IS YOUR LIFE IN YOUR WALLET?

“Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.” - Epictetus ”

It is true that money is important and in-fact the scriptures state, “A feast is made for laughter, wine makes life merry, and money is the answer for everything”.

However, your life cannot be determined by your wallet, money is a good servant but a terribly master. The intention of God is that you have control over money and not the other way round. When a person loves material possession so much that he can't get along without them, he opens himself to much suffering, both physical and mental, in truth he becomes a slave to the things he owns.

Some people, for example, have taken foolish risks to keep their riches intact. They have died rushing into burning houses or were killed because they stubbornly resisted armed robbers. Apparently they felt that without their material possessions life would not be worthwhile. Others, when forced to part with their wealth, have been thrown into agonizing despair, even to the point of suicide.

BELIEVE

"Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe." - Saint Augustine 

When it comes to the issue of believing in God, how do you believe? Do you believe and try to help him do what you're believing him for, or leave Him to do what He only can do? Read this story below;

On this day, Morrie says that he had an exercise for us to try. We were to stand, facing away from our classmates, and fall backward, relying on another student to catch us. Most of us are uncomfortable with this, and we cannot let go for more than a few inches before stopping ourselves. We laugh in embarrassment. Finally, one crosses her arms over her chest, closes her eyes, leans back, and does not flinch, like one of those Lipton tea commercials where the model splashes into the pool. For a moment, I am sure she is going to thump on the floor. At the last instant, her assigned partner grabs her head and shoulders and yanks her up harshly. “Whoa!” several students yell. Some clap. Morrie finally smiles. “You see”, he says to the girl, “you closed your eyes. That was the difference." Sometimes you cannot believe what you see. You don't have to believe everything you feel either; in your walk with God. And if you're ever going to have from God the seemingly "impossible things you desire", you must trust and believe absolutely in Him. Jesus. God.

How Well Can You Relate With Others?

“We are all born with an innate understanding of interpersonal equity - the idea that if you lend me your rake today, I'll respond in kind when you come to borrow my shovel tomorrow. Or nearly all of us are born with that. Psychopaths aren't.” - Jeffrey Kluger

Friendship is an art; it is cultivated. Today’s discussion borders on the subject matter of friendship, as a strong people skill, and please permit me to narrow it down to the work environment for the purpose of today’s discussion.

We don't live in a vacuum or work in isolation. Even in this high-paced technical world, we are always communicating in some way. Since so many of our waking hours are spent working, a great deal of our lives are spent interacting with co-workers, clients and customers. The ability to use effective interpersonal skills help you build not just better relationships with others, but makes working with them more enjoyable.

George B Yancey told a story where he said;

Jasmine works in the Elementary Education Advising Center at a state university. Part of her duties are to help enroll undergraduates for the next semester. One undergraduate was having a bad day and took her frustration out on Jasmine. Although she was being verbally attacked, Jasmine maintained a friendly demeanor, a helpful attitude, and a willingness to listen to the student's needs. This calmed the student, and Jasmine was able to reassure her that everything would work out. Subsequently, not only did that student make it a point to be pleasant to Jasmine in the future, but Jasmine's supervisor noted her excellent interpersonal and advising skills and passed on her positive

NO MATTER HOW LONG

"We are our thoughts; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far." - Swami Vivekananda

Three trees were discussing their hopes and dreams, the first tree said, "Someday I hope to be a treasure chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and precious gems. I could be decorated with Intricate carving and everyone would see the beauty." "Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will take kings and queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the world. Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength of my hull." Said the second. The third added, "I want to grow to be the tallest and straightest tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the hill and look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree of all time and people will always remember me."

After a few years of praying, a group of Lumberjacks came upon the trees. One came to the first tree he said, "This looks like a strong tree, I think I should be able to sell the wood to a carpenter"... and he cut it down. The tree was happy; he knew that the carpenter would make him into a treasure chest. "This looks like a strong tree, I should

IMPOSSIBLE IS NOTHING

“When you have eliminated the impossible whatever remains, HOWEVER IMPROBABLE, must be the truth” - Arthur Conan Doyle, The Sign of Four

I believe it's high time we got together and sent a strong petition for the removal of the word “impossible” from the English lexicon.

Imagine what we would have achieved as a people, a family, an organization or even as individuals if we didn’t know that "impossibility" never existed. The mere knowledge that something maybe impossible sends a conscious or unconscious message to our brain, our determination, or our abilities that there are things we shouldn’t even dare. Yet history is replete with feats that were hitherto impossible, until they were achieved. Automobile genius, Henry Ford, once came up with a revolutionary plan for a new kind of engine which we know today as the V-8. Ford was eager to get his great new idea into production. He had some men draw up the plans, and presented them to the engineers. As the engineers studied the drawings, one by one they came to the same conclusion. Their visionary boss just didn't know much about the fundamental principles of engineering. He'd have to be told gently - his dream was impossible. Ford said, "Produce it anyway" They replied, "But it's impossible." "Go ahead," Ford commanded, "and stay on the job until you succeed, no matter how much time is required." For six months they struggled with drawing after drawing, design after design. Nothing. Another six months. Nothing.

WHAT'S YOUR PRIORITY?

“A noble man compares and estimates himself by an idea which is higher than himself; and a mean man, by one lower than himself. The one produces aspiration; the other ambition...” – Henry Ward Beecher 

By age 35, Mike Krieg had achieved his dream - to own a multimillion dollar custom home-building company. He put all of his energy into making more money, leaving little time for his family. "I didn't care that I wasn't raising my kids," Mike said. "I didn't care that I wasn't being a good husband, and in a short period of time, got divorced. I left my wife and children."

Mike remarried, but felt guilty that he was not the father he wanted to be. He moved his company from Colorado to Arizona in an attempt to run away from the pain he was causing himself and his children. Then his business began to have problems. "I got to thinking about my two kids in Colorado that I had left," he said. "The movie, The Passion of the Christ, had just been released. It struck me to take my kids to go see this movie; and I don't know why. I drove up to Colorado from Arizona, took my kids to see this movie. It was the most incredible thing I'd ever seen in my life. I was sitting there with my two children, I think they were 10 and 12-years-old at the time, and they're crying their eyes out, and they're getting it. And I'm getting it, and I can't believe it."

Early the next morning, Mike drove back to Arizona. He was about two hours into the trip and still reflecting on the movie when he lost control of his truck. "I screamed out to God I didn't want to die and I wanted to be a better husband to my wife and I wanted to be a better daddy to my kids. And all this happened in an instant.

THE POWER OF DIRECTION 2

"It's not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.” - Roy Disney 

A follow up on the subject matter of direction we began to discuss about a month ago. Please recall first of all that it is essential to have a firm grip on importance of DIRECTION.

More so that instructions are a powerful provider of direction. But much more than that, if direction were to be a "high rise" building that we intend to construct, then we definitely need the right foundation with the capacity to carry and sustain what we want to build. That foundation is VALUES.

According to Jeannette Buller Slater, “Values answer the question: ‘Who are you?’ They are deeply held convictions, priorities, and underlying assumptions that influence your attitudes and behaviors. Core values describe the unique way people in an organization work and relate to one another.” For humans, some things have always been more important than others. That is why we value people, ideas, activities and objects according to their significance in our lives.

Values are often unwritten assumptions that guide our actions. Values demonstrate our convictions and priorities. Values are confirmed by our actions, not just our words. Values are not a doctrinal statement; they are convictions that determine how our church