Spiritual Thoughts

Friday Tale - This New Year  I want to be a Mountain   T he year drew to a close. What would I accomplish in the next? I looked up at the mountains in the distance. They were white now. Not long ago, they were brown. In the time I've lived in Idaho, I've had the opportunity to watch the cycle of seasons make their change on those mountains I never tire of seeing.   My first sight of them came in September of 2008. The sides of the mountains were painted green with the leaves of sagebrush. Near the top were pines. The days moved on; the weather cooled and the rain didn't fall. The leaves browned. The mountain changed.   Fall gave way to winter. I stood in the rain and watched the tops of the mountains turn a blinding white. Each week the snow crept further down their slopes and long before the first snows fell in the valley, the mountains were covered with fresh powder. The sun set; the lights on the ski slopes lit the sides of the mountains a dazzling white. I'm n

  I n the New Year, never forget to thank your past years, because they enabled you to reach today! Without the stairs of the past, you cannot arrive at the present, or reach the future. ~ Mehmet Murat ildan   I am writing to you to stir up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the words spoken before hand by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken by your apostles. ~ 2 Peter 3:1-2

W e will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words  on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day. ~ Edith Lovejoy Pierce   S o then, as we have Opportunity, let us do good to everyone. ~ Galatians 6:10

  L ife is to live, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experiences. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt   T hese things I have spoken to you so that my joy may be in your, and that your joy may be made full. ~ John 15:11

  A ct as if what you do  makes a difference. It does. ~ William James W alk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you. While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light. ~ John 12:35-36

  Friday Tale - 12 Days of Christmas?   T here is one Christmas Carol that has always baffled me. What in the world do leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge who won't come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas? So I did some research.     From 1558 until 1829, Christians in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a song for young Sunday School students. It has two levels of meaning: the surface meaning plus a hidden meaning known only to believers.     Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality, which the children could remember.   -The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.   -Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.   -Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love (1 Corinthians 13).   -The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John.   -The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the

  T he love we give away is the only love we keep. ~ Elbert Hubbard   I n this is love, not that we loved God BUT that He loved us and sent His son to be the expiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love on another. ~ 1 John 4:10-11

  I n my life I've learned that true happiness comes from giving. Helping others along the way makes you evaluate who you are. I think that love is what we're all searching for. I have not come across anyone who didn't become a better person through love. ~ Marla Gibbs T hanks be to God for His  inexpressible gift! ~ 2 Corinthians 9:15

  Gift Suggestions: T o your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, patience. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, kind service. To all, kindness. To every child, a good example. To God, trust and thanks. ~ Oren Arnold (amended)   F or the wages of sin is death, BUT the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. ~ Romans 6:23

  C onstant kindness can accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust and hostility to evaporate. ~ Albert Schweitzer   H e who pursues right-ness and kindness, will find life and honor. ~ Proverbs 21:21 

  Friday Tales - Trust and More   ·     O nce all the villagers decided to pray for rain. On the day of prayer all the people gathered together, BUT only one little boy came with an umbrella. That is FAITH. ·     W hen you throw a small child up in the air, she laughs because she knows you will catch her. That is TRUST. ·     E very night we go to bed, without any assurance of being alive the next morning, BUT still we set the alarms to wake up. That's HOPE. ·     W e plan big things for tomorrow in spite of zero knowledge of the future. That is CONFIDENCE. ·     W e see the world suffering, BUT still we get married. That is LOVE. ·     On an old man's shirt was written this: "I am not 80 years old... I am sweet 16 with 64 years experience." That is Positive ATTITUDE. ~ Jim Gentil   D elight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart. C ommit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. ~ Psalm 37:4-5

  P erfecting your character is not a marathon, a race, or a competition. It can only be won in stride by stride, with daily motivation. ~ Orly Wahba   Y ou, therefore, will be perfect, growing into spiritual maturity, both in mind and character, actively integrating Godly values into your daily life, as your heavenly Father is perfect. ~ Matthew 5:48 (Amplified)

  F aith is not the belief that God  will do what you want.   Faith is the belief that God   will do what is right . ~ Max Lucado   W e know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true ; and we are in Him who is true , in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. ~ 1 John 5:20

A nyone who does not take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either. ~ Albert Einstein   H is master said to him, "Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master. ~ Matthew 25:21

  S ince you are the one who has to  live with your choices, be sure they are your own. ~ Alan Cohen   L et us choose for ourselves what is right, let us know among ourselves what is good.   ~ Job 34:4

  Friday Tale - Our Train Ride   A t birth, we boarded the train and met our parents, and we believe they will always travel by our side.     However, at some station our parents will step down from the train, leaving us on this journey alone.     As time goes by, other people will board the train; and they will be significant, i.e. our siblings, friends, children, and even the love of our lives. Many will step down and leave a permanent vacuum. Others go so unnoticed that we don't realize they vacated their seats.     This train ride will be full of joy, sorrow, fantasy, expectations, hellos, goodbyes, and farewells.     Happiness consists of having a good relationship with all passengers requiring that we give the best of ourselves.     The mystery to everyone is: We do not know at which station we ourselves will step down.     So, we must live in the best way: love, forgive, and offer the best of who we are.     It is important to do this because when the time c

  H appiness is not a brilliant climax to years of grim struggle and anxiety. It is a long succession of little decisions to simply be happy in the moment. ~ J. Donald Walters   B ehold, how happy is the man whom God reproves, so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.  ~ Job 5:17

T he art of being happy lies in the power of extracting happiness from the common every-day things. ~ Henry Ward Beecher   G o then, eat your bread in happiness and drink your wine with a cheerful heart, for God has approved your work. ~ Ecclesiastes 9:7

  H appiness is something you decide on ahead of time. It's a decision you make every morning when you wake up. You have a choice - you can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty you have with parts of your body that don't work, OR, get out of bed and be thankful for the parts that do work. Each day is a  gift, and as long  as your eyes are open  you can focus on the new day and the  happiness you've had in your life. ~ Author Unknown   W ho is the one who fears the LORD? God will teach him through His word in the way he should choose.  ~ Psalm 25:12

N o one is in control of your happiness  BUT you; therefore, you have the power  to change anything about yourself or  your life that you want to change. ~ Barbara de Angelis   I call heaven and earth to witness today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. SO choose life in order that you might live, you and your descendants.  ~ Deuteronomy 30:19

  Friday Tale - the Law of the Garbage Truck   O ne day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport.     We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches!     The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy and, I mean, he was really friendly. So I asked, 'Why did you do that? That guy almost ruined your car and could have sent us to the hospital!'       This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call, 'The Law of the Garbage Truck.'  He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally. Just smile, wa

H ope begins in the dark. ~ Anne Lamott   W hy are you in despair, o my soul? And why have you become disturbed  within me? HOPE in God, for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my heart and my God. ~ Psalm 42:11  

  Y our worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God's grace.   And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God's grace.   ~ Anonymous   T he righteous cry, and the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. ~ Psalm 34:17

  L ife is not about waiting  for the storm to pass. It is about learning how  to dance in the rain. ~ Vivian Greene   I n this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. ~ 1 Peter 1:6-7

  T he problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise, and thinking that having problems is a problem. ~ Theodore Isaac Rubin   T hough I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; Your right hand will save me. The LORD will accomplish what concerns me. ~ Psalm 138:7-8

  Friday Tale - Just a Letter   W e were a group of friends in the midst of an after-dinner conversation. Because Thanksgiving was just around the corner and prosperity wasn't, we talked about what we had to be thankful for.           One of us said, "Well I, for one, am grateful to Mrs. Wendt, an old school teacher who, 30 years ago in a little West Virginia town, went out of her way to introduce me to the works of the poet, Tennyson."           Then he launched into a colorful description of Mrs. Wendt, a lovely little old lady who had been his high school teacher and who evidently had made a deep impression on his life. She had gone out of her way to awaken his literary interest and develop his gifts of expression.           "And does this Mrs. Wendt know that she made that contribution to your life?" someone put in.           "I'm afraid she doesn't. I have been careless and have never, in all these years, told her either face-to-fac

  T he miracle of gratitude is that it  shifts your perception to such an extent that it changes the world you see. ~ Robert Holden   T herefore, since we receive a Kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude . ~ Hebrews 12:28

  If the only prayer you say in your   entire life is ‘ Thank You ,’ that would suffice. ~ Meister Eckhart    Now therefore, our God, we thank You , and praise Your glorious name.  ~ 1 Chronicle 29:13

  B est of all is it to preserve everything in a pure still heart, and let there be for  every heartbeat a thanksgiving , and for every breath a song. ~ Konrad von Gesner    B e anxious for nothing, BUT in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ~ Philippians 4:6

T he thankful receiver bears  a plentiful harvest. ~ William Blake    E nter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the LORD is good; His loving-kindness is everlasting. ~ Psalm 100:4-5

  Small Friday Tale -  Rainbows and Butterflies   O ur "Rainbows and Butterflies are the small miracles of our life - The little things that are so easy to overlook, yet so awe inspiring when we take a moment to notice and to pay attention. Give thanks for the rainbows,  for the butterflies for all God's creatures, large and small, for the bright blue sky and the soft fog and the gentle rain, for the tree veiled in the season's first frost, for the baby's laugh, for the touch of a hand, and the whispered "I love you." ~ Jonathan Lockwood Huie As you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in hi, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, ... abounding in thanksgiving. ~ Colossians 2:6-7

  I n the midst of movement and  chaos, keep stillness inside you. ~ Deepak Chopra   Y ou keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in You. ~ Isaiah 26:3

  T he more you recognize and  express gratitude for the  things you have, the more  things you will have to  express gratitude for. ~ Zig Ziglar   W hatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. ~ Colossians 3:17