A friend loveth
at all times.
Proverbs 17:17
Monday, October 31, 2011
Reading your Bible
Did you know God's word has over 8,000
promises in it.
It's exciting to read the word and discover the promises God has for you.
First Things First
First Things First |
| But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides. —Matthew 6:33 Too often we spend all of our time seeking God for answers to our problems when what we should be doing is just seeking God. As long as we are seeking God, we are staying in the secret place, under the shadow of His wing. Psalm 91:4 says, "Under His wings shall you trust and find refuge." But when we start seeking answers to all the problems and situations that confront us, trying to fulfill our desires rather than God's will, we get out from under the shadow of His wing. For many years I sought God about how I could get my ministry to grow. The result was that it stayed just the same as it was. It never grew. Sometimes it even went backwards. What I didn't realize was that all I needed to do was to seek the kingdom of God, and He would add the growth. Do you realize that you don't even have to worry about your own spiritual growth? All you need to do is seek the Kingdom, and you will grow. Seek God, abide in Him, and He will cause increase and growth. A baby just drinks milk and grows. All you and I have to do is desire the sincere milk of the Word, and we will grow (See 1 Peter 2:2). We can never experience any real measure of success by our own human effort. Instead, we must seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; then all these other things we need will be added to us. * Joyce Meyer Ministries |
Best Teacher Anyone Could Ask For
Best Teacher Anyone Could Ask For
by Jane Powell
“Your life is a series of experiences.”
Each life experience makes you stronger, more knowledgeable and more prepared for what lies ahead.
Though it may not seem like it at the time, the setbacks and hardships you face actually help you march forward.
Don’t isolate yourself from life experiences. They instruct you and guide you into your future. Learn from your experiences. They are the best teacher anyone could ask for.
The first step to changing your situation or to change your life to something better is to take that first step. And that will be in a direction that is out of your comfort zone, it will be exciting and scary at once. You know that it will mean change, and it will be a change for the better.
There will be some worry, but its time that worry was put in the back seat and courage sat in your heart in the front seat. Worrying about things that have not happened and are more than likely never to happen is a sure way to kill happiness and dreams. After taking that first step you will feel so encouraged, because you did it on your own. It is always a surprise to realise how much easier a walk can get after the first step and we get a rhythm going, then it becomes exciting and interesting, and wonder fills our mind, and the want for adventure fills our soul. And we always will love ourself more when courage takes control and leads us to where our heart desires.
James M Sandbrook
Allow yourself to be inspired, and you enable yourself to be inspiring. Open yourself to criticism, and you position yourself for improvement.
Permit yourself to be challenged, and you compel yourself to grow stronger. Discipline yourself to stay focused, and you reward yourself with great achievement.
The kind of face you present to the world determines the kind of world you see and experience. What you get is very closely connected to how you are, to how you act, and to the way you think and feel.
The outside world is a surprisingly accurate mirror of your inside substance. Your choices determine your realities, both in ways that are obvious and in ways you cannot possibly imagine.
It is impossible to deceive life, so there’s no point in even trying to do so. Instead, put your energy and your effort into honest, authentic, generous living.
The goodness that flows out from you is constantly transformed into the good and valuable things that surround you. Let that goodness freely flow, and experience life at its best.
Ralph Marston
There will be some worry, but its time that worry was put in the back seat and courage sat in your heart in the front seat. Worrying about things that have not happened and are more than likely never to happen is a sure way to kill happiness and dreams. After taking that first step you will feel so encouraged, because you did it on your own. It is always a surprise to realise how much easier a walk can get after the first step and we get a rhythm going, then it becomes exciting and interesting, and wonder fills our mind, and the want for adventure fills our soul. And we always will love ourself more when courage takes control and leads us to where our heart desires.
James M Sandbrook
Allow yourself to be inspired, and you enable yourself to be inspiring. Open yourself to criticism, and you position yourself for improvement.
Permit yourself to be challenged, and you compel yourself to grow stronger. Discipline yourself to stay focused, and you reward yourself with great achievement.
The kind of face you present to the world determines the kind of world you see and experience. What you get is very closely connected to how you are, to how you act, and to the way you think and feel.
The outside world is a surprisingly accurate mirror of your inside substance. Your choices determine your realities, both in ways that are obvious and in ways you cannot possibly imagine.
It is impossible to deceive life, so there’s no point in even trying to do so. Instead, put your energy and your effort into honest, authentic, generous living.
The goodness that flows out from you is constantly transformed into the good and valuable things that surround you. Let that goodness freely flow, and experience life at its best.
Ralph Marston
Sunday, October 30, 2011
For Men
For Men
by Charles R. Swindoll
I don't often recommend a volume without reservation, but I think every man should read Temptations Men Face by Tom Eisenman. I'm not saying I agree with everything in it, or that you will, but his observations, insights, and suggestions are both penetrating and provocative. In fact, that book got me thinking about the top temptations fathers face.
First, the temptation to give things instead of giving ourselves. Don't misunderstand. Providing for one's family is biblical. First Timothy 5:8 calls the man who fails to provide for his family's needs "worse than an unbeliever." But the temptation I'm referring to goes far beyond the basic level of need. It's the toys vs. time battle: a dad's desire to make up for his long hours and absence by unloading material stuff on his family rather than being there when he is needed.
Second, the temptation to save our best for the workplace. How easy it is for dads to use up their energy, enthusiasm, humor, and zest for life at work, leaving virtually nothing for the end of the day.
Third, the temptation to deliver lectures rather than earning respect by listening and learning. When things get out of hand at home, it's our normal tendency to reverse the order James 1:19 suggests. First, we get mad. Then, we shout. Last, we listen. When that happens, we get tuned out.
Fourth, the temptation to demand perfection from those under our roof. We fathers can be extremely unrealistic, can't we? Fathers are commanded not to exasperate their children (Eph. 6:4).
Fifth, the temptation to find intimate fulfillment outside the bonds of monogamy. Thanks to our ability to rationalize, we men can talk ourselves into the most ridiculous predicaments imaginable.
Sixth, the temptation to underestimate the importance of your cultivating your family's spiritual appetite. Fathers, listen up: Your wife and kids long for you to be their spiritual pacesetter.
Ready for a challenge? Begin to spend time with God, become a man of prayer, help your family know how deeply you love Christ and desire to honor Him.
How about facing the music and then changing the tune? Say a firm NO to any of these subtle, sneaky, slippery temptations that have slipped into your life.
Luke 10:27
So he answered and said, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.'"
Luke 10:27 (New King James Version)
Friday, October 28, 2011
Charting Our Course by His Word
Charting Our Course by His Word
"But whoso keepeth His word, in Him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in Him." 1 John 2:5
The word "keepeth" in 1 John is a derivative of a word that sailors used years ago to refer to their practice of steering their course by "keeping" the stars.
This did not mean, of course, that a sailor would not be blown off course or that he might not over-steer. It didn't mean that he might not nod at the wheel and somehow be distracted or fail to keep a perfect chart. But the goal, the aim, the desire, and the controlling principle in his life were those stars. He knew that in them, he could find direction to his destination.
In the same way, John says God's commandments are to be the standard by which you and I chart our courses in life.
What is determining your steps today? God's Word? Or your word?
Thursday, October 27, 2011
1 John 3:1-3
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!
and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Live life with few regrets
Live Life With Few Regrets
by Jane Powell
“Change is necessary to live a life with few regrets.”
You only live once. And, it doesn’t hurt to think of this, from time to time. The worst thing would be to look back on your life, wishing you could have been happier or done more.
Don’t let that happen! Now is the time to take a good look at your life and make changes so that you have no regrets.
We all know time flies. Days, weeks, months, and years slip away. Don’t let them pass you by. Make the necessary changes that bring happy, joyful memories, so you can look back with no regrets.
When you are full of yourself, there is no room left for anything else. Let go of your concerns of self, and let in more of the goodness of life.
When your mind is filled with worries, those worries begin to come to life. Let go of the worries, and let in an awareness of the positive possibilities that surround you.
When your mind is filled with worries, those worries begin to come to life. Let go of the worries, and let in an awareness of the positive possibilities that surround you.
When your heart is filled with anger and resentment, there is no place left for love to dwell. Let go of the anger, and let in the joy of love.
Open your heart, open your mind, and open yourself to the positive possibilities of each moment. Let in the beauty, let in the joy, let in the richness of life.
Stop holding on to the disappointments of the past. Open yourself to the treasures of right now.
Let the moment be, and let life in.
Step into the challenge
The more you do, the more you’re able to do. Your abilities grow stronger as you use them, so your best strategy is to get busy and use them.
The feeling that you cannot do something is often powerful, and can feed upon itself. The way to get beyond it is with action.
Any project you contemplate may at first seem overwhelming. That’s understandable, because you haven’t even taken the first step.
Once you take that first step, though, the challenge begins to feel more manageable. As soon as you actually begin the effort, you also begin to get better at doing it.
When the mountain is in the distance, it’s difficult to imagine how you could climb it. Once you’re on the path up the mountain, though, you’ll always be able to easily see the next step and take it.
Go ahead and begin the effort. Amaze yourself by discovering how very much you can do.
Ralph Marston
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Psalm 19
Spy in the Sky
by Charles R. Swindoll
Let me introduce you to the Hubble Space Telescope (affectionately dubbed "ST"). Says one authority: "It's not hyperbole to say that ST is as much an improvement over the most powerful existing telescope as Galileo's first spyglass in 1609 was over the human eye. . . . It could bring into focus the stars on an American flag at a distance of 3,000 miles. ST will record images . . . via electronic light collectors so sensitive they could detect a flashlight on the Moon."
Thanks to ST, a mind-boggling new dimension will open to us because it will take us back into time. To understand this, think of a bolt of lightning flashing across the sky. Five or six seconds later we hear a thunderclap. In actuality, we are hearing back into time. The sound of the thunder is signaling an event that---thanks to the lightning flash---we know happened five to six seconds earlier.
Astronomer Richard Harms uses this analogy to describe ST's ability to help us view the distant past by virtue of its capacity to see great distances. "Instead of sound waves from thunder," he suggests, "think of light waves traveling from a far galaxy to the space telescope above the earth. Light moves very fast, but the distance is so vast that a certain amount of time has to elapse before the light can get from there to here." A "light year" is the distance light travels in one year, 5.8 trillion miles. Thus, ST should be able to pick up images that have been traveling for as long as twelve billion years.
Are you ready for this? That means we'd be able to see events that transpired when the universe was a dozen billion years younger!
Just this morning, thinking about all this, I read these familiar words: "God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also. God placed them in the expanse of the heavens" (Gen. 1:16-17).
Wouldn't it be something if one of ST's most distant signals revealed evidences of the creative hand of God? That should be sufficient to turn goose-pimple excitement into mouth-opening faith, even for the most cynical scientists.
Prayer of the day
Father, thank you for your steadfast and secure love. Thank you
for the assurance that our future rests in your hands. Thank you for
holding me and my e-mail friends in your protective grace. May I live today with
confidence and joy knowing that no matter where I find myself, you
are there to uphold and sustain me. For this grace, I thank you in
Jesus' name. Amen
Todays verse Job 17:9
Again and again God has shown that the influence of a very average life, when once really consecrated to Him, may outweigh that of almost any number of merely professing Christians.
Frances Ridley Havergal
The righteous also shall hold on his way, and he that hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger.
Job 17:9
The King James Version
When the devil tries to remind you of your past,
Just turn around and remind him of his future.
Anonymous
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Matthew 20:16
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We Need Each Other
We Need Each Other
"That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me."
(John 17:21)
It's time we, as believers, began to enter into the oneness Jesus prayed for in John 17:21. It's time we held onto one another in good times as well as bad. It's time we realized that we need one another.
We do, you know. I need your faith as much as you need mine. Together, we can face anything and win in Jesus.
Let me show you why. In John 3:34, God says Jesus was given the Holy Spirit without measure. He was more powerful than all the demons of hell and all wicked spirits of all classes, including Satan himself. He was able to defeat their power combined.
Now consider this. We are His Body. Each of us has been given the measure of faith according to Romans 12:1-3. That measure is enough to take care of our own personal needs. However, there is more involved here than just our own personal lives.
We have a world to win! We are the end-time generation. We need all the help we can get. But, thank God, we can get all the help we need!
How? By joining together. Ephesians 4:13 says that when we all come together in the unity of the faith, we'll have "the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ."
In other words, when the Body of Christ comes together and begins to function as one, we'll have the Holy Spirit without measure--just like Jesus did! We'll begin to see ministries functioning in the fullness of their callings. We'll begin to see manifestations of the Holy Spirit in full measure. We'll see Jesus in fullness as we've never seen Him before.
Then the world will know the Father sent Him.
Step into that oneness today. Start today making a daily effort to make yourself available to God to pray for others. Start your day by saying, "Holy Spirit, use me to pray for someone today. I offer You my measure of faith."
Once we truly join together in faith, all the demons of hell won't be able to overcome us. We'll march right over them in the fullness of the power of Jesus and bring the age to a glorious close!
Scripture Study: Ephesians 4:1-16
* Kenneth Copeland Ministries
"That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me."
(John 17:21)
It's time we, as believers, began to enter into the oneness Jesus prayed for in John 17:21. It's time we held onto one another in good times as well as bad. It's time we realized that we need one another.
We do, you know. I need your faith as much as you need mine. Together, we can face anything and win in Jesus.
Let me show you why. In John 3:34, God says Jesus was given the Holy Spirit without measure. He was more powerful than all the demons of hell and all wicked spirits of all classes, including Satan himself. He was able to defeat their power combined.
Now consider this. We are His Body. Each of us has been given the measure of faith according to Romans 12:1-3. That measure is enough to take care of our own personal needs. However, there is more involved here than just our own personal lives.
We have a world to win! We are the end-time generation. We need all the help we can get. But, thank God, we can get all the help we need!
How? By joining together. Ephesians 4:13 says that when we all come together in the unity of the faith, we'll have "the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ."
In other words, when the Body of Christ comes together and begins to function as one, we'll have the Holy Spirit without measure--just like Jesus did! We'll begin to see ministries functioning in the fullness of their callings. We'll begin to see manifestations of the Holy Spirit in full measure. We'll see Jesus in fullness as we've never seen Him before.
Then the world will know the Father sent Him.
Step into that oneness today. Start today making a daily effort to make yourself available to God to pray for others. Start your day by saying, "Holy Spirit, use me to pray for someone today. I offer You my measure of faith."
Once we truly join together in faith, all the demons of hell won't be able to overcome us. We'll march right over them in the fullness of the power of Jesus and bring the age to a glorious close!
Scripture Study: Ephesians 4:1-16
* Kenneth Copeland Ministries
Friday, October 21, 2011
Kenneth Copeland Ministries
Keep Quiet
"A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards."
(Proverbs 29:11)
One of the things that you and I as believers must learn if we want to be faithful servants in the kingdom of God is how to keep our mouths shut. We need to master that skill.
When we get our backs up about something, we think we have to let everybody know about it. "I'm just going to give them a piece of my mind," we say.
Don't make that mistake. Nobody wants or needs a piece of your mind--and if you give it to them, you'll only end up alienating people and bringing harm to yourself. Instead, learn to keep quiet.
This especially applies in the area of spiritual insight. When the Holy Spirit gives you discernment about a situation, don't go spreading it all over town. If you do, you'll come to the place where the Lord can't trust you with revelation and insight into things and situations.
I've seen that happen. I've known intercessors who have received revelations about someone's weaknesses or needs. They have been given insight into the problem in someone's life, so they could pray for that person. But, instead of keeping that information between themselves and God in prayer, they told others about it. As a result, they lost their effectiveness as an intercessor.
Don't let that happen to you. Develop the quiet art of the wise man, and the devil will find it increasingly difficult to harm your prayer life and ministry to others.
Scripture Study: James 3:1-13
"A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards."
(Proverbs 29:11)
One of the things that you and I as believers must learn if we want to be faithful servants in the kingdom of God is how to keep our mouths shut. We need to master that skill.
When we get our backs up about something, we think we have to let everybody know about it. "I'm just going to give them a piece of my mind," we say.
Don't make that mistake. Nobody wants or needs a piece of your mind--and if you give it to them, you'll only end up alienating people and bringing harm to yourself. Instead, learn to keep quiet.
This especially applies in the area of spiritual insight. When the Holy Spirit gives you discernment about a situation, don't go spreading it all over town. If you do, you'll come to the place where the Lord can't trust you with revelation and insight into things and situations.
I've seen that happen. I've known intercessors who have received revelations about someone's weaknesses or needs. They have been given insight into the problem in someone's life, so they could pray for that person. But, instead of keeping that information between themselves and God in prayer, they told others about it. As a result, they lost their effectiveness as an intercessor.
Don't let that happen to you. Develop the quiet art of the wise man, and the devil will find it increasingly difficult to harm your prayer life and ministry to others.
Scripture Study: James 3:1-13
Praying with Paul
A SUFFICIENT ANSWER
Romans 7:21-8:1
Dear Father,
I delight in your law even though evil keeps planting suggestions
of rebellion in my mind. Help me to truly want to do what is right
in your sight, Father.
Thanks be to you, my God, through Jesus Christ my Lord! You have
provided a sufficient answer to the conflict within me - the life
and sacrifice of Jesus and his resurrection.
Thank you, Father, that there is now no condemnation for me
because I am in Christ!
In the name of Jesus I thank you and praise you for the mercy
shown to me and all your chosen ones. Hallelujah. Amen.
Lamentations 3:22-26
Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed,
for his compassion's never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness .
I say to myself, "The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait on him.
The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him;
It is good to wait quietly for the salvation
of the Lord.
for his compassion's never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness .
I say to myself, "The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait on him.
The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him;
It is good to wait quietly for the salvation
of the Lord.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Encouraging Word
Joyful are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my home!
~ Proverbs 8:34, NLT
psalm 119:9
How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word.
Psalm 119:9 (New King James Version)
Word of Life
- If you want true life, you must have the Word of Life.
- Everyday things become of little meaning in the face of death.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
The Value Of A Soul
The Value of a Soul
BIBLE MEDITATION:
"Ye were not redeemed with corruptible things,
as silver and gold...but with the precious blood of Christ."
1 Peter 1:18-19
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
I was talking to a man who sold real estate and asked,
“What determines the worth of a piece of property?”
He said, “What a person is willing to pay for it.”
It doesn’t matter how much you paid for it yourself. It’s what a person is willing to pay to have it for himself.
That makes me want to shout!
You and I must be worth something
if Jesus would pay His life to have us for His own.
Jesus is the proof of how much we’re worth.
ACTION POINT:
Do you know how much you weigh?
Call a jeweler or a bank today and ask how
much your weight is worth in gold.
That’s no comparison to your worth in blood.
BIBLE MEDITATION:
"Ye were not redeemed with corruptible things,
as silver and gold...but with the precious blood of Christ."
1 Peter 1:18-19
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
I was talking to a man who sold real estate and asked,
“What determines the worth of a piece of property?”
He said, “What a person is willing to pay for it.”
It doesn’t matter how much you paid for it yourself. It’s what a person is willing to pay to have it for himself.
That makes me want to shout!
You and I must be worth something
if Jesus would pay His life to have us for His own.
Jesus is the proof of how much we’re worth.
ACTION POINT:
Do you know how much you weigh?
Call a jeweler or a bank today and ask how
much your weight is worth in gold.
That’s no comparison to your worth in blood.
Scripture Cake
SCRIPTURE CAKE
4 1/2 C 1 Kings 4:22
1 C Judges 5:25 (a)
2 C Jeremiah 6:20
2 C 1 Samuel 30:12 (b)
2 C Nahum 3:12
2 C Numbers 17:8
1/2 C Judges 4:19 (a)
2 T 1 Samuel 14:25
1 pinch Leviticus 2:13
6 items Jeremiah 17:11
Add to taste:
11 Chronicles 9:9 (b)
2 T baking powder
Follow Solomon's advice in Proverbs 23:14
Malachi 3:3
Malachi 3:3 says: 'He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.'
This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.
One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and was to get back to the group at their next Bible Study.
That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining Silver.
As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.
The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: 'He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.'
She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time.
The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, 'How do you know when the silver is fully refined?'
He smiled at her and answered, 'Oh, that's easy -- when I see my image in it.'
If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.
This very moment, you may need to know that God is watching over you.
And, whatever you're going through, you will be a better person in the end.
'Life is a coin. You can spend it anyway you wish, but you can only spend it once.'
Thank you God, for teaching me to laugh again......
but please Lord, don't ever let me forget that I cried.
Jeremiah 33:6
Behold, I will bring you health and cure,
and I will cure you,
and will reveal unto you
the abundance of peace and truth.
and I will cure you,
and will reveal unto you
the abundance of peace and truth.
Friday, October 14, 2011
Heart N' Hope~my radio show
Heart N' Hope
airs on Sunday morning
at 10:00 am est.
Lifting up the name of Jesus
in song and inspirational messages.
www.radioscooterinternational.net
airs on Sunday morning
at 10:00 am est.
Lifting up the name of Jesus
in song and inspirational messages.
www.radioscooterinternational.net
Chicken Soup for the Soul
CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOUL
I'm Glad It's You and Not Me
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teacher Tales
BY: Jean Lamar
Teachers who inspire realize there will always be rocks in the road ahead of us. They will be stumbling blocks or stepping stones; it all depends on how we use them.
~Author Unknown
It was 2:00 AM. The moon gleamed ever so slightly through a crack in the curtains, just enough for me to glance over at my husband, sleeping like a newborn, snoring for the entire world to hear. If only I could rest so peacefully.
But I couldn't, of course. It was the beginning of another school year, and waking up hours before the alarm invariably accompanies a new school start -- even after almost twenty years. My mind raced with thoughts of all the tasks I had done -- "finding" filing cabinets, shelves, tables, decorating my room, planning new course syllabi, buying supplies (and praying that I would have money left to pay my bills) -- and all the things I hadn't. I was starting a new curriculum, new grade-levels at a new school, and this year, I had agreed to teach all struggling students in need of critical intervention... where would I go from here? I knew what lay ahead -- arduous work hours overlaid with guilt, consumed with essays that needed feedback, lesson plans desirous of best practice strategies, and ideas to try to reach even the most reluctant learner. No wonder people always acknowledge my teaching career with, "I'm glad it's you and not me." The knot in my stomach continued to tighten.
Suddenly, my already muddled mind transported me to another time and place... to my first few years of teaching.
"Peter Potter," I called from my roll, trying to stifle my laughter. "Laughlin McLaughlin?" Surely these were not real names.
"Emotionally handicapped... keep them separated from the other kids... in this portable," the Assistant Principal commanded. This was my first teaching assignment, in a field outside my scope of training (mine was English Education), obviously long before it was considered inappropriate to label kids. Even the students had names for each other. "Stank" was the one I sadly recalled, even after all this time.
And then... "the incident" -- when I looked down to see an exposed body part that I did not -- in any way, shape, or form -- desire to see! I felt myself hyperventilating at the mere thought....
Surely this year could never be as daunting as those first few.
Later that day, I looked across my "new" classroom, into the face of Jason, whose cumulative folder I had just read. At eleven, his mother and brother were killed in an automobile accident, leaving him with physical, academic, and certainly emotional scars. I looked at another student, Robert, standing at the door; my Assistant Principal asked if I would take him, even though he was an eleventh grader in my tenth grade class. "He can't read; he'll drop out unless you can do something with him." Of course I said yes; what else could I do?
These stories merged into others across the years -- Stephanie, who used writing as a catharsis to cope with the loss of her precious cancer-stricken mother; Michael, who so powerfully connected with the Greasers in The Outsiders because he, too, had been abandoned by his family; Jason, whose crack-addict mother was murdered in an inner-city alley; Brian, who ran away from his foster home, desperately in search of a "real" home and perhaps more importantly, in search of himself; Joey and Dave, whose hands literally shook with fear when trying to "perform" for a test. Stories of tears and sadness, yet of hope that I could somehow make a difference in spite of such brokenness.
But then there were -- and are -- stories of success -- of Dustin, in graduate school for Electrical and Computer Engineering; of Noah, in seminary, preparing to serve God in the ministry; of Michael -- the same Michael abandoned by his mother -- now a teacher in an inner city school; of Willie, once a struggling reader, who went on to become the first generation college graduate in his African-American family. I thought of Emily and Andi, of Amber and Kayla and Mallory, whose love and enthusiasm for books and characters still warm my thoughts. I thought of creative lessons, Shakespeare Festivals, school plays, and after-school tutoring sessions that have filled my life day after day, year after year. I thought of the thousands of students whose lives have touched mine far more than I could have ever have touched theirs.
I broke from my reverie, a smile radiating across my face. Sadness, tears, challenges, fears -- yes, teaching is filled with all of these -- yet, it is undeniably also filled with laughter and smiles, hope, dreams, and rewards beyond measure.
"I'm glad it's you and not me." Those words reverberated in my mind once again. Yeah, so am I, I thought... so am I.
I'm Glad It's You and Not Me
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teacher Tales
BY: Jean Lamar
Teachers who inspire realize there will always be rocks in the road ahead of us. They will be stumbling blocks or stepping stones; it all depends on how we use them.
~Author Unknown
It was 2:00 AM. The moon gleamed ever so slightly through a crack in the curtains, just enough for me to glance over at my husband, sleeping like a newborn, snoring for the entire world to hear. If only I could rest so peacefully.
But I couldn't, of course. It was the beginning of another school year, and waking up hours before the alarm invariably accompanies a new school start -- even after almost twenty years. My mind raced with thoughts of all the tasks I had done -- "finding" filing cabinets, shelves, tables, decorating my room, planning new course syllabi, buying supplies (and praying that I would have money left to pay my bills) -- and all the things I hadn't. I was starting a new curriculum, new grade-levels at a new school, and this year, I had agreed to teach all struggling students in need of critical intervention... where would I go from here? I knew what lay ahead -- arduous work hours overlaid with guilt, consumed with essays that needed feedback, lesson plans desirous of best practice strategies, and ideas to try to reach even the most reluctant learner. No wonder people always acknowledge my teaching career with, "I'm glad it's you and not me." The knot in my stomach continued to tighten.
Suddenly, my already muddled mind transported me to another time and place... to my first few years of teaching.
"Peter Potter," I called from my roll, trying to stifle my laughter. "Laughlin McLaughlin?" Surely these were not real names.
"Emotionally handicapped... keep them separated from the other kids... in this portable," the Assistant Principal commanded. This was my first teaching assignment, in a field outside my scope of training (mine was English Education), obviously long before it was considered inappropriate to label kids. Even the students had names for each other. "Stank" was the one I sadly recalled, even after all this time.
And then... "the incident" -- when I looked down to see an exposed body part that I did not -- in any way, shape, or form -- desire to see! I felt myself hyperventilating at the mere thought....
Surely this year could never be as daunting as those first few.
Later that day, I looked across my "new" classroom, into the face of Jason, whose cumulative folder I had just read. At eleven, his mother and brother were killed in an automobile accident, leaving him with physical, academic, and certainly emotional scars. I looked at another student, Robert, standing at the door; my Assistant Principal asked if I would take him, even though he was an eleventh grader in my tenth grade class. "He can't read; he'll drop out unless you can do something with him." Of course I said yes; what else could I do?
These stories merged into others across the years -- Stephanie, who used writing as a catharsis to cope with the loss of her precious cancer-stricken mother; Michael, who so powerfully connected with the Greasers in The Outsiders because he, too, had been abandoned by his family; Jason, whose crack-addict mother was murdered in an inner-city alley; Brian, who ran away from his foster home, desperately in search of a "real" home and perhaps more importantly, in search of himself; Joey and Dave, whose hands literally shook with fear when trying to "perform" for a test. Stories of tears and sadness, yet of hope that I could somehow make a difference in spite of such brokenness.
But then there were -- and are -- stories of success -- of Dustin, in graduate school for Electrical and Computer Engineering; of Noah, in seminary, preparing to serve God in the ministry; of Michael -- the same Michael abandoned by his mother -- now a teacher in an inner city school; of Willie, once a struggling reader, who went on to become the first generation college graduate in his African-American family. I thought of Emily and Andi, of Amber and Kayla and Mallory, whose love and enthusiasm for books and characters still warm my thoughts. I thought of creative lessons, Shakespeare Festivals, school plays, and after-school tutoring sessions that have filled my life day after day, year after year. I thought of the thousands of students whose lives have touched mine far more than I could have ever have touched theirs.
I broke from my reverie, a smile radiating across my face. Sadness, tears, challenges, fears -- yes, teaching is filled with all of these -- yet, it is undeniably also filled with laughter and smiles, hope, dreams, and rewards beyond measure.
"I'm glad it's you and not me." Those words reverberated in my mind once again. Yeah, so am I, I thought... so am I.
Morning Manna
These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full (John 15:11).
Today's Morsel: Jesus doesn't want His children to be sad or down trodden. He wants us to have joy, elation, and excitement all the time. Let me share with you some ways to add joy to your life:
1. For no reason at all, laugh. Laugh as loudly and as ridiculously as you can, using all of your lung capacity and body to do it.
2. Identify someone who needs help and give that help without sticking around to receive thanks.
3. Turn off the television and shut down the computer, and go sit and talk with family members or friends about what is happening in your life for at least half-an-hour.
4. Say silently,on the hour, every hour, "Almighty God, Creator of all things, I give my life to You. Lead me to peace, purpose, and Your joy."
5. Recall the songs that you loved, especially those from your childhood, and sing them with the same enthusiasm you had when you first got to know them.
6. In the middle of any rotten situation, think of at least three ways in which things could have been worse, and then rejoice that you have not suffered those further misfortunes.
As the apostle Paul states, "Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice" (Philippians 4:4). Happiness always depends on circumstances. Joy depends on Jesus.
Sing: If you're happy, and you know it, say Amen! Amen! If you're happy, and you know it, say Amen! Amen! When God's Spirit falls on you, makes you shout, "Hallelujah!" If you're happy and your know it, say Amen!
Rufus M. Parker
"The Servant of the Lord Jesus Christ"
Prayer of the day
|
What Matters Most
What Matters Most
If you were to be asked today “What three things matter most”,
would you answer The Father, The Son, and the Holy Ghost?
Or would your answer to what you give the most worth,
be someone or something of this Earth?
The eternal treasures that we’re now accruing for eternity,
depend on what the love of our lives happens to be.
Do we love the Lord and all that’s been done in His name,
or do we instead love prosperity, possessions, and fame?
Have we died to the sinful desires and lusts of our flesh,
or do we continue to walk and sin in selfishness?
The choice is ours alone to make and should not be delayed,
those putting it off will end up inconsolably dismayed.
Tis our lot to share the truths we’ve each been shown,
with seeds of love to others unsparingly sown.
We’re to live the life we’ve been Blessed to live as best we can,
by reaching out in love and kindness to our fellow man.
Not to judge others nor to take advantage of their kind heart,
but ours to follow God’s guidance and doing our part.
Reaching out to share with those who are lost what we love most,
namely The Father, The Son, and The Holy Ghost!
October 6, 2011 Barbara Philbrook
If you were to be asked today “What three things matter most”,
would you answer The Father, The Son, and the Holy Ghost?
Or would your answer to what you give the most worth,
be someone or something of this Earth?
The eternal treasures that we’re now accruing for eternity,
depend on what the love of our lives happens to be.
Do we love the Lord and all that’s been done in His name,
or do we instead love prosperity, possessions, and fame?
Have we died to the sinful desires and lusts of our flesh,
or do we continue to walk and sin in selfishness?
The choice is ours alone to make and should not be delayed,
those putting it off will end up inconsolably dismayed.
Tis our lot to share the truths we’ve each been shown,
with seeds of love to others unsparingly sown.
We’re to live the life we’ve been Blessed to live as best we can,
by reaching out in love and kindness to our fellow man.
Not to judge others nor to take advantage of their kind heart,
but ours to follow God’s guidance and doing our part.
Reaching out to share with those who are lost what we love most,
namely The Father, The Son, and The Holy Ghost!
October 6, 2011 Barbara Philbrook
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