Psalm 66: 1-2  Make a joyful noise unto God all ye lands:  Sing forth the honour of his name:  make his praise glorious.

Do you make a joyful noise or are you just noisy?  When your friends and relatives see you coming do they say, “oh good, here comes ______, she is just so pleasant and fun to be around” or do they say, “Oh Lord, here she comes!”

I know I have to watch myself more with Bill than I do anyone, how sad is that?  He travels so much and God has really convicted me that as little as we get to talk on the phone while he is gone I need to watch my words so he doesn’t just get bombarded with all of the negative that is going on around me but for me to look for the good.  Trust me, even though I am overall a very positive person it can get difficult at times to not get on the phone and say this happened and then that happened and then he said and she said and on and on because of the frustration level of life at times, but that doesn’t mean he needs or is up to hearing it.  I’m not saying that he doesn’t need to hear what is going on, he does, but there is a time and a place and it is important for us, as women, to choose our words and timing for our words carefully, we have so many of them.  On the other hand as I have said before, my family, especially my sisters seem to expect entertainment when I call whether we are talking about something serious or not they are ready to laugh.

We need good friends that we can share our burdens with but those same friends need to be able to share in our fun and laughter.  Make sure that your words are not always negative and discouraging and take the time to listen to others when they are having a rough time.  Pray for God to show you when you are being the burden, not just sharing a burden.  It is natural for women to need to talk through all of our problems, just make sure you are sharing everything, not just your problems.  Start your days on a positive note and ask God to fill you with His joy for the day, pray for discernment for when to share and when not to share.  God doesn’t intend for you to carry your burdens all alone, give them to him and when you need someone to talk to about them ask God to give you the right friends, friends that can help lift you up in your time of need and encourage you through it.  Remember also when someone comes to you to share what they are going through that it is your turn to be the uplifter and encourager.  God may have told her to come to you, so don’t miss out on the opportunity to be used by God.

Quote:  “Caring about others, running the risk of feeling and leaving an impact on people brings happiness.”  Rabbi Harold Kushner