The best thing about retirement is waking up in the morning without an alarm. Oh yes, I still wake up at 6:30 but now, I don’t have to get out of bed till I’m ready. I can lie there and luxuriate in that time between waking and sleeping. For me it feels like a moment of paradise with God. It’s a creative time.
One morning last week, as I awoke, I heard myself declare out loud, “I can do anything. I’m wonderful.” My husband stirred in his sleep, flopped his arm over me and whispered, “I love you.” Those words stayed with me all day. I believe that God was giving me a message.
The night before, I had been feeling overwhelmed. Life was too busy. The challenges had grown beyond my ability to cope. I wanted to give up. My night time prayer had been filled with moans. “I’m exhausted, God. I can’t do it. I’m just one person.”
When I had my personal counseling business, I told clients who were feeling inadequate, overwhelmed, beaten by life, to practice the following exercise. “At least five times a day, look in the mirror and say, “God loves me. I am wonderful. I can do anything.” The exercise had amazing results. Depressed, defeated people who followed my instructions found new life.
Last week, God reminded me to follow my own instructions. And so, I offer them to you. If you’ve been feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, a failure, change the message you’ve been giving yourself. God does love you. You are wonderful. With God, you can do anything. Add God’s power to your life.

“So God created humankind in God’s own image, in the image of God, they were created; male and female he created them…God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. (Genesis 1: 27, 31)