Resolving Bitterness

While hanging out here in the "Hotel Paoli" I have taken the opportunity to catch up on a few podcasts from Daybreak. The most recent one was Break Through Bitterness which talks about identifying and eliminating bitterness in your life. Forgiveness through grace being the predominate route for this difficult task. Well timed, I think. Some time ago I went through a difficult professional experience and then a month or so ago I had the chance to face one of the individuals primarily responsible for this difficulty. I found it surprisingly cathartic to shake his hand and let it go. How many more applications for this are there in my life? I think it's pretty easy to allow these things to fester under the surface and then ignore the bubbling up of the bitterness out of context. It is harder to address the issue in question directly and deal with it but far more efficacious for healing and restoring or maintaining relationships.

All that being said, one thing hit me particularly hard. John mentions the timing of this process. His summary was basically (forgive me if I don't get this exactly) When God says to forgive, He does not give a time table or add a bit about, When it is convenient, rather it is a directive to ACT. I have a few more applications for this that I am struggling to ACT on and this is pushing me to prayer in these areas.

Update on my ppc-6700

So... After my posts about the rotten experience I had with Verizon and my phone, I got a new one and I'm happy with it. Finally. Actually, I am very happy to have it right now. The 802.11 support and the office and other app integration has been a boon to me as of late. Being disconnected from my laptops, I have relied on my phone for email and web connectivity as well as office docs and so on.

Having a convergence device that holds music, photos, accesses the cell networks and 802.11 networks as well as lets me run my productivity apps is better then you might think at first. One device - manages most. Nothing optimally, but most things acceptably. I'll keep it. (for now)

Careful what you ask for

Right now, Im composing this post on my smartphone using the hospitals wireless network while I lay in my bed. It's 6 something in the morning. I was praying the other day for a renewed closeness with God. Not that I was distant or anything, I was just looking for more. Maybe this is His answer. ;)

Nothing deepens a relationship like dependence, right? I thought the days with this illness were behind me but maybe I just needed a little reminder that there is a bigger picture I'm a part of. Reference my earlier post - what's my role? For now I think, it is to be thankful for grace and strength. What a gift we have.

Wildcharge

While at work today, I finally came across an (almost) shipping version of what I have been hoping for. It's called Wildcharge and it offers true wireless power. There are a number of competing products that I've found as well indicating that the market may finally be ready! True wireless - I will buy it!

Verizon and my ppc-6700

So a while ago, I bought a new ppc-6700 from Verizon wireless to consolidate some functionality. I have my office apps, mapping software, photos, some tunes and oh yeah - a phone, all in one convenient device. Sounds good, right? I thought so. Then it happened. The screen stopped responding to input - bummer, but hey, I have the warranty through Verizon, plus the insurance plan so I'm covered. (I thought)

I went through all the troubleshooting steps in the manual and also the ones I found online, finally resetting it to factory defaults. When I took it to the Verizon tech, it took over an hour of explanation and repeating the steps to convince them to give me a replacement. Of course, none was to be had in the store but they would mail me a refurb device (I thought it was supposed to be a new one) in a week - quicker if I wanted to pay for it. No thanks, I'll wait the week.

The new device arrived! So I got it up and running and I moved all my stuff over. Then it began flaking out on me. At first, it was random - power cycling and so on. As time went on, it got worse and worse until it just shut itself completely off every time I left it alone for more than a matter of minutes. This is bad, especially when you use it for business as well as fun. Another trip to Verizon#$%@ This time, only 20 minutes to convince them it was broken since it would not stay on to troubleshoot - I suppose that's progress, right? Then I had to convince the phone rep that I did not want to buy another phone (I was eligible for an upgrade) but I wanted them to replace the phone again under warranty. Well, they are shipping a new one, we will see how it goes. I think the next phone I buy will be a mil-spec basic phone...

Got my new phone - wouldn't you know it, it failed also. Again Verizon hit me with the, why don't you just pay to upgrade line. Well, that's customer service. It took a mention of the better business bureau to get them to rethink their position. Finally I got a new phone. Let's hope I meet with more success then the last couple of times. At this point I have spent hours on the phone with Verizon and as much time in the store itself. Whatever happened to customer service? I guess it went the way of the dinos and bag phones...

The story of life

I recently read a book titled Epic, suggested by a friend of mine. The book was written by John Eldredge and was a very quick read with an interesting message. The basic idea of the book is that life is a story that God is telling and the story of creation and the universe is imprinted in every person. The essential elements of hero, struggle and redemption are being reflected in popular culture and stories.

After reflecting on the ideas for a while, I like the image that it provides me. The question of, is there something more? is answered in the story. We have to identify our part in the story and what role we play. I had another friend recently ask me what my role was in life. He had watched the movie, "The Lady in the Water" and was caught up in the idea of the story and roles we play. I think the ideas are directly related and worth working through.

What is your role?

What is mine?