Forwarded Messages

The Greatest Story Ever Told

2017-03-20T10:46:00.001+04:00

The unfolding of your words gives light;
it gives understanding to the simple.

PSALM 119:130

Sharing this video forwarded by a friend... thank you Nick.

#WorthWatching #WorthForwarding #ForwardedMessages

A Little Each Day

2016-06-20T15:23:00.000+04:00

This is the day the LORD has made.
We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Please, LORD, please save us.
Please, LORD, please give us success
( Psalm 118:24-25 NLT).

The really good coaches are smart cookies. Forget the "dumb jock" jokes, and pay attention to their ability to motivate — and focus on what matters.

One of several nicknames carried by the late UCLA basketball coach John Wooden was The Wizard of Westwood. During his eventful career, he mentored — not just coached — dozens of men who went on to success both in the NBA and in a variety of careers outside athletics. Along the way, his teams won a record ten national titles and set a record 88-game collegiate winning streak. He died in 2010 but remains one of the most respected figures in all of sports.

Wooden was a reflective man whose speeches, books, and occasional interviews scattered gems of practical wisdom. A Christian who read his Bible daily, many of those tidbits mirror the teachings of the Master Teacher.

In an interview he gave Adam Schefter, sports writer for The Denver Post, he quoted a line he said he used frequently at practice sessions: "I want you to improve a little each day. Don't expect to improve a lot. Today is the day, the only day you can do anything about." That aphorism doesn't fit basketball alone.

We are an instant-results, quick-fix society. Quality gets sacrificed along the way. People are seen only as clients and consumers. Relationships that are going to require effort to create or repair are just abandoned. Corners are cut, rules are broken, and disastrous consequences follow. In the aftermath, we either wonder why we feel so empty or blame God for letting us down — or both.

You can't build a championship-caliber team in a day. No single play in the game plan turns losers into champions. No one sales meeting transforms a company's bottom line. No weekend marriage or parenting seminar can set right the impaired relationships of a struggling family. No one sermon or inspirational worship time defines a church to set right its troubles or lift it from the doldrums. "Today is the only day that matters," Wooden added. "Yesterday will never change. Learn from it, but you'll never change it. And tomorrow is yet to be. What can only be affected is today. That's what I want. Each day."

Don't be foolish enough to think you can set everything right today, but be wise enough to know you can do a little bit toward your goal. Deepen your faith, strengthen your family, focus your career path, encourage a friend, repair a damaged relationship — today. Just a tiny bit. Without expecting a lot. Then trust God to work over the long haul to bring you an outcome that is right and holy.

The mosaic of life is created from the tiny fragments we call todays.
And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever- increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:18 NIV).

>> Forwarded by Justine Reily >>

Seeing Jesus Christ Is In Every Book of the Bible

2016-05-19T18:07:00.000+04:00

Contentment

2016-04-07T20:42:00.001+04:00

I'm afraid of what might happen to the church if abundance comes to the island." That's how one of my Christian friends in Cuba described his country's situation. People in Cuba are going through a time of hardship, with the weight of international disputes falling on the shoulders of ordinary people.

In these difficult times, people are looking for God. They are hungry for hope. Churches are growing at a fantastic rate.

My friend is concerned that some of that could change should conditions improve. He doesn't desire suffering on anyone; he's just aware that abundance brings its own problems.

I know that he's right, for the Bible says many similar things. Jesus talked about how hard it is for the rich to be saved (Matthew 19:23-24), and he warned of gathering riches in this life rather than the coming one (Matthew 6:19-21). In one of his parables, Jesus warned of "the deceitfulness of riches" that could choke out a growing faith (Matthew 13:22). The apostle Paul said that trying to get rich was a good way to ruin your faith (1 Timothy 6:9-10).

That's why we each have to make a decision. What are we going to prioritize? Will we put more emphasis on comfort, pleasure, and financial security? Or will we seek faithfulness to God above all else?

Jesus explained it this way:
No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money (Matthew 6:24).

Christians can be rich. Rich people can be Christians. But we need to remember that material things can often get in the way of our faith. We need to keep Paul's words in mind:
But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that (1 Timothy 6:6-8).

Godliness with contentment. That should be our goal.

---

Forwarded by Dan Vielo

Be Careful Where You Build

2016-03-07T18:39:00.000+04:00

If you're going to spend over $650,000 building a new house, there's one important thing to do before you begin: make sure you are building in the right place.

That's the lesson a Missouri couple learned the hard way. While building a luxury home in a beachfront development in Florida, they accidentally constructed on the lot next to the one they owned; they built on land belonging to someone else. The initial survey of the property was wrong, leading to the misplaced construction. Hopefully an acceptable agreement can be reached with the neighbors on whose land the house was built.

You may also have heard the news about the Rhode Island developer that mistakenly built a $1.8 million house on public park land. Again, the survey was wrong. The error came to light when prospective buyers had their own survey done of the property. In that case, no settlement could be reached, and the Rhode Island Supreme Court ordered the house removed from public land.

Jesus talked about two men that built houses; one who built in the right place, one who built in the wrong place. We read the story in the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 6:
"I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete." (Luke 6:47-49)

If we build our lives on the teachings of Jesus, we'll have a solid foundation that will see us through even the hardest times. If we choose to build somewhere else, we may very well find ourselves with a life that can't stand up to life's trials.

THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS, ONEEH...

God bless you.

I AM

2015-11-03T11:52:00.000+04:00

We are connected to our iPhones, iPads, iTouch, iTunes, iMac, iChat,
but have we lost the connection to the I AM?

God says:

"I am your shield, your exceeding great reward"
Genesis 15:1

"I am Almighty God, walk before me and be blameless"
Genesis 17:1

"I am the God of your father Abraham … for I am with you"
Genesis 26:24

"I am the Lord, that is My name"

Isaiah 42:8

"For I am God and there is no other, I am God and there is none like Me"
Isaiah 46:9

"I am who I AM, thus you say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you
Exodus 3:14

"I am with you"
Jeremiah 1:14

"I am merciful"
Jeremiah 3:12

Jesus says:

"I am the living bread which came down from Heaven"
John 6:51

"I am from Him and He sent me"
John 7:29

"I am the light of the world."
John 8:12

"I am the door" John 10:9

"I am the good shepherd"
John 10:11

"I am the resurrection and the life"
John 11:25

"I am the way, the truth, and the life"
John 14:60.

"I am the vine, you are the branches"
John 15:5

"I am Jesus ..."
Acts 9:5

So the question awaits your answer...
Are you more connected to your iDevice or the I AM?

---

Forwarded by Tina. thank you

When You Need Wisdom

2015-10-26T11:27:00.000+04:00

If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you.
He will not rebuke you for asking.
But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone.
Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea
that is blown and tossed by the wind.
(James 1:5-6 NLT)

Father, give me wisdom as I begin this new day.
Help me to use my time,the time You have allotted me, wisely, not wastefully.

Father, give me wisdom as I write these words.
Please put words into my mind and allow them to flow into thoughts
that are good news to the poor, that announce pardon to the imprisoned,
recovery of sight to the blind, words that set the burdened and battered free,
and words that announce, "This is God’s year to act!" (Luke 4:18-19 MSG).

Father, give me wisdom so that when I speak I will say things that are

pure and clean and words that help and give life to those who listen.

Father, give me wisdom to lead my family in ways that help them walk closer to You.
Give me wisdom to be the husband that honors my wife
and allows her to be respectful of me.

Give me wisdom to be the father that understands my children
and helps to give them the confidence they need to fulfill the dreams
You have placed in their hearts.
Give me wisdom to love my daughter-in-law
so she can have peace in her heart as a wife and a mother.
Give me wisdom to love and protect my granddaughter
so that she will grow strong and feel Your presence every day of her life.

Give me wisdom to share the wisdom You give me with these special

people so that they can be the people You want them to be.

Father, give me wisdom to counsel people who come to me for help.
Give me the wisdom to know when to speak and when to be silent,
when to be bold and when to be gentle, when to instruct and when to listen.

Father, give me the wisdom to know when to be angry,
when to be sad, when to laugh, and when to cry.

Give me the wisdom to know that forgiveness is always the right move.
Give me the wisdom to always accept Your forgiveness
and to realize I am worthless without it.
Give me wisdom to depend on You as if my life depended on it,
and the wisdom to realize that it does.

Father, give me wisdom to lead others in their walk with You.
Give me the wisdom to preach and teach in ways that illustrate
Your great and amazing love for us, and the wisdom to help others understand
the living sacrifice that is appropriate and brings You pleasure.
Give me the wisdom to live the words that I proclaim.

Father, give me wisdom to realize that when I ask for wisdom with confidence You will give it.
And that unless I receive wisdom that comes from You I have no words worth hearing,
no life worth imitating, and no wisdom worth sharing.

Father, there is no wondering "if" I need wisdom. I need wisdom.
I need YOUR wisdom. Father, please give me wisdom.

---o0o---

thank you florida for sharing this...

God bless us all.

CHOOSE THIS DAY

2015-10-18T14:51:00.000+04:00

"Choose this day..." Joshua, the leader of God's people, was addressing his countrymen. They had conquered the land that God had promised to give them and were ready to settle in their new homes. Now Joshua calls on them to make a choice.

"Choose this day whom you will serve..." This was about loyalty. This was about allegiance. Joshua spoke to them about getting rid of the idols that their parents had served and dedicating themselves to the Lord. If that seemed unacceptable, they needed to choose who they would serve: the old idols or possibly the new idols they had found in the land where they were living.

"Choose this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD" (Joshua 24:15). Joshua had already made his choice. He and his family would serve God.

To a man, Joshua's people cried out that they wanted to do the same, that they wanted to serve God. Surely that made Joshua happy, right? He had given such a persuasive talk that everyone wanted to join Joshua and his family in serving God. But Joshua wasn't satisfied:

But Joshua said to the people, "You are not able to serve the LORD, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm and consume you, after having done you good" (Joshua 24:19-20).

You can't do it, he tells them. God won't put up with your indecisive ways. God won't agree to be one god in your stable of gods, one more deity in the pantheon. God is holy. God is jealous. He won't tolerate unfaithfulness. If you decide to serve God, you have to serve God alone.

And the people replied, "No, but we will serve the LORD" (Joshua 24:21).

So I offer to you the same choice today. Choose who you will serve. Will it be money? Will it be passion? Will it be power? Will it be a company or a country or a political viewpoint? Will it be your spouse or your children? Will it be a habit or a vice? Will it be any of the myriad distractions that our society offers?

Or will you put God above everything else? Will you love him above all, loving your neighbor as yourself, but pledging your allegiance fully to God? "Choose this day whom you will serve." If you choose to serve God, serve him with all your heart.

Thank you for sharing this @Patrizia --

Christians' 3-D Strategy in Decision Making

2015-08-05T16:53:00.000+04:00

Constriction happens when we feel like our options are reduced to one or two bad possibilities. It's either "this" or "that," and "this" is horrible while "that" is disastrous.

Here’s how to avoid making a hasty decision in panic, and prevent them from doing something rash.

The first strategy is DELAY. Keep from making a rash move by waiting.

As a Christian, waiting is not inaction; it is waiting on the Lord (Isaiah 40:28-31). It is time for prayer and for seeking God's will in Scripture. Often we cannot see the real situation and all the other possible options because we’re so caught up in the miseries of the moment.

So often in the haste of the moment, we don't have all the facts or have misperceived the situation. A prayerful delay for a short time allows us to refocus and opens our heart so God can show us another way.

A second strategy for constrictive thinking is DISTRIBUTE.

Strong people, Christian people, are the ones that help others and have great difficulty when they have very challenging problems because they do not know how to ask for help. Some pious sounding pride keeps them from sharing their problems with others because they consider themselves the helper and not the person needing help. God gave ALL of us a Christian family for support.

Sooner or later, we're all going to face problems too big for us to handle alone. Seeking the prayer, support, and accountability of other Christians helps us distribute the problem, thus reducing the sense of load we have to carry by ourselves while involving others in helping us find other options and solutions to our situation. (This includes consulting a Christian counselor if we can't get the corner turned on our situation quickly!)

Another strategy is DELIGHT.

Finding something humorous in our situation and laughing at the humorous side of what is going on can be a helpful pause in our crisis and allows us to gather our senses. Doing something we nearly always have fun doing can refresh us and break the logjam in our thinking. Spending time in refreshing worship or going with others on a spiritual retreat can be ways to open the doorway to spiritual delight and restore our energy and sense of balance. Simply loosening our mental grip on a difficult situation and letting God refresh us with his grace can often help us see things in a different light and find a solution that had remained hidden to us.

No matter which strategy we try, an essential part of each of them is continuing to DO what is RIGHT. When no way seems clear and all our choices seem hopeless, sometimes we have to keep trudging on, doing what we know is the right thing even when we don't feel like it. Engaging the other strategies become self-defeating if we don't follow through with what we need to do — both our daily responsibilities as a person and our Christian responsibilities as a child of God.

Do these strategies work in every situation?

Yes, to a certain extent.

However, life has some built-in very hard realities that none of us is going to escape and some of these can cascade into problems that destroy us. So if you cannot execute these strategies on your own, or if you still feel overwhelmed after trying them, PLEASE see a minister, counselor, or friend and let that person know you urgently need help.

Satan tries to isolate us from other Christians and from Christian help when he wants to destroy us whether by direct attack, disease, or death. Don't let the evil one do that with you; if you are going under, get help. If you have a friend going under, please get them help. While it may seem dead end, God wants to help us find the path that brings us hope, healing, holiness, and heaven.

Don't quit looking until you find it!

Thank you Naila for this FORWARDED MESSAGE

5 Things To Consider Before You Quit

2015-07-29T11:17:00.000+04:00

It used to be the case that a job is something that workers exchange their labor in return for money that’ll put food into their mouth. In the present time though, more and more people are looking beyond the fulfillment of their financial needs to satisfy other important aspects of their lives, such as health, friendship and achievement.

The truth is that while some of the workers can achieve their important needs while doing the work, some may rather failed miserably in pursuing their ideal life. In this case, the best solution is to consider quitting the current job that only feeds you with food and sadness. There will be several things to consider before you make this hard decision:

First Of All: Why Should You Quit?

The question should be, when should you quit your job? Surely, you don’t just quit one because you don’t like some parts of the job (who doesn’t!). Every job has its issues, so it is important to balance the pros and cons before you make that decision.

For most of us, the primary reason for working is to pay our bills and survive. That’s legitimate. But do not forget that there might be a better job out there with an environment that you are more comfortable with, and yet still be able to sustain your lifestyle.

Maslow’s Hierarchy Of Needs

Abraham Maslow in 1943 –Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. For those of you unfamiliar with this theory, it is essentially a pyramidal hierarchical model of human needs.

As human, we all are motivated to satisfy certain needs at different stages. Maslow believes that we will first strive to meet our most fundamental physiological needs. Only after we attain that will we actually move up the pyramid and try to reach for other goals such as safety, love and belonging, esteem and finally at the top, self-actualization.

Since our jobs take up a significant part of our lives, it is befitting to base the decision to leave or not leave the job on how much it can take us to reach to the pyramid’s top.

I guess you can say that this is an unorthodox manner of assessing whether to quit your job and seek a new path. However, my intention is to bring a new approach to the whole process so that people who are considering can look at it in a different perspective. In this case, I raised questions about whether your current jobs can meet your most crucial needs as a human being.

1. Physiological Needs: Sleep

One physiological need that we often neglect is sleep. It’s not uncommon to have inadequate amount of sleep when we are rushing a project or clearing backlogs from work. But if we do it too regularly without respite, it will not onlywreak havoc in your work, but also your personal life. Difficulty in concentration and being easily irritated are two common symptoms. Ultimately, the sleep debt will catch up to you and manifest itself in ugly ways.

In any case, so long as you say with all honesty that sleep isn’t affecting you too greatly, then it is probably alright. But if the lack of sleep becomes a chronic problem in your work, this might be an issue you would need to consider to find out if the job is suitable for you in the long run.

2. Safety Needs: Financial security

I’m sure that all jobs can make us feel secure financially; some of us work so that we can get some income at the very least. I guess the question here refers to the more extreme cases of whether this particular job allows you to get by everyday without having to starve or having to live on the streets.

This is very important because if you don’t even earn enough for a living, chances are that you wouldn’t care about higher needs until you fulfill this first, and sadness kicks in when the job doesn’t bring you anything but food. So for every job, you have to ensure that you earn more than enough to not only feed yourself, but also enable you to pursue higher needs, or simply save the money to avoid financial crisis.

3. Love and Belonging: Work Culture

How much do you fit in with the vision and values of your workplace? Do you click well with your colleagues and boss? These are the questions that you’ll ask yourself to determine if your social need to be achieved and belongingness is met. Sure, you can get by without feeling connected with the organization, but it might be hard to thrive if you lack the trust to work together as a team.

Some people may argue that they can still do their work well even if they are being hated by everyone else in the office. Well, that may be so, but they would’ve to find love and belonging outside of work. These could be their families and friends who support them. Or, in the worst case scenario, one might turn to using Facebook at the workplace to satisfy such need!

However, in my opinion, the workplace is gradually transforming into a place where solitude is likely to be frowned upon. Almost all jobs require contact with other people, and most jobs these days emphasize on teamwork.

So, ask yourself would the incompatible work culture be an issue and limit your potential to search for other needs up the pyramid?

4. Esteem: Respect & Achievements

According to the pyramid, it is not enough to gain self-esteem through achievements and confidence; you need also to respect others and earn others’ respect. A shrewd executive may have backstabbed several colleagues in order to climb up the corporate ladder, but he or she would not gain that self-respect, and definitely not respect from others.

In other words, this is how good you feel yourself to be in this job. First, you would need a supportive environment where you feel loved and belongedbefore you can be respected for your work.

Second, you need to have a job that empowers you to achieve and build the confidence within you. Interestingly, you will also be humble enough to respect others. Only then will you be able to reach this level of self-esteem. Respect for none other than you is an inflated ego.

Does this job give you opportunities to expand yourself and build up a healthy self-esteem at the same time? You would also need to ask yourself if you will eventually be good at what you do at work.

5. Self-Actualization: Doing What You Love

Ultimately, this is what Maslow refers to as the key to happiness in life. This is the final stage where one would feel the ultimate life satisfaction and will be able to realize one’s potential at work. According to him, this is a rare occasion; less than 1% of adults actually attain this level of enlightenment.

If you manage to fulfill all the other lower level needs except for this one, then it is at the point in time that you have to consider where your passion lies in life. Given that you have a job that provides you enough money, good social relationships, personal achievements and respect from others, you need to find what you are meant to do. All of us are good at something, but do you love what it is that you do?

Once you found your passion, you can then decide if it is viable to quit your job and switch to where your inclination lies and dedicate yourself in that career. You must consider that the needs from the lower levels remain to be met after the shift, lest the new job hinder your path to the top of the pyramid. Remember that each lower level needs have to be fulfilled before the higher level ones can be sought. That is the tricky part.

Thank you Dianna for sharing this very timely article.

Broken

2015-07-06T15:40:00.000+04:00

Many of us are broken at one time or another. We are sometimes broken in spirit, sometimes broken in body, sometimes broken in relationships and sometimes broken by the death of a loved one or even the loss of a job. We often struggle to find a reason for this happening, but we just as often struggle for a reason to go on, to have some purpose in our lives. We want to cry out, "What's the use? Why should I even try? No one cares, no one sees me."

It may be that you are hurting, lonely, feeling rejected, useless or abandoned... broken. I understand how hard that is to deal with in your life, but remember that God always has a use for you and always has love for you, even when you feel unlovable and unloved.

I recently found a quote from "Heart Held High," that reminds us of some amazing things about God. The author wrote:

We are now his broken things. But remember how he used broken things. The broken pitcher of Gideon's little army. The broken roof, through which the crippled man was lowered, and the broken alabaster box, which shed its fragrance over the broken body of our Savior.

Have you recently been broken? It is not the "end of life as you know it." God does have more for you to do and be, for him.

God uses our fragility and brokenness. Listen to these other voices remind you of the truths that Russ just shared with you:

From Scripture:

For God, who said, "Let there be light in the darkness," has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves (2 Corinthians 4:6-7NLT).

___
Thank you Linda for this #ForwardedMessages

Here's more good read:

The Real Love Stories...
Potholes Ahead
Where Am I On The List

Security

2015-06-15T10:26:00.000+04:00

Is your computer safe? Do you know who might be lurking in your files, swiping your private information, accessing your financial records? Is someone stealing from you?

Studies say that one out of every twenty Americans has suffered some sort of identity theft. Smartphone users were one third likelier to be targeted by thieves. There are approximately 378 million victims per year, or more than 1 million each day and 12 per second.

Have I made you paranoid yet?

In Jesus' day, identity theft wasn't a problem. Computer hackers didn't steal information. No one worried about cyber crime.

Yet Jesus issued a security warning. He said, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal" (Matthew 6:19).

Even then, almost two thousand years ago, people had to worry about having their treasure stolen. Jesus had a solution as to how to prevent that: "But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal"(Matthew 6:20).

Treasure in heaven? I haven't seen any celestial ATMs around. What did Jesus mean by "store up for yourselves treasures in heaven"?

Fortunately for us, the apostle Paul explains what that phrase means. In talking about wealthy people, Paul instructs his friend Timothy: "Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life" (1 Timothy 6:18—19).

We put our treasure in heaven by being willing to share what we have, using our money to do good things. And not just our money... we can build up our heavenly account by sharing of our time and our talents.

Jesus went on to say, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:21). If "heavenly treasure" is our measure of success, then we'll live our lives thinking about how to please God and serve others, rather than accumulating goods that can be targeted by thieves.

Go ahead... build up your celestial bank account. It's the safest investment you can make.

Thank you Tina for this Forwarded Message.

______________

Lord, Teach Me To Pray

2015-06-10T16:41:00.002+04:00

I think sometimes that I don't understand anything about prayer. I pray a lot, mind you. It's just that I don't understand a great deal about it. I sometimes pray for good things, and they don't come. At other times, I pray for myself or others to be spared bad things, yet they still happen. How does prayer work? How do I know what to pray for? Do questions such as these ever bother you?

Maybe at least part of our problem is in praying for wrong things. If that is the case, then I can certainly begin to see how praying could be confusing. When we are wrong-headed in what we ask, we can hardly blame God for failing to answer. Let me try to make sense of what I am struggling to say.

Back in the earliest days of the church, Peter and John were called before the religious authorities of Jerusalem. They were ordered to stop preaching about Jesus in the city. They were, in fact, threatened that bad things would come down on them if they didn't stop. Duly warned, they were released.

When the two men got back with their friends, they reported everything that had happened. Then they prayed:

O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word (Acts 4:29 NLT).

My fear is that I would have prayed for something different! For the officials to back off? Sure. For divine protection from them? Absolutely. For a "new call" for my ministry? Perhaps. But they prayed neither for protection nor a new assignment. They prayed for boldness to say what Jesus had told them to say.

Maybe you and I shouldn't pray for more money and things; let's pray instead for an ability to appreciate what we have, manage it wisely, and use it unselfishly.

Maybe we should pray less to have our life-annoyances taken away; instead, let's pray for patience and to know that God's grace is sufficient, no matter what.

Maybe we even should pray less about good health and success; we might pray rather to be content, dignified, and courageous in coping with our challenges.

It's certainly within God's will that we pray for daily bread and deliverance from trials. The Lord's Prayer models as much for us (Matthew 6:9-13). But even Jesus prayed for things in Gethsemane that he qualified it with the following statement:

Yet I want your will to be done, not mine (Mark 14:36 NLT).

Sometimes God's will is better done when one of his people bears a cross with courage rather than have her problem eliminated. That's why we surrender to his will over our own. That's why we accept the mystery inherent in his will.

When all is said and done, I should probably worry less about understanding the nature of prayer and simply pray.

Thank you for forwarding Ryan Gallente

Letting Hatred Go

2015-05-14T15:47:00.004+04:00

Forgiveness is setting the imprisoned bird free, then realizing that you were the imprisoned bird.

"Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD" (Leviticus 19:18).

"Your hatred of her is unjustified," the teacher said as a man ranted about his ex-wife. "What do you mean unjustified?" he spit out. "You have no idea how she treated me, the things she's said to me, or the #$#@$@# things she continues to do. It's my God-given right to hate her."

I'm taking a class for couples who are divorcing or are recently divorced that have too much conflict. Actually, let me restate that: the judge ordered that we take it. It's like a finishing school of sorts for something that is, well, finished, or at least theoretically should be.

The class is divided into 2 sessions: one partner comes to the earlier class and the other comes to the later one. Mr. It's My Right to Hate Her was in the later class with me and assumed the teacher was making comments based on something his ex had said in his absence.

"My comment has nothing to do with her," the teacher responded in his calm and gentle tone. "She hasn't said anything that makes me say it. I simply want you to know that your hatred of her will be your undoing."

They're strong words.

They're also accurate. Trust me, I know.

I once believed that if I didn't fight for certain causes, it meant I was a pushover and was somehow giving my approval to things that shouldn't ever have a seal of okay-ness on them. If someone pushed me on it, I would have justified my stance, probably even defined it as a righteous indignation.

There are definite times for anger and indignation, but this was something different: it became a pattern of combativeness, of trying to determine who was right and who was wrong, or more aptly, of trying to prove my worth over someone else's while recruiting others into my ring of dislike for the other party.

That other party died recently. I'm not saying the fight ended. I am talking funeral service and all that jazz. I won't — can't — go into it, other than to say something in me did, too. If I had known their days were more limited than expected, would I have done things differently? I sure hope so. No, wait. Strike that and make it a resounding yes, one that echoes deep within and bubbles out, even to the point of verbalizing it to Mr. Its My Right.

"Yes, you absolutely have every right to hate her," I softly said to him. "No judge or anyone else is ever going to mandate that you abandon your views of her. But even though you have that right, you have to ask yourself if it's worth it. The hatred comes at a high cost.

There is so much that is valuable around you, especially your kids, yet you're losing out on it as you're consumed in this war against her. When does it end and when do you get to be you and have the freedom to live?"

My words weren't intended to be a I'm better-than thing, but rather of one who has been there for much too long and can look back and see the price. It comes with a ticket I refuse to pay anymore: bondage, depression, grief, and perhaps worst of all, giving someone else the right to determine if I was happy, upset, or somewhere in between.

This life is too great to chance it away like that.

This life is too great to hate it away like that.

Today, I'm on a different mission. It's one I eagerly recruit people into the ring with me to fight for it and embrace it dearly. It's called life. I want to live, not as a result of what others say and think, but to live fully, extravagantly, and truly.

Come join me in the ring.

________________________
Forwarded by Christina Palma

Other Forwarded Messages that are worth forwarding:

The Power of Hope

Courage: Three Men - Three Stories

Fear Be Gone

The Eight Counts of Life's Rhythm

2015-04-07T12:41:00.000+04:00

Commencement Speech Given in the Ateneo de Manila University for the Graduates of 2015

You cannot imagine how great an honor it is for me to speak before you today. And that is certainly not a cliché or an exaggeration. Few people would ever guess that despite the many blessings I’ve received in over 30 years as a ballerina, most of my young life was spent pining for something that you all have and I don’t—a diploma from the Ateneo de Manila University.

You see, I come from a certified Blue Eagle family. My father, his brother and my siblings all graduated from the Ateneo, with all four men in my family in the Honors Class since their elementary grades. Although I married a magna cum laude from Harvard. (Sorry, my husband made sure that I stuck that in there somewhere.)

When I was seventeen, fresh out of high school, I found myself standing at a crossroad in my life: I was accepted in both the Ateneo and UP for college.

But I decided to go to Russia instead and pursue my dream of becoming a ballerina in the toughest ballet school in the world, as a cultural scholar of the former Soviet Union.

Given this opportunity, the diploma would have to wait. I struck a deal with my parents—I gave myself two years to devote to dancing, which was my first love. If it didn’t work out, I promised I would go back to school and become an accountant, which was what my grandparents wanted me to be.

That was the first big deadline I’ve ever set for myself.

When I told my parents I wanted to study ballet in Russia instead of enrolling in college like everyone else, my father’s reaction was: “What? So you will become a dancer and just learn to count to eight for the rest of your life?” My mom, on the other hand, was very supportive. She herself wanted to become a ballerina but was forced to stop when a ban in the 1950s prohibited girls from Catholic schools to dance ballet. My grandparents? Well, they still wanted me to become an accountant.

My dad probably thought I would find life in Russia so hard that I would hurry back home anyway, so finally, he relented. I left right after my 18th birthday and was assigned to the 7th year level of the Russian Ballet Academy in St Petersburg. It was 1982 and the first snow had just fallen when our plane touched down in what was then a bastion of communism.

In a way, my father was right. That first year in Russia was indeed the hardest year of my life. It was a life that was filled with change and adaptation—new culture, new language, new dogmas, a new method of ballet training, new weather conditions… Then eventually, I had to make new friends and satisfy new mentors. Beginnings are difficult.

But I stayed. Sometimes being stubborn has its rewards. There were many days in those cold ballet studios in the dead of winter when my body was ready to collapse from sheer exhaustion and it was just my stubborn will that pushed me to continue doing those drills again and again, day in and day out. Even in the many nights when I cried myself to sleep from homesickness or from the soreness of an injury, the pain was gently but obstinately pushed aside the minute I focused on my dream – the dream of becoming not just a ballerina but the best ballerina I could ever become. I substituted the occasional feelings of helplessness and anxiety with visions of achieving that dream. This—plus an attitude of gratitude, an overwhelming sense of appreciation for being exactly where I was and the miracle of how I even got there.

Despite the many sacrifices, my being in Russia was a great blessing and I survived by putting all my energy in practicing, learning and following directions as I was being mentored in the very difficult Russian Vaganova system of classical ballet training. I was like a horse with blinders. Nothing else mattered but my art. The discipline first shaped my mind and spirit—then my body eventually followed. Not only did I stay to finish the two years of ballet training, I stayed on for two more, this time as the first foreigner to be invited as an artist of the 250-year-old Kirov Ballet.

This is where that crossroad of my life has brought me. The journey was challenging but it was well worth it because I pursued a path that brought me closer to my heart’s calling. And when your heart speaks to you, you can never go wrong because it never lies. And it will push you to go forward and excel because at a certain point, your dream becomes like oxygen. You need it to breathe. You need it to grow. You need it to live.

However, in today’s world, the standards of success have become a bit more complicated. You can’t just drill; you need to create. You can’t just learn; you need to innovate. You can’t just follow; you need to lead.

Today, you find yourself in that same crucial intersection in life that I myself crossed many years ago. What can I tell you now that will make your next steps easier, if not more meaningful?

My father was right in saying that ballet dancers are drilled to count to eight. It is in these classic eight counts that a segment of movement is born. Then we start all over again with one. From this repetitive drill, choreography is born. So they actually serve as building blocks for creating something new and creative.

In this fashion, allow me to share with you my own “eight counts” which I hope would serve as helpful references as you find your own rhythm and direction in life:

FIRST

Decide and commit to something that you are passionate about. The earlier you do this, the better. Make a decision not just on what you want to do and what you want to achieve in the next few years, but try to picture where you want to be 20 years from now. This was something my father taught me. He was a very wise and logical man. After all, he was an Atenean right? When I was 15, he made me write a list of what I wanted to be and should have done by the age of 35. I came up with the following: to get a degree from the Ateneo and become a teacher; to dance all the classical ballerina roles at least once in my career; to own and operate my own ballet school; to have my own family and be a mom. I committed myself to these long-term goals alongside my short term ones and looking back, I seem to have done everything before I reached 35 – except for the first one. But wait, since I am a ballet teacher, I guess it’s just a matter of getting a diploma then. Hmmm…

SECOND

No pain, no gain. I cannot overemphasize this point. Nothing can take the place of hard work – not even talent. As they say, hard work beats talent when talent does not work hard. When my own daughter told me she wanted to become a ballerina, a part of me was excited for her and pleased that I could help her to achieve her dream. But part of me was also screaming NOOOOO because I wanted to protect her from all the blood, sweat, and tears that she would have to go through in order to achieve her dreams. In the end, she pursued her intention and now I know how my parents felt back then—extremely proud!

THIRD

Whatever your goal, get good at it! Whatever it is you are passionate about, you need to keep at it and practice. Repeat. Practice. Repeat. While you are practicing and repeating, don’t forget the “and” count — the “one-and-a-two-and-a-three” connecting counts that link together connecting steps in ballet. Bear in mind that there are also connecting points in life that are just as important as its highs and lows. These are the periods of rest, recreation, and stillness. These in-between moments are just as important because they give you a chance to breathe, to balance and to center. So keep on practicing – but take vacations too. Keep your focus… but remember it’s the linking “ands” that keep you connected.

FOURTH

Honor your emotions and acknowledge your fears. It’s okay to be nervous, to feel anxious or to have stage fright. That means you care and that you want to excel. After three decades of dancing, I still gag before going onstage! That’s why I make sure to fast before every performance. Seriously, it’s when you stop feeling nervous that you should start to worry because that means you are becoming apathetic towards what you are doing. And that’s a scary place to be in. Your emotions are a part of who you are. Being emotional doesn’t mean you’re weak. Whether you need to deal with pressure, loss, failure, hurt or rejection, our emotions are not a baggage. Instead, they make us human. They make us whole. So cry, laugh, smile, scream… it’s okay!

FIFTH

For a performing artist, the performance is the product and thus, the most important part of your work. All the classes, rehearsals, warm-ups and preparation culminate into that one performance. That is what the audience sees and that is what they will take away with them. Treat every time you get to practice your profession as a performance. Don’t save your best effort for another day. Always give 100% so you never have to regret anything. But BE PREPARED. You know in jumping, the deeper you do this step called a “plié” which means to bend (in this case your knees) the higher you are able to propel yourself into the air. The plié is your preparation. The soaring into the air is the goal. The more prepared you are, whether for a presentation, a task or a performance, usually, the outcome is also better. Take this moment now to thank your parents, teachers, mentors, administrators, family, colleagues, your Manongs and Manangs and your friends. For they all helped out to prepare you well. And they will continue to support you in the years to come. Believe me, you will need their support.

SIXTH

Do something crazy. Do something that defies all logic at least once in your life. You never know what could happen from there. I once found myself in Cuba and was asked to dance the full-length Swan Lake. Now you have to know something about Swan Lake—it has the most difficult ballerina role ever. In fact, in Russia, I was warned by my own teacher—who I loved and respected and trusted—that I should never do the roles of Odette/Odile. It’s true. She told me when I graduated that I was already equipped to dance any role out there—except Odette/Odile. “Because Lisa, you will never be a Swan Queen,” she said frankly but with every good intention. Well, my “something crazy” happened twice in my life. First, I accepted the challenge of performing Swan Lake in Cuba with only FOUR DAYS to learn and rehearse it. And I performed what was for me the WORST Swan Lake I have ever done in my career! Honestly, I still cringe when I watch the video. But I did it. No regrets. My second crazy moment was when I resigned from my former company, where I was principal dancer, and formed Ballet Manila in 1995 with 11 other young dancers. No money, no connections, just a lot of drive and dreams to begin with. Well, the company just celebrated its 20th anniversary last month with five times the number of dancers, plus a school and a scholarship foundation that promises a steady supply of well-trained ballet dancers to continue our mission of bringing ballet to the people and people to the ballet in the many years to come! Sometimes closing your eyes and taking that leap of faith will get you there—even if it makes you pass through a lot of heartaches and failure along the way.

SEVENTH

This one is a quote I saw on social media but which I felt was truly valid and real: “One of the hardest decisions you’ll ever face in life is choosing whether to walk away or try harder.” This is where setting a deadline for yourself is most important. I gave myself two years to become a ballerina, although honestly I do not know what I would have done if it didn’t work out. (You see I hate accounting. Working with numbers was never my forte—unless of course it involves counting to 8).

So push yourself through self-doubts, for they will certainly come. Push yourself through rejection. But also know when it’s time to re-direct. Re-boot. And then decide and commit all over again.

EIGHTH OR LASTLY …

Serve. Offer yourself to a cause bigger than your own needs or ambition. Find ways to make your dreams meaningful to others as well. One thing that I’ve learned from my family of Blue Eagles is that an Atenean means being a “man or woman for others.” You need to serve. Serve your whole life. Serve yourself sometimes. But serve others more often.

I met many of you during two separate visits to the Ateneo that have prepared me for today’s commencement speech. With today’s visit, I must say I haven’t been this often to Ateneo since I was in high school coming to watch Dulaang Sibol.

So what are my eight counts again?

Decide and commit
Work hard
Focus and get good
Honor your emotions
Prepare well
Take the leap
Set deadlines
Serve.

Fly high Blue Eagle graduates! This is your time to soar!

Source: Lisa Macuja Elizalde (FB account)

Touching Jesus

2015-03-31T12:31:00.000+04:00

She was nobody. A nameless woman in a sea of people. A woman with a secret: she had a gynecological problem that caused her to bleed continually. Under Jewish law, anyone that touched her would be ceremonially unclean. So she hid in the crowd, seeking anonymity and isolation.

Jesus was with Jairus, an important man in the community, a ruler of the synagogue. They were on an urgent mission to save Jairus' daughter, who was gravely ill.

The woman wanted to be healed as well. She had heard of Jesus and the miracles he had done. She knew that no holy man would touch her on purpose... they wouldn't want to defile themselves in that way. She would have to find a way to be healed in secret.

The gospel of Mark tells the story:

When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, "If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed." Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering (Mark 5:27-29).

The woman's plan was ruined, however, because Jesus realized what had happened. He stopped to find out who had been healed. When he discovered the woman, he told her:

"Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering" (Mark 5:34).

The Greek word that is translated "healed" can also mean "saved." Your faith has saved you; go in peace and be free! Those are words that anyone would love to hear from Jesus.

Have you ever felt like you had no right to ask God for anything? Or maybe you thought that others would judge you and reject you if they knew your secret? Does it seem like Jesus has something to offer others, but nothing for you?

You can have peace. You can be free. You can be made whole.

Jesus can do that for you. You don't have to be rich enough, nor good enough. You don't have to be socially acceptable. You don't have to fix your problems first, nor get your life in order ahead of time.

You need to have faith. You need to reach out to Jesus and let his cleansing touch bring you God's peace and freedom.

® Forwarded by YanYan Marcelo

Sharjah Light Festival 2015

2015-02-10T12:13:00.000+04:00

Re-posting from happy Can-D

3 Short Stories of LOVE

2015-02-01T16:16:00.000+04:00

TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE.

SAD BUT SOMETIMES, TRUE.

PAINFUL IF THIS IS TRUE.

Source: Tumblr .

Seven Tips to being an Awesome Husband

2014-09-23T16:35:00.000+04:00

TIP 1: Do Not Talk To Her As If She Is One of The Guys.

Listen to guy buddies talk about anything for more than five minutes and you likely will hear one of them let the other know that he is an idiot. When men talk with their male friends, they tend to be direct or even argumentative. They share their opinions freely and bluntly. They jokingly insult each other. They blast anything the other guy says that they do not like or agree with. They rarely stop to think, "Am I being insensitive? Could I possibly be hurting his feelings?" The guy code is to let the chips fall where they may.

Women are NOT like that.

If a husband talks with his wife in the same manner he talks with his buddies, his directness, bluntness, or argumentativeness may well cause her to feel disrespected or controlled. He thinks he is being honest and forthright. She feels he is being a jerk.

If you really want to be a better husband, understand that women speak a different language. Unless you learn to speak that language, you will never communicate on the deeper levels with her.

TIP 2: Make Sure That She Does Not Perceive You As Controlling.

The most common complaint we hear from women in our workshops for marriages in crisis is that their husbands try to control them. Interestingly, the husband usually counters with his view that she is the controlling one.

Eyes open and behavior changes only when each person realizes that his or her motive is NOT the most important thing; it is what the other person perceives that matters. In marriages in which the man actually is controlling, he typically has no clue that he is because that is not his conscious intent. By speaking his mind, criticizing her when she does not comply with his thinking, and arguing with her to get his point across, he believes he is treating her well. There is no motive to hurt. He may actually believe his intent is to help.

Many wives finally give up and give in when that happens. The husband may think he convinced her to view things his way. Most of the time, it is anything but that. Tired of the conflict and feeling she is being treated as an inferior, she yields simply to stop the conflict. That builds resentment within her and with time, resentment detonates. In a non-published survey of married couples done in 2008, 21% of wives stated that their satisfaction with their husbands as a mate had decreased because he is controlling, disrespectful, and argues.

To make sure your wife does NOT feel that you control her, concentrate on her feelings about what you say and do. If she genuinely feels that you treat her as your equal, you are doing it correctly.

TIP 3: Romance Is What She Really Wants.

In the same survey referred to above, 27% of wives stated that their level of sexual satisfaction had decreased because their husbands were not romantic, and that sex had become routine and boring.

While humans — both male and female — have need for sexual fulfillment, it appears that men may be more satisfied by the frequency of sex, but women may be more satisfied by the emotional relationship in sex. To be a better husband, think about becoming a Don Juan for your wife. Court her. Think of new and different scenarios that PRECEDE your sexual interaction. Make her feel wonderful about herself and make sex exciting not just by technique, but also by touching her heart first.

TIP 4: Listening Is The Key To Her Heart.

Few people — men or women — feel that anyone truly listens to them. If you wish to change the way your wife perceives you, increase her sexual satisfaction, and become in her mind the best man on earth, listen to her.

That means that you do not interrupt her with your stories, your thoughts on what she just said, or by changing the subject. Listen to her heart as well as her words. As she talks ask yourself, "What is she feeling as she tells me this?" Even more importantly, ask yourself, "What is the message she really wants me to hear?" Once she knows that you are genuinely interested in her views, thoughts, and feelings, you can actually ask her those questions. However, do NOT ask them until you know that she knows that you are trying to understand her, not correct her.

This one thing can change you into a better husband in one month: Each day spend at least a half-hour just listening to your wife talk. Turn off the TV, cellphones, and radios. Find a place where there are no distractions, including interruptions from your children. Look directly into her eyes, and then ask a couple questions to get her started. Comment only if she asks, or if you want better to understand something she just said. Show her that you enjoy hearing her talk, no matter how trivial the subject, because it helps you understand her better and love her more.

TIP 5: Time Matters.

The old adage — which is not that old — that "quality time is more important than quantity of time" is ridiculous. Allowing work, hobbies, or other interests to keep you from spending time with your wife will, with time, deaden emotions.

You may have heard "absence makes the heart grow fonder." From my experience with thousands of couples, I think the more accurate axiom is "absence makes the heart grow fonder for someone else."

Make time just for the two of you. It will not happen if you do not make it happen. Plan it and do it.

TIP 6: Be Her Support, Not Her Father.

The next time your wife comes home complaining about how someone treated her, do NOT tell her what she should have done, tell her what she should do, or offer to go deal with the problem yourself. Instead, listen, understand what she feels, and then give her the "poor baby."

The "poor baby" is just what it sounds like. Let her know she has a right to feel hurt and that you are sorry it happened to her.

Unless she asks your opinion, or asks you to deal with the problem, do NOT offer to do so. You are not her father; you are her husband. Treat her as your equal. If she complains about a situation, your job is to listen, let her know you are on HER side (even if you think she did not handle things correctly, or that it was her fault) and that you are always there to support her. More than likely, she wants to forget the incident, but she needs validation that she has a right to feel hurt or angry. Give it to her.

TIP 7: Keep Growing.

No husband or wife reaches perfection in his or her roles. There will be plenty of times throughout your marriage when you will make mistakes, say the wrong thing, or leave your dirty underwear lying on the bedroom floor. It happens to the best of husbands. But it is important to not let those moments of blunders define your marriage. Use every opportunity you can to continue to grow closer to your wife and learn more about her wants, needs, desires, and aspirations. Keep learning and growing. Just like a fine wine or aged cheese, marriage gets better over the years.

Thanks for sharing, TINA FLORES

The Real Love Stories... and Why There Really Are No Blurred Lines

2014-08-19T15:27:00.000+04:00

It was the music pumping through the speakers at the optometrist's that made me see you clear for who you are.

The lyrics kept thrumming loud when I was standing there with my thick glasses, waiting for the receptionist.

Waiting there with the Mennonite woman in her netted white bonnet and purple flowers falling down the cotton front of her cape dress.

And Robin Thicke just keeps crooning it on some radio station like he's Marvin Gaye, like he knows the wants of women.

And I'm sitting beside a Mennonite woman, us both bespectacled and motherly rounded, and I shift awkward in my chair when the song hits it grinding refrain, and there are men like you who know a woman wants a love that respects.

There are men who wear old Wranglers and drive rusting mini-vans to pick up the kids after piano lessons.

And pick up broccoli because it's on sale this week.

And who stop those matronly vans to pick a bunch of the wild Black-eyed Susans growing in the ditch across from the township dump.

And they feel no shame bringing the tattered, untamed petals home for the woman they vowed their focus to.

Don't ever think there isn't something wild and untamed about this.

There's a world that wants to force women into smothering plastic molds and whisper that she wants to be a shape and not free.

There's a relentless refrain that wants to cage women into polished skin, into glossy boxes, into cheap ornaments and tell her that she really wants this, they know she really wants this.

There's this beat that beats up women... and you can tell the real men from the immature boys: Real manhood never objectifies women but edifies women.

Real men actually ask women what they want.

Real men hear what women really want is their words and ideas and dreams to carry more weight than numbers on a scale.

Real men hear what women really want is their souls to be appreciated, not their skin to be assessed.

Real men like you who adore women with Einstein-hair early on Friday morning, who think nothing of finding the toilet plunger and braving the back mudroom washroom, who make pancakes on Saturday morning and, real men like you know that sharing a vowed life is the wildest affair of all.

True love isn't found.

It's carved.

Carved out of sacrifice. Carved out of covenant. Carved out of two dying to the loneliness of self to be made into one.

You and I, we could let our feet find each other's under the cotton sheets and we could carve into forever together.

Before there is no more me here and no more you here —

We could let the rest be carved away until there is only the glory of a wrinkled love left.

After the optometrist's, when I came home and stood at the sink heavy with the day's pots, and you came in the back door grinning with that handful of Black-eyed Susans that you'd picked right from the ditch?

You had grinned embarrassed:

"They're a bit tattered though."

And I'd touched the tattered petals. And smiled silly and unashamed at you standing there in that tattered shirt, us growing older in a life that's carving us down — and I could see then, see it clear straight through and there are no blurred lines here.

The days can all tatter and you and I, we know what we want:

A love that keeps carrying on into the real loveliest.

>> Thank you Annaliza for this article... >>

Mall of the World, Dubai

2014-07-13T14:58:00.000+04:00

The world's first temperature-controlled city, Mall of the World, located along Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai. Occupying a total area of 48 million sq. ft., the project will comprise the largest indoor theme park in the world, which will be covered by a glass dome that will be open during the winter months.

The project will also house the largest shopping mall in the world with an area of 8 million sq. ft., which will take the form of an extended retail street network, different to the typical shopping mall concept currently available in Dubai. Additional districts within the project will include a wellness dedicated zone catering to medical tourists, a cultural celebration district as well as a wide range of hospitality options comprising 20,000 hotel rooms catering to all types of tourists. Once completed, the City is projected to become a year-round destination, welcoming around 180 million visitors annually. -- Dubai Holdings

13 Happy Thoughts on Tough Times

2014-07-07T12:38:00.001+04:00

1} Down days are completely normal, and not something you should feel guilty about having. Happiness is never constant.

2} When you are at your lowest point, you are open to the greatest positive change. Happiness is not the absence of problems, but the strength to deal with them.

3} There is a huge difference between giving up and moving on. Moving on doesn’t mean giving up, but rather accepting that there aresome things that cannot be.

4} Life rarely turns out exactly the way you want it to, but you still have an opportunity to make it great. You have to do what you can, with what you have, exactly where you are.

5} Most people ask for happiness on condition, but long-term happiness can only be felt if you don’t set conditions. Accept life unconditionally.

6} Too often, we carry around things from our past that hurt us – regrets, shame, anger, pain, etc. Don’t let these negative points from the past rob your present happiness.

7} You can choose to view things differently. Pick one part of your life that you are unhappy with and look at it from a different point of view.

8} Once you embrace unpleasant news, not as a negative but as evidence of a need for positive change, you’re learning from it and growing. Whatever life throws at you, even if it hurts, be strong and fight through it.

9} When your flaws are stitched together with good intentions, your flaws make you beautiful. It’s better to be true to yourself and risk being ridiculed by others, than to be false, and miss out on the beauty of being YOU.

10} You have the ability to heal yourself. Just like lava flowing slowly out of a volcano, you must create a healthy outlet for your pain and anger.

11} There’s a lot of life left to be lived. The real tragedy in life is not death, but the passion we let die inside of us while we still live.

12} You are a work in progress; which means you get there a little at a time, not all at once. Today is a brand new day – a fresh start.

13}

Look Up

2014-06-02T10:06:00.001+04:00

An anti-technology, anti-social media campaign message watched more than 40 million times through technology and social media.... Isn't it ironic?

Nonetheless, its good to be reminded once in a while... and I believe, it's a matter of discipline.

>>Anthony, thank you for forwarding>>

Potholes Ahead

2014-05-29T16:43:00.001+04:00

The lead story on our local news this morning was about potholes. After the rough winter we have experienced already, the roads are a mess — with auto-damaging potholes on all the main thoroughfares. It reminds me of the way human life works.

Life is a journey. We map our roads to success and happiness. There are curves along the way, and we must not give in to the temptation just to coast. Okay. You've got it. Right? The notion of life as a road to travel has been used in the Bible, by Scott Peck, and in the vocabularies of practically all of us.

There are no roads without potholes. So the people who get the most joy out of life are the ones who learn early how to deal with discouragement.

Temperament appears to predispose some people to see the dark side of situations and to incline toward pessimism. There are external circumstances over which one does not have control. There are people who can make life harder for you as critics or enemies. But you are not helpless in the face of your disposition, circumstances, or critics. There is at least one thing you can control.

Your attitude toward life is a choice you alone can make. There have been days when I have had to have a pretty stern conversation with myself. "Do what is right," I said. "Do it well. Do it with passion. And leave the outcome to God." Do you recall having some version of that conversation with yourself?

Adopting a helpless posture in the face of challenge practically guarantees a sorry outcome. Unless someone rescues you from yourself — an unlikely option in most situations — you are going to lose the job, the relationship, or the dream.

Did you hear about the jilted bride who placed an ad? "Hope Chest for Sale: brand new, half price, long story."

That's quite different from the little boy playing right field for his Pee Wee League team. A latecomer leaned against the fence and asked, "What's the score?" When the boy answered that his team was trailing 8 to 0, the kindly fellow said, "Don't be too discouraged. Maybe your team will do better next time." The kid didn't

even look up. He just said, "It's okay. We ain't been to bat yet!"

The issue here isn't to encourage you to be naïve or foolish. But a layoff, illness, divorce, bankruptcy, or moral failure doesn't have to be the end. Believe it or not for now, the truth is that life needs to work the way it does. Apart from setbacks, we don't develop character traits such as strength, courage, and endurance. Without challenge, we never experience the sweet taste of victory or joy. Apart from our own discouragement, compassion likely could not exist.

[The LORD said,]"Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen and help you..." - Isaiah 41:10 NLT

Written by Rubel Shelly

>>forwarded by Genevieve>> thank you

Five Lessons From The Parable of Talents

2014-05-22T13:39:00.000+04:00

How should Christians think about work, success and wealth?

The Parable of the Talents in MATTHEW 25:14:30 provides a helpful framework for this question.

1. First, this parable teaches us that success is a product of our work.

In the book of Genesis we see that God placed Adam in the garden to work it and take care of it. We were made to work. As Christians we have a mission that our Lord expects us to accomplish in the here and now.

Far too many evangelical Christians today see their salvation as simply a “bus ticket to heaven.” They believe it doesn’t matter what they do while they “wait for the bus.” The Parable of the Talents teaches us what we are supposed to do while we await the return of our King.

We are to work, using our talents to glorify God, serve the common good, and further God’s kingdom. Biblical success is working diligently in the here and now using all the talents God has given us to produce the return expected by the Master.

2. The Parable of the Talents teaches that God always gives us everything we need to do what he has called us to do.

Have you ever wondered what a talent is worth in today’s dollars? It is hard to know for sure, yet whatever its exact value, in the New Testament a talent indicates a large sum of money, maybe even as much as a million dollars in today’s currency.

We are tempted to feel sorry for the servant who received only one talent, but in reality he received as much as a million dollars from the master and buried it in his back yard. He was given more than enough to meet the master’s expectations.

Just as the master expected his servants to do more than passively preserve what has been entrusted to them, so God expects us to generate a return by using our talents towards productive ends. The servants were given enough to produce more – it is the same with the gifts God has given us. The Apostle Paul writes in Ephesians 2:10: For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

We seldom associate this verse with our work, but we should.

3. The Parable of the Talents teaches that we are not all created equal.

The most overlooked part of this parable is the second half of verse fifteen: the master gives to each servant talents, “…each according to his ability.” The master understood that the one-talent servant was not capable of producing as much as the five-talent servant.

We want to protest this as unfair. Yet we know this is true from our own experience. Diversity is woven into the fabric of creation.

But even though we’re not created equal in regard to the talents we’re given, there is equality found in the Parable of the Talents. It comes from the fact that it takes just as much work for the five-talent servant to produce five more talents as it does the two-talent servant to produce two more talents.

This is why the reward given by the master is the same. The master measures success by degrees of effort, as should we.

4. The Parable of the Talents teaches that we work for the Master, not our own selfish purposes.

The money that is given to the servants is not their own. The money they earn with the capital is not theirs to keep. The servants are only stewards of the master’s investment, and it is the quality of their stewardship that the master seeks to measure.

We should maximize the use of our talents not for our own selfish purposes, but to honor God. We know that we work in a fallen world. Because of the curse of sin, our work will be difficult. But we should feel satisfaction and joy from doing our best with what God has given us in the place where his providence puts us, seeking to succeed in order to honor him.

5. The Parable of the Talents shows that we will be held accountable.

The Parable of the Talents is not about salvation or works righteousness, but about how we use our work to fulfill our earthly callings. It is about whole-life stewardship, or “Stewardship with a capital ‘S‘.”

The unfaithful steward in this parable didn’t so much waste the master’s money – he wasted an opportunity. As a result, he was judged wicked and lazy. We are responsible for what we do for God with what we have been given, and one day we will be held responsible.

What we hear from the Master on that day is up to us.

This post was adapted from its original version appearing in the latest edition of byFaith magazine.

>>Thank you Andrea for Forwarding>>