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Getting somewhere requires effort, it takes
faith to push on, it's easy to screw up,
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Thursday, May 31, 2012
Another day begins...
Another day I'm happy my feet reach the floor to walk into experiences, decisions and joy!
I am in Mexico at the moment, enjoying
warm sun, wonderful people and experiencing some great food. Yet, I look around and see so many people who work so
very hard, just to make enough money to enable them to live and get to Mañana (tomorrow)
to work again!
Tomorrow
is the day that we move towards no matter what we do.
Today is the day that becomes
a flow of decisions taking us from the past to the future.
In simplicity we
could consider ourselves as decision makers, flowing reality and life through our abilities to decide and do. With this perspective, the most effective living is in the quality and correctness
of the decisions.
Last night, I
was having dinner with a guy who has major responsibility in the business world. A man who understands deeply how you take
the gold we dig out the ground and turn it into dollars to support his workers, his shareholders and the extension of the
corporate enterprise. I am not sure he is a Christian, but he seems to know what it means. We were discussing different types
of people. At one point he was talking to a guy who is definitely not a Christian. It was interesting that in his conversation,
he pointed out he has to work with a very evil person and that he has another Christian employee work with this evil man.
The group discussing this all agreed that the Christian was their security in this area of the business, and this person was
the only way they could know they were not getting taken in and lied to by the evil of this man. Even the non-christian
people could not understand wy a good person like this christian tolerated the evil of the person they worked with, and
would not walk away.
This
is the value we as Christians bring to the world! We clean
it up to make it better for others. We reach out to sinners and give them opportunities, sometimes at our own expense. Our
lives are held up as good examples even by those who would tend to mock our devotion to God. Sometimes we don’t feel
like we are doing much. Sometimes it’s hard to even get out that bed and put our feet down on the floor, but we are
God’s servants that change the world for a little better each day.
So each day we need to understand that independent of our feelings, we contribute.
We should do so with joy, no matter how complex, unpleasant or difficult our tasks. We are God’s warriors in a world
of evil, taking it on and deciding to do it God’s way as much as possible.
So today, let’s do our best to open ourselves to opportunities
and Holy Spirit, and then we can flow through the decisions
of the day with the quality and effectiveness that makes an enormous difference to those we meet in our corner of the universe.
Have a great day!
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Fears and trusting God
“Many of us crucify ourselves between two thieves - regret for the past and fear of the future.”
~ Fulton Oursler
Why do we allow regrets to hold us back?
All of us have screwed
up at some time in our past haven't we?
Some of us seem to have that ability to completely ignore the fact we made a huge mistake
and continue life as if all is fine. Others of us find that no matter how much we have asked forgiveness, have prayed
about it, have tried to act in faith regarding it, we continually have the same old memory trigger emotions that pull
us down and hold us back.
Ever
had that happen to you?
This is
tough, and really is not accepting God’s blessing into our life!
Jesus died so he could take the strain for our screw ups. All he wants is to have our love and willingness to have him direct of path forward
in life. We can let the screw up go! No matter how bad they are, God forgives and clears away the debris!
Our problem is ourselves! We need to be sure to stop incorrect thinking patterns each time they occur since that is our decision
of will that activates the blessing into our lives, isn’t it?
Tryiing to stop thinking about something that we feel we screwed up
on, is not easy is it? When it’s a tough, emotional
feeling about a past failure that perhaps hurt others and changed our lives, it’s tough! That’s where a deep understanding
Jesus and what he did helps! We cannot only address this only at an intellectual level. We must continue the investigation
into God until it awakens those tremendous surges of emotion that come with deep spiritual awareness. This is necessary to
overcome our meager feelings of failure. The power of God’s love washes away the past as we dive deeper into the mysteries
and understand its depth and extent.
Trusting and praising God relieves us of our past failings!
Then, some of us are more scared of what is to come than what is
past, aren’t we?
This again ties us up in knots of despair!
It should not, we know that, but it
seems we just cannot function in that knowledge at times.
Often this feeling is tied to expected failure, or inadequacy, isn’t it? We see ourselves as less, or unable. This in Christians is not something we need
to fear. God promises he is with us and in fact the bible tells us when we need to speak, if we are deep in the spirit of
God, Holy Spirit will give us the words. God somehow takes over and become the promoter of what is said and done. Even
apparent failure is not when God has hold of our life and circumstances. Some of the most incredible success of my life were
when I did what I knew God wanted apparently failing in human terms. God took these “failures” and changed them
for the better for not only me, but also for others!
Fear of the future when we have as our guide the God of the universe who created it, guides it and upholds it, is
rather a waste of time isn’t it?
Instead
we need to ride the wave, hang in with the events that seem to flow forward, pushing us to exciting new experiences or guiding
us between those reefs of life’s fearsome events.
We have a unique ability to have the most exhilarating ride of life possible.
Uniquely designed for us and who we are! All it takes is trusting
God!
Not so easy right? Really we need to reject that lie!
Focussing on deepening our relationship with God provides the power we
need to overcome the emotions holding us back. God’s love conquers all!
Then, we can move forward loving God in the days events.
They us remember...
“I trust in God. I praise his word. I trust in God. I will
not be afraid. What can people do to me?” Psalm 56:4 NIRV
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
How can we describe God’s love?
English is a poor language to describe love!
We abuse the word “love”
by using it in the most incredibly silly circumstances don't we?
Take for example the person who says they “love” apple pie!
Really! You got to be kidding! Using a powerful word of love to describe appreciation for the taste of something we eat?
Then we
sake things like “for the love of mercy, switch of that TV”. Now that’s another abuse
as in this case it is more a meaning of “in consideration of”.
How about “I am in love with my work”....yeuch! Abuse
again, right?
English and the word “love” result in many ambiguous understandings. Perhaps that’s why when people are asked to
love God, and their neighbours as themselves, this is why they don’t really understand what that means. They don’t
really know why or how they should be loving.
That’s why I appreciate psalm 103 so much! It explains how
God loves us and tells us how we should respond to that love. This is what it says...
1 I will praise the Lord.
Deep down inside me, I will praise
him.
I will praise him, because his name is holy.
2 I will
praise the Lord.
I won't forget anything he does for me.
3
He forgives all my sins.
He heals all my sicknesses.
4 He
saves my life from going down into the grave.
His faithful and tender love makes
me feel like a king.
5 He satisfies me with the good things I long for.
Then
I feel young and strong again, just like an eagle.
6 The Lord does what is right and fair
for
all who are beaten down.
7 He told Moses all about his plans.
He
let the people of Israel see his mighty acts.
8 The Lord is tender and kind. He is gracious.
He
is slow to get angry. He is full of love.
9 He won't keep bringing charges against us.
He
won't stay angry with us forever.
10 He doesn't punish us for our sins as much as we should be punished.
He doesn't pay us back in keeping with the evil things we've done.
11
His love for those who have respect for him
is as high as the heavens are above
the earth.
12 He has removed our lawless acts from us
as
far as the east is from the west.
13 A father is tender and kind to his children.
In
the same way, the Lord is tender and kind
to those who have respect for him.
14 He knows what we are made of.
He remembers that we are dust.
15 People's lives are like grass.
People grow like the flowers
in the field.
16 When the wind blows on them, they are gone.
No
one can tell that they had ever been there.
17 But the Lord's love
for
those who have respect for him
lasts for ever and ever.
Their
children's children will know
that he always does what is right.
18
He always loves those who keep his covenant.
He always does what is right for those
who remember to obey his commands.
19 The Lord has set up his throne in heaven.
His
kingdom rules over all.
20 Praise the Lord, you angels of his.
Praise
him, you mighty ones
who carry out his orders and obey his word.
21
Praise the Lord, all you angels in heaven.
Praise him, all you who serve him and
do what he wants.
22 Let everything the Lord has made praise him
everywhere
in his kingdom.
I will praise the Lord.
It starts and ends by explaining we need to praise God.
That’s one way we show love! Not forgetting what he does for us is another. Appreciating his forgiveness, provision
for us and help is another. Respecting him is another! Keeping to his guidelines and rules for our successful living is another.
Serving him is an honor.
This gives us some idea of how to respect God who loves us.
I hope I can live up to
that today. I also hope I can learn from this and love others in a similar way.
Giving praise where it is due, remembering what they do, providing for and helping them and respecting them.
If I set that as an objective in interactions with others I think the day may turn out
okay. What about you? How will you approach your day?
Tue, May 29, 2012 | link
Monday, May 28, 2012
Christians and vegetarianism I do not say that one who is vegetarian is full of compassion and one who is not,
is otherwise. We sometimes find people, who are vegetarians, are very bad people. Morarji Desai
Ancient rituals involved animal sacrifice. Lot’s of animals, and lest we think today we are any better, we
need to know in many parts of the world, animals are still sacrificed for religious purposes. Jesus came to stop that practice
and replaced that ancient practice with a once for all sacrifice. That means, that in Christianity there is no need to sacrifice
animals for human’s mistakes any longer.
Yay!
Christians can be
compassionate to animals, but we are not Vegan by definition. Jesus ate lamb at the passover, and there is no precedent for
us to avoid meat. Paul even indicated that eating meat from sacrifices to false God’s is okay, provided it doesn’t
mislead people into thinking it was agreement to the practices of those false God’s.
Jesus also made a statement saying... "Listen
and understand. What goes into your mouth does not make you 'unclean.' It's what comes out of your mouth that makes you 'unclean.'
"
Yet, there are examples of people in the
bible who did not eat meat. Many say Adam and Eve didn’t eat meat, and it was only after the flood that God permitted
eating meat (and said not to eat the blood). God said “"Everything that lives and
moves will be food for you. I have already given you the green plants for food. Now I am giving you everything.”
While there is nothing supporting this,
some Christians think this was temporary command, because all the plants had been wiped out by the flood. Maybe...but why
the sacrifices and parties, with barbeques, that were part of religious celebrations associated with many temple festivals.
Somehow, I don’t think that was
rescinded, and I think it is still in place today. We can eat meat!
The commandment, not to kill, can be misconstrued to apply to animals,
but it is hardly likely to be the interpretation of the time. Particularly as God specified certain animals for sacrifice.
Killing a person was, and still remains, very sinful so it is highly likely that God was saying don’t kill a person.
Okay, so what about Daniel?
He was an ancient
Jew who lived under a pagan Kings control. The pagans ate meat. He and his friends were vegetarians. In fact, the bible explains
that they were tested and found healthy. It’s more likely the reason they refused the meat and rich food, is that they
refused the food because it had been sacrificed to idols.
So where does this leave us? Well I think God blesses us independent of the diet. If Jesus is to
be believed "Listen and understand. What goes into your mouth does not make you 'unclean.'
It's what comes out of your mouth that makes you 'unclean.'
Our choice is our choice!
Neither path is specifically approved or not approved.
There are some interesting facts we do need to know however.
I have heard, (and would need to have
this substantiated but think it true) that meat uses four times the energy that is used by plants
to produce a calorie of food for us to eat. So eating vegetables not only saves animals, but it uses resources
more effectively.
Personally, I
feel that extremes are not always where we should go. I was listening to a TED Talks exposition on green living, and a well-balanced
speaker suggested we eat vegetables and “healthy” during the week, and allow ourselves to have the odd
meat and “non-healthy” things that are so tasty on the weekends. That way we do a lot for the environment,
but don’t have to completely give up meats, fatty foods and candy etc. Our health will improve, and so will our
environment as about 80% less meat would be eaten each year this way.
I like this, because it also helps us save money. Vegetarian dishes tend to be less
expensive. Another reason to do this, is that there are specific vitamins and proteins we get out of meat that are more difficult
to get from vegetables, so with this mechanism we have a well-rounded diet.
So, our choice is ours to make. God will bless us either way! I have made my choice
and trust you will at least think about yours today.
Have a great day!
Mon, May 28, 2012 | link
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If you want to see a short blog describing a perspective on what I believe click here
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Rift in Evil
By Ken
X Briggs - Published: September, 2010
- Format: Perfect Bound Softcover(B/W)
- Pages: 208
Size:
6x9 - ISBN: 9781450250894
Available from Barnes and Noble, Amazon, iUniverse. |
Credit cards are acceptable on sites having Ken's books: 
:)
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Click
on XML Click here =>  to be told of new blogs
| Ken's book covers are displayed below. . . | |  This
suspense thriller centers on Kiara, a beautiful young woman pursued by a murderous group of people, who relentlessly and ruthlessly
hunt her and her sisters. Kiara has no idea why she is being targeted! When Kiara and her family turn to the law for help,
this fails. Her pursuers’ powers reach deeply into the political and law enforcement world. Family support for her dwindles
when they too have to flee her pursuers. Can Kiara escape the clutches of both the law and dishonest big business? With the
media broadcasting that Kiara and friends are dangerous and subversive, can Kiara clear her name and bring her pursuers to
justice?
| | | | | To purchase Kiara's Pursuer ebook
@ $1.99 kindle version click here, To contact the author contact Author@KenXBriggs.com | | | | | | | | The town of Zinaville is dropped into a spiral of evil causing a young man and a beautiful but abused woman
to launch into an investigation that unveils an evil conspiracy. A horrific mining accident results in Joshua
Robyn's father being killed. Joshua struggles both with himself and his townsfolk as he tries to make sense of an incomprehensible
situation. Is it an accident or a murder? Why is there a seeming link to evil? Why is his work environment suddenly threatening?
What is the conspiracy about and what are they trying to do? As action moves dramatically from exotic African grasslands to
the heart of North America's cities, the plot unfolds and the pace quickens. Will there be time? Why is a beautiful abused
young woman in the center of this plot? Evil tendrils tighten on their lives and the interplay between the visible
and invisible world shows opposing forces at work. Will there be a rift in evil? Will they be able to stop the
evil in time? | | - Published: September, 2010
- Format: Perfect
Bound Softcover(B/W)
- Pages: 208
Size: 6x9 - ISBN: 9781450250894
Available
from Barnes and Noble, Amazon, iUniverse. Chapters | | | | |
| Frugal Eating Advice |
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| Good advice for students living on limited $'s. Click on the image! |
May you be blessed today!
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