Stress Management

Just in case you are having a rough day, here is a stress management technique recommended in many of the latest psychological journals. The funny thing is that it really does work .

1. Picture yourself lying on your tummy on a warm rock that hangs out over a crystal clear stream.
   
   
2. Picture yourself with both your hands dangling in the cool running water.
   
   
3. Birds are sweetly singing in the cool mountain air.
   
   
4. No one knows your secret place.
   
   
5. You are in total seclusion from that hectic place called the world.
   
   
6. The soothing sound of a gentle waterfall fills the air with a cascade of serenity.
   
   
7. The water is so crystal clear that you can easily make out the face of the person you are holding under the water.

There -- See? -- It really does work. You're smiling already!

A Little Medicine-Sea Burial

Mick and Paddy had promised their uncle Seamus, who had been a seafaring gent all his life, to bury him at sea when he died. Of course, in due time, he did pass away and the boys kept their promise.

They set off with Uncle Seamus all stitched up in a burial bag and loaded onto their rowboat. After a while Mick says, "Do yer tink dis is fer enuff out, Paddy?"

Without a word Paddy slips over the side only to find himself standing in water up to his knees.?

"Dis'll never do, Mick. Let's row some more."

After a bit more rowing Paddy slips over the side again but the water is only up to his belly, so they row on.

Again Mick asks Paddy, "Do yer tink dis is fer enuff out Paddy?"

Once again Paddy slips over the side and almost immediately says, "No dis'll neva do."

The water was only up to his chest.

So on they row and row and row and finally Paddy slips over the side and disappears. Quite a bit of time goes by and poor Mick is really getting himself into a state when suddenly Paddy breaks the surface gasping for breath.

"Well is it deep enuff yet, Paddy?"

"Aye it 'tis, hand me da shovel."

Murphy's Law +

I have traced 'Murphy's law back to a Captain Edward A. Murphy, an American engineer at Muroc, California (later named Edwards Air Force Base). In 1949 he was working on a project to test the effects of sudden braking. Time after time his machinery failed, exasperated he said of his technician, "If there is any way to do it wrong, he'll find it." John Paul Stapp picked up on Murphy's phrase and used at a press conference.
1st Amendment
If there is a possibility of several things going wrong, the one that will cause the most damage will be the one to go wrong.

2nd Amendment
If you realize that there are three possible ways in which something can go wrong, and cover them all, then a fourth, unprepared for way, will miraculously appear out of thin air.

3rd Amendment
When something breaks, the parts damaged are in direct proportion to their value.

4th Amendment
The failure does not appear until the machinery has passed its final inspection.

5th Amendment
When you drop a part, it always rolls into the darkest corner.

Last Amendment
Any attempt to print out this copy of Murphy's law will crash the computer.
* Examples of Murphy's Law
If something can go wrong, it will go wrong.

Murphy's Law - Always strikes on Friday

As with any good idea, Murphy's Law can be adapted and extended.

Your lost needle will be found by your husband when he is walking around barefoot.

The worst pupil in any class will be a school governors' son.

Uniforms only come in two sizes, too large and too small.

Vital documents that were posted with no errors, will develop errors in the mail.
Murphy's Law of DIY (Do-It-Yourself )
Any project will require at least two journeys to the hardware shop.

If you need more than one item (pair, four, etc) the probability that one will be damaged or the wrong colour is directly proportional to the desire or need of the object.

You always need more paint.

You never have enough nails, screws or glue.

The likelihood that you will complete a weekend project before the end of the weekend decreases with when you actually start the project.

Therefore: Any plumbing project stared after 4pm on Sunday will require an emergency call to the plumber to get the water running again.

To estimate the amount of time needed to complete a project: estimate the amount of time needed, multiply by two and use the next highest unit. Hence: A one hour task will take at least two days to complete.

Who Is God?

God is always the appropriate shelter for whatever we have to face in life.
a. To the artist, He is the one altogether lovely one.
b. To the architect He is the chief cornerstone.
c. To the astronomer He is the Son of righteousness.
d. To the baker He is the living bread.
e. To the banker He is the hidden treasure.
f. To the biologist he is the life.
g. To the carpenter He is the sure foundation.
h. To the doctor He is the great physician.
i. To the educator He is the great teacher.
j. To the farmer He is the sower and the lord of the harvest.
k. To the florist He is the Lily of the Valley and the Rose of Sharon.
l. To the geologist He is the rock of ages.
m. To the horticulturist He is the true vine.
n. To the judge He is the righteous judge.
o. To the juror He is the true witness.
p. To the jeweler He is the pearl of great price.
q. To the editor He is the good tidings of great joy and the word of life.
r. To the optometrist He is the light of the eyes.
s. To the philosopher He is the wisdom of God.
t. To the printer He is the true type.
u. To the servant he is the good master.
v. To the student he is the incarnate truth.
w. To the one who toils He is the giver of rest.
x. To the sinner He is the Lamb of God which takes away the sins of the world.
y. To the Christian He is the living God, the Savior, the Redeemer and Lord.

Footsteps (Part 2)

(2) Jesus desires us to follow in His footsteps.
-Because we choose to follow Him.
Matthew 16:24 “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”

-Because we love and know Him personally.
John 10:27 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me…”

(3) He wants our footsteps to be a path from someone who needs direction.
-With each step we take we establish a pathway for someone to follow.
Proverbs 4:25-27 “Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.”

-Each step we take influences those who come after us.
Isaiah 58:11, 12 “And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not. And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.”

-Our footsteps are directed by the Lord and we are glad.
Psalm 37:23 “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.”

(4) Why are footsteps of a righteous man so important?
2 Peter 2:9 “The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished…”

a. Because no temptation or trial that can overtake you is new. These things have been in existence even in previous generations.
-Temptation is initiated by the world around us-1 John 2:15-17
-Temptation is rooted in the desires of man’s nature-James 1:13-15
- Temptation is a struggle between man and Satan-1 Peter 5:8
-Temptation’s after effects are not confined to one place, or to one moment in time, or even to one person, but stretch out throughout much space and time and affect many people-Galatians 6:7, 8

It is no sin to be tempted. A temptation becomes sin full-blown when we give in and pursue after it. The temptations that we face are no different than what others before us faced and just like them we must decide for ourselves whether to yield to them or not.

b. Others have faced the same situations you face and have overcome them and set the example for you to follow.

-Our God will never let us down.
Lamentations 3:22-24 “It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.”

-Our God will never let us be pushed past our limit.
2 Corinthians 12:8-10 “For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.”

a. You will not be tempted above your limit without God making a way of escape from it.
b. You will find strength in Jesus in areas that you don’t think you have within you when you are pushed to your limits of endurance.
c. Your ability to resist evil increases every time you humble yourself before the Lord.

-Our God will always be there to help us come through it.
Psalm 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

Footsteps (Part 1)

“Footsteps”

1 Corinthians 10:13 KJV "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."

Some people have no problems with talking to you about almost any subject you can think of. They can ramble on and on and say thousands of words, and not really say anything of importance.

Three boys were bragging to one another about their fathers. One of them said, “My father is a professor. When he is talking about nuclear physics, there are only fifty other people in the world who can understand him.”

The second boy said, “My father is a world class brain surgeon. When he is talking about his surgery there are only 20 other people in the whole world who can understand him.”

The third boy said, “That’s nothing. My dad is a Church of God preacher. When he is preaching, nobody seems to understand him.”



Talking is a wonderful thing. It is one of the ways that God gave us to communicate and relate to one another, but there are many people who call themselves Christians who can talk the talk, but they can’t seem to walk the walk. Being a born-again Christian is more than just saying the right words. It’s more than doing good deeds, and coming to church, and talking about the Bible. The test of a true Christian comes in our everyday walk with Jesus.

There is an old saying that has grown from its infancy until today that goes like this: “Don’t judge a man until you have walked a mile in his shoes”. Most accredit this old proverb to our Native Americans of yesteryear, but it is one proverb not directly in the Bible that we need to adhere to as we walk this path of life.

Jesus made some very distinct and definite footprints when He walked the earth. He blazed a trail that is easy for us to see, and, to walk worthy of Him, we must follow in His footsteps.

(1) Jesus said that there are two paths that we can walk on in this life:
Matthew 7:13, 14 “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in there at: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

a. There is a strait gate that opens to a narrow way which leads to life, but few find it.
-It is the way of holiness.
-It is the way of righteousness.
-It is the way purchased with His blood.
-It is the way to heaven.
-It is the way of hope.
-It is the way of destiny.
-It is the way of eternal life.

b. There is a wide gate that opens to a broad way that leads to destruction, and many travel down that path.
-It is the way of despair.
-It is the way of darkness.
-It is the way of desperation.
-It is the way of spiritual death.
-It is the way of forgotten promises.
-It is the way of the fallen.

Touch

If you play English hand bells you must wear gloves when playing them. Why? Because the oils from your hands change the quality of sound coming from the bells. Everything we touch experiences changes in someway or another.

Also, everybody we touch is changed-even if we're not infected with something contagious. I'm not only talking about just physical touch, either. Often we touch their minds, spirits and hearts. Everybody we speak to, rub shoulders with or even smile at is changed in some small way. These changes can be helpful or hurtful, depending on our interaction. It is like leaving a piece of ourselves behind with everyone we meet, and taking a piece of them with us. And even little changes can make a difference. No one is insignificant in this regard.

The question then is this:
-What little part of yourself will you leave behind? Something good or something bad?

-How will you influence them? With a positive perspective or a grumpy outlook?

-Will your encounter be thoughtful or hurried?

-Helpful or harmful?

-Intentional or accidental?

There is something wonderful about the influence we have on one another. So, whom will you touch today and what will you leave behind, or take with you?

The answer to that question is all up to you.