an attraction (or it may be an unsettling of sorts because of 'experiences' with them), but I am mainly (or totally?) attracted to women. The one thing I know for sure is that I did not have a father, while growing up, that was a friend or spent any real amount of time with me. And, I do think that had an impact on my perception of (or lust for) men from that point going forward. But as I have learned more about this and came to an understanding that I can still BE a man and function as a husband, father and spiritual beacon of sorts, that attraction for the male figure has begun to dim. God's Timing vs. Our Timing - Blog Entry05 Jan 2009 06:47 PM Melissa, SUPER ARTICLE! It has been nearly a month since I have seen either my wife or our beautiful 2 1/2 year old son. It was the day that my wife walked out the door (with our son) while I was at work, then finding her note on the kitchen counter saying that she left, that I threw my hands up at the Lord and told him that I could not go any further in my life 'alone', that I had proven that I could not conquer the demons that made a home in my soul; that I could not see all the goodness (light) in my life for all the darkness that made up the world I was immersing myself in. God changed my life, permanently, on that day. I know that. Any Christian that has truely been blessed by God by Him taking away very precious things that he or she loves, knows that God's Light is always on. We don't need to know where the light switch is. We don't need to worry about tripping over the things we don't see. We just need to look toward Him. Very plain and simple! Whether my wife and son are ever a part of my life again.......please don't misconstrue what I am saying here.......I struggle daily with not being able to see either of them aside from the memories I have of them........I am SO HAPPY to have had the privilege of completely opening up my mind, heart and soul to the Lord. I have an inner peace that was never there before. |
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