The Stream
Our lives, and our bodies are inside an endless state of movement. The flow or STREAM of time. Each second of time ticks forward being replaced by another and another never stopping. And with each and every new second we have an opportunity to redeem our thoughts which can lead to new and better beliefs, and then actions. If things aren’t right you DON’T have to continue thinking the way you do and doing the things you do, (or don’t do). You CAN improve your life at any moment! This is the gift of being in the Stream!
For example what are you doing right now? Sitting down and reading this I’m guessing. But what about an hour from now? Or tomorrow? Obviously if you are happy with your life no change is needed. You’ve achieved what few people ever do. A happy contented life. However, if you’re not quite there, not to worry! The Stream is ready for you. You still have breath in your lungs and a mind that can think. You can chart a new or better course. And you’ve begun this journey by CHOOSING to read the words I’ve typed out on this page!
Have you ever heard that a jetliner flying through the sky is off course 99% of the time? [1] It’s true. Moment by moment the pilot must make small adjustments to keep the plane on course. And we are all the pilots of our own “life airplanes”. We’re going somewhere. Even if we don’t think so we are moving with the Stream. Impacting ourselves and others with our faces, words, body language and actions. Sometimes our plane flies smooth and straight. We’re moving along going where we want, (or think we need) to go. Other times the plane makes dramatic turns trying to avoiding an obstacle or needing to aim for a different destination.
I’m sure you get the analogy. You no doubt have had to change course and adjust to what life threw at you. And maybe what life’s throwing at you right now. It can sometimes seem like you no longer are in the “drivers seat”. Are no longer the pilot… Life, in the digital age, can just seem like too much. So what to do?
Well firstly it’s important to remember that even when life is crazy, you are not in the Stream by accident. The “Stream Maker” put you there. Since the day you showed up there was and is a purpose in your being here. True for all of us. Our job is to discover what that purpose is and what that means. When we look at the Good Book we discover that we are to “love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love our neighbor as our friend”. And how can we do this? By flying our planes well one could say. Amazingly God put us in the Stream and gave us free will so we can fly wherever we wish. What I’ve learned however is that the more I fly like God wants the better my flight goes. So learning how God wants me to fly is a good idea.
But what to do when your planes not flying where it should? You need to remember who creating the Stream, created your plane, (life) and made you Pilot. Or better co-pilot. But whether you believe your the pilot or co-pilot you must remember to fly your plane!
You are the one steering! So steer! The Stream is ready. And that begins with our thoughts. Right now you are thinking things. What are those thoughts? Are you thinking all this motivational stuff is stupid…doesn’t really work? Or thoughts like “you don’t know what I’ve been through or am going through right now”. True. This doesn’t change who the pilot is though. Don’t misunderstand. Pain, struggle, suffering and loss can be brutal. But we don’t need to stay stuck in it. We can change what we look at with our eyes and listen to with our ears.
In August of 2018 my kidney, or more accurately my wife’s kidney, finally stopped working, (she donated one to me in 2008). This was a big change that, though I knew was coming, has been a challenge to adjust too. I now have to sit in a chair for 4 hours 3 days a week on dialysis. My job, which pays the bills, lost its primary employee, me, for 13 or more hours a week. I have a wife and two boys to take care of. Now what? My plane was going to need to adjust its flight path…. How? Wasn’t exactly sure.
So what did I do? Well I felt sorry for myself for a bit but quickly realized that wasn’t helping me feel better. I decided to work at keeping my thoughts focused on what’s been called “possibility thinking”. Thoughts that helped and not hindered me. I leaned into my faith more. Chose to remember that I’m not an accident. That I’m hear for a purpose and that God DOES have a plan for me going forward, (it says this all through the Good Book…).
I decided to try and find things to do during my four hour dialysis runs. Like writing this blog. Or listening to podcasts in areas of information I needed to learn. I also remembered when I was on dialysis many years ago and how I practiced drawing or sketching. Point is I’ve adjusted my plane to fly in the Stream. Moment by moment I can decide how to think as I fly along. I can also ask for help. I am the pilot, (or more accurately co-pilot), but smart pilots constantly ask others for help and direction. No matter where the worldly Stream continues to flow until my last breath on earth. After that, I’ll step into the Heavenly Stream. And the flow will continue. But before then let us all continue to remember we ARE the pilot of our life plane. And the Stream is ALWAYS ready to take us to where our thoughts can, do, and will take us.
- Dave