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"THOUGHTS TO BRIGHTEN YOUR DAY
Lord, Help Me To Fly… A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared, he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no further.
So the man decided to help the butterfly, he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.
The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.
Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.
What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. We could never fly.
I asked for Strength......... And God gave me Difficulties to make me strong. I asked for Wisdom.........And God gave me Problems to solve. I asked for Prosperity.........And God gave me Brain and Brawn to work. I asked for Courage.........And God gave me Danger to overcome. I asked for Love.........And God gave me Troubled people to help. I asked for Favors.........And God gave me Opportunities. I received nothing I wanted, I received everything I needed.
The reason so many people never get anywhere in life is because when opportunity knocks, they are out in the backyard looking for four leaf clovers.
______________________________________________ SAND IN A JAR A philosophy professor stood before his class and had some items in front of him. When class began, wordlessly he filled a large empty mayonnaise jar with rocks that were about 2" in diameter. He then asked the students if the jar was full? The students acknowledged that it was. The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar and shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They thought it was. The professor then picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled in between the pebbles and stones. "Now," said the professor. "I want you to recognize that this is your life." The rocks are the important things - God, your family, your spouse, your children, your health - anything so important to you that if it were lost, you would feel destroyed. The pebbles are the other things that matter, for example - your job, your house, your car. The sand is everything else - the small stuff." "If you put the sand into the jar first, there is no room for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your energy and time on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party and fix the disposal. Take care of the rocks first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.
(Author unknown)
(Mat 6:25) "Therefore I say to you,
do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will
drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more
than food and the body more than clothing?
(Mat 6:26) "Look at the birds of the
air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your
heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
(Mat 6:27) "Which of you by worrying
can add one cubit to his stature?
(Mat 6:28) "So why do you worry about
clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they
neither toil nor spin;
(Mat 6:29) "and yet I say to you that
even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
(Mat 6:30) "Now if God so clothes the
grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the
oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
(Mat 6:31) "Therefore do not worry,
saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What
shall we wear?'
(Mat 6:32) "For after all these
things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you
need all these things.
(Mat 6:33) "But seek first the
kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be
added to you.
(Mat 6:34) "Therefore do not worry
about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things.
Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
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When you put Faith, Hope and Love together, You Can raise positive kids in a negative world.~ Zig Ziglar ~
(Prov 22:3) A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself, But the simple pass on and are punished. (Prov 22:4) By humility and the fear of the LORD Are riches and honor and life. (Prov 22:5) Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse; He who guards his soul will be far from them. (Prov 22:6) Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.
_________________________________________________________ Anchors
By Bess S. Ayers
When sailing through the storms of doubt, discouragement, or pain, I shall not fear the lashing wind, nor fury of the rain.
Three anchors hold my little craft; I tested them with care; There's one of faith, one of hope, and one of daily prayer.
With these to hold my ship secure What danger can betide? I know that I shall reach at last A harbor safe and wide.
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ALL I NEED
His grace
to hold securely,
His light to show the way, His love to bind me always, His strength for every day; His power to give me courage, His wisdom for my guide; His mercy for my sinfulness, He has every need supplied.
--THE CHALLENGER,
Carbondale, IL
(Psa 42:1-2) As the deer pants for the
water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for
God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Jay and the Peacock, Aesop's Fables A Jay venturing into a yard where Peacocks used to walk and found there a number of feathers which had fallen from the Peacocks when they were molting. He tied them all to his tail and strutted down towards the Peacocks. When he came near them they soon discovered the cheat, and striding up to him pecked at him and plucked away his borrowed plumes. So the Jay could do no better than go back to the other Jays, who had watched his behavior from a distance; but they were equally annoyed with him, and told him:
"It is not only fine feathers that make fine birds." Be content with who you are and try not to be someone else.
(Psa 139:13) For You formed my inward
parts; You covered me in my mother's womb.
(Psa 139:14) I will praise You, for I
am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And
that my soul knows very well.
(Psa 139:15) My frame was not hidden
from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the
lowest parts of the earth.
(Psa 139:16) Your eyes saw my
substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were
written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of
them.
(Psa 139:17) How precious also are Your
thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them!
(Psa 139:18) If I should count them,
they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still
with You.
-------------------------------------------- PERSISTENCE
The Chinese bamboo tree is an unusual plant. The Chinese plant the seed; they water and fertilize it, but the first year nothing happens. The second year they water and fertilize it, and still nothing happens. The third and fourth year they water and fertilize it and nothing happens. The fifth year they water and fertilize it, and sometime during the course of the fifth year, in a period of approximately six weeks, the Chinese bamboo tree grows roughly ninety feet. The question is, "Did it grow ninety feet in just six weeks or did it grow ninety feet in five years?" The obvious answer is that it grew ninety feet in five years. Had the water and fertilizer not been applied each year, there would have been no Chinese bamboo tree. What does all this have to do with us? It perfectly illustrates a Biblical principle. "And let us not be weary in well-doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not" (Galatians 6:9)... It's not so much what you do today that makes a difference. It's what you do consistently every day that will bear fruit in its own time. "So then, as we have opportunity, let us work that which is good..." Keep it up! The principle is persistence. Bill Watkins
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Twinkies and Root Beer
A little boy wanted to meet God. He knew it was a
long trip to where God
When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old man. He was sitting in the park just staring at some pigeons. The boy sat down next to him and opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink from his root beer when he noticed that the old man looked hungry, so he offered him a Twinkie.
He gratefully accepted it and smiled at him. His
smile was so pleasant that
As it grew dark, the boy realized how tired he
was and he got up to leave,
When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. She asked him, "What did you do today that made you so happy? "He replied, "I had lunch with God." But before his mother could respond, he added, "You know what? He's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen!" Meanwhile, the old man, also radiant with joy, returned to his home. His son was stunned by the look of peace on his face and he asked, "Dad, what did you do today that made you so happy?" He replied, "I ate Twinkies in the park with God." However, before his son responded, he added, "You know, he's much younger than I expected."
Too often we underestimate the power of a touch,
a smile, a kind word, a
Author Unknown..... (Gal 6:10) Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.
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