Inspiration Shared By Lady Braids

Inspiration On 2/22/12

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge:
but fools despise wisdom and instruction.  Proverbs 1:7

The first thing that many schools throw out of any discussion
or pursuit of knowledge is God. Yet here we see that the fear
of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge - we cannot hope to
attain any real understanding of our world, its purpose, or our
place in it without first turning to and learning from God. 

The fool looks at material things and therefore assumes things
about God; the wise man or woman looks at God and therefore
assumes things about material things. Which are you? 

Do you look at the world through the lens of God's Word and
with a fearsome understanding that it was created for the
glory of God? If so, then intellectual pursuits, family
relationships, job opportunities, and every other area of life
will fit into place. On the other hand, if you do not begin with
the fear of the Lord, then life will seem like a crossword
puzzle with the wrong answer already scrawled across its
middle; nothing will seem to fit. 

If you are getting some wrong answers, that don't seem to
fit or solve the problems in your life, try erasing all your
own answers and replacing them with God's. Remember, He
is the one that made us and He has given us the solutions
we need in His Word. The fear of the Lord is the beginning... 

 -- BBH Daily Devotion 

Inspiration On 2/8/12

A good barometer to use, when determining how
a big a role you allow someone to play in your life,
is how they treat others - not you.

If a person is kind and caring and compassionate
in their dealings with people, we are not surprised
when they treat us the same way. Yet, if they are
good to us, and mean spirited toward others, we
are shocked and hurt when, somewhere down the
line, they treat us in the same manner.

"But," you say, "He would never do that to ME."

"But," you say, "She would never treat ME like that."

When we care for someone, and we truly believe
they care for us, we tend to overlook certain
things, and we should. None of us are perfect.

But a person who lies... lies. A person who
gossips... gossips. A person who cheats...
cheats. A person who betrays... betrays.

This is a difficult lesson for many people to learn,
myself included. It took a few good-hard-knocks
on the head, before I realized that friendship is
not a safety zone. If I associate myself with
someone who tends to tell lies, I have no logical
reason to be upset when they tell a lie about me.

People show you their true colors all the time.
Simply look at the way they treat others. It's a
pretty reliable indication of who they really are.

Your friendship garden may be small, when your
closest companions are those who treat the
world with the same love and respect that you
do, but their wondrous blossoms will always be
there for you to enjoy.

 -- Living in love and loving life,
     Terri McPherson

Inspiration On 09/08/11

This is an account of a 92 year old, petite, well poised and proud lady,
who is fully dressed by eight o'clock, with her hair fashionably coifed and
makeup perfectly applied, even though she is legally blind. Her husband of
70 years recently passed away, making the move to a nursing home necessary.
After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, she
smiled sweetly when they told her her room was ready. As she maneuvered her
walker to the elevator, I provided a visual description of her tiny room,
including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on her window. "I love it,"
she stated, with the enthusiasm of an eight year old, having just been
presented with a new puppy. "Mrs. Jones, you haven't seen the room...just
wait." "That doesn't have anything to do with it," she replied. "Happiness
is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not
doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged....it's how I arrange it in
my mind. I already decided to love it....It's a decision I make every
morning when I wake up. I have a choice; I can spend my day in bed
recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer
work, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do. Each day is a
gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new day and all the
happy memories I have stored away...just for this time in my life. Old age
is like a bank account....you withdraw from what you've put in. So, my
advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of
memories....."

Amen.

Inspiration On 09/02/11

An old mystic said this about himself: "I was a revolutionary when I
was young, and my prayer to God was, 'Lord, give me the strength to
change the world.'

As I approached middle age and realized that my life was halfway gone
with­out changing a single soul, I changed my prayer to, 'Lord, give
me the grace to change all those who come into contact with me,
especially my family and friends, and I shall be satisfied.'

Now that I am an old man, and my days are num­bered, I have begun to
see how foolish I have been. Now my one prayer is this, 'Lord, give
me the grace to change myself.' If I had prayed that right from the
start, I would not have wasted my life."

We can waste years trying to change other people. But we can only
really change one person - ourselves.

In the end, that is probably enough.

 -- Steve Goodier
     www.lifesupportsystem.com 

 

Inspiration On 08/05/11

To know what people really think,
pay regard to what they do,
rather than what they say.

 -- Rene Descartes

Inspiration On 07/28/11

 

We're not very patient. We want instant oatmeal. We turn on lights in
henhouses to fool the hens into laying eggs before breakfast. A sign on a
Pennsylvania highway announces "Antiques manufactured while you wait."
That's the approach we like. Go after it head-on. Get it and get it now.

That approach is of some value but it does have limitations. You can get a
Cadillac by putting down the cash, but you can't get character that way.
You can get a house, but not a home. You can get money, but not life's
greatest riches.

Some things don't come by direct pursuit. They are by-products of the
pursuit of something else.

Patience is one of those things.

 -- Eddie Levick

Inspiration On 07/15/11

 

“We must not become tired of doing good.” Galatians 6:9

When we are mistreated, our animalistic response is to go on
the hunt. Instinctively, we double up our fists. Getting even
is only natural. Which incidentally, is precisely the problem.
Revenge is natural, not spiritual. Getting even is the rule of
the jungle. Giving grace is the rule of the kingdom . . .

To forgive someone is to admit our limitations. We’ve been
given only one piece of life’s jigsaw puzzle. Only God has
the cover of the box.

 -- Max Lucado

 

Inspiration On 07/05/11

 

So what!

Those two words can take you a long way by keeping your spirit
at peace.

About 95% of the things of life fit into the "so what" category.

There is nothing that you can do about them anyway. The thing
really doesn't harm you, it is just an irritating inconvenience.

So what!

Learn to recognize "so what" situations.

Stay calm.
Don't get upset.
You won't really suffer major consequences,
you would just rather have it happen another way.

Someone didn't speak to you.
A car cut you off in traffic.
"They" have a "bad attitude."
You struggle with bills but your stomach is full and warm.

...and a thousand other things.

So what!

Learn to realize the power of those two little words to calm
your spirit and put things in perspective.

  -- MountainWings - The Daily Inspirational Email
     www.mountainwings.com

Inspiration On 07/04/11

 

I have lived, Sir, a long time and the longer I live, the more convincing
proofs I see of this truth -- that God governs in the affairs of men.
And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it
probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured,
Sir, in the sacred writings that "except the Lord build they labor in vain
that build it." I firmly believe this; and I also believe that without his
concurring aid we shall succeed in this political building no better than
the Builders of Babel: We shall be divided by our little partial local
interests; our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall be
become a reproach and a bye word down to future age. And what is
worse, mankind may hereafter this unfortunate instance, despair of
establishing Governments by Human Wisdom, and leave it to chance,
war, and conquest.

I therefore beg leave to move -- that henceforth prayers imploring
the assistance of Heaven, and its blessings on our deliberations, be
held in this Assembly every morning before we proceed to business,
and that one or more of the Clergy of this City be requested to
officiate in that service.

 -- From Benjamin Franklin's Constitutional Convention Address On Prayer
     Delivered June 28, 1787 In Philadelphia PA 

 

 

Inspiration On 06/27/11

There is an old fable about a puppy that was vigorously chasing his tail.

An old dog saw him and asked, "Why are you chasing your tail so?"

The puppy answered, "I have mastered philosophy. I have solved the
problems of the dog universe, which no dog before me has rightly
solved. I have learned that the best thing for a dog is contentment
and happiness. I have discovered that contentment is in my tail.
Therefore, I am chasing it; and when I catch it, I shall have happiness!"

The old dog said, "My son, I too have paid attention to the problems of
the dog universe, in my weak way, and have formed some opinions. I, too
have judged that contentment and happiness are fine things for a dog
and that happiness is in my tail. But I have noticed that when I chase it,
it keeps running from me; but when I go about my business, it comes
after me."

The fabled dog apparently knew a great deal about life. He put his business
before his happiness, and his happiness came along.

With the human family there can be only one business. Jesus made this clear
when He said, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and
all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33.

All the things that people feel will make them satisfied and comfortable will
come along after they seek the kingdom of God.

 -- Neal Becker