LIFE'S EXPERIENCES through a REFLECTIVE LENS: More than 50 heart-warming stories and expositions to challenge you and lift you up spiritually It is difficult to successfully go through life without being a critical thinker. Without deep thought one is prone to repeating mistakes without learning lessons. You are likely to grope for the handle while the door is open! If you seldom think deeply you will miss obvious opportunities and blame the guiltless! In fact, we often blame God for our blunders because we seldom reflect. Life is a journey and the nature of the path varies at different points. Sometimes the path is bumpy; at other times, it is thorny or crooked. We may meet lions and bears along the way. We seldom quit the journey though we are often discouraged. We keep travelling with the destination constantly on our minds. No matter how rugged the road may be, the thought that we will someday arrive at home keeps us going. We meet and greet other pilgrims, offer helping hands to the discouraged on the way and refreshment to the road-weary where we can. We observe the flowers, and smell the petals and the earth as the first drops of rain arrive in due season. At the end of every journey, we are often left with great stories to tell and, if we were good observers, we are invariably richer at the end of the journey than when we first set out. In 'Life's Experiences through a Reflective Lens' I invite you to come on a journey with me. Here you will find stories to challenge you, warm your heart, and spiritually uplift you. I believe that our lives are stories being played out under the watchful eyes of the benevolent Great Author (God). As we mature, He invites us to co-author our life's stories with Him. Those who accept this invitation continue to tell this story through the filter of the lens of God's Words. God walks with us every day, guides us through thick and thin, through deserts, parched lands, hills and valleys, war and peace, joy and overwhelming sadness; yet in those trials and amid storms God never leaves us. He continues to open our eyes and helps us understand how the pieces of the puzzle fit into the larger picture. He allows everything that happens in our lives and sets the timing of the events. He cushions us and lifts us to a closer relationship with Him each time we overcome or even falter. He continues to write the story of our lives and invites us to be active participants. Please come with me! Let's peep into some of the places God has taken me and I will share what He has taught me. Laugh if you must, a little humor can heal the heart; after all Proverbs 17:27 affirms that a cheerful heart is good medicine. Shed a tear or two if you want to but never forget the lesson behind every story. Trust me! Your mind will be opened at the end of each story and you will likely become a keener observer of God's interaction with you in everyday life! Never again will you go through life's experiences or the Scriptures without learning the lessons they mean to teach you.