Saturday 26 November 2011

Resisting Discouragement

 “So don’t get tired of doing what is good. Don’t get discouraged and give up, for we will reap a harvest of blessing at the appropriate time” (Galatians 6:9 NLT).
There are many things that work to keep us from completing our life-missions. Over the years, I’ve debated whether the worst enemy is procrastination or discouragement. If Satan can’t get us to put off our life missions, then he’ll try to get us to quit altogether.
The apostle Paul teaches that we need to resist discouragement: “So don’t get tired of doing what is good. Don’t get discouraged and give up” (Galatians 6:9 NLT).
Do you ever get tired of doing what’s right? I think we all do. Sometimes it seems easier to do the wrong thing than the right thing.
When we’re discouraged, we become ineffective. When we’re discouraged, we work against our own faith.
When I’m discouraged, I’m saying, “It can’t be done.” That’s the exact opposite of saying, “I know God can do i tbecause he said . . . .”
Ask yourself these questions:
• How do I handle failure?
• When things don’t go my way, do I get grumpy?
• When things don’t go my way, do I get frustrated?
• When things don’t go my way, do I start complaining?
• Do I finish what I start?
• How would I rate on persistence?
If you’re discouraged, don’t give up without a fight. Nothing worthwhile ever happens without endurance and energy.
When an artist starts to create a sculpture, he has to keep chipping away. He doesn’t hit the chisel with the hammer once, and suddenly all the excess stone falls away revealing a beautiful masterpiece. He keeps hitting it and hitting it, chipping away at the stone.
And that’s true of life, too. Nothing really worthwhile ever comes easy in life. You keep hitting it and going after it, and little-by-little your life becomes a masterpiece of God’s grace.
The fact is, great people are really just ordinary people with an extraordinary amount of determination. Great people don’t know how to quit.
                                                                                                                            By Rick Warren

Sunday 20 November 2011

Happy Thanksgiving!!! - Breakfast at McDonald's

I have received this forwarded message three times already. Now that its Thanksgiving and as we enter the Christmas Season – The Season of Sharing, I think this is the perfect time to share this story again…

BREAKFAST AT MCDONALD'S

I am a Mother of three (ages 14, 12 & 3)and have recently completed my college degree. The last class that I had to take was sociology. The Teacher was absolutely inspiring with the qualities I wish every human being had been graced with. Her last Project for the term was called, "SMILE".
The class was asked to go out and smile at three people and document their reactions. I am a very friendly person and always smile at everyone and say hello anyway. So, I thought this would be a piece of cake, literally.
Soon after we were assigned the project, my husband, youngest son and I went out to McDonald's one crisp March morning. It was just our way of sharing special time with our son. We were standing in line, waiting to be served, when all of a sudden everyone around us began to back away, and then even my husband did.
I did not move an inch... an overwhelming feeling of panic welled up inside of me as I turned to see why they had moved. As I turned around, I smelled a horrible 'dirty body' smell, and there standing behind me were two poor homeless men. As I looked down at the short gentlemen, close to me, he was 'smiling'. His beautiful sky blue eyes were full of God's Light as he searched for acceptance...
He said, 'Good Day' as he counted the few coins he had been clutching..
The second man fumbled with his hands as he stood behind his friend. I realized that the second man was mentally challenged and the blue-eyed gentleman was his salvation. I held my tears as I stood there with them. The young lady at the counter asked him what they wanted. He said, 'Coffee is all Miss' because that's what all they could afford. (If they wanted to sit in the restaurant and warm up, they had to buy something. He just wanted to be warm).
Then I really felt it - the compulsion was so great I almost reached out and embraced the little man with the blue eyes...that is when I noticed all eyes in the Restaurant was set on me, judging My every action. I smiled and asked the young lady behind the counter to give two more breakfast meals on separate tray. I then walked around the corner to the table that the men had chosen as their resting spot. I put the tray on the table and laid my hand on the blue-eyed gentleman's cold hand.
He looked up at me, with tears in his eyes he said, 'Thank you'. I leaned over, began to pat his hand and said, ' I did not do this for you.. God is here working through me to give you hope'.
I started to cry as I walked away and join my husband and son... When I sat down my husband smiled at me and said, 'That's why God gave you to me, Honey, to give me hope...' We held hands for a moment at that time, we knew that only because of the grace that we had been given were we able to give. We were not Church goers, but Believers. That day showed me the pure Light of God's sweet love.
I returned to the college, on the last evening of class, with the story in hand. I turned in 'my project' and the instructor read it. Then she looked at me and said, 'Can I share this?' I slowly nodded as she got the attention of the class. She began to read and that is when I knew that we as human beings and as being part of God share this need to heal people and to be healed. In my own way, I have touched the people at McDonald's, my son, the instructor, and every soul that shared in the classroom on the last night I spent as a college student.

REFLECTION:

Gospel of St. Matthew 25: 31-46

'For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me....
Whatever you did for one of this least brothers of mine, you did for me.'


Friday 18 November 2011

Thought of the Day by Bob Marley

He’s is not perfect. You aren’t either, and the two of you will never be perfect.
But if he can make you laugh at least once, causes you to think twice.
And if he admits to being human and making mistakes,
hold on to him and give him the most you can.

He isn’t going to quote poetry, he’s not thinking about you every moment,
But he will give you a part of him that he knows you could break.
Don’t hurt him, don’t change him, and don’t expect more than he can give.
Don’t analyze.

Smile when he makes you happy, yell when he makes you mad,
and miss him when he’s not there. Love hard when there is love to be had.
Because perfect guys doesn’t exist,
But there’s always one guy that is perfect for you.
                                                                  - Bob Marley


Monday 14 November 2011

P.U.S.H

P.U.S.H.
Author Unknown

A man was sleeping at night in his cabin when suddenly his room filled with light, and God
appeared. The Lord told the man he had work for him to do, and showed him a large rock in front of his cabin. The Lord explained that the man was to push against the rock with all his might.
So, this the man did, day after day.
For many years he toiled from sun up to sun down, his shoulders set squarely against the cold, massive surface of the unmoving rock, pushing with all of his might. Each night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain.
Since the man was showing discouragement, the Adversary (Satan) decided to enter the picture by placing thoughts into the weary mind: "You have been pushing against that rock for a long time, and it hasn't moved."
Thus, he gave the man the impression that the task was impossible and that he was a failure. These thoughts discouraged and disheartened the man.
Satan said, "Why kill yourself over this? Just put in your time, giving just the minimum effort; and that will be good enough."
That's what the weary man planned to do, but decided to make it a matter of prayer and to take his troubled thoughts to the Lord. "Lord," he said, "I have labored long and hard in your service, putting all my strength to do that which you have asked. Yet, after all this time, I have not even budged that rock by half a millimeter. What is wrong? Why am I failing?"
The Lord responded compassionately, "My friend, when I asked you to serve Me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the rock with all of your strength, which you have done. Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it. Your task was to push.
And now you come to Me with your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. But, is that really so? Look at yourself. Your arms are strong and muscled, your back sinewy and brown; your hands are callused from constant pressure, your legs have become massive and hard. Through opposition you have grown much, and your abilities now surpass that which you used to have. True, you haven't moved the rock. But your calling was to be obedient and to push and to exercise your faith and trust in My wisdom. That you have done. Now I, my friend, will move the rock."
At times, when we hear a word from God, we tend to use our own intellect to decipher what He wants, when actually what God wants is just a simple obedience and faith in Him. By all means,  exercise the faith that moves mountains, but know that it is still God who moves mountains.
When everything seems to go wrong ... just P.U.S.H.!
When the job gets you down ... just P.U.S.H.!
When people don't react the way you think they should ... just P.U.S.H!
When your money is "gone" and the bills are due ... just P.U.S.H!
When people just don't understand you ... just P.U.S.H.
P= Pray
U= Until
S= Something
H= Happens

Friend, play this as you reflect...

Tuesday 8 November 2011

JOB APPLICATION: LESSON TO LEARN

 This is one of the Forwarded Message that is worth forwarding. Read through it and you will find out what I meant...



One, young, academically excellent person went to apply for a managerial position in a big company.

He passed the first interview. The director who did the last interview, made the last decision.

The director discovered from the CV that the youth's academic achievements were excellent all the way, from the secondary school until the postgraduate research. He never had a year when he did not score.

The director asked, "Did you obtain any scholarships in school?" The youth answered "none".

The director asked, " Was it your father who paid for your school fees?" The youth answered, "My father passed away when I was one year old. It was my mother who paid for my school fees.”

The director asked, " Where did your mother work?" The youth answered, "My mother worked as a clothes cleaner. The director requested the youth to show his hands. The youth showed a pair of hands that were smooth and perfect.

The director asked, " Have you ever helped your mother wash the clothes before?" The youth answered, "Never, my mother always wanted me to study and read more books. Furthermore, my mother can wash clothes faster than me. "

The director said, "I have a request. When you go back today, go and clean your mother's hands and then see me tomorrow morning."

The youth felt that his chance of landing the job was high. When he went back, he happily requested his mother to let him clean her hands. His mother felt strange,  but with mixed feelings, she showed her hands to her son.

The youth cleaned his mother's hands slowly. His tears fell as he did that. It was the first time he noticed that his mother's hands were so wrinkled and that there were so many bruises in her hands. Some bruises were so painful that his mother shivered when they were cleaned with water.

This was the first time the youth realized that it was this pair of hands that washed the clothes every day to enable him to pay the school fee. The bruises in the mother's hands were the price that the mother had to pay for his graduation, academic excellence and his future.

After finishing the cleaning of his mother hands, the youth quietly washed all the remaining clothes for his mother.

That night, mother and son talked for a very long time.

Next morning, the youth went to the director's office.


The Director noticed the tears in the youth's eyes and asked, " Can you tell me what  you did and learned yesterday in your house?"

The youth answered, " I cleaned my mother's hands, and also finished cleaning all the remaining clothes.'

The Director asked, " Please tell me your feelings."

The youth said, Number 1, I know now the meaning of appreciation. Without my mother, there would not be the successful me today. Number 2, by working together and helping my mother, only now I realize how difficult and tough it is to get something done. Number 3, I have come to appreciate the importance and value of family relationship.

The director said, " This is what I am looking for in my new  manager.
I want to recruit a person who can appreciate the help of others, a person who knows the sufferings of others to get things done, and a person who would not put money as his only goal in life. Son, you are hired.”

Later on, this young person worked very hard, and received the respect of his subordinates. Every employee worked diligently and as a team. The company's performance improved tremendously.

A child, who has been over protected and habitually given whatever he or she wanted, would develop the entitlement mentality and would always put himself first. He would be ignorant of his parent's efforts. When he starts work, he assumes that every person must listen to him, and when he becomes a manager, he would never know the sufferings of his employees and would always blame others. This kind of person, may be good academically and may be successful for a while, but eventually would not feel a sense of achievement. He will grumble and be full of hatred and fight for more.
If we are this kind of protective parents, are we really showing love or are we destroying the kid instead?

You can let your kid live in a big house, eat  good meals, learn piano, watch a big screen TV. But when you are cutting grass, please let him experience it. After a meal, let him wash his plates and bowls together with his brothers and sisters. It is not because you do not have money to hire a maid, but it is because you want to love him in the right way. You want him to understand, no matter how rich his parents are, one day their hair will grow gray, same as the mother of that young man . The most important thing is your kid learned how to appreciate the effort and experience the difficulty and learned the ability to work with others to get things done. 



Part of being successful is being grateful...If this story touches you don't hesitate to duplicate it in your blog or share it...this may change somebody's fate.


P.S. Thank you to the Author of this forwarded message.

Saturday 5 November 2011

The Promises of Peace

No matter what is going on in your life right now, the Lord promises that you can have peace. It doesn’t matter what’s happening in the economy, in your relationships or at the office; nothing in this world can take His peace from you. But notice the first part of this verse — we have to do our part. We have to listen to what He tells us to do.
You may be thinking to yourself, “God doesn’t speak to me.” But once you receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you become His. The Bible says that you are His sheep, and you can hear His voice, and the voice of a stranger you will not follow.
The Lord speaks in many ways. First of all, He speaks through the Word of God. But sometimes He speaks through the encouragement of a friend, or through a song, or in the beauty of nature. Sometimes it’s a simple “knowing” deep down on the inside of you in your spirit. If you aren’t sure how God speaks to you, ask Him to teach you. Open your heart and be willing to hear His voice. As you take time to be still and listen to Him, He will speak. He will reveal Himself to you and give you peace all the days of your life.

A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your promise of peace. Today, I open my heart to You and ask that You teach me to hear Your voice clearly. I will listen, I will obey, and I will walk in Your ways, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

By Joel & Victoria Osteen


“I will listen to what God the Lord will say; he promises peace to his people...”
(Psalm 85:8, NIV)