First action, then prayer.

I've been sharing with you all my recent journey to feel life, even the hard stuff.  To really face it, sit in it, and come out the other side.

Yesterday I couldn't figure out "how to sit" with all that was going on around me.  Between things with Steve and the world I was feeling too much.  In conversation there have been several people (who I won't call out on the blog), tell me "Give it to God and let it go," or the popular, "Give it light and love and let it go." 

So sure, there is a time and a place for these phrases.  However, I feel like there's been a lot of giving it to God and not a lot of action.  We need action.  I understand I'm limited with what I can do in our situation and that trying to take on too much is useless because it will lead to burn out and frustration.

For whatever reason people like to read what I write in different forums, and for that it makes me feel like this is my call to action.  To use my voice to speak out for what I believe in.  If we all used whatever skills we had to bring action and change instead of just giving it to God, we can make a much bigger difference.  Interestingly enough the Dali Lama talked about it yesterday.  He said, "Real change comes through action....then on top of that some prayer."

This is how I imagine God when he hears prayer and sees very little action.   (note:I'm not quoting or suggesting by any means I know what God thinks, just making a point.)

Insert prayer for planet/country/violence.
God, "I would love to help you dear ones, just as soon as you all learn to help yourselves."

In my mind I feel like it is OUR responsibility as humans to solve problems we've created.  What can we do?  I've been doing some serious brain storming on what I can do, and the best I've come up with is to write about it.  So I will be over the next several days, in hopes that it can inspire those WHO can, to DO.  Most of us are capable of doing SOMETHING to help.  

Here's one thought I will leave you with and will blog about this subject a little more in depth the next couple days.  I keep thinking about the saying, "Hurt people, hurt people." Are we reaching out to those hurting around us?  There's so many stories and different speculations about why this man decided to shoot 50 people and injure many more; and from what I can see is that he was a hurt person, who decided to hurt other people to try to stop the hurt.  

If you see someone hurting.  Talk to them, hear them, send them love.   The more we try to connect with one another the more we can try to eliminate the hate, the pain, and the senseless violence.  I know my time is limited and I don't have it to put on my therapist cap for everyone I come in contact with, but if I listen to just one hurting person, and can help them feel loved and come back to love; I've done enough.  We don't have to think about helping everyone, because only one person did this crime this past weekend.  If someone had gotten to talk to him where would we be today?  

Where do you feel called to action? Share with me if you're feeling it. 

I love you all. xo