Showing posts with label inspirations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label inspirations. Show all posts
I just received a call from my DAD today. It is something that I always look forward to. I really missed my family so much. Every time a got a call from them,it always bring tears to my eyes.

Even though we are oceans apart, we make sure that we do keep in touch from time to time.

Wouldn't life be so much good if your parents are living near you or within your reach. You can easily share your dreams, your joys, your fears, your sadness, your pains and your triumph.

During the lowest point in my life, it is in them that I get my strenght to go on.

They are not a perfect couple, nor a perfect parents. But they have gone through a lot of life's challenges. Their views may not always agree with one another but its their mutual respect for each other that they can achieved a win-win situation.

I am just starting to take the road that they had taken years ago. I hope some day my children will look at me with the same admiration as I have with my parents.

Tablecloth

Beautiful story.... makes you understand that things happen for a reason

The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry, to reopen a church
in suburban Brooklyn , arrived in early October excited about their opportunities When they saw
their church, it was very run down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything
done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.

They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc, and on December 18
were ahead of schedule and just about finished.

On December 19 a terrible tempest - a driving rainstorm hit the area and lasted for two days.

On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church. His heart sank when he saw that the roof had
leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the fron t wall of the
sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high.

The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone
the Christmas Eve service, headed home. On the way he noticed that a local business was
having a flea market type sale for charity so he stopped in. One of the items was a beautiful,
handmade, ivory colored, crocheted tablecloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a Cross
embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover up the hole in the front
wall. He bought it and headed back to the church.

By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the opposite direction was
trying to catch the bus.. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for
the next bus 45 minutes later.

She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers, etc., to put
up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry. The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and
it covered up the entire problem area.

Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet.. "Pastor,"
she asked, "where did you get that tablecloth?"

The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials, EBG were crocheted into it there. They were. These were the initials of the woman, and she had
made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria

The woman could hardly believe it as the pastor told how he had just gotten the Tablecloth. The
woman explained that before the war she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria .


When the Nazis came, she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next week.
He was captured, sent to prison and never saw her husband or her home again.

The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she made the pastor keep it for the church.
The pastor insisted on driving her home, that was the least he could do.. She lived on the other
side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job.

What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. The music and the
spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return.

One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood continued to sit in one of the
pews and stare, and the pastor wondered why he wasn't leaving.

The man asked him where he got the tablecloth on the front wall because it was identical to one
that his wife had made years ago when they lived in Austria before the war and how
could there be two tablecloths so much alike.

He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety and he was
supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a prison.. He never saw his wife or his home again all the 35 years in between.

The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. They drove to Staten
Island and to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier.

He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman's apartment, knocked on
the door and he saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.

True Story - submitted by Pastor Rob Reid

Who says God does not work in mysterious ways..
I asked the Lord to bless you as I prayed for you today,
to guide you and protect you as you go along your way.
His love is always with you, His promises are true,
and when we give Him all our cares you know He will see us through.
So when the road you're traveling on seems difficult at best..
Just remember I'm here praying and God will do the rest.
W hen there is nothing left but God, that is when
you find out that God is all you need. Take 60
seconds and give this a shot!

All you do is simply say a small prayer:


F ather, God, bless all my friends and family in what
ever it is that You know they may be needing this
day! May their life be full of your peace,
prosperity and power as he/she seeks to have a
closer relationship with you. Amen.


People come into your life

People come into your life for a
REASON, A SEASON or A LIFETIME.
When you know which one it is,
you will know what to do for that person.
When someone is in your life for a REASON,
it is usually to meet a need you have expressed.
They have come to assist you through a difficulty,
to provide you with guidance and support,
to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually.
They may seem like a godsend and they are.

They are there for the reason you need them to be.
Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or
at an inconvenient time, this person will say or
do something to bring the relationship to an end.
Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away.
Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.
What we must realize is that our need has been
met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done.
The prayer you sent up has been answered
and now it is time to move on.

Some people come into your life for a SEASON,
because your turn has come to share, grow or learn.
They bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh.
They may teach you something you have never done.
They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy.
Believe it, it is real. But only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime
lessons, things you must build upon in order
to have a solid emotional foundation.
Your job is to accept the lesson,
love the person and put what you have
learned to use in all other relationships
and areas of your life. It is said that
love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

Thank you for being a part of my life,
whether you were a reason, a season
or a lifetime.

Ang aking Ina

Ang aking Ina ay isang rin inhinyero,
laging tumutulong sa pagluluto sa tatay ko.
Taga-linis ng bahay,
kaya siya ang tinatawag na nanay.
Siya ay maganda kahit pagod pa.

Ilaw ng tahanan ang tawag sa kanya.
Sa aming patutunguhan, taga-gabay siya.
Mga kabuhayan inaalagaan niya.

Mahal ko ang aking ina,
sa pag aaruga, walang tatalo sa kanya.
Siya ang nagwawasto nang mga maling gawain.
Para sa paglaki namin, hindi mali ang gawain namin.


--GIAN--


Ang aking Ama

Ang aking ama ay isang inhinyero,
na pwede ring mag mekaniko.
Siya ay magaling magluto, ginisa, ihaw or kahit putsero.
Siya ay nagtratrabaho para meron kaming makain.

Tinutulungan niya ako sa aking mga takdang aralin.
Maging magalang, matapang, at mapag-mahal
ay dapat gawain.
Siya ay handang magpatawad at tumulong sa mga suliranin.

Ang tatay ko laging magaling,
kaya siya lang ang para sa akin.
Hindi siya nagpapatawag ng bosing,
pero siya ang haligi sa pamilya namin.
Haligi masasandalan at sumusuporta lagi sa amin.

--GIAN--



How to stay young

A VERY BEAUTIFUL REMINDER . . . TO KEEP US YOUNG . . . FOREVER


1. Throw out nonessential numbers.
This includes age, weight, and height.
Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay them.

2. Keep only cheerful friends.
The grouches pull you down.
(Keep this in mind if you are one of those grouches!)

3. Keep learning:
Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever.
Never let the brain get idle.
"An idle mind is the devil's workshop."
And the devil's name is Alzheimer's!

4. Enjoy the simple things

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.
And if you have a friend who makes you laugh, spend lots and lots of time with him or her!

6. The tears happen:
Endure, grieve, and move on.
The only person who is with us our entire life, is yourself.
LIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love:
Whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever.
Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health:
If it is good, preserve it.
If it is unstable, improve it.
If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don't take guilt trips.
Take a trip to the mall, even to a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

"Remember, growing older is mandatory; growing up is optional."


"Good friends are like stars.........You don't always see them, but you know they are always there."

Quit suffering from 'dirty' pain

By Martha Beck

(Oprah.com) -- Think of a problem that has plagued you for a long time -- your weight, a loved one's bad habits, fear of terrorism, whatever. No doubt you've tried valiantly to control this issue, but are your efforts working? The answer has to be no; otherwise you would have solved the problem long ago. What if your real trouble isn't the issue you brood about so compulsively, but the brooding itself?


Psychologists who subscribe to acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) call "clean" pain what we feel when something hurtful happens to us.

"Dirty" pain is the result of our thoughts about how wrong this is, how it proves we -- and life -- are bad.

The two kinds of suffering occupy different sections of the brain: One part simply registers events, while another creates a continuous stream of thoughts about those events.

The vast majority of our unhappiness comes from this secondary response -- not from painful reality, but from painful thoughts about reality. Western psychology is just accepting something saints and mystics have taught for centuries: that this suffering ends only when we learn to detach from the thinking mind.

Get happy! Continue this exercise in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT).

Judge not ...

Learning to detach starts with simply noticing our own judgmental thoughts. When we find ourselves using words like should or ought, we're courting dirty pain. Obsessing about what should be rather than accepting what is, we may try to control other people in useless, dysfunctional ways. We may impotently rage against nature itself, even -- perhaps especially -- when that nature is our own.

This amounts to mental suicide. Resisting what we can't control removes us from reality, rendering our emotions, circumstances and loved ones inaccessible. The result is a terrible emptiness, which we usually blame on our failure to get what we want. Actually, it comes from refusing to accept what we have.

Victory by surrender

Surrendering allows the truth to set us free. And how do we surrender? I recently watched television interviews with two actresses, both in their late fifties. Each was asked if she'd found anything good about aging. Both snapped, "No. Nothing. It's horrible."

A few days later, I saw Maya Angelou on TV. She said that aging was "great fun" and gleefully described watching her breasts in their "incredible race to see which one will touch my waist first." "Sure, the body is going," she said. "But so what?"

Ms. Angelou has said many wise things, but I thought "So what?" was one of her wisest. It expressed the sweet detachment of someone who has learned how to rest in her real being and knows that it is made not of flesh or thought, but of love.

The fruits of acceptance

There is enormous relief in detaching from our mental stories, but in my experience, the results go well beyond mere feeling. Surrendering leads directly to our right lives, our hearts' desires. Whenever I've managed to release my scary stories and accept the truth of my life, I've stumbled into more happiness than I ever dreamed possible.

When I stop trying to control my mind -- that verbose, paranoiac old storyteller --my thoughts become clearer and more intelligent. It's a delicious paradox: By not trying to control the uncontrollable, we get what we thought we'd get if we were in control. This thought pleases me greatly. E-mail to a friend

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Martha Beck from "O, The Oprah Magazine," August 2002

A NICE STORY TO SHARE

My mom only had one eye. I hated her... She was such an embarrassment. .
She cooked for students & teachers to support the family.

There was this one day during elementary school where my mom came to
Say hello to me.

I was so embarrassed.

How could she do this to me?
I ignored her, threw her a hateful look and ran out.
The next day at school one of my classmates said, 'EEEE, your mom only
Has one eye!'

I wanted to bury myself.
I also wanted my mom to just disappear..
I confronted her that day and said, ' If you're only gonna make me a
Laughing stock, why don't you just die?'

My mom did not respond....
I didn't even stop to think for a second about what I had said, because
I was full of anger.
I was oblivious to her feelings.

I wanted out of that house, and have nothing to do with her..
So I studied real hard, got a chance to go abroad to study.
Then, I got married.
I bought a house of my own.
I had kids of my own.
I was happy with my life, my kids and the comforts, Then one day, my
Mother came to visit me.
She hadn't seen me in years and she didn't even meet her
Grandchildren.

When she stood by the door, my children laughed at her, and I yelled at
Her for coming over uninvited.
I screamed at her, 'How dare you come to my house and scare my
Children!'
GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!!!'

And to this, my mother quietly answered, 'Oh, I'm so sorry. I may have
Gotten the wrong address,'
And she disappeared out of sight.
One day, a letter regarding a school reunion came to my house.

So I lied to my wife that I was going on a business trip.
After the reunion, I went to the old shack just out of curiosity.


My neighbors said that she died.
I did not shed a single tear.
They handed me a letter that she had wanted me to have.

'My dearest son,
I think of you all the time. I'm sorry that I came to your house and
Scared your children.
I was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion.
But I may not be able to even get out of bed to see you.
I'm sorry that I was a constant embarrassment to you when you were
Growing up.

You see........when you were very little, you got into an accident, and
Lost your eye.
As a mother, I couldn't stand watching you
Having to grow up with one eye.
So I gave you mine.
I was so proud of my son who was seeing a whole new world for me, in my
Place, with that eye.

With all my love to you,
Your mother.

Send this to at least 10 people in the next 5 minutes to show you love your mother.
If you don't then it shows you have no heart

Always tell someone that you love them because you never know what day
Will be their last, or your own.

Always seek to resolve your problems or disagreements with loved ones
Because if either of you should pass on before, the one who is left alive will have the rest of their life to ponder those unresolved feelings but will never find closure. And closure usually brings
Peace...

'I asked God, 'How do I get the best out of life?'
God said, 'Face your past without regrets. Handle your present with
confidence. And prepare for the future without fear!'

Mean Moms

Someday when my children are old enough to
understand the logic that motivates a parent,
I will tell them, as my Mean Mom told me:
I loved you enough to ask where you were going,
with whom, and what time you would be home.

I loved you enough to be silent and let you
discover that your new best friend was a creep.

I loved you enough to stand over you for
two hours while you cleaned your room,
a job that should have taken 15 minutes.

I loved you enough to let you see anger,
disappointment, and tears in my eyes. Children
must learn that their parents aren't perfect.

I loved you enough to let you assume the
responsibility for your actions even when the
penalties were so harsh they almost broke my heart.

But most of all, I loved you enough to say
NO when I knew you would hate me for it.

Those were the most difficult battles of all.
I'm glad I won them, because in the end you won, too.
And someday when your children are old enough to
understand the logic that motivates parents, you will tell them.

Was your Mom mean?

I know mine was.
We had the meanest mother in the whole world!
While other kids ate candy for breakfast,
we had to have cereal, eggs, and toast.

When others had a Pepsi and a Twinkie for lunch,
we had to eat sandwiches.

And you can guess our mother fixed us a dinner that was
different from what other kids had, too.

Mother insisted on knowing where we were at all times.
You'd think we were convicts in a prison.

She had to know who our friends were
and what we were doing with them.
She insisted that if we said we
would be gone for an hour, we would be gone for an hour or less.

We were ashamed to admit it,
but she had the nerve to break
the Child Labor Laws by making us work.

We had to wash the dishes, make the beds,
learn to cook, vacuum the floor, do laundry,
empty the trash and all sorts of cruel jobs.
I think she would lie awake at night
thinking of more things for us to do.

She always insisted on us telling the truth,
the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
By the time we were teenagers,
she could read our minds
and had eyes in the back of her head.
Then, life was really tough!

Mother wouldn't let our friends just honk
the horn when they drove up
They had to come up to the door
so she could meet them.

While everyone else could date
when they were 12 or 13,
we had to wait until we were 16.

Because of our mother we missed out
on lots of things other kids experienced.

None of us have ever
been caught shoplifting, vandalizing other's
property or ever arrested for any crime.
It was all her fault.

Now that we have left home, we are all educated, honest adults.
We are doing our best to be mean parents just like Mom was.

I think that is what's wrong with the world today.
It just doesn't have enough mean moms!

Lessons in Life

Don't Let someone become a priority in your life,

when you are just an option in their life...

Relationships work best when they are balanced.

~~~

Never explain yourself to any one.

Because the person who likes you doesn't need it,

and the person who dislikes you won't believe it.

~~~

When you keep saying you are busy,

then you are never free.

When you keep saying you have no time,

then you will never have time.

When you keep saying that you will do it tomorrow,

then your tomorrow will never come.

~~~

When we wake up in the morning, we have two simple choices.

Go back to sleep and dream, or wake up and chase those dreams.

Choice is yours...

~~~

We make them cry who care for us.

We cry for those who never care for us.

And we care for those who will never cry for us

This is the truth of life., its strange but true.

Once you realise this, its never too late to change.

~~~

Don't make promise when you are in joy.

Don't reply when you are sad.

Don't take decision when you are angry.

Think twice.., Act Wise.

~~~

Time is like a river. You cannot touch the same water twice,

because the flow that has passed will never pass again.

Enjoy every moment of life...

~~~

First I was dying to finish my high school and start college

And then I was dying to finish college and start working

Then I was dying to marry and have children.

And then I was dying for my children to grow old enough

so I could go back to work.

But then I was dying to retire. And now I'm dying.

And suddenly I realized I forgot to live.

Please don't let this happen to you.

Appreciate your current

situation and enjoy each day.

~~~


tokwa't baboy

hubby and i had fun today. we did our usually workout at gym. and after that hubby took mo to this new restuarant. we ordered our favorite "tokwa't baboy" (its tofu with some fried pork dip in sauce). it was the best tokwa recipe i've ever tasted. i will surely come back here to have some more of this delicious food.

later that night, it was our videoke time. a bonding moments spend with our kids.

i was surprised to see my kids singing songs released even during my parents time!
oh well, this was a revelation they got talent in singing. isn't that great!

IF YOU WERE TO REWRITE YOUR WEDDING VOWS

By H. Norman Wright,
"Quiet Times with Couples"

Imagine for a moment that your wedding to your partner is taking place
today. If you were to rewrite your wedding vows now, what would you commit
to and promise to do? Before you think of your own answers, consider these
that other couples have written.
* "My commitment to you is to listen to your concerns each day for the
purpose of having the kind of marriage we both want."
* "I realize that our love will change. I will work to maintain a high
level of romance, courtship, and love in our relationship.
* "I pledge myself to confront problems when they arise and not retreat
like a turtle into my shell."
* "I commit myself to you in times of joy and in times of problems. We
will tackle and share our problems together."
* "I promise that I will never be too busy to look at the flowers with
you."
* "I will respect your beliefs and capabilities which are different from
mine and will not attempt to make you into a revised edition of me."
* "I will be open and honest with you, and I desire you to be the same
with me."
* "I will reflect the Word of God in my relationship with you."
Which of these would you select for your marriage? Take a few moments
and write out some new and additional vows. Many couples do this each year
as they celebrate their wedding anniversary. It adds a new dimension to the
commitment of marriage. With all the interference and distractions we
encounter each day, we need lots of reminders to make our marriage a
priority for the glory of God.

"A faithful man shall abound with blessings" (Proverbs 28:20).

an email from bien dated 6.18.2002

The Other Woman: We didn't kiss, or even touch. But the hold we had on each other wasn't easily broken

-by Jim Peters

I don't remember the first time I saw her. That's how little of an impression Amanda made on me. There was nothing about her face, or her figure, that made her stand out. We both worked as volunteers at a local youth outreach center. I led Bible studies and she tutored kids who were struggling in school.

One evening, as we finished up a session, Amanda asked if we could get together to talk about the kids she was working with. Since I wasn't attracted to her, and since we'd be meeting in a public place, I saw no reason to refuse her request.The following week we had coffee together in a crowded restaurant. As we talked about an upcoming fundraiser for the center, I had no way of knowing that our friendship would one day threaten my marriage.

Signs of Danger

I didn't know it then, but I do now—there are intimacies far more subtle than physical touch but no less dangerous to a marriage. When Amanda and I began meeting, I didn't recognize the pressures that were building beneath the surface of my four-year-old marriage. For one thing, money was tight. I was a self-employed contractor, and my clients were often tardy with their payments. But our bills arrived with maddening regularity. Our newborn was colicky and my wife, Sarah, was exhausted. Adding to the stress was our impending move to the Midwest. I can see now that the pressure we were under created an atmosphere ripe for temptation.

Still, what happened with Amanda caught me completely off-guard.After a few meetings over coffee, I was puzzled by how much I looked forward to seeing Amanda again. I'd get an idea at work, and I'd realize I couldn't wait to share it with her. Somehow, I assumed Sarah wouldn't be as interested.In addition to our volunteer work at the youth center, Amanda and I shared an uncannily similar taste in music and literature. We began discussing the books we were reading, and our meetings grew longer and more frequent. As I got to know her compassion for others, my admiration of her literally changed the way she looked to me. One evening, as I watched her praying with a student, I realized I had become the friend of a beautiful woman.

Meanwhile, Sarah was struggling to care for our new baby and worrying about our precarious financial condition. When I'd come home excited about the way God was moving in the life of one of the students, Sarah would respond by mentioning that the bills were due and we were $200 short. She felt my spare time would be more wisely spent on a second job—not volunteering at the youth center. In fact, the more I struggled with my feelings for Amanda, the more stressed out Sarah became about our home and repairs that needed to be done. Home maintenance is not my strength, and yet it appeared to be Sarah's most cherished attribute in a husband.

Losing Control

Amanda and I had been meeting for about a month when a group from the youth center went on a weekend retreat. I began thinking about her as soon as I settled into my bunk. I imagined the walks we might take or conversations we might have, and instantly my conscience screamed out a warning: "These are thoughts you should be having about your wife! How long are you going to let this go on?"As I prayed about the situation, I realized our meetings would have to end. The next day I broke the news to her."Sarah and I will be moving to the Midwest in about a month," I began. I saw the alarm in Amanda's eyes, and took a strange comfort in knowing she would really miss me. "And, well, my family is really important to me and I don't think we should be meeting together anymore."Amanda was the type who had a small circle of friends, and she held them closely. Her voice was bruised and soft when she finally asked the ultimate question, "Why?" Without answering her directly, I reiterated how important my family was to me, and added that I didn't want to do anything that would jeopardize my marriage."You mean … " she began, then stopped. "I can't believe this. You're so perfect. I never thought that … "Amanda hadn't suspected that my interest in her was anything more than brotherly. And my tacit confession served only to make us acknowledge our growing affection. Besides, I was intoxicated by her remark that I was "so perfect" when, in Sarah's eyes, I seemed to be merely a husband who earned too little money and who couldn't tune up a car like her dad did."We can work through this," Amanda said. "You're moving anyway, there's no reason we can't continue our friendship until then."I suppose, deep down, I wanted to be swayed by Amanda's reasoning. We were both mature, committed Christians. And besides, I'd be moving soon. Surely we could keep a little mutual infatuation under control.

Facing the Truth

Amanda and I quickly discovered how difficult it is to take a relationship backward. Whenever we talked, it was almost impossible to avoid topics far more personal than the ministry we shared. Soon, I knew things about Amanda that no one else knew.Every time I'd start to feel a pang of guilt, I'd think, "Look, we've never kissed, and we don't even hold hands. Can this really be sinful?" Besides, our friendship was a welcome contrast to the emotional loneliness I felt at home.In an attempt to "prove" there was nothing improper going on, I encouraged Sarah to invite Amanda over for dinner. When Amanda showed up, it didn't take long for Sarah to figure out what was happening. That night, as we lay in bed, she asked, "Do you have feelings for Amanda?""What makes you ask that?""Because you look at her the way you used to look at me."My silence said everything. Sarah started to cry and for the first time in our marriage, we didn't kiss good night.

Sarah's pain opened my eyes to the truth: I was justifying my behavior with the rationalization that we'd had no physical involvement. But my emotional link with Amanda was a blatant betrayal of my marriage vows. I had hurt my wife deeply, and I could no longer pretend that what I was doing was harmless.Once the spell was broken, I had to admit that I had been using Amanda to ease the pain I felt over the emotional distance in my marriage. Was I really any better than a man who uses a woman for sexual pleasure?A Way OutSarah and I sought help from our pastor and two couples at church. While we were getting plenty of support, it seemed Amanda was expected to go it alone. I asked one of the wives to meet with her. But instead of offering support and guidance, our friend blasted Amanda with a series of accusations.Well-meaning friends were inadvertently pushing the two of us back together. I felt like I was the only one who could console Amanda. We shared the brunt of everyone's accusations, and those accusations became a new bond between us.My pastor, as well as my friends, counseled me to cut off all contact with Amanda. "Wouldn't it be cruel to just drop a friend?" I asked. What I didn't understand was that the cruelty had already taken place, and there was no nice way to end a cruel act.

When I finally cut off all ties to Amanda, my marriage wasn't miraculously transformed. But my commitment to Sarah was, and still is, absolute. Having once tried to stretch the rules—and seeing the damage that was done—I will never again knowingly allow my neediness to endanger my marriage.

There are some things Sarah and I may never share in our marriage, but there is also something we can never replace, and that is each other. The joys of building a history together may not provide the same type of excitement you feel upon discovering that another woman finds you attractive. But that sort of excitement is to the soul what too much candy is to the body—short-term pleasure followed by long-term pain.

Today, when I look at our children—two of whom wouldn't be here if our marriage had ended—and I catch the sunlight reflected off my wife's hair, I can't imagine life any other way. I was a fool to think I could ever push against the boundaries.

essence of trust

This is a small story...

U may have heard it before...

But a nice thought to read...

Little girl and her father were crossing a bridge.
The father was kind of
scared so he asked his little daughter, "Sweetheart,
please hold my hand so
that you don't fall into the river." The little girl
said, "No, Dad. You
hold my hand." "What's the difference?" asked the
puzzled father.

"There's a big difference," replied the little girl.
"If I hold your hand
and something happens to me, chances are that I may
let your hand go. But if
you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter
what happens, you will
never let my hand go." In any relationship,


" the essence of trust is not in its bind, but in
its bond. "

So hold the hand of the person whom you love rather
than expecting them to
hold urs...

This story is too short..........

But carries a lot of feeling......
Think about it........

HANDY LITTLE CHART

God has a positive answer:

YOU SAY GOD SAYS BIBLE VERSES
"It's impossible" All things are possible (Luke 18:27)

"I'm too tired" I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28-30)

"Nobody really loves me" I love you (John 3:1 6 & John 3:34 )

"I can't go on" My grace is sufficient (II Corinthians 12:9 & Psalm 91:15)
"I can't figure things out" I will direct your steps (Proverbs 3:5- 6)

"I can't do it" You can do all things (Philippians 4:13)

"I'm not able" I am able (II Corinthians 9:8)

"It's not worth it" It will be worth it (Roman 8:28 )

"I can't forgive myself" I Forgive you (I John 1:9 & Romans 8:1)

"I can't manage" I will supply all your needs (Philippians 4:19)

"I'm afraid" I have not given you a spirit of fear (II Timothy :7)

"I'm always Cast all your cares on ME (I Peter 5:7)
worried and frustrated"

"I'm not smart enough" I give you wisdom (I Corinthians 1:30)


"I feel all alone" I will never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5)


The first sentence is pretty powerful!
God determines who walks into your life....it's up to you to decide who you let walk away, who you let stay, and who you refuse to let go."


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