Stop and Think!

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          As I was taking my morning walk today, I noticed some attractive trees planted at a gateway. But what hadn’t been taken into consideration was the fact that they were right underneath the power wires…how short-sighted that was!

Yet it made me think about how short-sighted many people are in not taking into consideration what the consequences of their actions today are for the future. Yes, the trees were very attractive, but they were going to grow into enormous trees far higher than the power wires. Even if they were going to be kept trimmed, this would entail a lot of work and expense. Some of the habits or friendships we form today are very attractive now, but what are the consequences for us in the future?  Let’s keep these things in mind and beware of making far reaching mistakes.

Keeping a Diary….write, write and write again!

I’ve kept a diary for years, and I must say that it has been the means of solving many an argument! Dates and events are often otherwise forgotten. I’ve got several different styles of diaries, and one I often refer to is my diary of events. These are just the headlines of different things that happen in the month and the family often refer to it as well. Then there is my normal diary which has more detail of day to day happenings, conversations and weather etc.

Another one that is useful is the garden diary….this one is laid out four pages to a month labelled Week One, Week Two etc, and divided into sections down the page…each one corresponding to a year. This means that you can see at a glance how various plants have been doing from year to year at the same time.

Then there is the Diary of Items Bought. How often do we remember exactly how long we’ve had that appliance that has suddenly given trouble, and wondered if it is out of its guarantee or not! Or how many years we’ve had a certain machine and what we paid for it?

Finally there is a Spiritual Journal. Here is where you write precious thoughts that have come to you during the day and times of reflection. Things you have thought of as you have read devotional writings, and perhaps things that puzzle you, the whys of life and eternity. Don’t let these thoughts slip away, but write them down. As you read them later, jot down further thoughts you have had on similar topics. As you do a daily reading of the Bible, write down the thoughts and questions that come to you and ponder them further. Never be too busy to make time for this, even if it is only fifteen minutes a day….what is that out of twenty-four hours? Surely we can make that much time to deal with this, the most important side of our being!

Disappointments

         I’m sure you have all been disappointed at some time or other. There isn’t a person on earth that hasn’t experienced that let down feeling! These times often come just after a wonderful time, and we wonder why.

We can either become better for it, or bitter because of it.

If we think of the disappointment as a test to build our character, it makes it a whole lot easier to bear. Just as an exam has only two results…a pass or a failure, so these tests leave us with only two results…. becoming better from it, or filled with bitterness!

As for why it often happens after a great time, that time was given to us to make up for the disappointment that was just around the corner. As we remember the wonderful experience, it shows us that life will still have its high points, and that all is not darkness. There is an old saying that goes like this….. “This too, will pass”. Another one is “Weeping may last for a night, but joy comes in the morning!”

So get up, stand up and keep up!!!

Are You a Morning Person?

This question raises all sorts of possibilities in one’s mind, but what I’m asking is, “Are you a morning person or do you function better in the evenings?”

For myself, I’m a morning person, and have no trouble getting out of bed in the morning, feeling like getting on with the day. I have my Bible reading and prayer time first of all, and that’s my spiritual exercise. Next I have my physical exercise in the form of a brisk walk for about thirty minutes (unless it’s raining!). Then I’m ready for whatever the day might throw at me!

I find that if I don’t have this morning start, it feels as though something is missing. I’ve tried doing my exercise later on in the day, and it just doesn’t work. Other things crowd in, or the day gets too hot, and my start has all come to nothing. By night time, I’m flagging and ready for bed.

Perhaps you function better at the other end of the day. You find it hard to get moving in the morning but by ten in the evening, you are sparkling and still going. Whichever end of the day you function the best at, make sure this is the time you give to God. Read some Bible verses, think about them and maybe write down some notes.

Whatever happens, never miss this special quiet time during the day.

Foggy Morning

As I turned the corner during my walk this morning, the road ahead was swathed in fog and nothing was clear. I couldn’t help remembering times in the past when we had been boating and were caught in the fog. Nothing could be seen, and we had to edge very carefully along to make sure we were away from the shoreline. More than once, we found that we had been going in a huge circle and were back at where we had started from!

We are often like this in life and when things are dim and unclear, we find ourselves groping around and very often end up where we started from. We’ve made no progress at all!

But all is not lost! There is no need for us to grope around at these times, if we wait patiently, the fog will lift eventually and we will see our way clearly once more.

Another thing about the fog, is that as it begins to lift, it swathes itself around the highest points leaving the lower areas still in its mantle. This often makes for very interesting photos. So it is in life. As we come out of these foggy experiences, the things we have learned are to our benefit, and we can see what the Lord was teaching us as we groped our way through these times. Let’s make sure that we don’t stay in the fog, but keep looking up until it lifts and we are once more in the clear sunlight of seeing all God’s blessings that He has given us!

When Ignorance is NOT Bliss!

Ignorance is bliss so they say. But this is no excuse as far as the law is concerned! One day a new “Stop” sign was erected on a road I didn’t use much, and I slid over it as usual after checking that no cars were coming. Alas for me, a traffic officer confronted me around the corner where he had been waiting to catch the unwary offenders. My ignorance was no excuse for getting out of the ensuing fine, and it was large enough to hurt my pocket. I ruefully thought of the shoes or whatever else that I could have bought with that amount!

It made me realise that just as the law accepts no excuses for being broken, that God’s law is just as inflexible. He says on one hand, “The soul that sins, shall die!”

On the other hand there is the verse that says, “God so loved the world that He gave His only beloved Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

First Post

Hi there! I would like to make my posts a bit more personal, more in the line of a collection of thoughts as they come to mind. Just as if we were having a visit together. Life is so interesting, and a real conglomeration of ideas and events. Life is never static, something is always happening.

There are so many things to find interesting, and so many lessons to learn from things around us. We all have different interests, and some of mine include reading, gardening, music photography and camping. and of course my trusty computer!  How is that for a melting pot of interests?

But in all of these, I try to find the real meaning of life in the God of Heaven and His Son Jesus Christ which we learn about in the Bible.

See what God has to say to YOU.