I realize we may have differences of opinion on the “springing forward” event. Still, I am not particularly thrilled to get up and dress in the early morning darkness and have sleepiness be my companion throughout the morning and sometimes most of the day. However, the extended daylight hours do have benefits.
 
Despite the trial of sleep adjustment, Daylight Savings Time (DST) adds a lot more light to the evening hours, which can bring many advantages during the spring and summer months.
 
Most people gradually adjust to the time change over different intervals ranging from a few days to one week. Their physical and social profiles influence their adjustment period.
 
The celebration of Easter and Passover, which occur soon after the beginning of DST, are also light givers to the soul and bring innumerable benefits to our lives. Both Easter and Passover are celebrations of freedom, light, hope, love, and joy for today and the future.
 
The Passover (“Pesach”) celebration begins the evening of the 14th of Nisan (March—April), the first month of the Jewish calendar. Easter celebrations were formally adopted by ecclesiastical authority in the 7th century as the Sunday following the 14th day of the calendar moon.
 
Passover celebrations tell the story (Haggadah) of freedom from Egyptian bondage through a Passover meal (seder; Hebrew for order)). Easter celebrations tell the Bible story of freedom for mankind through the Messiah's death, burial, and resurrection.
 
The Christian community regards Easter as the most important event in the Christian church. On this day, more people attend church than on any other holiday.
 
Many families often engage in the tradition of giving children Easter baskets filled with chocolate bunnies, coloring easter eggs, or participating in an easter egg hunt. Although these practices may excite children, this tradition completely overlooks the Biblical meaning of Easter.
 
If you ever want to learn more about a Passover celebration, you may consider attending a Livestream or virtual Passover seder. Your internet can provide you with additional information on locating these events.
 
DST may bring us temporary extended light for several months, but the celebrations of Passover and Easter bring eternal blessings. Whether you belong to the Christian community or Jewish community, you have the opportunity to experience the foundations of light—everlasting love and uncommon grace as expressed in the Bible and the Haggadah.

I cannot begin to count the number of times I have heard someone utter the words, “It’s not fair.” Circumstances had arisen in different situations that made the person or persons feel they were being treated unjustly.
 
The list of events that seems unfair is endless.

• Being passed over for a promotion that you believe you deserved
• An acquaintance receives an inheritance and has no financial worries, while you are barely making ends meet.
• You lose a spouse or child.
• A husband and wife can’t have children, yet hundreds of unwanted children are placed in foster care or with adoption centers every day.

 
If I were to take a survey of how many of our perceived unjust situations have turned out to be blessings in disguise, I am certain it would be an eye-opener. Many negative situations have been known to evolve into a warm fuzzy that occurred later. Perhaps, shortly after that door closed on the desired promotion, another company offered you a more rewarding job with more money and fewer headaches.
 
The secret to moving through inequitable scenarios, is to look for the benefits that are usually present. You may have to wait a little longer to see them, but they usually appear. Inner strength is also developed, and there is always a lesson in the situation which will become apparent over time.
 
David, the shepherd boy, was at a definite disadvantage and in a seemingly unfair and impossible situation when he faced the Philistine giant, Goliath. But he confidently informed King Saul he was no slouch, having killed a lion and a bear with his bare hands. When he came face-to-face with Goliath, he belittled him and told him he had Divine help from the Lord God. David struck Goliath in the head with a stone that killed him, and proceeded to cut off his head. (1 Samuel 17: 34;45-46) How’s that for overcoming all the odds!
 
The parable of the workers in the vineyard describes how God’s grace is always active. A landowner hired idle, unemployed workers at different times of the day to work in his vineyard. No matter what hour of the day they started, at the end of the day, they were paid equally for the work they performed. (Matthew 20:1-16)
 
The workers who had been working since 9:00 in the morning grumbled about it being unfair that those who worked only an hour received the same pay as the workers who had been toiling since morning. The owner listened to their grumbling but did not take back the money he had paid the one-hour workers. To the owner, it didn’t matter how long each worker spent working. As the owner of the vineyard, he had the right to express his favor over all of the workers by giving them equal pay.
 
This parable applies equally to us. God’s grace deposited in the most negative circumstance, is everlasting and will move you forward regardless of the scenario. The author of the best-selling book “When God Winks at You” illustrates how “coincidence” can bring Divine intervention into a negative situation. If a situation seems unfair, pray, and wait for God’s grace to intervene. ¹

As I sat down to write this Nugget, I reflected back to a conversation I had with a critically ill friend who was recently diagnosed with cancer. On several occasions, she has asked me to explain the foundation of my writing. She also quizzed me about my spiritual inspiration. Well, I knew that if she was inquiring, others probably had the same curiosity.
 
Nugget 44 is my response to these questions. This Nugget will have a slightly different slant than the other 43 I have written. This one will focus on my spiritual relationship. It does not in any way deviate from my Mission to write Words to Help You Leap Over the Bumps in Your Life Journey. In fact, I hope it will express the foundation of my inspiration behind the Nuggets.
 
I pray that no one who reads this Nugget will be offended by it. But if you will permit me to use a cliché, my prayer is that you “won’t throw the baby out with the bath water.”
 
I am thoroughly blessed to know that some have signed up to receive my Nuggets who may be on a different spiritual road than mine. I respect your personal choices. With great sincerity, I assure you that my intent is never to offend. It is to help you stay focused and full of hope as you travel through your life journey. Often, there are so many challenges that it is easy to lose our way and veer off course. But I encourage you always to remember this: You are never forsaken.
 
When Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt, they had to travel through the wilderness and pass through some extremely dense places before they found a resting place. They had no maps, no GPS, no radar guidance systems, or other technological directional devices. But God never let them travel aimlessly during the day or night. He provided light every step of the way with a pillar of cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night. So, it is with great hope that my Nuggets will inspire you if you face unknown or unforeseen circumstances.
 
When I first began my writing mission, I wanted it to be clear to everyone that the foundation of my Nuggets was built on the Bible. I put my faith in what the Bible declares. I believe it is truth and that it clearly provides me a journey map for living a successful life.
 
The history of the Bible provides excellent insight into several of the present-day scenarios. The people loved, worked, married, gave birth to children, and engaged in family life. Bad choices and excuses were made, crimes were committed, and fights and wars were regular happenings.
 
When you study the Bible, you always find similarities to at least one of our modern-day cartoon characters and/or super-heroes. There were divisions caused by leaders and even priests who seized every opportunity to cause discord and strife. The parallels of the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote appear throughout the Bible chapters. There was no shortage of faithlessness, stubbornness, and rebellious self-will. Oh yes, and lest we forget, they had more than one pandemic (plagues).
 
Here is the amazing part! In the twenty-first century, we are still duplicating some of the same deadly actions as occurred in the early Bible. Frankly, I wonder how humanity survived. Yet, here we are, alive and well and still traveling through life.
 
I wondered why, with such a turbulent biblical journey over many centuries we are still privileged to live in a universe filled with opportunities for joy and well-being. Needless to say, our course has not been without its challenges. As I reached the end of the Old Testament, I realized that the only thing holding us together has always been God’s everlasting love.
 
The Gospels and the remaining letters of Paul and the other emissaries describe God’s remarkable nature and character of love and grace. The sum of everything: I wanted to know about why humanity still exists and why it is still wrapped in one of the most significant scriptures ever spoken or written:
 
“For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten [unique] Son…”
 
To finalize my answer to the question concerning the spiritual inspiration for my writing, I made my personal choice to believe in Jesus Christ as my redeeming God and Savior. The words “my personal choice” are emphasized to ensure that I do not leave the impression that I am trampling upon the personal choice of another.
 
My purpose in writing the Nuggets is always to inspire you with hope and trust in God and His remarkable plan for your life journey. If you put your hope and trust in Him, He will show you how to use your gifts and talents to lift others to a higher purpose, directing them toward truth, joy, and light and maybe even inspiring you to write your own set of Nuggets.