Blahg

Center of the Universe

2007-04-27T19:49:00.000-07:00

A classmate from high school sent this pics to our yahoogroup mail. Very interesting. I've never viewed the planets before from this perspective. It shows that in the realm of the universe we are reallly nothing. The e-mail contained these caption for the pics:

Antares is the 15th biggest star in the sky. It is more than 1000 light years away.Yet amidst all this, God knows when each sparrow falls. He cares about our smallest problem, our biggest hurt, our every joy. But we need to see our lives and ourselves in perspective. We aren't the center of the universe, GOD is. We don't own our next breath. GOD does. Very humbling.

My Last Tract

2007-03-25T18:18:00.000-07:00

I've been remiss on this blahg. Here's another article I've received in my e-mail. The story is fitting in this Season of Lent.

MY LAST TRACT

Every Sunday afternoon, after the morning service at their church, the Pastor and his eleven year old son would go out into their town and hand out Gospel Tracts. This particular Sunday afternoon, as it came time for the Pastor and his son to go to the streets with their tracts, it was very cold outside as well as pouring down rain. The boy bundled up in his warmest and driest clothes and said--- "OK dad, I'm ready."

His Pastor dad asked - "Ready for what?"

"Dad, it's time we gather our tracts together and go out."

Dad responds - "Son, it's very cold outside and it's pouring down rain."

The boy gives his dad a surprised look, asking - "But dad, aren't people still going to Hell, even though it's raining?"

Dad answers - "Son, I am not going out in this weather."

Despondently the boy asks - "Dad, can I go, Please?" His father hesitated for a moment then said - "Son, you can go. Here are the tracts. Be careful son." "Thanks Dad!!! " And with that he was off and out into the rain.

This eleven year old boy walked the streets of the town going door to door and handing everybody he met in the street a Gospel Tract. After 2 hours of walking in the rain he was soaking bone chilled wet and down to his VERY LAST TRACT. He stopped on a corner and looked for someone to hand a tract to but the streets were totally deserted.

Then he turned toward the first home he saw and started up the sidewalk to the front door and rang the door bell. He rang the bell-but nobody answered. He rang it again and again but, still no one answered. He waited but still no answer. Finally this eleven year old trooper turned to leave but something stopped him.

Again, he turned to the door and rang the bell and knocked loudly on the door with his fist. He waited, something holding him there on the front porch. He rang again, and this time the door slowly opened. Standing in the doorway was a very sad looking elderly lady. She softly asked-" What can I do for you son?" With radiant eyes and a Smile that lit up her world this little boy said - "Mam, I'm sorry if I disturbed you, but I just want to tell you that JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU, and I came to give you my very last Gospel Tract which will tell you all about JESUS and His great LOVE."

With that he handed her his last tract, and turned to leave. She called to him as he departed - "Thank you son! And God Bless You!"

Well, the following Sunday Morning in Church, Pastor Dad was in the Pulpit and as the service began he asked - "Does anybody have a testimony or want to say anything?" Slowly, in the back row of the Church, an elderly lady stood to her feet. As she began to speak a look of glorious radiance came from her face as she said - "None of you in this church know me. I've neverbeen here before. You see, before last Sunday I was not a Christian. My husband passed on, some time ago, leaving me totally alone in this world. Last Sunday, being a particularly cold and rainy day, it was even more so in my heart as I came to the end of the line where I no longer had any hope or will to live.

So I took a rope and a chair and ascended the stairway into the attic of my home. I fastened the rope securely to a rafter in the roof then stood on the chair and fastened the other end of the rope around my neck. Standing on that chair, so lonely and brokenhearted, I was about to leap off when suddenly the loud ringing of my doorbell downstairs startled me. I thought - 'I'll wait a minute, and whoever it is will go away.' I waited and waited, but the ringing doorbell seemed to get louder and more insistent and then the person ringing also started knocking loudly. I thought to myself again - 'Who on earth could this be?! Nobody ever rings my bell or comes to see me."

I loosened the rope from my neck and started for the front door, all the while the bell rang louder and louder. When I opened the door and looked I could hardly believe my eyes for there on my front porch was the most radiant and Angelic little boy I had ever seen in my life. His SMILE, Oh, I could never describe it to you!!! And the words that came from his mouth caused my heart, that had long been dead, TO LEAP TO LIFE as he exclaimed with cherub like voice - 'Mam, I just came to tell you that JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU.'

Then he gave me this Gospel Tract that I now hold in my hand. As the little Angel disappeared back out, into the cold and rain, I closed my door and read slowly every word of this Gospel Tract. Then I went up to my attic to get my rope and chair. I wouldn't be needing them any more. You see, I am now a Happy Child of the KING, and since the address of your Church was on the back of this Gospel Tract I have come here to personally say THANK YOU TO GOD'S LITTLE ANGEL WHO CAME JUST IN THE NICK OF TIME AND, BY SO DOING, SPARED MY SOUL FROM ETERNITY IN HELL." There were now no dry eyes in the Church. And as Shouts of Praise, and Honor to THE KING, resounded off the very rafters of the building, Pastor Dad descended from the pulpit to the front pew where the little Angel was seated; He took him in his arms and sobbed uncontrollably. Probably no Church has had a more glorious moment. And probably this universe has never seen a Papa that was more filled with love & honor for his son - EXCEPT for one - this FATHER also allowed His Son to go out into a Cold & Dark World.

He received His Son back with Joy unspeakable, and as all of Heaven Shouted Praises and Honor to THE KING, The FATHER sat HIS BELOVED SON on a Thrown far above all Principality andPower....and every name that is named.... There may be SOMEONE, reading this, who is also going through a Dark, Cold, Lonely time in your soul. You may be a Christian, for we are not without problems, or you may not yet know THE KING. Whatever the case, and whatever the problem or situation you find your- self in, and no matter how DARK it may seem, I want you to know that I just came to tell you - JESUS REALLY DOES LOVE YOU.

The Piano Lesson

2006-07-23T20:28:00.000-07:00

The Piano Lesson
Wishing to encourage her young son's progress on the piano, a mother took the small boy to a Paderewski concert. After they were seated, the mother spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle to greet her.
Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the concert hall, the little boy rose and eventually explored his way through a door marked "NO ADMITTANCE." When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that her son was missing.
Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage. In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."
At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano, and whispered in the boy's ear, "Don't quit. Keep playing."
Then leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the other side of the child and he added a running obligatio.
Together, the old master and the young novice transformed a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience. The audience was mesmerized.
That's the way it is with God. What we can accomplish on our own is hardly noteworthy. We try our best, but the results aren't exactly graceful flowing music. But with the hand of the Master, our life's work truly can be beautiful.
Next time you set out to accomplish great feats, listen carefully. You can hear the voice of the Master, whispering in your ear, "Don't quit" "Keep playing." Feel His loving arms around you. Know that His strong hands are playing the concerto of your life.
Remember, God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called. And He'll always be there to love and guide you on to great things.
--Author Unknown, Source Unknown

An Attitude of Gratitude

2006-06-29T23:55:00.000-07:00

E-mailed by a former classmate in high school. Engrossed with our own need and daily struggle we complain and are disgruntled with what life has to offer. We never realize how lucky we are until we witness or learn about other people's misfortune or bad situation. Do we always have to be reminded for us to grateful of what we have? Iam....guilty...

LIVE WITH AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE by Glen Hopkins

Imagine for a moment one of those nights when you just can't fall asleep and you have to get up early the next morning for a very important meeting of which you are the keynote speaker. Your alarm clock goes off early in the morning waking you from what little sleep you had. You stumble out of bed, have a quick shower, grab a coffee and some toast, and off you go to fight the traffic on the way to work.

Does that sound like the start of a terrible day? Most would answer 'yes.' Few people however, would answer, 'no.' These are the people, who are in my opinion blessed with a gift. A gift which determines how they view their life. These people live with 'an attitude of gratitude.' For them, the situation described could be worse. Much worse. For example, think of the man who doesn't have a bed, let alone a roof to over his head. When he is awoken from what little sleep he is able to get, it is by the rain falling on his cold body. He too stumbles to his feet and begins his journey to work in his bare feet. His work is in the field of survival. He searches though garbage cans for scraps of half-rotten food to eat and odd bits of clothes to keep him warm.

The purpose of this example is to illustrate that we all have so much to be grateful for. Even in times when it seems that nothing could be worse, there is always a reason to be grateful. And when you feel a sense of gratitude, you feel a sense of happiness and contentment. My challenge to you today is to learn to look for the good in every situation and live with 'an attitude of gratitude.'

I assure you, if you were the fellow searching for food in garbage cans you too could find things to be grateful for. You just have to look hard enough and 'open your eyes' to what is around you. You have to focus on what's good in your life, not what's bad.

"I once was distraught because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet." - Unknown

Life works in mysterious ways. Time and time again there have been stories of people who are in a dire strait yet they are found helping others who are experiencing greater turmoil. This is because once you have helped someone in greater need than yourself, you always feel better. You feel better because you have helped another human being, and this forces you to change your mindset from focusing on
your problems to focusing on their solutions.

Always focus on the solution, not the problem and live with an attitude of gratitude! Mother Teresa was a primary example of this phenomenon. Her entire life revolved around helping others in need. As a result she experienced a great deal of love and self-satisfaction in her life.

I challenge you now to take a moment to think of five things in your life that you are grateful for today. For example, your friends, your family, your job, your sense of smell, touch, sight, and sound. The list can go on and on. Imagine what your life would be like without these things. Write them down on a piece of paper and really think about the things you are grateful for. You will be amazed at how great you will feel!

Through A Rapist's Eye

2006-06-25T22:32:00.000-07:00

Good tip for women. Nobody wants to be a victim but there's no harm in being prepared for any eventuality.

Through a Rapist's Eyes
A group of rapists and date rapists in prison were interviewed on what they look for in a potential victim and here are some interesting facts:

The first thing men look for in a potential victim is hairstyle. They are most likely to go after a woman with a ponytail, bun, braid or other hairstyle that can easily be grabbed. They are also likely to go after a woman with long hair. Women with short hair are not common targets.

The second thing men look for is clothing. They will look for wome who's clothing is easy to remove quickly. Many of them carry scissors around to cut clothing.

They also look for women on their cell phone, searching through their purse or doing other activities while walking because they are off guard and can be easily overpowered.

The time of day men are most likely to attack and rape a woman is in the early morning, between 5 and 8:30 a.m.

The number one place women are abducted from/attacked at is grocery store parking lots. Number two is office parking lots/ garages. Number three is public restrooms. The thing about these men is that they are looking to grab a woman and quickly move her to a second location where they don't have to worry about getting caught.

Only 2% said they carried weapons because rape carries a 3-5 year sentence but rape with a weapon is 15-20 years.

If you put up any kind of a fight at all, they get discouraged because it only takes a minute or two for them to realize that going after you isn't worth it because it will be time-consuming. These men said they would not pick on women who have umbrellas, or other similar objects that can be used from a distance, in their hands. Keys are not a deterrent because you have to get really close to the attacker to use them as a weapon. So, the idea is to convince these guys you're not worth it.

Several defense mechanisms he taught us are: If someone is following behind you on a street or in a garage or with you in an elevator or stairwell, look them in the face and ask them a question, like what time is it, or make general small talk, like "I can't believe it is so cold out here, we're in for a bad winter". Now you've seen their face and could identify them in a line-up, you lose appeal as a target.

If someone is coming toward you, hold out your hands in front of you and yell Stop or Stay back!
Most of the rapists this man talked to said they'd leave a woman alone if she yelled or showed that she would not be afraid to fight back. Again, they are looking for an EASY target.

If you carry pepper spray (this instructor was a huge advocate of it and carries it with her wherever she goes,) yelling I HAVE PEPPER SPRAY and holding it out will be a deterrent.

If someone grabs you, you can't beat them with strength but you can by outsmarting them. If you are grabbed around the waist from behind, pinch the attacker either under the arm between the elbow and armpit or in the upper inner thigh - HARD. One woman in a class this person taught said she used the underarm pinch on a guy who was trying to date rape her and was so upset she broke through the skin and tore out muscle strands - the guy needed stitches. Try pinching yourself in those places as hard as you can stand it; it hurts.

After the initial hit, always go for the groin. I know from a particularly unfortunate experience that if you slap a guy's parts it is extremely painful. You might think that you'll anger the guy and make him want to hurt you more, but the thing these rapists told our instructor is that they want a woman who will not cause a lot of trouble. Start causing trouble, and he's out of there.

When the guy puts his hands up to you, grab his first two fingers and bend them back as far as possible with as much pressure pushing down on them as possible. The instructor did it to me without using much pressure, and I ended up on my knees and both knuckles cracked audibly.

Of course the things we always hear still apply:
* Always be aware of your surroundings,
* Take someone with you if you can and if you see any odd behavior, don't dismiss it, go with your instincts.
* You may feel a little silly at the time, but you'd feel much worse if the guy really was trouble.

PLEASE READ THEN FORWARD THIS TO ANY WOMAN YOU KNOW, IT'S SIMPLE STUFFTHAT COULD SAVE HER LIFE.
PS: Send this to any man, as well, as he can pass it on to his family or others too.

24 Things to Remember

2006-06-20T21:28:00.000-07:00

24 Things (23 Things to Always Remember And One Thing Never to Forget)

1. Your presence is a present to the world.

2. You're unique and one of a kind.

3. Your life can be what you want it to be.

4. Take the days just one at a time.

5. Count your blessings, not your troubles.

6. You'll make it through whatever comes along.

7. Within you are so many answers.

8. Understand, have courage, be strong.

9. Don't put limits on yourself.

10. So many dreams are waiting to be realized.

11. Decisions are too important to leave to chance.

12. Reach for your peak, your goal, and your prize.

13. Nothing wastes more energy than worrying.

14. The longer one carries a problem, the heavier it gets.

15. Don't take things too seriously.

16. Live a life of serenity, not a life of regrets.

17. Remember that a little love goes a long way.

18. Remember that a lot ... goes forever.

19. Remember that friendship is a wise investment.

20. Life's treasures are people ... together.

21. Realize that it's never too late.

22. Do ordinary things in extraordinary ways.

23. Have health and hope and happiness.

24. Take the time to wish upon a star and don't ever forget ... for even a day ... how very special you are.

The Empty Chair

2006-06-18T23:29:00.000-07:00

It's a matter of faith...author unknown

The Empty Chair

A man's daughter had asked the local pastor to come and pray with her father. When the pastor arrived, he found the man lying in bed with his head propped up on two pillows and an empty chair beside his bed. The priest assumed that the old fellow had been informed of his visit. "I guess you were expecting me," he said.

"No, who are you?"

"I'm the new associate at your local church," the pastor replied. "When I saw the empty chair, I figured you knew I was going to show up."

"Oh yeah, the chair," said the bedridden man. "Would you mind closing the door?"

Puzzled, the pastor shut the door.

"I've never told anyone this, not even my daughter," said the man. "But all of my life I have never known how to pray. At church I used to hear the pastor talk about prayer, but it always went right over my head.."

"I abandoned any attempt at prayer," the old man continued, "until one day about four years ago my best friend said to me, 'Joe, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus. Here's what I suggest. Sit down on a chair, place an empty chair in front of you, and in faith see Jesus on the chair. It's not spooky because he promised, 'I'll be with you always.' Then just speak to him and listen in the same way you're doing with me right now."

"So, I tried it and I've liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day. I'm careful, though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she'd either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny farm."

The pastor was deeply moved by the story and encouraged the old guy to continue on the journey. Then he prayed with him, and returned to the church.

Two nights later the daughter called to tell the pastor that her daddy had died that afternoon.

"Did he seem to die in peace?" he asked.

"Yes, when I left the house around two o'clock, he called me over to his bedside, told me one of his corny jokes, and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store an hour later, I found him dead. But there was something strange, In fact, beyond strange--kinda weird. Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned over and rested his head on a chair beside the bed."

Three Things In Life

2006-06-15T14:00:00.000-07:00

I've lost track on how many times I've received this in my e-mail. It may seem numerous but it's far in between so I always find it enlightening whenever I come across it.

Three Things In Life...
Three things in life that, once gone, never come back -
Time
Words
Opportunity

Three things in life that may never be lost -
Peace
Hope
Honesty

Three things in life that are most valuable -
Love
Self-confidence
Friends

Three things in life that are never certain -
Dreams
Success
Fortune

Three things in life that can make a man/woman -
Hard work
Sincerity
Commitment

Three things in life that can destroy a man/woman -
Alcohol
Pride
Anger

Three things in life that are truly constant -
Father
Son
Holy Ghost

I ask the Lord to bless you, as I pray for you today; to guide you and protect you, as you go along your way.
His love is always with you. His promises are true.
And when you give Him all your cares, you know He'll see you through.

Do not allow yourself to become upset by People or Things
They are powerless. Your Reaction is their only power.

I'm a Christian

2006-06-07T00:02:00.000-07:00

Another article I received through e mail. Sender not noted...

The following poem reminds me of Ann Landers (newspaper advice columnist) response to a person who wrote she didn't attend church because the so-called Christians were all a bunch of hypocrites that acted like saints on Sunday and sinned the rest of the week. Ann told her the church was not a place for saints... it's a hospital for sinners.

I'M A CHRISTIAN

by Maya Angelou