LESSONS OF LOVE

A 91-year-old woman died after living a very long dignified life. When she met God, she asked Him something that had really bothered her for a very long time. "If Man was created in God's image, and if all men are created equal, why do people treat each other so badly?"

God replied that each person who enters our life has a unique lesson to teach us. It is only through these lessons that we learn about life, people and our relationships with God. This confused the woman, so God began to explain:

"When someone lies to you, it teaches you that things are not always what they seem. The truth is often far beneath the surface. Look beyond the masks people wear if you want to know what is in their hearts. Remove your own masks to let people know who you really are."

"When someone steals from you it teaches you that nothing is forever. Always appreciate what you have. You never know when you might lose it. Never take your friends or family for granted, because today and sometimes only this very moment is the only guarantee you may have."

"When someone inflicts injury upon you, it teaches you that the human state is a very fragile one. Protect and take care of your body as best as you can, it's the one thing that you are sure to have forever."

"When someone mocks you, it teaches you that no two people are alike. When you encounter people who are different from you, do not judge them by how they look or act, instead base it on the contents of what is in their hearts."

"When someone breaks your heart, it teaches you that loving someone does not always mean that the person will love you back. But don't turn your back on love, because when you find the right person, the joy that one person brings you will make up for all of your past hurts. Times a thousand fold."

"When someone holds a grudge against you, it teaches you that everyone makes mistakes. When you are wronged, the most virtuous thing you can do is forgive the offender without pretense. Forgiving those who have hurt us is often the most difficult and painful of life's experiences, but it is also the most courageous thing a person can do."

"When a loved one is unfaithful to you, it teaches you that resisting temptation is Man's greatest challenge. Be vigilant in your resistance against all temptations. By doing so, you will be rewarded with an enduring sense of satisfaction far greater than the temporary pleasure by which you were tempted."

"When someone cheats you, it teaches you that greed is the root of all evil. Aspire to make your dreams come true, no matter how lofty they may be. Do not feel guilty about your success, but never let an obsession with achieving your goals lead you to engage in malevolent activities."

"When someone ridicules you, it teaches you that nobody is perfect. Accept people for their merits and be tolerant of their flaws. Do not ever reject someone for imperfections over which they have no control."

Upon hearing the Lord's wisdom, the old woman became concerned that there are no lessons to be learned from man's good deeds. God replied that Man's capacity to love is the greatest gift He has. At the root of kindness and love, and each act of love also teaches us a lesson.

The woman's curiosity deepened. God, once again began to explain:

"When someone loves us, it teaches us love, kindness, charity, honesty, humility, forgiveness, acceptance, and all of these can counteract all the evil in the world. For every good deed, there is one evil deed. Man alone has the power to control the balance between good and evil, but because the lessons of love are not taught often enough, the power is too often abused."

"When you enter someone's life, whether by plan, chance or coincidence, consider what your lesson will be. Will you teach love or a harsh lesson of reality? When you die, will your life have resulted in more loving or more hurting? More comfort or more pain? More joy or more sadness? Each one of us has the power over the balance of the love in the world. Use it wisely!"

Don't miss an opportunity to nudge the world's scale in the right direction!

Comfort for the Depressed

“All creation keeps on groaning together and being in pain together until now.” (Romans 8:22) Human suffering was great when that was written over 1,900 years ago. Many were depressed. Therefore, We were urged: “Speak consolingly to the depressed souls.”—1 Thessalonians 5:14.

Today, human distress is even greater, and more people than ever are depressed. But should that surprise us? Not really, for the Bible identifies these as “the last days” and calls them “critical times hard to deal with.” (2 Timothy 3:1-5) Jesus Christ foretold that during the last days, there would be “fearful sights.”—Luke 21:7-11; Matthew 24:3-14.

When people experience prolonged anxiety, fear, grief, or other such negative emotions, they often become depressed. The cause of depression or extreme sadness may be the death of a loved one, a divorce, the loss of a job, or an unrelenting sickness. People also become depressed when they develop a sense of worthlessness, when they feel they are a failure and have let everyone down. Anyone may be devastated by a stressful situation, but when a person develops a sense of hopelessness and is unable to see any way out of a bad

situation, severe depression may result.

People in ancient times experienced similar feelings. Job suffered sickness and personal misfortune. He felt that God had abandoned him, so he expressed a loathing toward life. (Job 10:1; 29:2, 4, 5) Jacob was depressed over the apparent death of his son, refusing to be comforted and wishing to die. (Genesis 37:33-35) Feeling guilt over serious error, King David lamented: “All day long I have walked about sad. I have grown numb.”—Psalm 38:6, 8; 2 Corinthians 7:5, 6.

Today, many have become depressed because of overtaxing themselves, trying to follow a daily routine that is beyond their mental, emotional, and physical resources. Apparently stress, coupled with negative thoughts and emotions, can affect the body and contribute to a chemical imbalance in the brain, thus producing depression.

Relax Before You Go Home

Decompress Before You Go Home :

After a day of stress and pressure at the office, most of us arrive home cranky, tired and dispirited. We gave the best we had to our colleagues and customers and, sadly, we have nothing left for the people we love the most: our spouses, children and friends. Like gladiators who have just completed the battle of their lives, we wearily walk to your favorite easy chair and order family members to leave us alone until we regain our composure.

Taking ten minutes to decompress before you walk through the front door of your home will help you to avoid making this scenario a part of your daily routine. Rather than leaving work, driving home and rushing into your house, you spend a few minutes sitting alone in your car while parked in the driveway. Use this time to relax and reflect on what you would like to accomplish during the next few hours with your family. Remind yourself how much your partner and children need you and how many fun things you can do if you simply put your mind to it.

To further decompress, you could go for a quick walk around the block or listen to a favorite piece of classical music before you open the door and greet your family. Be creative about your personal decompression time and treat it as a chance to renew and recharge so you are the person your family wants you to be when you greet them.

Love… in Sickness & in Health

The passengers on the bus watched sympathetically as the attractive young woman with the white cane made her way carefully up the steps. She paid the driver and, using her hands to feel the location of the seats, walked down the aisle and found the seat he’d told her was empty. Then she settled in, placed her briefcase on her lap and rested her cane against her leg. It had been a year since Susan, 34, became blind. Due to a medical misdiagnosis she had been rendered sightless, and she was suddenly thrown into a world of darkness, anger, frustration and self-pity. And all she had to cling to was her husband, Mark.

Mark was an Air Force officer and he loved Susan with all his heart. When she first lost her sight, he watched her sink into despair and was determined to help his wife gain the strength and confidence she needed to become independent again.

Finally, Susan felt ready to return to her job, but how would she get there? She used to take the bus, but was now too frightened to get around the city by herself. Mark volunteered to drive her to work each day, even though they worked at opposite ends of the city. At first, this comforted Susan, and fulfilled Mark’s need to protect his sightless wife who was so insecure about performing the slightest task. Soon, however, Mark realized the arrangement wasn’t working. Susan is going to have to start taking the bus again, he admitted to himself. But she was still so fragile, so angry how would she react?

Just as he predicted, Susan was horrified at the idea of taking the bus again. “I’m blind!” she responded bitterly. “How am I supposed to know where I am going? I feel like you’re abandoning me.”

Mark’s heart broke to hear these words, but he knew what had to be done. He promised Susan that each morning and evening he would ride the bus with her, for as long as it took, until she got the hang of it.

And that is exactly what happened. For two solid weeks, Mark, military uniform and all, accompanied Susan to and from work each day. He taught her how to rely on her other senses, specifically her hearing, to determine where she was and how to adapt to her new environment. He helped her befriend the bus drivers who could watch out for her, and save her a seat.

Finally, Susan decided that she was ready to try the trip on her own. Monday morning arrived, and before she left, she threw her arms around Mark, her temporary bus-riding companion, her husband, and her best friend. Her eyes filled with tears of gratitude for his loyalty, his patience, and his love. She said good-bye, and for the first time, they went their separate ways.

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday… Each day on her own went perfectly, and Susan had never felt better. She was doing it! She was going to work all by herself.

On Friday morning, Susan took the bus to work as usual. As she was paying the fare to exit the bus, the driver said, “Boy, I sure do envy you. “

Susan wasn’t sure if the driver was speaking to her or not. After all, who on earth would ever envy a blind woman who had struggled just to find the courage to live for the past year? Curious, she asked the driver, “Why do you say that you envy me?”

The driver responded, “It must feel good to be taken care of and protected like you are.”

Susan had no idea what the driver was talking about, and again asked, “What do you mean?”

The driver answered, “You know, every morning for the past week, a fine-looking gentleman in a military uniform has been standing across the corner watching you as you get off the bus. He makes sure you cross the street safely and he watches until you enter your office building.

Then he blows you a kiss, gives you a little salute and walks away. You are one lucky lady.”

Friendship is not a song....

Even when they meet us, they pass without a greeting;

These very friends; our food had been eating.

Those who were very close to us and our relations;

Now, have decided to change their stations.

Those for whom we bore the brunt of neglect,

Are today, pessimism personified and perfect.

For those who we gave up half our lives;

The result was just a bundle of knives.

How we regret the day we met,

Today, we just regret & regret.

However, we did learn one thing;

Friendship is not the song that everyone can sing....

Some inspirational quotes

Trust in yourself. Your perceptions are often more accurate than you are willing to believe.

Black, Claudia

Do not fear mistakes- there are none.

Davis, Miles

Nobody can give you wiser advice than yourself.

Cicero

One learns by doing a thing; for though you think you know it, you have no certainty until you try.

Sophocles

Do the thing you are afraid to do and the death of fear is certain.

Emerson, Ralph Waldo

The best thing about the future is that it only comes one day at a time.

Lincoln, Abraham

Many of us spend our whole lives running from feeling with the mistaken belief that you can not bear the pain. But you have already borne the pain. What you have not done is feel all you are beyond that pain.

Kahlil Gibran

Every exit is an entry somewhere else.

Stoppard, Tom

One sees great things from the valley, only small things from the peak.

Chesterton, G. K.

The most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely.

Jung, Carl

To know what you prefer instead of humbly saying Amen to what the world tells you ought to prefer, is to have kept your soul alive.

Stevenson, Robert Louis

Stop thinking and talking about it and there is nothing you will not be able to know.

Zen Paradigm

It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; it is because we do not dare that things are difficult.

Seneca

There is the risk you cannot afford to take, and there is the risk you cannot afford not to take.

Drucker, Peter

With courage you will dare to take risks, have the strength to be compassionate and the wisdom to be humble. Courage is the foundation of integrity.

Nair, Keshavan

Trust that still, small voice that says, "This might work and I'll try it."

Mariechild, Diane

Life shrinks and expands in proportion to one's courage.

Nin, Anais

Saying no can be the ultimate self-care.

Black, Claudia

I was taught that the way of progress is neither swift nor easy.

Curie, Marie

You've got to find the force inside you. Campbell, Joseph

I need to take an emotional breath, step back and remind myself who's actually in charge of my life.

Knowlton, Judith

You must do the thing you think you cannot do.

Roosevelt, Eleanor

Once we make our decision, all things will come to us. Auspicious signs are not a superstition, but a confirmation. They are a response.

Deng Ming-Dao

The only way to pass any test is to take the test. anonymous

If you are not living on the edge, you take up too much room.

Native American saying

Why God Gives Problems ?

I DON"T KNOW ITS RIGHT OR WRONG SECTION

BUT I BELIVE FOLOWING R TRUTH

The problems you face will either defeat you or develop you - depending on how you respond to them. Unfortunately, most people fail to see how God wants to

use problems for good in their lives. They react foolishly and resent their problems rather than pausing to consider what benefit they might bring.

Here are five ways God wants to use the problems in your life:

1.God Gives Problems To DIRECT You.

Sometimes God must light a fire under you to get you moving. Problems often point us in a new direction and motivate us to change. Is God trying to get your attention? "Sometimes it takes a painful situation to make us change our ways."

2. God Gives Problems To INSPECT You.

People are like tea bags...if you want to know what's inside them, just drop them into hot ever water! Has God tested your faith with a problem What do problems reveal about you? "When you have many kinds of troubles, you should be full of joy, because you know that these troubles test your faith, and this will give you patience."

3. God Gives Problems To CORRECT You.

Some lessons we learn only through pain and failure. It's likely that as a child your parents told you not to touch a hot stove. But you probably learned by being burned. Sometimes we only learn the value of something... health, money, a relationship. .. by losing it. "It was the best thing that could have happened to me,for it taught me to pay attention to your laws."

4. God Gives Problems To PROTECT You.

A problem can be a blessing in disguise if it prevents you from being harmed by something more serious. Last year a friend was fired for refusing to do something unethical that his boss had asked him to do. His unemployment was a problem - but it saved him from being convicted and sent to prison a year later when management's actions were eventually discovered. "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good...

5. God Gives Problems To PERFECT You.

Problems, when responded to correctly, are character builders. God is far more interested in your character than your comfort. Your relationship to God and your character are the only two things you're going to take with you into eternity.

"We can rejoice when we run into problems...

they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of character in us and helps us trust God more each time we use it until finally our hope and faith are strong and steady."

God is at work in your life - even when you do not recognize it or understand it. But it's much easier and profitable when you cooperate with Him.

"Success can be measured not only in achievements, but in lessons learned, lives touched and moments shared along the way"