January 10
Wash Off The Stuff of The Day
One of the most successful and personable people on television is Oprah Winfrey. Movies, book clubs, she does it all. Huge business operations. While all the other talk shows on television are tearing people apart and putting all their illnesses out for public humiliation, Oprah is helping put people and families back together again. . . In a Newsweek magazine interview the interviewer asked her, "How do you separate yourself from work?" Answer, "I take a hot bath. . . My bath is my sanctuary. (Listen to this) It's the place where I can wash off all the stuff of the day" ((Jan 8, 2001, p. 45).
Baptism is a huge symbol -- it's the water of creation. . . .we are born anew. . . . life in the Spirit . . . all the "stuff" of the day is washed off. All of that is true. But at it's basic level, baptism is the death of the old self. Before anything new can be born, the old has to pass away.
MAKE ME HAPPY, LORD, BUT...
I think that most Christians would be better pleased if the Lord did not inquire into their personal affairs too closely. They want Him to save them, to keep them happy, and to take them off to heaven at last, but not to be too inquisitive about their conduct or services.
--A. W. Tozer
GOD IS HIGHLY CONFIDENT OF HIS OWN PLANS
He'll work in ways you may not recognize or understand. And He is big enough to do the things you have labeled impossible. He has enough power. He has enough time. He is bigger than your problem. Believe in Him more than in what you may see. Trust in Him more than what you may feel. You can question. He can handle your questions. God is highly confident of His own plans. He can do everything but fail. --Kathy Troccoli
The American educator, Horace Mann, described the predicament of habits saying: "Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it every day, and at last we cannot break it." Mr. Mann, you are only half right. Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it every day, but it can be broken? There is One who will help you break it, if you desire it. Habits are often practiced without guilt, justified through cleverly devised mental schemes. We have to be continuously converted all the days of our lives, continually to turn to God as children. Life is a continuous conversion. In every setting in which we are put we have to "put on the new person." There are whole areas of our lives which have not yet been brought into subjection, and it can only be done by this continuous conversion.
A young preacher had announced to his congregation that he would be leaving the church for another call. As he was standing at the door greeting people one of the elderly saints approached him, her eyes were filled with tears. She sobbed, "Oh pastor, I'm so sorry you've decided to leave. Things will never be the same again." The young man was flattered, but was equal to the situation and took her hands in his and most benevolently replied, "Bless you, dear lady, but I am sure that God will send you a new pastor even better than I." She choked back a sob and was heard to say, "That's what they all say, but they keep getting worse and worse."
The basic goal-reaching principle is to under-stand that you go as far as you can see, and when you get there you will always be able to see farther. Zig Ziglar
Even Americans who are lucky enough to have work in this economy are becoming more unhappy with their jobs, according to a new survey that found only 45 percent of Americans are satisfied with their work.
That was the lowest level ever recorded by the Conference Board research group in more than 22 years of studying the issue. In 2008, 49 percent of those surveyed reported satisfaction with their jobs.
The drop in workers' happiness can be partly blamed on the worst recession since the 1930s, which made it difficult for some people to find challenging and suitable jobs. But worker dissatisfaction has been on the rise for more than two decades.
"It says something troubling about work in America. It is not about the business cycle or one grumpy generation," says Linda Barrington, managing director of human capital at the Conference Board, who helped write the report, which was released Tuesday.
Workers have grown steadily more unhappy for a variety of reasons:
- Fewer workers consider their jobs to be interesting.
- Incomes have not kept up with inflation.
- The soaring cost of health insurance has eaten into workers' take-home pay.
• Six in Ten Adults Are Sure There Is a God
A new Harris Poll® that was released last month shows that only 59 percent of Americans are "absolutely certain that there is a God." Another 15 percent said they were "somewhat certain that there is a God." The research, which was based on 2,303 adults surveyed online between November 2 and 11, 2009, also revealed that 13 percent of Americans are either certain or somewhat certain that there is no God, and 13 percent were not sure whether or not God exists.
• Americans Looking Forward to Next Decade
Half of adults responding to a survey conducted last month by The Pew Research Center® said they had a generally negative opinion about the decade ending December 31, 2009. Only 27 percent had a generally positive opinion about the last 10 years. In contrast, 57 percent felt positive about the 1990s, and 59 percent feel positive about the coming decade. The research also revealed that a large majority of Americans see technological advances, such as cell phones, e-mail and the Internet, as positive. But the increase in Internet blogs, and reality TV shows were seen as negative changes in the past decade.
Choosing a Life that Matters
Some day the things we have collected, our wealth, our fame, our power
Will not matter.
Some day what we owe or what we are owed
Will not matter.
Some day our wins, our losses, and our to-do lists
Will not matter.
Our grudges and our resentments our frustrations and our jealousies
Will not matter.
Whether we are beautiful or brilliant, our gender and our skin color
Will not matter.
So what will matter?
What will matter
Is not what we have, but what we gave.
What will matter
Is not what we bought, but what we built.
What will matter
Is not what we learned, but what we taught.
What will matter
is not our competence, but our character.
What will matter
iIs not our success, but the success of those we helped.
What will matter
Is our integrity and our compassion, that encouraged and enabled others
To have integrity and to be compassionate.
Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident.
It's not a matter of circumstance.
It's a matter of choice.
May we choose - each day - to live a Life that Matters
"If religious books are not widely circulated among the masses in this country and the people do not become religious, I do not know what is to become of us as a nation. And the thought is one to cause solemn reflection on the part of every patriot and Christian. If truth be not diffused, error will be; if God and his word are not known and received, the devil and his works will gain the ascendancy; if the evangelical volume does not reach every hamlet, the pages of a corrupt and licentious literature will; if the power of the gospel is not felt throughout the length and breadth of the land, anarchy and misrule, degradation and misery, corruption and darkness, will reign without mitigation or end." ...Daniel Webster
GRACE
Grace: a gift that costs everything for the giver and nothing for the recipient. --Philip Yancey
Donkeys kill more people annually than plane crashes.
The King of Hearts is the only king WITHOUT A MOUSTACHE
American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one (1) olive from each salad served in first-class.
Venus is the only planet that rotates clockwise. (Since Venus is normally associated with women, what does this tell you!)
"The empire of Caesar is gone; the legions of Rome are smoldering in the dust; the avalanches that Napoleon hurled upon Europe have melted away; the prince of the Pharaohs is fallen; the pyramids they raised to be their tombs are sinking every day in the desert sands; Tyre is a rock for bleaching fisherman's nets; Sidon has scarcely left a wreck behind; but the Word of God still survives. All things that threatened to extinguish it have only aided it; and it proves every day how transient is the noblest monument that men can build, how enduring is the least word that God has spoken." - Albert Baird Cummins
WHEN GOD WANTS WORK DONE
God never goes to the lazy or the idle when He needs men for His service. When God wants a worker He calls a worker. When He has work to be done, He goes to those already at work. When God wants a good servant, He calls a busy man. Scripture and history attest this truth.
Moses was busy with his flocks at Horeb.
Gideon was busy threshing wheat by the wine press.
Saul was busy searching for his father's beasts.
Elisha was busy plowing with twelve yoke of oxen.
David was busy caring for his father's sheep.
Nehemiah was busy serving the king.
Amos was busy following the flock.
Peter and Andrew were busy casting a net into the sea.
James and John were busy mending their nets.
Matthew was busy collecting customs.
William Carey was busy mending and making shoes.
Christian-does this tell you something about thinking we are too busy to do God's work?
--Author Unknown
HOLD ON TO HIS HAND
We are only finite human beings. We can only see the present and the past. The future is a little frightening to us. So we need to hold onto God's hand and trust Him to calm our fears. And at those times when we're stubborn and resisting and He shakes us by the shoulders to get our attention, we're reminded that we don't call the shots. God has a plan for us, mysterious though it may seem, and we want to be in the center of it. All the risks notwithstanding, the center of God's will is still the safest place on earth to be. Charles Swindoll
I get my large circumference from too much pi.
There's a sign above the scale in my doctor's office that says "Pretend it's your IQ."
"I find it fascinating that most people plan their vacations with better care than they plan their lives. Perhaps that is because escape is easier than change." -- Jim Rohn
"Every evening, write down the six most important things that you must do the next day. Then while you sleep your subconscious will work on the best ways for you to accomplish them. Your next day will go much more smoothly." -- Tom Hopkins
"Every minute you spend in planning saves 10 minutes in execution; this gives you a 1,000 percent Return on Energy!" -- Brian Tracy
You can never really fathom the mind of another. -- Chinese Proverb
A contented mind is a continual feast. -- American Proverb
Any mother could perform the jobs of several air-traffic controllers with ease. - Lisa Alther, writer
It is better to wear out than to rust out.
Real joy comes not from ease or riches or from the praise of others, but from doing something worthwhile. Wilfred Grenfell (1865 - 1940) English medical missionary
Joy has nothing to do with material things, or with a man's outward circumstance...A man living in the lap of luxury can be wretched, and a man in the depths of poverty can overflow with joy. William Barclay (1907 - 1978) Clergyman and writer
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst, for they are sticking to their diet.
"You don't buy a fiddle today and play in Carnegie Hall tomorrow."
In moments of despair and doubt and desolation, Martin Luther would say to himself as a reminder, "I was baptized."
One of the most successful and personable people on television is Oprah Winfrey. Movies, book clubs, she does it all. Huge business operations. While all the other talk shows on television are tearing people apart and putting all their illnesses out for public humiliation, Oprah is helping put people and families back together again. . . In a Newsweek magazine interview the interviewer asked her, "How do you separate yourself from work?" Answer, "I take a hot bath. . . My bath is my sanctuary. (Listen to this) It's the place where I can wash off all the stuff of the day" ((Jan 8, 2001, p. 45).
Baptism is a huge symbol -- it's the water of creation. . . .we are born anew. . . . life in the Spirit . . . all the "stuff" of the day is washed off. All of that is true. But at it's basic level, baptism is the death of the old self. Before anything new can be born, the old has to pass away.
MAKE ME HAPPY, LORD, BUT...
I think that most Christians would be better pleased if the Lord did not inquire into their personal affairs too closely. They want Him to save them, to keep them happy, and to take them off to heaven at last, but not to be too inquisitive about their conduct or services.
--A. W. Tozer
GOD IS HIGHLY CONFIDENT OF HIS OWN PLANS
He'll work in ways you may not recognize or understand. And He is big enough to do the things you have labeled impossible. He has enough power. He has enough time. He is bigger than your problem. Believe in Him more than in what you may see. Trust in Him more than what you may feel. You can question. He can handle your questions. God is highly confident of His own plans. He can do everything but fail. --Kathy Troccoli
The American educator, Horace Mann, described the predicament of habits saying: "Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it every day, and at last we cannot break it." Mr. Mann, you are only half right. Habit is a cable; we weave a thread of it every day, but it can be broken? There is One who will help you break it, if you desire it. Habits are often practiced without guilt, justified through cleverly devised mental schemes. We have to be continuously converted all the days of our lives, continually to turn to God as children. Life is a continuous conversion. In every setting in which we are put we have to "put on the new person." There are whole areas of our lives which have not yet been brought into subjection, and it can only be done by this continuous conversion.
A young preacher had announced to his congregation that he would be leaving the church for another call. As he was standing at the door greeting people one of the elderly saints approached him, her eyes were filled with tears. She sobbed, "Oh pastor, I'm so sorry you've decided to leave. Things will never be the same again." The young man was flattered, but was equal to the situation and took her hands in his and most benevolently replied, "Bless you, dear lady, but I am sure that God will send you a new pastor even better than I." She choked back a sob and was heard to say, "That's what they all say, but they keep getting worse and worse."
The basic goal-reaching principle is to under-stand that you go as far as you can see, and when you get there you will always be able to see farther. Zig Ziglar
Even Americans who are lucky enough to have work in this economy are becoming more unhappy with their jobs, according to a new survey that found only 45 percent of Americans are satisfied with their work.
That was the lowest level ever recorded by the Conference Board research group in more than 22 years of studying the issue. In 2008, 49 percent of those surveyed reported satisfaction with their jobs.
The drop in workers' happiness can be partly blamed on the worst recession since the 1930s, which made it difficult for some people to find challenging and suitable jobs. But worker dissatisfaction has been on the rise for more than two decades.
"It says something troubling about work in America. It is not about the business cycle or one grumpy generation," says Linda Barrington, managing director of human capital at the Conference Board, who helped write the report, which was released Tuesday.
Workers have grown steadily more unhappy for a variety of reasons:
- Fewer workers consider their jobs to be interesting.
- Incomes have not kept up with inflation.
- The soaring cost of health insurance has eaten into workers' take-home pay.
• Six in Ten Adults Are Sure There Is a God
A new Harris Poll® that was released last month shows that only 59 percent of Americans are "absolutely certain that there is a God." Another 15 percent said they were "somewhat certain that there is a God." The research, which was based on 2,303 adults surveyed online between November 2 and 11, 2009, also revealed that 13 percent of Americans are either certain or somewhat certain that there is no God, and 13 percent were not sure whether or not God exists.
• Americans Looking Forward to Next Decade
Half of adults responding to a survey conducted last month by The Pew Research Center® said they had a generally negative opinion about the decade ending December 31, 2009. Only 27 percent had a generally positive opinion about the last 10 years. In contrast, 57 percent felt positive about the 1990s, and 59 percent feel positive about the coming decade. The research also revealed that a large majority of Americans see technological advances, such as cell phones, e-mail and the Internet, as positive. But the increase in Internet blogs, and reality TV shows were seen as negative changes in the past decade.
Choosing a Life that Matters
Some day the things we have collected, our wealth, our fame, our power
Will not matter.
Some day what we owe or what we are owed
Will not matter.
Some day our wins, our losses, and our to-do lists
Will not matter.
Our grudges and our resentments our frustrations and our jealousies
Will not matter.
Whether we are beautiful or brilliant, our gender and our skin color
Will not matter.
So what will matter?
What will matter
Is not what we have, but what we gave.
What will matter
Is not what we bought, but what we built.
What will matter
Is not what we learned, but what we taught.
What will matter
is not our competence, but our character.
What will matter
iIs not our success, but the success of those we helped.
What will matter
Is our integrity and our compassion, that encouraged and enabled others
To have integrity and to be compassionate.
Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident.
It's not a matter of circumstance.
It's a matter of choice.
May we choose - each day - to live a Life that Matters
"If religious books are not widely circulated among the masses in this country and the people do not become religious, I do not know what is to become of us as a nation. And the thought is one to cause solemn reflection on the part of every patriot and Christian. If truth be not diffused, error will be; if God and his word are not known and received, the devil and his works will gain the ascendancy; if the evangelical volume does not reach every hamlet, the pages of a corrupt and licentious literature will; if the power of the gospel is not felt throughout the length and breadth of the land, anarchy and misrule, degradation and misery, corruption and darkness, will reign without mitigation or end." ...Daniel Webster
GRACE
Grace: a gift that costs everything for the giver and nothing for the recipient. --Philip Yancey
Donkeys kill more people annually than plane crashes.
The King of Hearts is the only king WITHOUT A MOUSTACHE
American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one (1) olive from each salad served in first-class.
Venus is the only planet that rotates clockwise. (Since Venus is normally associated with women, what does this tell you!)
"The empire of Caesar is gone; the legions of Rome are smoldering in the dust; the avalanches that Napoleon hurled upon Europe have melted away; the prince of the Pharaohs is fallen; the pyramids they raised to be their tombs are sinking every day in the desert sands; Tyre is a rock for bleaching fisherman's nets; Sidon has scarcely left a wreck behind; but the Word of God still survives. All things that threatened to extinguish it have only aided it; and it proves every day how transient is the noblest monument that men can build, how enduring is the least word that God has spoken." - Albert Baird Cummins
WHEN GOD WANTS WORK DONE
God never goes to the lazy or the idle when He needs men for His service. When God wants a worker He calls a worker. When He has work to be done, He goes to those already at work. When God wants a good servant, He calls a busy man. Scripture and history attest this truth.
Moses was busy with his flocks at Horeb.
Gideon was busy threshing wheat by the wine press.
Saul was busy searching for his father's beasts.
Elisha was busy plowing with twelve yoke of oxen.
David was busy caring for his father's sheep.
Nehemiah was busy serving the king.
Amos was busy following the flock.
Peter and Andrew were busy casting a net into the sea.
James and John were busy mending their nets.
Matthew was busy collecting customs.
William Carey was busy mending and making shoes.
Christian-does this tell you something about thinking we are too busy to do God's work?
--Author Unknown
HOLD ON TO HIS HAND
We are only finite human beings. We can only see the present and the past. The future is a little frightening to us. So we need to hold onto God's hand and trust Him to calm our fears. And at those times when we're stubborn and resisting and He shakes us by the shoulders to get our attention, we're reminded that we don't call the shots. God has a plan for us, mysterious though it may seem, and we want to be in the center of it. All the risks notwithstanding, the center of God's will is still the safest place on earth to be. Charles Swindoll
I get my large circumference from too much pi.
There's a sign above the scale in my doctor's office that says "Pretend it's your IQ."
"I find it fascinating that most people plan their vacations with better care than they plan their lives. Perhaps that is because escape is easier than change." -- Jim Rohn
"Every evening, write down the six most important things that you must do the next day. Then while you sleep your subconscious will work on the best ways for you to accomplish them. Your next day will go much more smoothly." -- Tom Hopkins
"Every minute you spend in planning saves 10 minutes in execution; this gives you a 1,000 percent Return on Energy!" -- Brian Tracy
You can never really fathom the mind of another. -- Chinese Proverb
A contented mind is a continual feast. -- American Proverb
Any mother could perform the jobs of several air-traffic controllers with ease. - Lisa Alther, writer
It is better to wear out than to rust out.
Real joy comes not from ease or riches or from the praise of others, but from doing something worthwhile. Wilfred Grenfell (1865 - 1940) English medical missionary
Joy has nothing to do with material things, or with a man's outward circumstance...A man living in the lap of luxury can be wretched, and a man in the depths of poverty can overflow with joy. William Barclay (1907 - 1978) Clergyman and writer
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst, for they are sticking to their diet.
"You don't buy a fiddle today and play in Carnegie Hall tomorrow."
In moments of despair and doubt and desolation, Martin Luther would say to himself as a reminder, "I was baptized."
posted by joypastordon at 2:47 PM
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