THINGS THAT DO AND DON'T WORK~

 The young man is shown rescuing a straggly dying bush, giving alms to a pair of beggars, helping an old woman vendor push her cart, sharing food with a hungry dog, and last of all he's shown hanging a bunch of bananas on an old neighbor woman's door before retiring to his apartment.  Before the end of his day he takes a moment to pray. Along the way several people are shown shaking their head, as if to say, What's he doing that for? That's pointless...


Many things shape our lives. My family was not religious, although they may have been shocked if I had called them 'heathen' in their presence, that's what they were. Their main idea when I was growing up (this is what I absorbed at least) was to keep the Golden Rule. If you kept that rule, you were all right with God and fellow mankind.
                    ~Do unto others as you would have them do unto you~
That was the 'law and the prophets' rolled into one.  We didn't even need to keep the ten commandments, as some people said.

How did that work for us?  Well, I'll tell you-- It didn't work well at all.

I remember as a very young child thinking, There just has to be a better way (to live) because this is really painful.
As Jesus said, 'Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings,' I was less than ten years old and that was how I summed it up. That is when I began to search for that something better.
The following years became a long journey, but like a salmon swimming upstream to where it knows it needs to be, I persevered.  And I found the truth.


* "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man; But the end thereof are the ways of death."
  (Proverbs 14:12, 16:25) No matter how 'right' my family thought they were, and no matter how many times they thought they could tell God what he should/would accept--they were wrong. 

The man in the beginning of this post? He found happiness in doing for others.  He was a good person, according to our definition of good.  Not all religions make better people, but many do.  So what difference does it make what religion you adhere to as long as you are a good person?
I've attended funerals where it was a celebration of the person's life. The theme was that the person did it their way. As Frank Sinatra used to sing.

What did that mean? It meant they wanted to do what they wanted to do, and everything, and everyone else be hanged. Maybe the person in question smoked, drank, maybe cheated here and there, philandered a little, but they were a great person that loved fishing (or baking, or you fill in the blank) and now they are fishing (or said activity) with God.
I am so sorry. I am so, so sorry. People have been listening to the devil and his lies far too long. Unless a person does it God's way, when they die, they aren't doing anything with God. All the celebration of that person's life is vain and meaningless.  Being a good person in this life may have temporal rewards, such as love toward others and their love in return, but all of that without Jesus does no good beyond this life.  

John 14:6  "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me."

I could not say it better than this:
 “~I am the way, the truth, and the life. ~
Without the way there is no going; 
without the truth there is no knowing; 
without the life there is no living. 
I am the way which thou shouldst pursue; the truth which thou shouldst believe; the life which thou shouldst hope for”   (Thomas a Kempis, “Imitation of Christ,” iii., 56). 

 John_1:4. "In him was life; and the life was the light of men."
Going home: "Heaven, a prepared place for a prepared people."  Begin the journey--make your preservations today. 

MOSES: WHAT DO YOU HAVE IN YOUR HAND?

Exodus 4:2  And Jehovah said unto him, What is that in thy hand? And he said, A rod.
 Moses--a humble man used by God to do great things.

“Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.”--C.S. Lewis


He was named Moses by Pharaoh's daughter because, "... she called his name Moses, and said, Because I drew him out of the water." (Exodus 2:10)

"Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well." (Exodus 2:15)
Born as a slave-child, and one marked for death as well, his status was changed to 'son of Pharaoh's daughter, and raised in the palace of Pharaoh.  Reads like a dream come true...until one day when he is forty years old he visits his brethren and tries to rescue them from an Egyptian.  The Egyptian is killed, and now Moses becomes a marked man, who is forced to flee for his life.  Now he spends the next forty years in exile in Midian.  He becomes a shepherd for his father-in-law.  Does he intend to spend the rest of his days quietly tending sheep?  Probably, but then God appears to him in the flaming bush.  After commissioning Moses to GO bring God's people out of Egypt Moses tries to tell God, 'Thanks, but no thanks".  God will not be dissuaded, and at long last asks the all important question:  
   "And Jehovah said unto him, What is that in thy hand? And he said, A rod." (Exodus 4:2 )

 Was Moses thinking about his ill advised attempt at delivering the children of Israel in the previous attempt?  Did he think on the reply of the Israelite who had been "striving with his fellow" when the man asked him, 'who made thee a prince and a judge'?  Did he think about the people he had left behind in Egypt?  What had he learned in the last forty years, and how had it changed him from the prince Moses, and shaped him into the shepherd Moses?  And shaped him into God's leader, God's lawgiver, and God's prophet...Moses, what is in thy hand?

 "This is that Moses, who said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall God raise up unto you from among your brethren, like unto me." (Acts 7:37)

"And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)
"Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was born, I am. (John 8:58)

 "The good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth that which is evil: for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh." (Luke 6:45)
"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." (Luke 12:34)
And today Jesus asks us--What is in thy heart?  

 "But the things which proceed out of the mouth come forth out of the heart; and they defile the man.   For out of the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, railings:  these are the things which defile the man;" (Matthew 15:18, 19, 20)



"Who in the days of his flesh, having offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and having been heard for his godly fear,
  though he was a Son, yet learned obedience by the things which he suffered;
 and having been made perfect, he became unto all them that obey him the author of eternal salvation;" (Hebrews 5:7, 8, 9)


 This is a little difficult to wrap my mind around, to get a grasp on, but...what did Jesus think when he came to this earth not as the Creator, but as the Son of God? How did it change him and mold him into the Savior; the author of salvation?


 "And he said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." (Matthew 22:37)

 "And that in the good ground, these are such as in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, hold it fast, and bring forth fruit with patience." (Luke 8:15)

And still Jesus asks you and I, "What is in thy heart?"

WHAT DO THESE THINGS HAVE IN COMMON?

WHAT DO THESE TWO THINGS HAVE IN COMMON?

*It's an important instance in my life, I've got some some important decisions to make, but something in the back of my mind keeps nagging me.  I feel like there is some information missing something isn't right.

*It's been a busy day, someone asks me a simple question, a simple yes/no answer should be enough.

In the first case, I have what I believe is all the right information.  I weigh that information carefully to make the right decision, but...

In the second case it is a simple question, and I answer it without much thought, but...

...FAILED
In the first instance I didn't ask the right question.  Just one question made the difference of several thousand dollars.  I had pages of information as a matter of fact, but not until later did I realize the one question I needed to ask.  All of the information I had didn't answer that one question. 

In the second instance I was busy, I assumed it was a simple question, but in the end it wasn't a good choice.  In order to make good choices it is necessary to ask the right question, maybe more than one. 

"INFORMATION IS INCREASING IN OUR DAYS EXPONENTIALLY" 
 The article boasted that we were gaining so much more information than any time in history, but...  
It might have been a clever way to catch attention, but I question its authenticity.   However, even if it were true, what good is a multiplicity of information going to do our society?  My mother used to say we were becoming a generation of educated idiots.  I don't think she meant it as a compliment.

CLOUDING AN ISSUE
Just as when I had pages of information and it just hid the question I needed to ask, so does much of the intelligence we are supposed to be gaining.  Far too many people are ignoring the important question of this life.  Instead of coming to the eternal question of 'justice, righteousness, and the judgement to come with an honest heart, they pretend it's a simple yes/no question and slough it off. 

THE IMPORTANT QUESTION NO ONE IS ASKING
Matthew 16:26  "For what shall a man be profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? or what shall a man give in exchange for his life?"

Don't forget to join the conversation.

Looking For Answers

The cartoon shows a modern woman sitting at a bar talking to her girlfriend.  "I just can't seem to find decent men who are looking for a committed relationship."   There are a few men sitting in the background, all of which either have crazy hair, odd piercings. or all of the above and more.
    
Many thoughts fly through my cuckoo's nest on this one, however, our lives are similar at times.  Going on with the identification process, first you start with the question 'where do I want to end up?'.  Reverse engineering is a new term that has made its way into vocabularies. 

This is a term that I gleaned from a thirty day challenge I took from Chalene Johnson.  It means decide where you want to be, then working back from that point begin to ask what would be the step before accomplishing that...and ultimately brainstorming from that point back to where you are today.  At that point you can set the goals day by day, step by step to where you want to end up.  Set the daily goals by making your lists day by day, week by week.  A person needs increment goals.  When you set up your long range goals, then each month you will be able to see progress toward those goals by the weekly steps you set up. 

What else needs to happen on this journey to self discovery?   Yes, as you start this journey you will discover much about yourself...

While setting your goals ask yourself 'what are my priorities?'
For instance my number one priority is God.  Because God is my first priority there are certain things that I hold as basic, non-negotiable, attributes, such as:

Mark 12:29  "Jesus answered, The first is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God, the Lord is one: 30)  and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength.  31)  The second is this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these."

*There is one God--that means there are not many gods, and I am to listen to him and him only
*God is to be my Lord and I am to love him first, with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength
*I am to love my neighbor and myself

No, that wasn't a typo, we are to love ourselves.  It does not say, "if you hate yourself, you may hate your neighbor as well..." ~that is the way many people live today.  What God wants is for you to love yourself in a Godly manner, and love your neighbor likewise in a Godly manner.

Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan then asks this question of the lawyer:
Luke 10:36  "Which of these three, thinkest thou, proved neighbor unto him that fell among the robbers?"

The lawyer answers in verse37  "And he said, He that showed mercy on him."  Jesus replies in the same verse:  "And Jesus said unto him, Go, and do thou likewise."
What do you think?  Important questions and important answers...
Have a good day, and don't forget to join the conversation...

More Thoughts For Your Consideration

What are people thinking?  I wonder about this very thing at times.
"He works driving truck, and she works as a nurse," so the conversation goes. "Well, she took a new position.  She doesn't like it as well, but it pays better...I don't know why that makes a difference..."

It is almost a national past time the making of more money.  Couples have a baby, and almost immediately the baby is slapped into daycare so the woman can 'go back to work', because we all know you can't live on one salary...

You would expect that these people are living hand to mouth so to speak.  They must be barely paying bills, and living on beans, rice, and hot dogs, or so it sounds.  It is getting tough I'll admit making ends meet.  Prices are rising, jobs are pretty precious, but...

Here are some questions, or exercises to help you focus.  To help each person to put things into perspective.

What do you value?    What would be your list of  priorities be?  The things in your life that if the whole world fell apart you would not want to lose?  For example for myself this order would run like this:
 *God--God is the stay of my life.  Without God and Jesus nothing else makes sense.
 *Family--next to God they are the most important priorities, the most precious things in my life.
 *Home--not so much a 'house', but where and how we reside. 

You see, in the long run, even though a comfortable nest egg would be...well, it would be comfortable, it isn't the most important thing in life.  What is really important isn't the things we accumulate. It isn't the fabulous house, car, boat, flat screen T.V., satellite dish, most modern kitchen, fancy computer...that list can go on indefinitely. 

Matthew 6:25  Therefore I say unto you, be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment?

In life, why is it we put so much value on vain things?    Leave a comment, don't forget to join the conversation.

FINDING THE BEGINNING~

Getting to where you want to be requires thought.  Remember we will all get somewhere with or with out thought.  Life always moves on, that is why it has been likened to a stream.  No matter whether you go along with the current, or buck the tide you will end up somewhere.

*Make it count.  Either going with or going against the current doesn't make you a hero.  Making it count does.

*Quite often the hardest battle you will fight is the one which no one but God knows you are fighting, or that you have won.

There will be no one at the end of that finish line cheering and giving you high fives.  No one saying what a good job you did, how brave you were, or how wonderful.  No one--except God, but He makes the difference.

*2Corinthians 12:9  And he hath said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my power is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10)  Wherefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, in injuries, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.


Some months ago I began listening/watching a motivational speaker, Brendon Burchard.  Mr. Burchard caught my attention when he --very early in his speaking--asked the question:
       
*  "have I really lived, have I really loved, and have I really made a difference".

With that in mind, just where do I want to be when I get to the end of my life's journey?  I'm not averse to having a comfortable nest egg.  Not just for myself, but in keeping with the three questions, I want to be able to help those around me.  I want to be able to help family, friends, and neighbors, and having a comfortable amount of money can do that.

 Way back when my children were young and most were still living at home when we received the mailings for, 'enter and win $10,000...' my children would look longingly at the flier, and say something clever like, "If I had $10,000 I would pay off all my bills, and give some to missionaries, and...".

I always chuckled to myself, thinking, just how many bills has a ten year old acquired?  However, their hearts were in the right place.  The point is, as Dave Ramsey says, money is neither good nor evil, it just makes you more of what you are...evaluate what do you want to be more of?

* John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (4) In him was life; and the life was the light of men. (5) And the light shineth in the darkness; and the darkness apprehended it not.

One of the reasons many of the Jewish rulers hated Jesus was because he showed up the areas in their lives that needed changed.  Areas where they were very comfortable at; areas that they did not want to change.  It involved humility, and going out of their comfort zone.

--For me some of my answers to the question, What do you want to be at the end? are: 
*Honest
*Have integrity           
*Kind                                         
*Faithful Christian
*Discerning
*Intelligent
*Busy, engaged with life, and engages with other people

*What are some of the things you want to be at the end?  Don't forget to join the conversation.

The First Step To Where You Want to Be

Going through the back pack there are numerous items of importance.  Hair brush and comb, tissues, aspirins, band aids, mirror, toothbrush and tooth paste, a deck of cards...

So, you are going on a hike, and suddenly find yourself in unfamiliar territory.  Now what would you want in your back pack?  Any of these articles?  All of these articles? Perhaps even none of these articles?  Some of these things could be helpful, but which ones, and would there be some other things you might add? You would probably add a compass and maybe even a map, a jacket, and there are other things you would find to be helpful. 

 I remember when I was in high school we were encouraged to take a test to determine what occupation we would be most suitable for.  By answering a number of questions on what we enjoyed doing, where our talents and interests lay, voila!  There is what we should pursue as our vocation.  

That sounds like a plan, and indeed throughout our long life of making a living we often asked ourselves (my husband and I) what do we want to do in life?  What are our talents, and what will make us happy as well as productive. 

Matthew 25:14  "For it is as when a man, going into another country, called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. 15)  And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one; to each according to his several ability; and he went on his journey."

For some folks this decision may not be hard .  Like the one talent person there is one focus in their life and they know what it is.  In our instance we had more than one area of interest and our focus became too wide.  Consequently, we went in more than one direction and we never really focused; and we were never successful in any one area. 

Now being successful is a subjective thing. One can be poor and appear unsuccessful to the world by not having lots of what society recognizes as success-items.  Another person can have all the signs of affluence, but be miserable and poor.

Spending all our life making a living and not having enough time left to live our life.  Life was difficult in the beginning because of the money factor, but the one thing we had was hope.  Hope that tomorrow we would find the jack pot.  The dream occupation that would fill our pockets with money, and also allow us the time to take time and enjoy life.

Tip number one:  first determine where you want to end up.   This is not about money...only.  Twenty million years ago when I was young and idealistic, my mother --who was no longer young nor idealistic--and I were having a discussion. 
"Marry a man with money," she advised.
"I plan on marrying for love.  You don't have to have money to be happy," I told her.
"Well, you just try living without it," she snapped back.

Who was right?  We both were.  Keep in mind that money is neither good nor bad.  It just makes you more of what you are, as Dave Ramsey says.  Yes, wealth of some kind is necessary, but wealth in and of it's self is not worth anything if our character is rotten. 

Luke 9:25  "For what is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose or forfeit his own self?"

Tolstoy wrote in Anna Karenina:   “All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” 

Many people come to the end of their days and find they have thrown away true happiness hand over fist trying to make money, without having made a life.  

We'll carry on more of the discussion on the next post.

Matthew 6:33  "But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."