Love and Forgiveness

How can these two words, love and forgiveness change your whole perspective on life? First, you must put your trust in something bigger than yourself. You may call it God, Spirit, Budda, whatever your faith is, trust that it has a bigger plan (could it be a lesson in forgiveness?) than your everyday troubles. What is the most important lesson you can learn while here on earth? Love and Forgiveness. But how do you get to the Love part if you have hatred in your heart? Forgive. It sounds so simple and yet it can be the most difficult thing that you can do in this lifetime.

You were wronged or someone betrayed you, how can you let that go? Forgive. Forgive and it will set your heart free. Here are some steps that can get you there. Feel your anger, feel your sadness, feel whatever it is you need to get all those emotions out, write it down and then throw it away. Give yourself a certain timeframe in which you will no longer continue to go on with those emotions. Now comes the hard part, trying to convince yourself that the other person deserves to be forgiven. Every time this hurt comes into your heart, say to yourself "I forgive "name" for what they have done". Every time you start to go over the scenario, and start to get angry or sad, instead replace it with "I forgive "name" for what they have done". You might not believe what you are saying at first. But sending that message out into the universe will eventually help break the chain of black energy that links you together with an invisible line of hate.

Hopefully it will hit you one day. You can let it go, the hate, the anger, the betrayal, how you were wronged and in a peaceful loving moment truly feel that forgiveness. The best possible way to break the chain of hate that connects you by an invisible link, is to stand and face this person and truly believing and feeling in your heart what you are about to say to them. "No matter what you have done to me, I forgive you" It is truly disarming, and can break that link that binds you. That's it! It may be a long and hard task to get to that one simple line.

What does it feel like? Once you have set each other free, your heart feels lighter, you have an overwhelming feeling of peace. You suddenly understand it all, the reason you are here, the lessons that you need to learn while on this earth plane. You will never be the same, because in every situation you can begin to feel compassion, humility and gratitude toward your fellow travelers here on earth. You can LOVE again. You are a radiant being moving forward in life.-By Linda Foltyn

The Real Cure

What cause ulcers? Stress, Coffee, Spicy food? Wrong, wrong, wrong, according to Daniel Haney of the Associated Press. For years that is what doctors presumed caused ulcers, but in the early 1980s two doctors—Barry Marshall and Robin Warren—discovered a bacterium in the lining of the digestive system that they suspected might be the real cause. The bacterium is called Heliobacter pylori.

The proof of Marshall and Warren’s idea was slow in coming, but by the early 1990s—after some two thousand articles had appeared in medical journals on the subject of the bacterium—gastroenterologists agreed with them.

“It turns out that about half of all U.S. adults are infected with H. pylori,” writes Haney. “Most don’t get ulcers. But when ulcers do occur, the bug is probably responsible for 80 percent or more. The only major exception is ulcers triggered by aspirin and some other pain killers.”

Nevertheless, most people suffering stomach discomfort don’t go first to a gastroenterologist; they go to their family practitioner or general internist. And news about the real cause of ulcers has been slow to reach them. Instead of prescribing an antibiotic that would cure the problem, many persist in prescribing acid-blocking drugs that may heal ulcers temporarily, but in time they often come back.

In a similar way, many people get only temporary relief for spiritual and emotional problems. If a person has a sin problem, no amount of self-help or technique will completely take away the pain or cure the disease. The antibiotic is repentance.

Triumph in Tragedy

by Max Lucado from He Chose the Nails

What do you say we have a chat about grave clothes? Sound like fun? Sound like a cheery topic? Hardly. Make a list of depressing subjects, and burial garments is somewhere between IRS audits and long-term dental care.

No one likes grave clothes. No one discusses grave clothes. Have you ever spiced up dinner-table chat with the question, “what are you planning to wear in your casket?” Most folks don’t discuss grave clothes.

The apostle John, however, was an exception. Ask him, and he’ll tell you how he came to see burial garments as a symbol of triumph. He didn’t always see them that way. A tangible reminder of the death of his best friend, Jesus they used to seem like a symbol of tragedy. But on the first Easter Sunday, God took clothing of death and made it a symbol of life.

Could he do the same for you? Could he take what today is a token of tragedy and turn it into a symbol of triumph? We all face tragedy. What’s more, we’ve all received the symbols of tragedy. Yours might be a telegram from the war department, an ID bracelet from the hospital, a scar, or a court subpoena. We don’t like these symbols, nor do we want these symbols. Like wrecked cars in a junkyard, they clutter up our hearts with memories of bad days.

But could God use such things for something good? How far can we go with verses like Romans 8:28 that says, “In everything God works for the good of those who love him”? Does “everything” include tumors and tests and tempers and terminations? John would answer yes. John would tell you that God can turn any tragedy into triumph, if only you will wait and watch.

Could I challenge you with a little exercise? Remove the word “everything” from Romans 8:28 and replace it with the symbol of your own tragedy. For the apostle John, the verse would read: “In burial clothing God works for the good of those who love him.” How would Romans 8:28 read in your life?

In hospital stays God works for the good.
In divorce papers God works for the good.
In a prison term God works for the good.
If God can change John’s life through a tragedy,
Could it be he will use a tragedy to change yours?

Fulfilment of the Empty Life

The cry of emptiness rings from both the deepest ghetto and the largest mansion. The same echo of a meaningless life reverberates at the downtown bar and the country club. There are senior citizens, middle-ages men and women, and teens with equally hollow hearts, for which no medical prescription exists.

The Samaritan woman at the well symbolizes millions throughout history who have used their best efforts to satisfy the yearning for love and completion. Until a person tastes God’s love, the sense of emptiness cannot be permanently satisfied. We were created to honor and glorify the Lord; no other act of adoration-toward the opposite sex, worldly position, work, or money-can bring a sense of long-term pleasure and purpose.

It is no wonder, then, that when Jesus offered the Samaritan woman a drink that would quench her thirst forever, she eagerly agreed. Salvation’s promise includes more than the elimination of guilt. Receiving Christ as Savior means He indwells every believer’s spirit in order to express His love to us and through us. If we are willing to acknowledge Christ’s death and ask His forgiveness for our sins, which put Him on the cross, we are able to experience the permanent overflow of God’s love filling our emptiness.

The believer who feels hollow must honestly confess any sin harbored in the heart. Wrongdoing and idolatry block fellowship with the Father, but repentance breaks the dam. The only fulfillment for an empty life is God’s freely offered love.

By Dr. Charles Stanley (Jn. 4:3-18)

The L I T T L E Things

** As you might know, the head of a company survived 9/11 because his son started kindergarten.

** Another fellow was alive because it was his turn to bring donuts.

** One woman was late because her alarm clock didn’t go off in time.

** One was late because of being stuck on the NJ Turnpike because of an auto accident.

** One of them missed his bus.

** One spilled food on her clothes and had to take time to change.

** One’s car wouldn’t start.

** One went back to answer the telephone.

** One had a child that dawdled and didn’t get ready as soon as he should have.

** One couldn’t get a taxi.

** The one that struck me was the man who put on a new pair of shoes that morning, took the various means to get to work but before he got there, he developed a blister on his foot. He stopped at a drugstore to buy a Band-Aid. That is why he is alive today.

*** Now when I am stuck in the traffic, miss an elevator, turn back to answer a ringing telephone – all the little things that annoy me, I think to myself, this is exactly where God wants me to be at this very moment..

*** Next time your morning seems to be going wrong, the children are slow getting dressed, you can’t seem to find the car keys, you hit every traffic light, don’t get mad or frustrated; God is at work watching over you.

** May God continue to bless you with all those annoying little things and may you remember their possible purpose.

By Dave Anderson

Choosing a Mate

Do you know what to look for in a potential mate? There are lots of qualities that matter: character, integrity, stability. But here’s something else to consider: look for someone who encourages you and has a positive outlook. It’s hard to have a happy marriage when your partner criticizes you or make you feel inadequate. On the other hand, it’s easier to have a happy marriage when you’re with someone who finds hope in situations instead of always seeing the glass half empty. Choose well when you choose a mate, and the path to a mutually satisfying marriage will be smoother.

Laugh

Laugh! by Peter McWilliams

Many years ago, Norman Cousins was diagnosed as “terminally ill.” He was given six months to live. His chance for recovery was one in 500.

He could see the worry, depression and anger in his life contributed to, and perhaps helped cause, his disease. He wondered, “If illness can be caused by negativity, can wellness be created by positivity?”

He decided to make an experiment of himself. Laughter was one of the most positive activities he knew. He rented all the funny movies he could find – Keaton, Chaplin, Fields, the Marx Brothers. (This was before VCRs, so he had to rent the actual films.) He read funny stories. He asked his friends to call him whenever they said, heard or did something funny.

His pain was so great he could not sleep. Laughing for 10 solid minutes, he found, relieved the pain for the several hours so he could sleep.

He fully recovered from his illness and lived another 20 happy, healthy and productive years. (His journey is detailed in his book, Anatomy of an Illness) He credits visualization, the love of his family and friends, and laughter for his recovery.

Some people think laughter is a waste of time. It is luxury, they say, a frivolity, something to indulge in only every so often.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Laughter is essential to our equilibrium, to our well-being, to our aliveness. If we’re not well, laughter helps us get well; if we are well, laughter helps us stay that way.

Since Cousins’ ground-breaking subjective work, scientific studies have shown that a curative effect on the body, the mind and the emotions.

So, if you like laughter, consider it sound medical advice to indulge in it as often as you can. If you don’t like laughter, then take your medicine and laugh anyway.

Use whatever makes you laugh – movies, sitcoms, Lat, records, books, New Yorker cartoons, jokes, friends’.

Give yourself permission to laugh – long and loud and out loud – whenever anything strikes you as funny. The people around you may think you’re strange, but sooner or later they’ll join in even if they don’t know what you’re laughing about.

Some diseases may be contagious, but none is as contagious as the cure…laughter.

The Price of Prayerlessness

The Price of Prayerlessness by Dr. Charles Stanley

Imagine walking through a crowded airport. You cannot move without bumping into someone. You’re late for your flight, and the wheels just broke on your over – packed suitcase.

With no other option, you’re forced to carry the luggage and slowly maneuver through the congested lobby toward the ticketing area. Almost immediately, a young gentlemen offers to carry your bags, but you pride fully refuse. When you realize the ticket counter is two levels up, you make your way to the stairs. Someone asks you if it would be easier to take the elevator. But you are determined to carry your bags.

As you finally make it to the top of the steps, your arms feel numb from the pressure of your bags. Your legs are starting to buckle from the weight. Your back is aching from supporting the heavy load. Then, you spot a collection of unused baggage carts. But you ignore them, self – assured that you can handle the bags yourself.

Isn’t this a silly story? Who would prefer to carry such a heavy burden, ignoring every opportunity to lay it down? And yet, many believers do just that. Our Father has called us to lay our cares at His feet. But when we fail to come to God in prayer, we’re just as foolish as the man staggering with his bags through the airport.

Are you trying to carry a greater burden than you can bear? Don’t ignore God’s offer to help. The truth is, we really can’t do it ourselves,” and God never wanted us to try.

What Is One Of Your Most Important Marital Assets?

It's your attitude! Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. So how can we change a bad attitude?

First, look for the positive. Abraham Lincoln said, "If you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will."

Second, refuse to be a victim. Self-pity is a luxury no marriage can afford.

Third, give up grudges. They only clog the veins of a positive attitude. Finally, changing an attitude won't occur overnight so be patient and don't give up.

Remember, your family first.

Potatoes: Food For Our Thought

A kindergarten teacher has decided to let her class play a game. The teacher told each child in the class to bring along a plastic bag containing a few potatoes. Each potato will be given a name of a person that the child hates, so the number of potatoes that a child will put in his/her plastic bag will depend on the number of people he/she hates.

So when the day came, every child brought some potatoes with the name of the people he/she hated. Some had 2 potatoes; some 3 while some up to 5 potatoes. The teacher then told the children to carry with them the potatoes in the plastic bag wherever they go (even to the toilet) for 1 week.

Days after days passed by, and the children started to complain due to the unpleasant smell let out by the rotten potatoes. Besides, those having 5 potatoes also had to carry heavier bags. After 1 week, the children were relieved because the game had finally ended.

The teacher asked: "How did you feel while carrying the potatoes with you for 1 week?" The children let out their frustrations and started complaining of the trouble that they had to go through having to carry the heavy and smelly potatoes wherever they go.

Then the teacher told them the hidden meaning behind the game. The teacher said: "This is exactly the situation when you carry your hatred for somebody inside your heart. The stench of hatred will contaminate your heart and you will carry it with you wherever you go. If you cannot tolerate the smell of rotten potatoes for just 1 week, can you imagine what is it like to have the stench of hatred in your heart for your lifetime???"

Moral of the story
Throw away any hatred for anyone from your heart so that you will not carry sins for a lifetime. Forgiving others is the best attitude to take! Love others even if you don't like them...