Hit me again, Ike

“Where would Tina Turner be right now if she'd rolled over and said, ‘Hit me again, Ike,

and put some stank on it!’? Rollin' on the river, that's where she'd be.”

Where does your inspiration come from?  Old movies?  Songs?  Books?  People?  The Bible?  I would have to say mine come from all of the above.

Take this morning for example.  Steve and I were having our breakfast and I was relating to him about this person on Facebook.  The posts this person--let's call him "Ike" for now--puts up often have the tendency to irk me.  Ike often posts things that are rarely positive; some would even say they are whiny and derogatory to his employer.  The more I told Steve about his comments, the more upset Steve himself got over the silliness and outrageousness of it. Upset isn't quite the right word; irate would be better.  No, that's too strong. Maybe just plain old fed up would best suffice.

Anyway, he says to me, "Can't you just unfollow this person?  They wouldn't know if you did, right:  Facebook doesn't notify them that they are not being followed?"

I said I could but when certain of my friends comment on Ike's page, it shows up in my feed.  His oh-so-wise response that he didn't know would be the spark to set my wandering fingers ablaze this morning with this blog?  "Can't you just un-feed it?"

Whoa!

The tangents my mind took off on as I instantly thought of how many things in my life would not be so pesky and irksome if they just weren't fed!  For instance, you know how Facebook likes to send you those "On This Day" reminders of what happened this time last year, two years ago, and so on?  Things like on this day my mother died in 2012 (as though I needed to be reminded of that).  

Oh the flames that are ignited when I allow myself to dwell on all the angst, hurt, pain, and betrayal that that incident brought up.  Oh sure, there were also some great things that happened on September 3 throughout my lifetime and those things are fondly remembered but honestly, each day in this feed, it seems as though there is something there to try to steal my hard-fought for joy.  And if it's not "On This Day," then there is someone who posts a meme, a quote, a prayer request for whatever family functions and dysfunctions are going on to remind me of my own affairs.

So, what am I saying?  Am I proposing giving up Facebook so that there's not always something there to remind me of past trials?  Hmn.  It surely would eliminate a lot of my random thoughts and keep me less involved (and thereby less likely to be made aware of things that really--in all honesty--don't concern me).  It would free up many moments in my day to better use to pursue happier and more productive thoughts.  In truth, it would probably be one of the smartest things I could do: to unfeed my mind and life of inconsequential things and events.

But...

But, maybe I'm more like the meme I posted above.  Maybe I'm a closet masochist?  Maybe--like was proposed by Fletcher in the "Liar Liar" movie--maybe I enjoy being hit again and again with hurt--and while you're at it, put some stank on it?  I mean, truthfully, if it bothered me enough, wouldn't I quit exposing myself to it?  Wouldn't I unfeed this hungry shark that is never satisfied, never fulfilled, never gets enough of the misery that feeds its appetite?

Sigh.

But there's more to the quote I used this morning from Jim Carrey's dialogue here.  He follows it with "Wake up, Sisters!  There's no such thing as a weaker sex."

Read these words that Jesus told Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:

But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Hmn.  I can surely relate to the weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and difficulties Paul was writing about.  Can't you, friends?  So, while it'd probably be one of the smarter things to do--to give up Facebook, I mean--I don't believe I will.  Even though it has the tendency to reveal things to me that were previously unknown, it also only has as much power as I allow it to.  So, yeah Steve, I will "unfeed" some folks' pages.  I will unfollow more that I know are often ones who just bring me down with their own miserableness.  I won't purposely seek out their posts to see what's new with them.  After all, if it was any of my business, I'd probably already be privy to it, don't you think?  I think so too!

Let's pray!

Dear Lord...

Heavy sigh.

Father?  Thank You for once again showing me a better way.  Who knew a simple word like "unfeed" would open my eyes to something so easy to do, something that should be obvious to begin with, and something that definitely needs to be tended to in my life?  I'm a slow learner and it takes me a while, Lord, to realize what others have known for longer.  Thanks for being tolerant with me and helping me to make the necessary changes that will make me...better?  More like You?  

Yeah.  That is the ultimate goal, right?  You promised to perfect me and even though it may be taking more time than You originally planned, the race is still being run.  Fulfill Your will in me, I pray, in the name of Jesus.  Amen.