"What the caterpillar calls the end of the world the master calls a
butterfly."
~Richard Bach
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One of My Favorite messages!
Forgive and Move On!
Today's Scripture:
"But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven
forgive your trespasses." (Mark 11:26)
Today's Word from Joel and Victoria:
No one promised that life would always be fair. People are imperfect;
we make mistakes and bad decisions. You may have been hurt by others
in the past, but the important part is how you choose to deal with
that hurt. Failing to let go of the past and holding on to grudges
and anger can only cause harm in your life. If you want to keep your
joy and remove what could become some huge roadblocks in your path,
decide to forgive others, whether or not they ask for forgiveness.
God says His daily forgiveness, in the sense of His daily favor and
blessings, is based on your willingness to forgive others. When you
forgive, you will find new strength and begin to experience God's
breath-taking blessings!
A Prayer for Today:
God, thank You for Your forgiveness. I know that I don't deserve it,
but I praise You for faithfully forgiving me. Help me to clear any
roadblocks in my path by forgiving others, even as You forgive me. In
Jesus' Name. Amen.
Heaven and Hell
The Difference between
Heaven and Hell
A holy man was
having a conversation with the Lord one day and said,"
Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like." The
Lord led the
Holy man to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked
in. In
The middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of
the table
Was a large pot of stew which smelled delicious and made the holy man's
mouth water.
The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared
To be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that
were strapped to
Their arms and each of them found it possible to reach into the pot
of stew, and take a spoonful, but because the handle was longer than
their arms, they could not get the spoon back into their mouths.
The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering. The Lord said,
"You have seen Hell."
They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the
first one. There was the large round table with the large pot
of stew, which made the holy man's mouth water. The people were
equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were
well-nourished and laughing and talking. The holy man said, "I
don't understand." "It is simple" said the Lord,
"it requires but one skill."
"You see, they have learned to feed each other, while the
greedy only think of themselves."
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Great Sayings and Lessons to Learn and Live By!
1. I love you not because of who you are, but because of who I am when I am with you.
2. No man or woman is worth your tears, and the one who is, won't make you cry.
3. Just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to, doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have.
4. A true friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your heart.
5. The worst way to miss someone is to be sitting right beside them knowing you can't have them.
6. Never frown, even when you are sad, because you never know who is falling in love with your smile.
7. To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.
8. Don't waste your time on a man/woman, who isn't willing to waste their time on you.
9. Maybe God wants us to meet a few wrong people before meeting the right one, so
that when we finally meet the person, we will know how to be grateful.
10. Don't cry because it is over, smile because it happened
11. There's always going to be people that hurt you. So what you have to do is keep
on trusting and just be more careful about who you trust next time around.
12. Make yourself a better person and know who you are before you try and know
someone else and expect them to know you.
13. Don't try so hard, the best things come when you least expect them to.
REMEMBER: WHATEVER HAPPENS, HAPPENS FOR A REASON.
The power of positive thinking!
John is the kind of guy you
love to hate. He is always in a good mood and always has something positive to
say.
When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, 'If I were any
better, I would be twins!'
He was a natural motivator.
If an employee was having a bad day, John was there telling the employee how to
look on the positive side of the situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up and asked him,
'I don't get it!
You can't be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?'
He replied, 'Each morning I wake up and say to myself,
you have two choices today.
You can choose to be in a good mood or ... you can choose to be in a bad mood.
I choose to be in a good mood.
Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or... I can choose
to learn from it. I choose to learn from it.
Every time someone comes to me complaining,
I can choose to accept their
complaining or...
I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.'
'Yeah, right, it's not that easy,' I protested.
'Yes, it is,' he said. 'Life is all about choices.
When you cut away all the
junk, every situation is a choice.
You choose how you react to situations.
You choose how people affect
your mood.
You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It's your choice
how you live your life.'
I reflected on what he said. Soon thereafter,
I left the Tower Industry to
start my own business.
We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life
instead of reacting to it.
Several years later, I heard that he was involved in a serious accident,
falling some 60 feet from a communications tower.
After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, he was released from the
hospital with rods placed in his back.
I saw him about six months after the accident.
When I asked him how he was, he replied, 'If I were any better, I'd be
twins...Wanna see my scars?'
I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him what had gone through his mind
as the accident took place.
'The first thing that went through my mind was the well-being of my soon-to-be
born daughter,' he replied. 'Then, as I lay on the ground,
I remembered that I had two
choices: I could choose to live or..
I could choose to die. I chose to live.''Weren't you scared?
Did you lose consciousness?' I asked.
He continued, '..the paramedics were great.
They kept telling me I was going to be fine.
But when they wheeled me into
the ER and I saw the expressions
on the faces of the doctors
and nurses,
I got really scared. In their
eyes, I read 'he's a dead man'.
I knew I needed to take action.''What did you do?' I asked.
'Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me,' said John.
'She asked if I was allergic to anything 'Yes, I replied.' The doctors and
nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply.
I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Gravity'.'
Over their laughter, I told them, 'I am choosing to live.
Operate on me as if I am
alive, not dead.'
He lived, thanks to the skills of his doctors,
but also because of his
amazing attitude...
I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.
Attitude, after all, is everything.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow,
for tomorrow will worry about
itself.
Each day has enough trouble of its own.'
After all today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.
Reach for the moon - if you miss,
you will land among the stars!
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Written On Your Heart
Today's Scripture
"They demonstrate that God's law is written in their
hearts..." (Romans 2:15).
Today's Word from Joel and Victoria
In the Old Testament, God's commands were written on stone
tablets and kept in the tabernacle. Now, we are living according to
the New Testament, and when we accept Jesus as our personal Lord and
Savior, we become His temple. He lives in us, and He engraves His
promises and commands in our hearts. How can you be sure of this? This
verse goes on to say that your conscience, or inner man, has a
stronger knowledge of what is right and what is wrong; what you should
and shouldn't do. You are drawn to follow the Word of God.
That's the Spirit of God on the inside of you, guiding and
directing you. As you follow His leading, your ability to hear and
know Him is strengthened. But if you choose to bypass that prompting
on the inside, your heart can become hard which will affect your
ability to hear Him in the future. Make the decision today to
demonstrate that God's law is written on your heart by quickly
obeying His leading. As you do, He'll guide you down the path of
blessing, and you'll experience the abundant life He has in
store for you!
A Prayer for Today
Heavenly Father, thank You for making Your home in me and for guiding
me down the path of peace and blessing. Help me to clearly follow Your
promptings all the days of my life and honor You in all I do. In
Jesus' Name. Amen.
Seeing Adversity The Right Way
Anytime God is about to take you to a new level you're going to face opposition. There will be new battles to fight and new obstacles to overcome. It's easy to get discouraged and think, "Why is this happening?" But we have to change our thinking and focus on the fact that on the other side of those challenges is a new level of victory--a new level of success. David would only be known as a shepherd boy if it weren't for Goliath. David's enemy became the tool that God used to promote him. And God will do the same in your life today. He'll use those challenges and difficulties in your life to catapult you towards success! If you are going through a hard time today, if things look impossible, don't give up now. Change your perspective and believe that God is working behind the scenes. Put a smile on your face and stand in confidence knowing that you are a child of the Most High God. When all is said and done, you're not just going to come out of that difficulty, but you're coming out stronger, wiser, and better than you were before! That problem is going to be the catalyst for God to open supernatural doors of opportunity for you! Stand strong in the Lord today and trust that what the enemy meant for your harm, God will turn around and use to your advantage. He'll take you places you never dreamed and cause you to rise higher and higher in every area of your life!
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George Orwell, 1984:
"You are a slow learner, Winston," said O'Brien
gently.
"How can I help it?" he blubbered. "How can I help seeing what is
in front of my eyes? Two and two are four."
"Sometimes, Winston.
Sometimes they are five. Sometimes they are three.
Sometimes they are all of
them at once. You must try harder. It is not easy to become sane."
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Big Rocks First!
By: Joel and Victoria:
A college
professor teaching a course on time management set a large
jar on his desk
and filled it with big rocks. He asked his students,
"Is the jar full?"
They said yes. Then he poured a bag of small
gravel into the jar. He asked,
"Is the jar full?" and again received
a "yes" answer. Then he poured in a
bag of sand and a pitcher of
water until all the crevices of the jar were
filled. Then he asked,
"All right, what does this illustration teach us?"
One student
replied, "That's easy. It teaches us that no matter how busy
your
life is, you can always make room for more."
"No, you've missed
the point completely!" the professor said. "This
teaches us that if you
don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never
get them in at all." This is
a great life lesson! The big rocks are
life's priorities, and they have to
be first on our schedules or
they'll get crowded out by other
things.
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A Dog's Purpose...
A Dog's
Purpose...
Being a
veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year old Irish Wolfhound named
Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, Lisa, his wife, and their little boy, Shane were
all very attached to Belker and they were hoping for a
miracle.
I examined
Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do
anything for Belker and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old
dog in their home.
As we made
arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for the
four-year old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might
learn something from the experience.
The next
day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him.
Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if
he understood what was going on.
Within a few
minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away. The little boy seemed to accept
Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion.
We sat
together for a while after Belker's death, wondering aloud about the sad fact
that animal lives are shorter than human lives. Shane, who had been listening
quietly, piped up, "I know why."
Startled, we
all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I had never heard
a more comforting explanation.
He said,
"People are born so that they can lean how to live a good life - like loving
everybody all the time and being nice, right?" The four-year old continued,
"Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as
long."
Live simply.
Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to
God.
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Somethings are good for the soul!
Somethings are good for the soul!
Last week, I took my children to a restaurant.
My six-year-old son asked
if he could say grace.
As we bowed our heads he said, "God is good, God
is great. Thank you for
the food, and I would even thank you more if Mom
gets us ice cream for
dessert. And
Liberty and justice
for all! Amen!"
Along with the laughter from the other customers
nearby, I heard a woman
remark, "That's what's wrong with this country. Kids
today don't even know
how to pray. Asking God for ice cream! Why,
I never!"
Hearing this, my son burst into tears and asked me, "Did I do
it wrong? Is
God mad at me?"
As I held him and assured him that he
had done a terrific job, and God was
certainly not mad at him, an elderly
gentleman approached the table.
He winked at my son and said, "I happen
to know that God thought that was
a great prayer."
"Really?" my
son asked.
"Cross my heart," the man replied.
Then, in a
theatrical whisper, he added (indicating the woman whose remark
had started
this whole thing), "Too bad she never asks God for ice cream. A
little
ice cream is good for the soul sometimes."
Naturally, I bought my kids
ice cream at the end of the meal. My son stared
at his for a moment,
and then did something I will remember the rest of
my
life.
He picked up his sundae and, without a word, walked over and
placed it in
front of the woman. With a big smile he told her, "Here, this
is for you.
Ice cream is good for the soul sometimes; and my soul is good
already ."
The End
What a great story!
Sometimes, we all need some ice cream.
I hope God sends
you some Ice Cream today!
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The Price of a Miracle
The Price of a Miracle
A little girl went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly
jar from its hiding place in the closet
She poured the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times,
even.
The total had to be exactly perfect. No chance here for mistakes.
Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the cap, she
slipped out the back door
and made her way 6 blocks to Rexall's Drug Store with
the big red Indian Chief sign above the door.
She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention, but he was
too
busy at this moment Tess twisted her feet to make a scuffing noise.
Nothing.
She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound she could
muster.
No good. Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the
glass counter. That did it!
"And what do you want?" the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of
voice.
I'm talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven't seen in
ages,"
he said without waiting for a reply to his question.
"Well, I want to talk to you about my brother," Tess answered back in
the
same annoyed tone. "He's really, really sick...and I want to buy a
miracle."
"I beg your pardon?" said the pharmacist
"His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing inside his head
and my
Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle
cost?"
"We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I'm sorry
but I can't help you
," the pharmacist said, softening a little.
"Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn't enough,
I will get
the rest. Just tell me how much it costs."
The pharmacist's brother was a well dressed man. He stooped down
and asked the
little girl, "What kind of a miracle does your brother need?"
"I don't know," Tess replied with her eyes welling up. I just know
he's really sick
and Mommy says he needs an operation.
But my Daddy can't pay
for it, so I want to use my money."
"How much do you have?" asked the man from Chicago
"One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered barely audibly.
"And it's all the money I have, but I can get some more if I need
to."
"Well, what a coincidence," smiled the man.
"A dollar and eleven
cents---the exact price of a miracle for little brothers."
He took her money in one hand and with the other hand he grasped her mitten
and
said "Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother
and meet your
parents. Let's see if I have the miracle you need."
That well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in
neuro-surgery. The operation was completed free of charge and
it wasn't long
until Andrew was home again and doing well.
Mom and Dad were happily talking about the
chain of events that had led them to
this place.
"That surgery, her Mom whispered, was a
real miracle. I wonder how much it
would have cost?"
Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost...
one dollar and eleven
cents....plus the faith of a little child.
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Favor Has Been Released Into Your Future
Favor Has Been Released Into Your Future
God has already released good things into your future. When God laid
out the plan for your life, He lined up the right people, the right
circumstances, and the right breaks. In your future, He's
already released favor, supernatural opportunities, and divine
connections. The breaks you need in life have already been preordained
to come across your path. If you will stay in faith and go out each
day and be a person of excellence, you'll walk into these
appointments of favor. It will be just as if you stumbled into
God's blessings! When you really understand this principal,
you'll begin to get excited about every single day! You'll
have a spring in your step as you think about what blessing is coming
next! It could be today. It could be tomorrow. It could be next week.
Keep expecting. Keep believing. Stay focused on the fact that God has
already released into your future everything you need to fulfill your
destiny. Start declaring seasons of increase over your life. Declare
that the favor is on you and opportunities are coming. As you do,
you'll move forward into the favor and blessing God has ordered
for you!
By Joel Osteen
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The Present
Two men, both seriously ill,
occupied the same hospital room.
One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour
each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs.
His bed was next to the room's only window.
The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.
The men talked for hours on end.
They spoke of their wives and families,
their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the
military service, where they had been on vacation.
Every afternoon, when the man in the bed
by the window could sit up, he would pass the time
by describing to his roommate all the things he could see
outside the window.
The man in the other bed began to live for
those one hour periods where his world would be
broadened and enlivened by all the activity
and color of the world outside.
The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake.
Ducks and swans played on the water while children
sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in
arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view
of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.
As the man by the window described all this
in exquisite details, the man on the other side
of the room would close his eyes and imagine t
his picturesque scene.
One warm afternoon, the man by the window
described a parade passing by.
Although the other man could not hear the band -
he could see it in his mind's eye as the gentleman
by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.
Days, weeks and months passed.
One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water
for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the
man by the window, who had died peacefully in
his sleep.
She was saddened and called the hospital
attendants to take the body away.
As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man
asked if he could be moved next to the window.
The nurse was happy to make the switch,
and after making sure he was comfortable,
she left him alone.
Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up
on one elbow to take his first look
at the real world outside.
He strained to slowly turn to look out the
window besides the bed.
It faced a blank wall.
The man asked the nurse what could
have compelled his deceased roommate who
had described such wonderful things
outside this window.
The nurse responded that the man was blind
and could not even see the wall.
She said, "Perhaps he just wanted to encourage you."
Epilogue:
There is tremendous happiness
in making others happy, despite our own situations.
Shared grief is half the sorrow,
but happiness when shared, is doubled.
If you want to feel rich,
just count all the things you have
that money can't buy.
"Today is a gift, that is why it is called The Present."
Author unknown
Living the Abundant Life
Living the Abundant
Life
God desires that you be so blessed that you can turn around and be
a
blessing everywhere you go! He wants you to have so much peace, so
much
joy, so much victory that when other people get around you it
spills over
onto them! In the book of Psalms, David said, "My
cup runs over." He was
overflowing with the anointing--the
tangible, effective power of God. Too
many people today have a
barely-get-by-mentality. They settle for thoughts
like, "I can
barely pay my bills...I have an okay job... I have an
okay
marriage." But Jesus came so we can live an abundant life! That
means
an abundance of joy, an abundance of peace, an abundance of
health, an
abundance of finances. You may not see it right now, and
maybe you haven't
experienced it in the past, but don't
get complacent and just settle for
where you are. Get a vision for
your future! Get a vision for increase! Get a
vision for Abundance!
Psalm 35:27 says, "Let them say continually, 'Let the
Lord
be magnified Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His
children.'"
God delights to see you prosperous and
successful. When you choose to think
God's thoughts and choose
God's way, you'll see that increase and victory in
every
area of your life. Now is the time to move forward and live
the
abundant life God has planned for you!
By: Joel Osteen
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