Chosen by God

On the first day of school, a teacher asked the children to form a circle and to close their eyes. If she tapped you on the shoulder, you were to move quietly to the center of the circle. The teacher explained that the children she chose would be her helpers for the year. I wondered if she liked me and if I was worthy. Then the touch came, I opened my eyes and moved to the center of the circle. Then I watched the wisest teacher slowly , lovingly touched every student in the class. We were all worthy. She needed us all and loved us all.

I forgot where I read this, but I was impressed with the ability of the teacher to understand that we all need to feel worthy. In the same way God reaches out & touches every shoulder and calls us all into the circle.

Sometimes we wonder if God can use our meager talents. It is knowing that God loves us and thinks we are worthy that we can act in terms of our own nature and set our own goals.

Let Go- Let God

What makes the sky so very blue?
The sun to shine so bright?When clouds of doubt are far and few,
Your soul is winging flight.
What makes a friend so dear, so true?
A neighbor warm your heart?
When in need, concern shows thru
A love you cannot part.
What makes the world an exciting place?
A never ending challenge?
When yearning and learning set the pace
With mind and soul akin.
What makes each day fresh and new?
From morning until night?
When you LET GO and LET GOD thru
Then everything is right.
Wilhelmine

Strategy for Daily Living

An article which I recently read said that we readily accept an expression such as , “As a man thinketh so is he.” However, first we must know our self., and to know our self we must cross-examine ourselves to find out our weaknesses and shortcomings and try to correct them. Do we measure up to the “Fruits of the Spirit,” and do we guard against the five great enemies of :“Peace.”

Galatians 5:22-24
“ But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control; against such there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”

Many people have interpreted the meaning of these words by paraphrasing. We need to be careful lest we accept the paraphrasing instead of the scripture.

The’ Fruits of the Spirit’ in all righteousness, and truth enable us to pursue our own objectives without fear of failure, censure or criticism.

Love … Knows no limits to its endurance. People always like to be with those who care about them.

Joy/Happiness…Is when the positives satisfactions outweigh the negative experiences.

Peace…Comes when one completely decides for God.

Patience…Enables you to hear a person’s cry for help.

Kindness, Goodness … Doing good is the only certain happy action of a man’s life.

Faithfulness…In an all-seeing and personal God, an alliance with the Almighty.

Self-control…Is using caution and self-restrain.

Beware of situations that generate the five great enemies of PEACE; Avarice, Ambition, Envy, Anger and pride. To guard against these enemies we first must understand them.

Avarice comes from believing that you need certain things when you probably don’t

Ambition arises from dissatisfaction with yourself and your activities.

Envy comes from an irrational comparison of what others have achieved and what you have achieved.

Anger can envelop you and destroy your incentive.

Pride develops from a need to impress yourself and others with qualities you lack.

Don’t waste your time with the enemies of peace. Pursue the “Fruits of the Spirit.” Life is made up of little things, in which a SMILE can win and preserve the heart.

Smiling is infectious, , you can catch it like the flu
When someone smiled at me today, I started smiling too.
I passed around the corner, and someone saw my grin,
When he smiled I realized I’d passed it on to him.
I thought about that smile, then I realized it’s worth,
A single smile, just like mine, could travel around the earth.
So, if you feel s smile begin, don’t leave it undetected,
Let’ start an epidemic quick and get the world infected
Theresa Edwards