Forwarded Messages

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 .

I suspect there are some weary people reading these words. Some are weary because the weekend was filled with activity. The lawn work had to be done. The kids had baseball games to play. It was hot, so the pool was the best place to be. The meals had to be prepared. The laundry had piled up and had to be done. The house had not been cleaned in weeks. The garage had to be cleaned out. The cars and the dog had to be washed. You have a good life and appreciate all the blessings God has given you, but you are weary. Some are weary because it's Sunday morning and you had to get up and go back to the office (for those in Middle East). You've had your coffee or your juice or your diet drink or your workout to get you going. But, you're dragging. Your schedule for the week includes meetings, discussions, phone calls, and possibly some unexpected travel. You like your job and the people you work with but you are weary.