Blog Archives

WHAT GETS YOU?

5/30/2013

                                                   WHAT GETS YOU?

                                    Psychologists generally agree that
                                    whatever gets your attention...gets you!

                                    "Every year of my life," wrote Richard Cecil,
                                    "I grow more convinced that it is wisest and
                                    best to fix our attention on the beautiful and
                                    good and dwell as little as possible on the
                                    evil and false."

                                    This is no head-in-the-sand philosophy or
                                    or denial of the negligent or cruel realities
                                    or our society.
                                    We are simply opting for a better way.
                                    One in which the eyes are clear
                                    the voice is soft
                                    the mind alert and
                                    the heart pure

                                    And while it is true that men who
                                    eat carrots, do not become rabbits...
                                    If we continually feast upon that which
                                    is sordid shall we not eventually become
                                    base? Or as Solomon questioned:
                                    "Can a man take fire in his bosom,
                                    and his clothes [and] not be burned?"
                                    (Proverbs 6:27)

                                    Attention, attention...what gets You?

MINDBOGGLING

5/30/2013

                                                      MINDBOGGLING

                                        It is mindboggling!
                                        It's the greatest life-changing thought
                                        in the world
                                        It can change your life
                                       It is this simple but amazing thought...
                                        "God Loves Me"

                                        Try this experiment for one month
                                        Just before retiring and just after
                                        awakening in the morning, repeat
                                        this short sentence to yourself
                                        several times, and you will discover
                                        new creative ideas
                                        new hope
                                        new joy
                                        As you repeat "God Loves Me,"
                                        your subconscious mind will counter-attack
                                        statements that begin with the words,
                                        "Yes, but..."
                                        "Yes, but I've wasted so many years
                                        "Yes, but I'm too old to change
                                        "Yes, but I've got so many problems."
                                        "Yes, but I have made too many mistakes."

                                        That's all right, let those "Yes, Buts" have
                                        their say, then counter with your own --
                                        "Yes, But God Loves Me!"
                                        And you will find the results to be
                                       simply mindboggling!

ON RAISING CHILDREN (THOUGHT SEVEN)

5/30/2013

                                (ON RAISING CHILDREN (THOUGHT SEVEN)

                                    Three of our favorite lines come from th
                                    of George Herbert...

                                    "Throw away thy rod,
                                    Throw away thy wrath
                                    Take the gentle path."

                                    Would you have gentle children...
                                    then be gentle
                                    Would you have tenderhearted children...
                                    then be tenderhearted
                                    Would you have loving children...
                                    then be loving
                                    Would you have your children honor your...
                                    then honor them.

                                    Give them the best of everything you are
                                    Give them the greater you
                                    the higher you
                                    the holier you

                                    For your children's sake...and yours...
                                    throw away your rod and wrath and
                                    "take the gentle path."

(First published May 5,2013)

COMMENCEMENT

5/23/2013

                                                  COMMENCEMENT

                                        For those of you who are about
                                        to graduate we would ask you to...

                                        Learn from the mistakes and
                                        successes of others
                                        Build upon that which history
                                        has show to be good and honest
                                        and true
                                        Be not afraid of the future,
                                        press on, press on
                                        Seek vocations that would
                                        enrich and uplift your fellowman
                                        Defend our freedoms,
                                        decry bondage of any kind
                                        Learn to feed men's minds and
                                        hearts as well as their stomachs.
                                        Set high standards and gracious
                                        examples for others to follow.
                                        And remember, every day of our
                                        lives is a day of commencement

(First published May 23, 2013)

SCHOOL'S OUT

5/23/2013

                                                  SCHOOLS OUT

                                Now, the halls are empty. The lunchroom
                                is silent. The desks are still. The blackboards
                                are bare. The walls whisper.
                                As we look back over the past year, we
                                wonder...
                                Do our national, state and local politicians
                                really want a superior quality education for our
                                children? In spite of all the affirmative propaganda
                                they offer, we think not.
                                And what's worse, we have a sneaky suspicion
                                that most American parents are not overly concerned
                                either.
                                If parents were deeply concerned, wouldn't we
                                question why we can easily afford to spend
                                million of dollars on school buildings, but,
                                at the same time, we find it extremely difficult
                                to find the few thousands of dollars needed to
                                hire more qualified teachers so that the teacher-
                                pupil ratio in the classroom could be lowered.

                                Simply arithmetic and common sense should
                                indicate a greater chance of success if our
                                teachers are more proficient in their chosen
                                fields, and if the teacher-pupil ratio were decreased.

                                For our kids, school's out. But for our politicians and
                                our citizenry, it's time to do our homework.

ON RAISING CHILDREN (THOUGHT SIX)

5/23/2013

                                    ON RAISING CHILDREN (THOUGHT SIX)

                                   Try putting your children to bed every night
                                   feeling good
                                   about themselves
                                   about their parents
                                   about their homes

                                   Lie down with them for a short while and
                                   talk with them
                                   play with them
                                   giggle with them
                                   pray with them
                                   scratch their backs
                                   rub their heads, and
                                   gently whisper--"I love you"

                                   This is a path which, when traveled well,
                                   breeds true gentle men and ladies.

TENNIS ANYONE?

5/17/2013

                                               TENNIS ANYONE?

                                Marriage, like tennis, is more pleasant
                                when played with an amicable, conscientious
                                partner. For an enjoyable match, you just
                                can't beat a good doubles team.

                                 Unfortunately, some games get off on a bad
foot because one of the players may have
picked up a bad racquet in their pre-marital days,
perhaps a racquet that was strung too loose,
or too tight.

                                And, many partnerships falter because one
                                or both partners desire to remain at some
                               some previously attained score. However,
you really can't do that and be a successful team.

                               After all, "love 15" is just not the same as "love 30."
                               And, "love 30" is not the same as  "love 40."

                             The game must go on...Indeed, it does go on.
We  either have to finish the game, or forfeit.
   (Which oft times comes with dire consequences).

                               To our way of thinking, its much to our advantage
                               to play out the game with determination, with finesse,
                               and, with love.

                               Well now...your serve.

SHARE YOUR WEALTH 192

5/17/2013

SHARE YOUR WEALTH 192
                                     "Share your wealth," wrote Wilfred A.
                                     Peterson. "The greatest wealth of all
                                     is the wealth of yourself."

                                     What do I have to offer the world today?
                                     A worn old body that hourly continues
                                     To turn into clay.

                                     What do I have to offer the world today?
                                     No great talents, but say...
                                     We'll light a candle or two
                                     For a stranger or two
                                     With kind words and a wide grin
                                     we make a new friend

                                     What do I have to offer the world today?
                                     When things go wrong?
                                     An encouraging word
                                     A heart filled with song
                                     A friendly handshake
                                    And peaceful thoughts
                                     As we travel along
                                    The open road
                                    Together.

THE SUM TOTAL

5/17/2013

                                                 THE SUM TOTAL

                                      Are we not the sum total of all our
                                      experiences?
                                      Every evening this sum total of our
                                      our experiences is recorded within
                                      the ledger of our lives, our personality.

                                      In the next period of twenty-four hours...
                                      what shall be added to our ledger?
                                      Fears, frustrations, anxiety, worry, hate,
                                      greed, grudges, jealousies...
                                      Or shall we add twenty-four hours of...
                                      faith, hope, love, tenderness, kindness,
                                      and nobleness?

                                      What shall we do with tomorrow's dreams,
                                      ambitions, thoughts, feelings words and actions?
                                      Tomorrow, may the sum total of all of our
                                      experiences be...of the Highest Order.

GRADUATION

5/9/2013

                                                     GRADUATION

                             Whether it be from high school or from a university,
                             graduation is, indeed, a laudable accomplishment.
                             But, as most graduates soon realize, a degree is
                           seldom an end-all, be-all proposition.

                            Rather, graduation is the tying of a knot in our
                             rope of life.The graduation knot much more
                           signifies a beginning than an ending;a graduation
                            toward something as opposed to a gradution from
                             something.

                             It is impossible to change "the way we were," but
                             the possibities for change towared "what we shall
                            become," are infinite. We can only expect to live
                            in the present as we slide toward the future. The
                            past is past.

                            With these thoughts in mind, perhaps gravitation, in
                             the long run, becomes more significant than graduation.