Wednesday, March 24, 2010

A love Story

"A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter; he who finds one finds a treasure. A faithful friend is beyond price, no sum can balance his worth. A faithful friend is a life-saving remedy…"

A LOVE STORY
One day, I woke early in the morning to watch the sunrise. Ah the beauty of God's creation is beyond description. As I watched, I praised God for His beautiful work. As I sat there, I felt the Lord's presence with me.
He asked me, "Do you love me?"
I answered, "Of course, God! You are my Lord and Saviour!"
Then He asked, "If you were physically handicapped, would you still love me?"
I was perplexed. I looked down upon my arms, legs and the rest of my body and wondered how many things I wouldn't; be able to do, the things that I took for granted.
And I answered, "It would be tough Lord, but I would still love You."
Then the Lord said, "If you were blind, would you still love my creation?" How could I love something without being able to see it? Then I thought of all the blind people in the world and how many of them still loved God and His creation.

So I answered, "Its hard to think of it, but I would still love you."

The Lord then asked me, "If you were deaf, would you still listen to my word?" How could I listen to anything being deaf?

Then I understood. Listening to God's Word is not merely using our ears, but our hearts.

I answered, "It would be tough, but I would still listen to Your word."

The Lord then asked, "If you were mute, would you still praise My Name?"

How could I praise without a voice? Then it occurred to me: God wants us to sing from our very heart and soul. It never matters what we sound like. And praising God is not always with a song, but when we are persecuted, we give God praise with our words of thanks.

So I answered, "Though I could not physically sing, I would still praise Your Name."

And the Lord asked, "Do you really love Me?"

With courage and a strong conviction, I answered boldly, "Yes Lord! I love You because You are the one and true God!"

I thought I had answered well, but God asked, "THEN WHY DO YOU SIN?"

I answered, "Because I am only human. I am not perfect."

"THEN WHY IN TIMES OF PEACE DO YOU STRAY THE FURTHEST? WHY ONLY IN TIMES OF TROUBLE DO YOU PRAY THE EARNEST?"

No answers. Only tears.

The Lord continued: "Why only sing at fellowships and retreats? Why seek Me only in times of worship? Why ask things so selfishly? Why ask things so unfaithfully?"

The tears continued to roll down my cheeks.

"Why are you ashamed of Me? Why are you not spreading the good news? Why in times of persecution, you cry to others when I offer My shoulder to cry on? Why make excuses when I give you opportunities to serve in My Name?"

I tried to answer, but there was no answer to give.

"You are blessed with life. I made you not to throw this gift away. I have blessed you with talents to serve Me, but you continue to turn away. I have revealed My Word to you, but you do not gain in knowledge. I have spoken to you but your ears were closed. I have shown My blessings to you, but your eyes were turned away. I have sent you servants, but you sat idly by as they were pushed away. I have heard your prayers and I have answered them all."

DO YOU TRULY LOVE ME ?"

I could not answer. How could I? I was embarrassed beyond belief. I had no excuse. What could I say to this? My heart had cried out and the tears had flowed, I said, Please forgive me Lord. I am unworthy to be Your child."

The Lord answered, " That is My Grace, My child."

I asked, " Then why do you continue to forgive me? Why do You love me so?"

The Lord answered, "Because you are My creation. You are my child. I will never abandon you. When you cry, I will have compassion and cry with you. When you shout with joy, I will laugh with you. When you are down, I will encourage you. When you fall, I will raise you up. When you are tired, I will carry you. I will be with you till the end of days, and I will love you forever."

Never had I cried so hard before. How could I have been so cold? How could I have hurt God as I had done?

I asked God, "How much do You love me?"
The Lord stretched out His arms, and I saw His nail-pierced hands. I bowed down at the feet of Christ, my Saviour. And for the first time, I truly prayed.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Becoming A Better Person

What happens to a man is less significant than what happens within him.
- Louis L. Mann

There are times when a man should be content with what he has but never with what he is.
- William George Jordan
Your thoughts are the architects of your destiny.
- David O. McKay
When a man finds no peace within himself, it is useless to seek it elsewhere.
- L. A. Rouchefolicauld
The most important of life's battles is the one we fight daily in the silent chambers of the soul.
- David O. McKay
One cannot think crooked and walk straight.
- Anonymous
There is nothing as remarkable as learning how to think better.
- Anonymous
The soul is covered with the color of its leisure thoughts.
- Anonymous
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.girl doing laundry
- Anonymous
Are you fit company for the person you wish to become?
- Anonymous
Sow a thought, and you reap an act;
Sow an act, and you reap a habit;
Sow a habit, and you reap a character;
Sow a character, and you reap a destiny.
- Charles Reade

If you don't learn from your mistakes, there's no sense making them.
- Anonymous

Look within, for within is the wellspring of virtue, which will not cease flowing, if you cease not from digging.
- Marcus Aurelius

That first peak is the best place to pause and look back, to see if you took the easiest route, to learn the lessons from the first climb. And it is the best place to examine the terrain ahead, to change your plans and goals, to take a deep breath and begin climbing again.
- By Michael Johnson

Overcoming Life Challenges

Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried is the true failure.
-George Edward Woodberry

Dream no small dreams for they have no power to move the hearts of men.
-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

There is nothing to fear but fear itself.
-Franklin D. Roosevelt

In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.
- Albert Einstein

The true measure of a man is not how he behaves in moments of comfort and convenience but how he stands at times of controversy and challenges.
- Martin Luther King Jr.

It's not whether you get knocked down. It's whether you get up again.
-Vince Lombardi

Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict.
-William Ellery Channing

Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.
-Joshua J. Marine

Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.
- Albert Einstein

Accept challenges, so that you may feel the exhilaration of victory.
-George S. Patton

All misfortune is but a stepping stone to fortune.
-Henry David Thoreau

Fractures well cured make us more strong.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

A gentleman can withstand hardships; it is only the small man who, when submitted to them, is swept off his feet.
-Confucius

The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man be perfected without trials.
-Danish Proverb

Problems are only opportunities in work clothes.
-Henry J. Kaise

What is defeat? Nothing but education; nothing but the first steps to something better.
-Proverb

It is the surmounting of difficulties that make heroes.
-Louis Kossuth

History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered heartbreaking obstacles before they triumphed. They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats.
-B. C. Forbes

Stand up to your obstacles and do something about them. You will find that they haven't half the strength you think they have.
-Norman Vincent Peale

Press on. Obstacles are seldom the same size tomorrow as they are today.
-Robert H. Schuller

Obstacles can't stop you. Problems can't stop you. Most of all other people can't stop you. Only you can stop you
-Jeffrey Gitomer

Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.
-Michael Jordan

It may sound strange, but many champions are made champions by setbacks.
-Bob Richards

Troubles are often the tools by which God fashions us for better things.
-Henry Ward Beecher

Victory is always possible for the person who refuses to stop fighting.
-Napoleon Hill

Show me someone who has done something worthwhile, and I'll show you someone who has overcome adversity.
-Lou Holtz

Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.
-Mahatma Gandhi

The beauty of the soul shines out when a man bears with composure one heavy mischance after another, not because he does not feel them, but because he is a man of high and heroic temper.
-Aristotle

Kites rise highest against the wind-not with it.
-Sir Winston Churchill

I would never have amounted to anything were it not for adversity. I was forced to come up the hard way.
-J. C. Penney

If you're going through hell, keep going.
-Sir Winston Churchill

We shall draw from the heart of suffering itself the means of inspiration and survival.
-Sir Winston Churchill

You become a champion by fighting one more round. When things are tough, you fight one more round.
-James J. Corbett

You don't develop courage by being happy in your relationships everyday. You develop it by surviving difficult times and challenging adversity.
-Barbara De Angelis

You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you.
-Walt Disney

The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it. Skillful pilots gain their reputation from storms and tempests.
-Epictetus

The greatest glory in living lies not in never failing, but in rising every time we fail.
-Nelson Mandela

Determination gives you the resolve to keep going in spite of the roadblocks that lay before you.
-Denis Waitley

Don't give up at half time. Concentrate on winning the second half.
-Paul "Bear" Bryant

Every person who wins in any undertaking must be willing to cut all sources of retreat. Only by doing so can one be sure of maintaining that state of mind known as a burning desire to win - ssential to success.
-Napoleon Hill

Every worthwhile accomplishment, big or little, has its stages of drudgery and triumph; a beginning, a struggle and a victory
-Gandhi

Let us not be content to wait and see what will happen, but give us the determination to make the right things happen.
-Peter Marshall

Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.
-Dale Carnegie

If your determination is fixed, I do not counsel you to despair. Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance.
-Samuel Johnson

It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something.
-Franklin D Roosevelt

It was courage, faith, endurance and a dogged determination to surmount all obstacles that built this bridge.
-John J. Watson
It’s a very funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it.
-William Somerset Maugham

Those who wish to sing, always find a song.
-Swedish Proverb

To him who is determined it remains only to act.
Italian Proverb

Tough times never last, but tough people do.
-Dr. Robert Schuller

The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person's determination.
-Tommy Lasorda

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

LOVE: Where Success Begins

 You may climb the ladder to success, but what keeps you from sliding right back down once you arrive? There is a powerful force that cannot be held captive by our thoughts, emotions, fears, or outside limitations; the one thing that builds a firm foundation that time and circumstance cannot erode. Without it, you are subject to great failings and a meager existence; with it, you experience unlimited possibility and unstoppable freedom. What is this force? Its name is LOVE!
The absolute best definition of love I have ever found is this, "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails" (1 Corinthians 13:4-8).
If you are thinking that's a pretty tall order, you would be right! But when God issues an order to love, He provides us with the means to do it; that means it is through his Son, Jesus Christ. When I accepted Jesus as my Savior, I learned He would help me love Him and others by expressing His love through me. I certainly can't do it on my own! No one can!
You are God's workmanship!
Once you make yourself available to love God and His ways, you have to learn to love yourself. Not with a self-centered or conceited type of love, but with a genuine love for who God created you to be. He made you and loves you; now you have an obligation to appreciate His handiwork!
Loving God and yourself provides a firm foundation that prepares you to love others and to achieve greatness. Love includes self discipline, taking personal responsibility for your life, and realizing you have a part to play in your success. Operating from the basis of love insulates you from selfish greed, immoral decisions, and the poison of unforgiveness.
One of the saddest things to observe is a person's rise to success and power followed by a tremendous fall. Often this is because the person's talent took him or her higher than the depth of their character could support. When a person has a shallow character, they do not have the firm foundation they need to stay at the top.
How should I show love to others?
I've established several habits that I use to show love for others in my personal and business life. By these principles I show respect, focus on people's strengths, and treat them like I would like to be treated.
·Noticing: Rather than rushing by, slow down and acknowledge the person near you, even if it's with a nod and a smile.
·Listening: Make a point to truly listen, not just talk. People will tell you amazing things if you take the time to listen.
·Asking questions: Ask questions that show you are listening and attentive; that what they are expressing is valuable to you.
·Discovering their interests: Become acquainted with what interests a person. I've actually ended up hiring people after I took the time to learn their interests.
The benefits of love
#1 - For our benefit: God is more interested in our personal growth and character development than He is in our ease and comfort. That's why we are called to love even those who have hurt or betrayed us. Not with a sloppy indulgent love, but with a love that believes for redemption and restoration to a healthier state of being.
God even promises to reward us for showing love through our actions: "But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be the sons of the Most High"( Luke 6:35).
#2 - For others' benefit: When we show love for someone when they don't deserve our love or forgiveness, we plant a powerful seed. I've had numerous people become curious about my faith when they either experienced or observed my love in action. I was able to share about my Savior and the great sacrifice He paid for my own salvation and for theirs.
It is God's will that you love yourself and others by allowing His love to pour through you. In the end, love is simply part of your service to others. Love is not always returned, therefore be satisfied that you have been obedient and leave any rewards for that obedience to God.
As you climb your ladder of success in your personal and business life, take with you the one sure thing that is necessary to stay there…the one force that is more powerful than any other in the world; the source of unlimited possibility and unstoppable freedom. That force is LOVE!
Man cannot live without love. He remains a being that is incomprehensible for himself, his life is senseless, if love is not revealed to him, if he does not encounter love, if he does not experience it and make it his own, if he does not participate intimately in it.
-Pope John Paul II

just4real
+2348053418607
"When u discover ur mission,u'll feel its demand.It 'll fill u wit enthusiasm and a burning desire to get to work on it".

Monday, March 8, 2010

WHAT DIRECTION ARE YOU GOING IN LIFE?

Are you going in the direction you had planned, or are you moving away from what you don't want in life? Make sure you know the difference by setting goals and sticking to them.
Today’s topic is “what direction are you going” – is it in the direction of where you wish to go due to a predetermined thought process? Or, are you just going in the direction away from what you don’t want in life? There’s a huge difference, pick the wrong choice and you are doomed to a life of mediocrity. If you say to yourself “I just want out of this crazy job!” every day, instead of actively working on a plan to make a different path for yourself, you are focusing on the wrong thing completely.
I know we all get off track now and again, but many people I speak with aren’t really focused in any specific direction most of the time. Why is that? Either they don’t have well-defined goals, or they become too caught up in the “minutia” of daily life, the problems, and the setbacks, and lose their focus. First, you must have specific goals that you want to either accomplish in the short term, or long term (hopefully both!). If you don’t have written goals, what path are you following to get where you want to go? This is so critical, if you don’t have a list of written goals I want you to stop reading this right now and go take 20 minutes to make one. Don’t worry, I’ll wait…
Ok, glad you got that accomplished! Ok, so now that you’re focused on what you want in life, you don’t have to worry at all about the other stuff, right? Well, not exactly. When things don’t work out the way we planned due to some unexpected result or event, we have the power to either acknowledge the situation and move on, or dwell on “why this crap always happens to me”. Say I’m working on a way to get myself a promotion at work, and things are looking pretty good. I have suggested some ways to save the company money, and even implemented some plan that will accomplish it with little overhead. The boss is happy, I’m looking good. Then the plan has a setback, unexpectedly, when it looks like it may cost more to implement than I planned. Do I give up? Of course not, I’m so close I can taste it. This is just a bump in the road, and I will just put my mind to work and figure out a way to do it for less.
You see we all have problems and setbacks, but how you deal with them is the difference between success and failure in life. If you have a direction that you know in your heart is what you want, nothing can stop you except you! Dealing with the little things is a piece of cake, right? You have to get to a point where they are all “little things”, because you are so focused on what you want that nothing even slows you down from reaching your goals. Don’t ever avoid problems, become a super-hero of problem solving! After you get good at facing and solving problems, your success is that much closer since you will have so much more time and energy to focus on your goals rather than on problems. That way you will spend the majority of your time chasing dreams, rather than running away from problems!

There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative." W. Clement Stoned