Forwarded Messages

by Russ Lawson The church had just completed the installation of a new sound system  which had a special "boost in volume" capability. All the speaker had  to do is push a button and the volume would increase.  The preacher was  commenting on the new sound system one Sunday morning and said: "If  your children get a little noisy, don't worry about it. I have a little  button now to take care of it."  A little girl who was usually very  noisy during services sat very quietly that morning and her mother  asked her, "Dear, are you not feeling well today?" The little girl  answered, "No, Momma, but what happens if he pushes the button?" Obviously, the preacher was not very effective in communicating his  message! I wonder sometimes how effective we are at communicating what is  important to us. If you are a Christian, sharing that fact should be at  the top of our list of things to communicate. How are you doing? The  word effective is

"In God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?" In his book, Life Changes, James Hefley writes about Barry Luppin who was just twenty-six when a rare nerve disease sent him into the world of silence. Unable to pursue the law career he had planned, he drifted aimlessly for eight years bemoaning his deafness. Then he determined, in his own words, to "put my chin up and fight." He learned to lip read and went into the auto leasing business. The business prospered into a multi-million-dollar enterprise.

A medical-school professor once posed this medical ethical question to his students: "Here's a family history -- the father has syphilis. The mother has TB. They already have four children. The first is blind. The second has died. The third is deaf. The fourth has TB. Now the mother is pregnant again. The parents come to you for advice. They are willing to abort their child if you decide they should. What do you say?" After students shared various individual opinions, the professor placed them into groups to make final decisions. After deliberating, every group reported that it would recommend an abortion to the parents.

By Tim Archer They were fishermen, men who worked the Lake of Galilee in northern  Israel. The lake was full of fish, and a man could make a good living  working there, especially if he knew what he was doing. Simon and  Andrew, brothers born into a family of fishermen, knew their trade. It  might not make them rich, but they would never go hungry. It was a  safe, secure way of life. The account of what happened is fairly brief: "As Jesus walked beside  the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net  into the lake, for they were fishermen. 'Come, follow me,' Jesus said,  'and I will make you fishers of men.' At once they left their nets and  followed him" (Mark 1:16-18). We do need to understand that this wasn't the first time Andrew and his  brother had seen Jesus; they had spent a day with him once, listening  to his teachings. (John 1:35-42). Still, I can't help but be amazed at  what happens when Jesus called these men.

DO NOT GO WHERE THE PATH MAY LEAD; GO INSTEAD WHERE THERE IS NO PATH, AND LEAVE A TRAIL...  (Thank you Dhes Handumon for the photo) Some years ago, a large American shoe manufacturer sent two of its sales reps to different parts of the Australian outback. The company hoped it could drum up some business among the Aborigines. It was risky venture, but the firm realized how many new customers could be gained if the venture was successful.

Thomas piloted a small airplane and often sold his services to hunters in the Canadian wilderness. One season, he was approached by jeb and Jake, two moose hunters. Thomas took the duo into the wild. When Thomas returned to fetch his clients, he studies their gear and two gigantic moose. "I'm sorry, fellas," he told them, "I can't fly out of here with two of you, all your gears, and those two Bullwinkles." "Why not?" Jeb asked.

This   is a very good article. Not only about the  warm water after  your meal, but about   Heart  Attacks .  The Chinese and Japanese  drink hot tea with their meals, not  cold  water, maybe it is time we adopt their   drinking  habit   while eating.   

A Hindu saint who was visiting river Ganges to take bath found a group of family members on the banks, shouting in anger at each other. He turned to his disciples smiled and asked. 'Why do people shout in anger shout at each other?' Disciples thought for a while, one of them said, 'Because we lose our calm, we shout.'  'But, why should you shout when the other person is just next to you? You can as well tell him what you have to say in a soft manner.' asked the saint Disciples gave some other answers but none satisfied the other disciples. Finally the saint explained;

In the early 1900s Marian dreamed of becoming a concert singer. But she knew that because her skin was different color than that of the majority, she would be at a disadvantage. Marian's dream was buoyed by her mother, who had a patient trust in God. Marian recalled, "Mother's religion made her believe that she would receive what was right for her to have if she was conscientious in her faith. If it did not come, it was because He had not considered it right for her. We grew in this atmosphere of faith that she created. We believed as she did because we wanted the same kind of haven in the time of storm."

Cindy, a young writer, grinned as she read her prose on the computer screen. The words were flowing smoothly from her brain to her fingers. I'm even impressing myself , she thought, a bit sheepishly. This is the best short story I have ever written. Only a few more pages and I'll be done. She thought about pausing briefly to save her work, but she was on a roll. She feared the sudden inability to regain the rhythm she had found. I'll save it as soon as it's finished , she reasoned. As Cindy plunged into the next paragraph, her cursor stopped blinking. Her pulse quickened. "Come on," she said, " don't do this to me, please. Not now! " Cindy waited a few moments, then hit her space bar. Nothing. Panicking, she hit "return." No response. Her screen was frozen like the arctic tundra.

In 1970, Wally started baking chocolate chip cookies for his friends. He used a recipe and process passed down by his Aunt Della. For five years, he made cookies and gave away every batch - even though folks told him that his cookies were so good that he should sell them. But to Wally, the cookies were just sideline. His major goal was to be a big-time show business manager. One day, a friend told Wally that she knew someone who could put up the money for a cookie - making business. That comment sparked Wally's thinking. He talked to some of his friends -- people like Jeff Wall, Helen Reddy and Marvin Gaye - and convinced them to put up some money.

First Photograph in history in France

ANXIETY IS THE MISUSE OF THE IMAGINATION  The Apostle Paul instructed believers to " be anxious for nothing ." Think about that. Paul says that child of God should worry about anything! And Paul didn't give this advice lightly. He was in prison at the time he wrote it. In fact, he spent a lot of time in chains at various "gray-bar hotels" -- separated from those he loved. He had his well-publicized "thorn in the flesh" to contend with as well. Paul was a man who endured beatings and stoning. He even had disagreements with one of Jesus' original disciples, Peter. Ultimately, his staunch faith in God and his outspokenness about it got him beheaded.  Despite all his trials, Paul knew God could bring peace. God doesn't always untie all the knots in our lives. But He does give us the grace to live with the knots.  So remember, there is nothing you face that is too difficult, too troubling, or too frightening for God. Follow Paul'

by Steve Ridgell I was helping clean up my sister-in-law’s yard after a recent wind storm when it happened. The neighbor’s dog got me. I knew he was not happy with the chain saw, the activity, and the work going on. After all, he kept barking at us. I was carrying a load of wood to the back gate, walking about one foot inside the fence. All of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of this dog trying to jump over the fence. As I jumped sideways, he managed to extend his head over the fence and catch my arm. There was not any lasting damage. My arm was swollen and stayed bruised for a couple of weeks. The dog was as surprised as I was. My father-in-law worried about whether the dog should have gotten shots. Ha, ha. The neighbors were apologetic. The yard got cleaned up, and we all stayed several feet away from the fence. And I thought about how much like life this was.

     Abilities are like tax deductions ---   we either use them, or we lose them.   Imagine receiving a gift from wealthy person who is renowned for his taste in selecting perfect and valuable presents for everyone on his list. Wouldn't this be a gift you would be eager to open? Sadly, many people have been given gifts from the perfect Giver, but they never bother to open them or use them for their intended purpose. God has given each of us abilities. And He never makes a mistake. His gifts are never the wrong size or style or inappropriate in any way. No one has ever needed to return a gift from God. If we open these heaven-sent gifts, we can use them in a way that will benefit others and bring glory to our Creator. Do you know what your true gift are? Are you using them? Or are they lying dormant, gathering dust? If so, it;s time to tear into that aging wrapper paper. Putting your God-given talents to work is one of the most satisfying things you can do. As you do what God

In a country church, an altar boy was serving the priest at Sunday mass. When he accidentally dropped the cruet of wine, the village priest slapped the boy and shouted, "Leave the church and don't come back!" That boy became Tito, the Communist leader.   In the cathedral of a large, inner city church, the altar boy accidentally dropped the cruet of wine.   With a twinkle in his eye, the Bishop told the boy, "One day you will be a priest."   That boy grew up to be Archbishop Fulton Sheen. -- "Don't use your mouth to tell lies; don't ever say things that are not true." Proverbs 4: 24 (NCV) To avoid the pits of life, we must guard our words.   Words are power tools!  In the right hands and used correctly, words can create.  In the wrong hands and used incorrectly, words can destroy.  The truth of Proverbs 13:3 is a haunting one, "Whoever controls his mouth protects his own life. Whoever has a big mouth comes to ruin." (GWT)   If we

 

Our world loves " bigness ."  Large , economy-sized boxes of detergent. Supersized meals. Big screen TVs. Vehicles with extra leg room, extra head room and vast storage space. The bigger -is-better phenomenon affects the workpalce too. Associates vie for the biggest office, the heftiest raise, the longest service record. About the only thing we want small is our lap top computers - but even then, we want them to have large memory capacity and multitude of special features. Our God is certainly capable of big feats . He partted the Red Sea. He created the universe in less than a week. But it's better not to measure our business success by how much money we earn. God isn't interested in the size of your salary. He's interested in your life and the small but faithful steps you take toward Him. Remember, a little obedience and faithfulness makes a big difference to God. In the end, it's not the size of your paycheck that matters - it's the

EVEN THE BEST RACEHORSES HAS TO STOP FOR OATS ONCE IN A WHILE... God doesn't sweat. He doesn't get tired or suffer with aching muscles. He never needs to take an aspirin or use Ben-Gay. Yet what did He do after creating the world? He rested. He took the time to step back, cease working, and enjoy His creation. If an all-powerful Being took the time to rest, that should speak volumes to us mere mortals. We need to rest occasionally. We need to take time to recover physically, emotionally, and spiritually from life's demands. We need to take stock of where we've been, where we are, and where we're headed. We need to take time to be a friend, a parent, a child of God.

He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm. - Proverbs 13:20 Your companions are like buttons on an elevator. They will either take you up or take you down... Companionship choices are difficult to make. Jesus spent time with many people of low reputation, even to the point of being accused of being a low-life Himself. Yet, we are cautioned in Proverbs that "bad company corrupts good character." The key to following Jesus' example and protecting ourselves lies in discernment.

After winning the grueling Tour de France in 1999, cyclist Lance Armstrong went on to repeat the feat in the year 2000. Armstrong won both these races and a score of others after battling cancer, a cancer so devastating that it had spread throughout his body, even to his brain. After his remarkable victory in the 1999 Tour de France, Armstrong said that he wouldn't have been able to win if not for the cancer! The drive, the perseverance, and the courage that he developed while battling his internal enemy made him strong enough to ride faster and harder - and with more determination - than all of his opponents.

Envy takes the joy, happiness and contentment out of living. Jealousy isn't referred to as the "big green monster" for nothing. God hates jealousy so much that it made His top-ten list -- the Ten Commandments. He etched in stone the following words: "You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor." In workplace terms, this commandment from the book of Exodus could read, "You shall not covet your co-worker's salary, his corner office or award plaques, his title, budget, or privileges, or his favored status with the company president."

I walked into the grocery store not particularly interested in buying groceries. I wasn't hungry. The pain of losing my husband of 57 years was still too raw. And this grocery store held so many sweet memories. He often came with me and almost every time he'd pretend to go off and look for something special. I knew what he was up to. I'd always spot him walking down the aisle with the three yellow roses in his hands. He knew I loved yellow roses. With a heart filled with grief, I only wanted to buy my few items and leave, but even grocery shopping was different since he had passed on. Shopping for one took time, a little more thought than it had for two. Standing by the meat, I searched for the perfect small steak and remembered how he had loved his steak. Suddenly a woman came beside me. She was blonde, slim and lovely in a soft green pantsuit. I watched as she picked up a large package of T-bones, dropped them in her basket.. Hesitated, and then put them back. S

Maybe it is time for some of us Christians to apologize. In our desire to have others become Christians, we may have been less than honest with our non-Christian friends. We have talked in terms of "converting," "being saved," "joining with us," and other religious sounding words. In truth, becoming a Christian can be explained by a much simpler term: it is an invitation to die.   Becoming a Christian requires you to die. Jesus came to this world because God wanted you to live with him forever. He offers eternal life. The perfect God wants the imperfect man to live with Him forever. He made that possible by letting Jesus die for all the things we did that were unlike God. Jesus came here to die for you, so you could live.

Some people would rather endure an enema than love an enemy... Is there any tougher commandment than the one that instructs us to love our enemies? Not tolerate them or simply do kind things for them. Love them. Those obnoxious, cruel, hateful people. The boss who treats you unfairly. The co-worker who pretends to be your friend, then back - stabs you. The unhappy customer who unfairly criticizes you to your superiors. The technical support person who is consistently rude. Or that certain someone who is simply annoying.

An inspiration... Kenny Easterday is a 35-year-old American man born with a rare disease (sacral agenesis) that prevents his spine from growing correctly. Doctors amputated his legs when he was a baby to use his shinbone for completing his underdeveloped spine. Kenny never liked wheelchairs and refused to wear prosthetic legs, so he learned with his dad to walk on his hands and to move with a skateboard.

COURAGE is fear that has said its prayers. An auto racer who set the world speed record. A fighter pilot who recorded the most aerial - combat victories against the Germans in World War 1. A man who survived a plane crash and spent twenty-two days on raft in the Pacific Ocean. What do these three have in have in common? They are all the same person: Eddie Rickenbacker. When Eddie was twelve, his father died. So Eddie quit school to become the family breadwinner, doing whatever he had to do to help the family survive. As a teen, he started working as a race car mechanic. By the time he was twenty - two, he, himself, was racing. Two years later, he set the world speed record at Daytona.

Here's your answer. Due to a power outage, only one paramedic responded to the call. The house was very dark so the paramedic asked Kathleen, a 3-yr old girl to hold a flashlight high over her mommy so he could see while he helped deliver the baby. Very diligently, Kathleen did as she was asked. Heidi pushed and pushed and after a little while, Connor was born. The paramedic lifted him by his little feet and spanked him on his bottom. Connor began to cry. The paramedic then thanked Kathleen for her help and asked the wide-eyed 3-yr old what she thought about what she had just witnessed.

From toddlers to teens to travel-weary parents, the question is inevitable. "When are we going to stop?" Depending on the driver the answer differs dramatically. Some commandeer the driver's seat like a general taking his troops to their target. There is only one objective and that is "to get there." Nothing will stop them. Woe be to the small child with an equally small bladder who asks the question.

My head gets sunburned. It didn't used to, but now I have to be careful  when I go out. If I'm in the sun for more than a few minutes without  some sort of hat, I'll probably spend the next few days with an itchy  scalp. For some reason, my head burns more easily than it used to. I'd like to blame it on the ozone layer or global warming or something  of the sort, but I know the truth: with every passing year, I've got  less hair on the top of my head. My body is wearing out. There are other signs of this, like my need for  reading glasses, and more things seem to show up all the time.

Who lives in a house like this? Imagine who would have such taste and live in such opulence? A billionaire? A Prince? A King? Have a good look at these pictures... at the bottom, you'll know who owns this work of art...

At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves children with learning disabilities, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question: 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does, is done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?' The audience was stilled by the query. The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, who was mentally and physically disabled comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child.' Then he told the following story: Shay and I had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me pla

Let's see if you can relate... My assistant is out sick today. The printer's out of toner. My car is in the shop again, So I'm forced to drive a loner. Two new software programs to learn, But the verbiage makes me dizzy. I've tried to call up tech support, But their line is always busy. The repairman's torn the copier apart, So my report will be quite late. With people swooping in like flies, How can I concentrate? The telephone rings endlessly. There's gossip in the hall. My candy dish is empty now. And a salesman's come to call. Sometimes I'd like to chuck it all. Trade this madness in for boredom. But the kids needs braces, clothes, and shoes. And how else can I afford them? * That day is lost in which one has not laugh.  Do not live to work... instead, work to live. ---o0o--- Humans are born with two eyes, but with one tongue, in order that they should see twice as much as they say.

A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: ' I am blind, please help .' There were only a few coins in the hat. A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words. The man said, 'I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way.'

Preparation    Look, I pray on Sunday, It's what you're supposed to do on church day," Kevin stated. "On Monday, it's business. Don't mess up my life asking me to mix the two." All I wanted was for him to consider introducing his employees to Faith Notes. Frankly his words stunned me. Somewhere in his past, Kevin, like many of us, began compartmentalizing his life, his identity. Each compartment has shaped its own version of Kevin. He has become a handful of different people: a churchman, a family man, a businessman, a networker, a public and a private guy. His calendar organizes it all and keeps his identities separate. Some would say he is gifted at it, but the real Kevin, the original Kevin, has gotten lost somewhere among all the copies. As Kevin walked away, he turned and said, "I'm doing pretty well keeping everything separate and that's the way I like it."

A partially deaf boy trudged into his home one day after school. In his hand, he carried a note. It was a note from school officials, suggesting that his parents remove him from school. According to those wise officials, this boy was "too stupid to learn." Upon reading the note, the boy's mother vowed, "My son Tom isn't stupid to learn. I'll teach him myself." And that is exactly what she did. Many years later when Tom died, many Americans paid tribute to him by turning off their lights for one full minute. This was a fitting tribute, for Tom Edison invented the light bulb - along with motion pictures and the phonograph. In all, he was credited with more than a thousand patents.

 A four-year-old child, whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman, who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old Gentleman's' yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his mother asked him what he had  said to the neighbor, the little boy just said, 'Nothing, I just helped him cry.' --- Teacher Debbie Moon's first graders were discussing a picture of a family. One little boy in the picture had a different hair color than the other members. One of her students suggested that he was adopted. A little girl said, 'I know all about adoption, I was adopted.'  'What does it mean to be adopted?', asked another child. 'It means', said the girl, 'that you grew in your mommy's heart instead of her tummy!' --- On my way home one day, I stopped to watch a Little League baseball game that was being played in a park near my home. As I sat down behind the bench on the first- ba

The person you truly are is the person who emerges when no one is looking... Marty Logan was a skilled and loyal carpenter who worked almost two decades for a successful contractor. One day, the contractor called Marty into his office and said, "I'm putting you in charge of the next house we build. I want you to order all the materials and oversee the job from the ground up."

In January 2000, leaders in Charlotte , North Carolina , invited their favorite son, Billy Graham, to a luncheon in his honor. Billy initially hesitated to accept the invitation because he struggled with Parkinson's disease. But the Charlotte leaders said, "We don't expect a major address. Just come and let us honor you." So he agreed. After wonderful things were said about him, Dr. Graham stepped to the rostrum, looked at the crowd, and said, "I'm reminded today of Albert Einstein, the great physicist who this month has been honored by Time Magazine as the 'Man of the Century.'

If you are a boss or hope to be one someday, consider these suggestions for managers, written from an employee's viewpoint: - My mind doesn't hold the same information, the same experience, that yours does. As you instruct me, please go slowly so that I can keep up with you. - My eveys have not seen the business world as yours have. Let me explore it some on my own. Please don't restrict me unnecessarily.

A Sunday school teacher was telling her class the story of the Good Samaritan. She asked the class, 'If you saw a person lying on the roadside, all wounded and bleeding, what would you do?' A thoughtful little girl broke the hushed silence, 'I think I'd throw up.' ---

The entire world is experiencing natural calamities so be prepared! Remember that stuff about hiding under a table or standing in a doorway? Well, forget it! This is a real eye opener. It could save your life someday. 1) Most everyone who simply 'ducks and covers' when building collapse are crushed to death. People who get under objects, like desks or cars, are crushed. 2) Cats, dogs and babies often naturally curl up in the fetal position. You should too in an earthquake. It is a natural safety/survival instinct. You can survive in a smaller void. Get next to an object, next to a sofa, next to a bed, next to a large bulky object that will compress slightly but leave a void next to it.

Why saying no still means you are a good person, and why there's honesty in refusal... It's a simple two-letter word, easy to remember and simple to say. Yet why is it often difficult to say No? Every fibre in your body might be screaming a no and yet you might find yourself nodding your head and uttering a meek ‘yes'?

A successful business man was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one of his Directors or his children, he decided to do something different. He called all the young executives in his company together. He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you. "The young executives were shocked, but the boss 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 the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO."

Fear is an emotion and the symptoms of this emotion manifest in each of us in various ways. Some of the symptoms of fear are shallow breathing, sweaty palms, upset stomach, nervousness, headache, inability to speak, inability to think clearly, depression, uncontrollable shaking, inability to moved, and anger. People literally lose their lives and have been known to take someone else's life out of fear. All of the "isms" are the children of fear -- racism, chauvinism, classism, sexism. Wars and crime thrive on fear. Fear takes away our creativity , imagination , freedom and peace . Fear stops us from pursuing our dreams . Fear destroys relationships and can make us physically ill .