PREPARE YOUR EYES TO READ AND YOUR HEART TO RECEIVE AS YOU TAKE IN THE WORDS THAT LOOK TO CHANGE LIVES, RENEW HEARTS, AND OPEN MINDS. If you took a score of your life, are you where you want to be emotionally, financially, physically, or spiritually? If not, why? If you could point to one thing, who or what would be holding you back? The phrase "when you point one finger, three fingers are pointing back to you" comes to my mind. I guess that is why the "knife hand" is standard now, so people won't have to take personal accountability for some of the actions and decisions they have made within their own lives to render them in the places that they find themselves. The word restraint is a measure or condition that keeps someone or something under control or within limits. When someone lacks the mental capacity to control their actions, restraints are placed on them to protect them from inflicting self-harm, self-injury, or harm to others.
We immediately think of physical restraints that restrict a person's movement, but there are chemical and environmental ones. Chemical restraints are any psychoactive medication used to intentionally inhibit a particular behavior or movement and environmental controls a person's mobility. There is a place and time when protection measures are needed. Still, in most cases, the only restraint we need is to be alone so that we can have the opportunity to assess, plan, intervene, and evaluate our lives. Another solution would be to seek an accountability partner who can provide honest feedback from the outside. We bring more pain and suffering upon ourselves than we care to admit, and then we become jaded in our decision-making because we are only looking at one side, which is usually the side we are on. Here are some lyrics from Donnell Jones's song, "Where I want to Be": "I'd rather be alone; She doesn't fully understand me That I'd rather leave than to cheat If she gives me some time, I can be the man she needs But there's a lot of lust inside of me And we've been together since our teenage years I really don't mean to hurt her, but I need some time To be alone But when you love someone, You just don't treat them bad Oh, how I feel so sad, Now that I want to leave She's crying her heart to me; how could you let this be? I just need time to see, Where I want to be" He is talking about cheating in his song, but what about the person who spends all their money on frivolous things and is short when it's time to pay bills?
How about the person who gets fired from their job because they felt the need to "be real" and tell their supervisor how they felt, or the person who curses God for letting something happen to them when in reality, they made the decision that put them into the predicament? Make today the day you start using wisdom in your decision-making process. You can either step away to fully grasp the situation or analyze both sides to see the various outcomes. You can also seek assistance from a trusted and reputable person that could provide you with guidance. Lastly, offer yourself some grace as you enter your new season so you can ultimately experience the place you want to be. #SPEAK2MYHEART
