Reflections

IT'S A NEW BEGINNING ... TIME TO ... CHOOSE THE POSSIBILITIES Choices Some people sit – some people try; Some people laugh – some people cry; Some people will – some people won’t; Some people do – some people don’t. Some people believe and develop a plan; Some people doubt – never think that they can; Some people face hurdles and give it their best; Some people back down when faced with a test. Some people complain of their miserable lot; Some people are thankful for all that they’ve got; And when it’s all over — when it comes to an end — Some people lose out and some people win. We all have a choice — we all have a say; We are spectators in life or we get in and play; Whichever we choose — how we handle life’s game; The choices are ours — no one else is to blame. Possibilities When your dreams start to seem so impossible, When roadblocks are all you can see — Look beyond all the problems that face you And focus on POSSIBILITIES. Don’t limit your thoughts to the present Or solutio...

As you know, the celebration of my birthday began many years ago. At first people seemed to understand and be thankful of all that I did for them, but now in these times, no one seems to know the reason for the celebration. Family and friends get together and have a lot of fun, but they don't seem to know the meaning of the celebration. I remember that last year there was a great feast in my honor. The dinner table was full of delicious foods, pastries, fruits, assorted nuts and chocolates. The decorations were exquisite and there were many, many beautifully wrapped gifts. But, do you want to know something? I wasn't invited. I was the guest of honour and they didn't remember to send me an invitation. The party was for me, but when that great day came, I was left outside. They closed the door in my face....and I wanted to be with them and share their table in truth though, that didn't really surprise me that much because in the last few years it seems all are clos...

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. Psalm 23:1 On a scale from one to ten (ten being the highest), what is your daily level of stress? Do you cruise through life at level two? Or do you constantly run on all cylinders at level nine? Seventy-five years ago, the only people who used the term “stress” were engineers talking about the physical pressure placed on objects. But now we use the term to express the pressure we feel mentally and emotionally as we live through each day. Many physicians and researchers spend all of their time dealing with stress-related disorders, as hospital beds fill up with businessmen, bricklayers, housewives, and children. There’s no question about it – this is the Age of Anxiety. But God never intended us to live stress-filled lives. The Bible states that worry is a sin, commanding us to “be anxious for nothing” (Philippians 4:6). Yet we don’t live in line with this command. Instead, we worry and fret about our jobs, our families, our financi...

By the time the Lord made woman, He was into his sixth day of working overtime. An angel appeared and said,"Why are you spending so much time on this one?" And the Lord answered, "Have you seen my spec sheet on her? She has to be completely washable, but not plastic, have over 200 movable parts, all replaceable and able to run on diet coke and leftovers, have a lap that can hold four children at one time, have a kiss that can cure anything from a scraped knee to a broken heart and she will do everything with only two hands." The angel was astounded at the requirements."Only two hands!? No way! And that's just on the standard model? That's too much work for one day. Wait until tomorrow to finish." But I won't," the Lord protested. "I am so close to finishing this creation that is so close to my own heart. She already heals herself when she is sick AND can work 18 hour days." The angel moved closer and touched the woman....

author unknown A few months before I was born, my dad met a stranger who was new to our small Tennessee town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer, and soon invited him to live with our family.The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome me into the world a few months later.As I grew up I never questioned his place in our family. In my young mind, each member had a special niche. My brother, Bill, five years my senior, was my example. Fran, my younger sister, gave me an opportunity to play *big brother* and develop the art of teasing. My parents were complementary instructors-- Mom taught me to love the word of God, and Dad taught me to obey it.But the stranger was our storyteller. He could weave the most fascinating tales. Adventures, mysteries and comedies were daily conversations. He could hold our whole family spell-bound for hours each evening. If I wanted to know about politics, history, or science, he knew it. He knew about the pas...

by: Marty Kasza, Source Unknown You'd think that after years of attending church, Sunday school, vacation Bible school, church camp or youth group, someone would be a 'Christian'. But that's not always so. At least, that's not the way it happened with me. I became a Christian when I was 18 and a month away from leaving for my first year of college. A pastor from the new church my family was attending stopped by our house and went through a small tract called "Steps to Peace With God." My 11-year-old sister and I confessed our sinfulness and professed our faith in Jesus that day, asking Him to be our Savior. But prior to that moment, I would have said that I was a Christian if someone had asked. I mean, people who believe in God and believe in Jesus are Christians, right? Christians go to church. Christians serve in the church. I did all of these things. So why weren't they enough to make me a Christian? Looking back, I can't believe I missed the tr...

The love of one’s country is a splendid thing. But why should love stop at the border?- Pablo Casals

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do. After 2 years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house." The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I...

Slow dance Words to learn from... - GREAT POEM This poem was written by a terminally ill young girl in a New York Hospital. It was sent by a medical doctor - Make sure to read what is in the closing statement AFTER THE POEM-------- SLOWDANCE Have you ever watched kids On a merry-go-round? Or listened to the rain Slapping on the ground? Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight? Or gazed at the sun into the fading night? You better slow down. Don't dance so fast. Time is short. The music won't last. Do you run through each day On the fly? When you ask How are you? Do you hear the reply? When the day is done Do you lie in your bed With the next hundred chores Running through your head? You'd better slow down Don't dance so fast. Time is short. The music won't last. Ever told your child, We'll do it tomorrow? And in your haste, Not see his sorrow? Ev...

Integrity plays an important part in receiving the blessings of the Lord. When we hold on to our Integrity, it is promised in God’s Word that we will receive a just reward in this world and in the world to come. (Psalm 18:20-24) THE EMPEROR AND THE SEED An emperor in the Far East was growing old and knew it was time to choose his successor. Instead of choosing one of his assistants or his children, he decided something different. He called the young people in the kingdom together one day. He said, “It is time for me to step down and choose the next emperor. I have decided to choose one of you.” The kids were shocked! But the emperor continued. “I am going to give each one of you a seed today. One very special seed. I want you to plant the seed, water it and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from this one seed. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next emperor!” One boy named Ling was there that day and he, like...

Women... Women are like apples on trees. The best ones are at the top of the tree. Most men don't want to reach for the good ones because they are afraid of falling and getting hurt. Instead, they just take the rotten apples from the ground that aren't as good, but easy...The apples at the top think something is wrong with them, when in reality, they're amazing. They just have to wait for the right man to come along, the one who's brave enough to climb all the way to the top of the tree. Now Men... Men are like a fine wine. They begin as grapes, and it's up to women to stomp the stuffing out of them until they turn into something acceptable to have dinner with.

By Joni Eareckson Tada An artist paints so that people might see. You share beauty, elevate the imagination, inspire and challenge the senses--and seek to do it all without being blatant or obvious. The good artist will let the viewer discover truth for himself. I think of a recent painting of a horse. As I painted, there were parts on that horse I thought were especially attractive--parts I wanted the viewer to notice. Like that nice place where neck turns into chest. And those slender ankles. The tilt of the head was another point of interest. As an artist I thought to myself, how can I get the viewer to look at these places without being obvious? I noticed the horses coat was a warm, golden color. What’s the opposite color of gold? Violet, of course--cool, dark contrast to the horses coat. That's what I'll do, I reasoned. I'll lay this cool violet next to the special places on the horse. That will draw attention without being too conspicuous. As I worked on the...

A group of students were asked to list what they thought were the present "Seven Wonders of the World." Though there were some disagreements, the following received the most votes: 1. Egypt's Great Pyramids 2. Taj Mahal 3. Grand Canyon 4. Panama Canal 5. Empire State Building 6. St. Peter's Basilica 7. China's Great Wall While gathering the votes, the teacher noted that one student had not finished her paper yet. So she asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list. The girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many." The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help. "The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the 'Seven Wonders of the World' are: 1. To See 2. To Hear 3. To Touch 4. To Taste 5. To Feel 6. To Laugh 7. And to Love." The room was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop. The things we overlook as simple and ordinary and that we...

Francis Frangipane There are a great many books written today about developing our spiritual gifts or discovering our purpose, most of them are absolutely worthy of our attention. Recognizing our gifts and being trained to serve God in our individual calling is part of doing His will. Yet, there is a deeper, more essential goal -- an objective that is ultimately far more valuable both to God and ourselves. I am talking about the genuine quest to possess the likeness of Christ. We marvel at the life of Paul. Here was a man who wrote Scriptures, who led many thousands to Christ; he founded churches and was proficient in all the spiritual gifts. Yet, what compelled him forward in life was not his calling, but his passion to be like Christ. He articulates this profoundly in Phil 3:10. He wrote, "that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death." My concern is that, over the years, I have seen far too many peo...

Today, upon a bus, I saw a girl with golden hair. and wished I was as fair. When suddenly she rose to leave, I saw her hobble down the aisle. She had one leg and wore a crutch. But as she passed, she passed a smile. Oh, God, forgive me when I whine. I have 2 legs, the world is mine. I stopped to buy some candy. The lad who sold it had such charm. I talked with him, he seemed so glad. If I were late, it'd do no harm. And as I left, he said to me, "I thank you, you've been so kind. It's nice to talk with folks like you. You see," he said, "I'm blind." Oh, God, forgive me when I whine. I have 2 eyes, the world is mine. Later while walking down the street, I saw a child with eyes of blue. He stood and watched the others play. He did not know what to do. I stopped a moment and then I said, "Why don't you join the others, dear?" He looked ahead without a word. And then I knew, he couldn't hear. Oh, God, forgive me when I whine. I have 2 ...

For many years an elderly lady in our neighborhood was noted for her beautiful tulip garden, Just passing by the colorful display made the heart want to sing; her garden represented earth_s beauty at its best. Next door to her was the unkept home of an old bachelor. His fence was battered and broken, weeds shot up everywhere, and the paint was peeling. Such extremes of appearance, it seems, could not coexist for long. Neighbors wondered why the elderly lady didn_t complain or make a phone call to city officials. Yet no confrontation ever occurred. The beautiful tulip garden and the messy yard remained the same year after year. But this spring an odd thing happened. As I drove down the street, I was surprised to see a few brilliantly colored rows of tulips in front of the old man_s house. The rest of the yard still looked like a disaster, but those new, gorgeous tulips stood out. Curious, I stopped my car and walked up to the lady_s home. She was outside weeding her flowers. "Hello...

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this happen?" (regarding the attacks on Sept. 11). Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?" In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found recently) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school the Bible says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yours...

He maketh the barren woman to keep house, [and to be] a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the LORD. Psalm 113:9 WHO IS MOTHER? Mother is half of the Father/Mother team, the one who gave birth to you as a child. When she first held you in her arms, she fell madly in love with you! She is the one that changed your diaper, gave you your bottle, bathed and dressed you. She is the one who tended to you when you were sick, wishes she could have bore your pain, but unable to even share it with you. There is none like a Mother. If you have children, then you know what it's like to be a Mother. Often, it's a tough job, with unruly children, and many heartaches before they are grown. Sometimes a Mother is lucky that she has well-disciplined children, but only because she has done her best in order for them to be well-adjusted teenagers and later adults. Mostly, Mother sits and worries that she hasn't done her best with her children, especially if they don't turn out as she tho...

What is your ambition in life today? Is it to get rich? Is it to make a name for yourself? Is it even to do some wonderful thing for God? Listen to me, beloved. The highest desire that can possess any human heart is a longing to see God. - J. Vernon McGee

Jim Bramlett Jan 15, 2005 INSIGHTS from Bill BrightReflections from the late Founder and President/Chairman Emeritus of Campus Crusade for Christ International: Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it (Ephesians 2:9, NLT). Dear friends: There was a famous actor who died. Several weeks before his death, he appeared on a national television show and was asked, "Is there anything you are afraid of?" "I guess I'm afraid I won't please God," the actor replied. "I would like to think I've done good things and have been a good person because I want to go to Heaven. But I'm not sure I'm going to Heaven." Like this actor, millions of people are hoping that their good works will get them into Heaven. But salvation is a gift of God's love and grace -- no amount of good works can earn His favor.Most false religions and cults have one common ingredient. They teach that one has to earn his...