Listen and Learn

A ninety-one year old woman died after living a long dignified life. When she met God she asked him something that had long bothered her. 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. And it is only through these lessons that we learn about life, people, relationships and God This confused the woman, so God began to explain.

When someone lies to you it teaches you that things are not always as they seem. The truth is often far beneath the surface. Look beyond the masks people wear if you want to know their heart. And remove your own masks to let people know yours.

When someone steals from you it teaches you that nothing is forever. Always appreciate what you have, for you never know when you might lose it. And never, ever take your friends and family for granted because today is the only guarantee you have.

When someone inflicts an injury upon you it teaches you that the human state is a fragile one. Protect and take care of your body as best as you can, it's the only thing you are sure to have here on earth. When someone mocks you it teaches you that no two people are alike.

When you encounter people who are different from you, don't judge them by how they look or act; instead base your opinion on the contents of their heart.

When someone breaks your heart it teaches you that loving someone does not always mean that 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 will make up for all the past hurts put together. Times ten.

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 the most difficult and courageous thing Man 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 temptation.
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 were 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 all kindness is love, and each act of love also teaches us a lesson. The woman's curiosity deepening, God once again began to explain.

When someone loves us it teaches us that love, kindness, charity, honesty, humility, forgiveness and acceptance can counteract all the evil in the world.

For every good deed, there is one less 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 hurting? More comfort or pain? More joy or sadness?

Each one of us has power over the balance of love in the world. Use it wisely.

Don't miss an opportunity to nudge the world's scale in the right direction.
For each person who receives this, there will be a little less evil in the world and a little more love.

Half Full or..., by Phil Ware

Are you a person who sees the glass as half full or as half empty?
Most folks are usually either a type of Piglet or a type of Eyesore.
Eyesore says, "I worry what's dreadful thing is going to go wrong today!"
Piglet says, "I wonder what wonderful thing is going to happen today!"

Which one best reflects your attitude? To be honest, my answer depends on when you catch me. When things are going well, I'm a very optimistic person. The glass is always half-full.
I'm positive, excited, and dreaming of what wonderful thing is next. When things are going poorly, I worry about the other shoe dropping.
I'm concerned about the third disaster happening because bad news travels in 3's. The glass is half-empty and on the wane!
Thankfully as Christians, we have whole other way of viewing our lives. or us, the answer isn't half-empty or half-full, it is simply this: Our glass is never empty! Because of God's presence in us through the Holy Spirit, we are never alone, never forgotten, and never empty. No matter how we feel or how things seem, our glass is never empty! When we become Christians, we're given the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38-39), the seal of God's presence and salvation in our life (2 Cor 1:22; Eph 1:13). Jesus' pours out the Spirit on us when we are reborn to be God's children (John 3:3-7; Titus 3:3-7) and cleanses us and makes holy (1 Cor 6:11). The Spirit leads us (Rom 8:14; Gal 5:18), empowers us to overcome sin (Rom 8:13; Gal 5:24-25), develops Christ-like character (Gal 5:22-23), helps us understand the Scriptures which he inspired (1 Cor 2; 2 Tim 3:16-17), and helps us fulfill righteous demands of the Law which the Law itself could not do (Romans 8:1-4). The Spirit intercedes for us when we pray (Rom 8:26-27), comforts us (John 14:16-21), convicts us of sin (John 16:7-19), gives us gifts to use for God's glory while blessing his Church (1 Cor 12, Rom 12), and transforms us to be more like Christ (2 Cor 3:18). Most importantly, this seal of God's ownership on our life is also our assurance that we can speak to God intimately as his children, crying, "Abba, Father!" knowing that we are heard as God's beloved children (Rom 8:15-17; Gal 4:6-7). Finally, when Jesus returns, the Spirit will give life to our mortal bodies (Rom 8:11)! In other words, if we are God's children, the glass is never empty. No matter how we feel, no matter the lies of Satan that try to make us feel worthless or abandoned, we are not alone. God is not only near, but he is in us and calls us his Temple because of his Spirit within us (1 Cor 6:19-20). We are full of promise. We are never empty! We are full of hope. We can know that we will never have to live life empty, no matter how empty we may feel at any one given time -- God is there empowering, transforming, sustaining, and comforting us. We are neither Piglet nor Eeyore. We are children of grace, who like the widow in Elijah's day (1 Kings 17), never find their store of sustenance and grace empty. There is always enough, and more. Our cup is not half full or half empty.

Our cup is never empty!

The Place of Miracles by Rick Joyner

For the kingdom of God does not consist in words, but in power (I Corinthians 4:20) When the Lord fed the thousands with just a few fish and loaves, what made this miracle so great was that so much was done with so little. He receives more glory when we have less in our hands to do His works with. One of the greatest hindrances to our seeing the miracles of God is that we have too much. When the Lord calls us to do a task we must resist looking to our resources for the ability to carry it out, but rather look to God's resources. Having much may actually hinder us from doing great things for God. When the Lord set about to change the world, He did not start accumulating a large treasury for the task. He just looked for twelve men that He could anoint. Even the men that He chose were lacking in the natural gifts and abilities to carry out such a purpose. However, the Lord did not need their abilities. He only needed a few who would be willing vessels for the Holy Spirit. Years ago the Lord said to me that money was my least valuable resource. It is a resource, and has some value, but it is the least of what we need to carry out His purposes. We need the Holy Spirit. There are a couple of crucial factors about the Holy Spirit that we need to understand if we are going to be used by Him. These are highlighted in the very first mention of the Spirit in Genesis 1:2: "And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters." Here we see in the first mention of the Holy Spirit that He is moving. In almost every mention of Him in Scripture He is moving. In John 3:8 we are told, "The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit." Those who are born of the Spirit will also be moving. The Christian life is not static?it is always moving, flowing, going somewhere. This is the nature of those who are born of the Spirit. The second major factor we notice about the Spirit in Genesis is that He brought forth this glorious creation out of that which was formless and void. He still loves to do this. We do not have to be perfect for Him to use us. We can actually be over-organized and over prepared for Him to be able to use us. The Lord is not against organization, but in our pitiful little human perspectives our organization is often the result of majoring on minors. We want to get things ready, but He wants to get us ready. Our readiness is not dependent on the material realm, but on a heart that loves Him, trusts Him, and obeys Him. It was for this reason that the Lord of the Universe was born in a stable, the most humble, unlikely place He could have chosen. The only way that He could be found was by revelation. The same is still true of those things that are truly born of God. The Lord is not waiting until our building is big enough, or us to have enough money in the bank, or even for us to get a certain degree. He is waiting for us to have faith, not in ourselves, and not in our stuff, but in Him.