Sunday,Oct 18 2009, 09:56:24 AMDiscussions with God.......

God: Hello... Did you call me?
Me: Called you? No.. who is this?
God: This is GOD. I heard your prayers. So I thought I will chat.

Me: I do pray. Just makes me feel good. I am actually busy now. I am in the midst of something..
God: What are you busy at? Ants are busy too.

Me: Don't know. But I cant find free time. Life has become hectic. It's rush hour all the time.
God: Sure. Activity gets you busy. But productivity gets you results.
Activity consumes time. Productivity frees it.

Me: I understand. But I still cant figure it out.. By the way, I was not expecting YOU to buzz me on instant messaging chat.
God: Well I wanted to resolve your fight for time, by giving you some clarity. In this net era, I wanted to reach you through the medium you are comfortable with.

Me: Tell me, why has life become complicated now?
God: Stop analyzing life. Just live it. Analysis is what makes it complicated.

Me: why are we then constantly unhappy?
God: Your today is the tomorrow that you worried about yesterday. You are worrying because you are analyzing. Worrying has become your habit. That's why you are not happy.

Me: But how can we not worry when there is so much uncertainty?
God: Uncertainty is inevitable, but worrying is optional.

Me: But then, there is so much pain due to uncertainty..
God: Pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional.

Me: If suffering is optional, why do good people always suffer?
God: Diamond cannot be polished without friction. Gold cannot be purified without fire. Good people go through trials, but don't suffer. With that experience their life becomes better not bitter.

Me: You mean to say such experience is useful?
God: Yes. In every terms, Experience is a hard teacher. She gives the test first and the lessons afterwards.

Me: But still, why should we go through such tests? Why can't we be free from problems?
God: Problems are Purposeful Roadblocks Offering Beneficial Lessons (to) Enhance Mental Strength. Inner strength comes from struggle and endurance, not when you are free from problems.

Me: Frankly in the midst of so many problems, we don't know where we are heading..
God: If you look outside you will not know where you are heading. Look inside. Looking outside, you dream. Looking inside, you awaken. Eyes provide sight. Heart provides insight.

Me: Sometimes not succeeding fast seems to hurt more than moving in the right direction. What should I do?
God: Success is a measure as decided by others. Satisfaction is a measure as decided by you.Knowing the road ahead is more satisfying than knowing you rode ahead. You work with the compass. Let others work with the clock.

Me: In tough times, how do you stay motivated?
God: Always look at how far you have come rather than how far you have to go. Always count your blessing, not what you are missing.

Me: What surprises you about people?
God: When they suffer they ask, "why me?" When they prosper, they never ask "Why me". Everyone wishes to have truth on their side, but few want to be on the side of the truth.

Me: Sometimes I ask, who am I, why am I here. I can't get the answer.
God: Seek not to find who you are, but to determine who you want to be. Stop looking for a purpose as to why you are here. Create it. Life is not a process of discovery but a process of creation.

Me: How can I get the best out of life?
God: Face your past without regret. Handle your present with confidence. Prepare for the future without fear.

Me: One last question. Sometimes I feel my prayers are not answered.
God: There are no unanswered prayers. At times the answer is NO.

Me: Thank you for this wonderful chat. I am so happy to start the New Day with a new sense of inspiration.
God: Well. Keep the faith and drop the fear. Don't believe your doubts and doubt your beliefs. Life is a mystery to solve, not a problem to resolve!

P.S : Many of you might have read or might have got the forwarded email, but then I thought its better to post again and reiterate this. Sometimes I feel I had this conversation myself and trying to follow these prescriptions and understand them has made better and brought down my bitterness and helped me in putting things in perspective!!

Sunday,Oct 11 2009, 07:28:24 AMWhen things in your life seem, Almost too much !..

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.
He then asked the students, If the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar.

He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open Areas between the golf balls.
He then asked The students again If the jar was full..
They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.  Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
He asked once more if the jar was full.
The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced Two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents Into the jar, effectively Filling the Empty space between the sand.
The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor,   As the laughter subsided,
'I want you to recognize that This jar represents your life.
The golf balls are the important things - God, family, children, health, friends, and favorite passions – things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, Your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter Like your job, house, and car.
The sand is everything else -- The small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,’ He continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things That are critical to your happiness.
Play With your children.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time
To clean the house and fix the disposal.

'Take care of the golf balls first -- The things that really matter.
Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled.
'I'm glad you asked'.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a cup of coffee with a friend.'

========================================

I thank my good friend Sudha for this, as she forwarded this to me and I thought this is something nice that all my friends should remind themself of!!

 

 

Saturday,Jul 25 2009, 05:50:39 PMThe Seed

The Seed

A successful business man was growing old and Knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business.

Instead of choosing one of his Directors or his children, he decided to do something different. He called all the young executives in his company together.

He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO.

I have decided to choose one of you. "The young executives were Shocked, but the boss continued. "I am going to give each one of you a SEED today - one very special SEED. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO."

One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Everyday, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow.

Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew.

Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing.

By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure.

Six months went by -- still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however.

He just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - He so wanted the seed to grow.

A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection.

Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot.

But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick to his stomach, it was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right. He took his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful -- in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him!

When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives.

Jim just tried to hide in the back. "My, what great plants, trees, and flowers you have grown," said the CEO. "Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!"

All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the Financial Director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!"

When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed - Jim told him the story.

The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, "Behold your next Chief Executive Officer!

His name is Jim!" Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed.

"How could he be the new CEO?" the others said.

Then the CEO said, "One year ago from today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow.

All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive Officer!"

* If you plant honesty, you will reap trust

* If you plant goodness, you will reap friends

* If you plant humility, you will reap greatness

* If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment

* If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective

* If you plant hard work, you will reap success

* If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation

* If you plant faith in God, you will reap a harvest

So, be careful what you plant now;

it will determine what you will reap later..

"Whatever You Give To Life, Life Gives You Back

 

 

 

Saturday,Apr 18 2009, 01:03:15 PMHIT BY AN ANGEL - By Timothy Kendrick

Have you ever wondered why you are here on this planet? Sounds like a simple enough question almost foolish. Everyday in someway angels bring us messages. You might be thinking I just left Starbucks with my Venti Latte and I did not see or feel any angels hovering about. Look back and think did you put a tip in the tip jar? Giving is living.

 

For me the more I give the more I get to keep. How about when someone cuts you off in traffic? Do you feel violated and angry? How could they do that to me? Or do you just let it go and realize that this person driving that vehicle is like many in our world just rushing, rushing, and rushing to where? The grave of course. Be grateful that the driver did not hit you and you had the mental faculties and maybe a guardian angel to adapt to the situation and maintain control of your vehicle.

 

Negative co-workers are angels also. They can knock you flat on your butt if you let them. What can I learn from their actions? How can I heal or help them without them knowing.

Negative co-workers are like angry customers if you run a business. They are gifts from the angels.

 

Or a better way to say it is these can be tools to improve yourself, your business, or your performance. What we learn from them may enhance our own lives. How I see people is how I treat them and how I treat them is how they become.

 

As far as Starbucks, I personally have never had a negative experience with them. Maybe that is because I NEVER EXPECTED TO. The last time I left Iraq in 2004 it was all I could do to keep from getting locked up or as they say in L.A. 5150 which means you are nuts.

 

On the flight out of Kuwait the attendants knew I was a bit stressed and I was talking to one of them and she took me in the back of the aircraft where they all where staying. They nurtured me and never left me alone. Maybe they were afraid, I doubt it, and I think they saw a wounded soul hurting like I had never hurt before. Yes I should've been evacuated to Landstuhl in Germany but I disliked hospitals because they always want to keep me for further evaluation. Besides I was a civilian now and I don't even know how I got on that flight to the U.S. but I did and I resigned as soon as I got home. So no psych ward for me.

 

What did I learn? There are angels everywhere. We can be angels if we choose to. Life is a gift, a great blessing. There are many stories I could tell about getting hit by angels from Africa, Germany and even my own house.

 

Have I seen real angels? Yes. I mean really felt the presence of and seen real angels? Yes. Did I think I was out of my mind? Yes.

 

Do you believe in angels? I have found that I like to have faith in angels. It feels better than no faith at all.

 

Look for your angels.

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Timothy Kendrick is a retired U.S. Army veteran who served in Panama, Somalia, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and various other places in the world. Timothy's first book 'PTSD: Pathways Through the Secret Door' is widely used throughout the Veterans Administration to help returning veterans cope with the emotional scars of war.

 

Timothy currently lives in Tampa Florida with his wife Brenda. Timothy's new book "Wide Asleep Slumber No More" is available online and bookstores everywhere. Included is an MP3 audio download for free! To find out more about Tim you can reach him at http://www.timothykendrick.org

Friday,Mar 27 2009, 05:57:13 AMForgiveness And Positive Living - By Ton Pascal

"Forgiveness is the key that can unshackle us from a past that will not rest in the grave of things over and done with. As long as our minds are captive to the memory of having been wronged, they are not free to wish for reconciliation with the one who wronged us." Lewis B. Smedes.

For over 20 years I carried a grudge, an anger closer to hatred of my own mother. I felt totally justified and was utterly convinced I had the right to express openly this anger against what I believed was my mother's absence and lack of caring, love or any motherly feelings toward me since the death of my father. In fact I drew my strength from these things to carry on with my life. Only a few close friends knew about it and even when I started doing my relaxation studies I never thought this issue had anything to do with my search for mental harmony and the frustration of not being able to reach it completely.

 

My incessant moving around this planet from one country to another brought me personal and material satisfaction but left me with an empty feeling. Like a potted tree that hasn't yet found mother earth's ground in which to thrive.

When I decided to come back to Canada five years ago, little did I know that it would be the beginning of a journey which would take me back in time and reunite me with my mother. My sister had arranged for us to meet and although I wasn't too keen to do so, I accepted.

I was tense, arrogant, and disagreeable when we met. As my mother tried to kiss me I pulled back and simply offered my hand for a handshake. Her first words stayed engraved in my mind and heart for the days to come when she said, "All that I want is to ask if you could forgive me for not being the mother I wish I could have been, my son, I am so sorry..."

We met again a few days later and we talked openly about our pains, hurts, sorrows, and expectations. It was the first time I saw my mother as a woman and as a human being; not from a child's point of view.

My father's untimely passing away at thirty two left a beautiful young widow of twenty six years old with four children, the youngest 25 days old to take care of, several cattle ranches and a retail business in a male- oriented society. Having only an aging father and a younger sister in Brazil, she was alone and against all odds, she succeeded in raising her family.

Compassion and understanding gave me the strength not only to forgive her, but to forgive myself for the senseless pain I inflicted myself and the guilt it carries with it. We became very close again, and slowly the whole family seemed to come closer and closer.

I soon found out that forgiveness is a positive energy that spreads much quicker than I thought. I have nephews, nieces, and cousins that are now an integral positive part of my life.

A new route was opening on my path and the writing of Dream Your Life Positively came a year after. A well-documented site on this subject is "A Campaign for Forgiveness Research"* where I found some important examples cited here.

Each time we witness an act of forgiveness, we marvel at its power to heal, to break a seemingly unending cycle of pain. Forgiveness is something virtually all Americans aspire to. In a Gallup poll nationwide survey, 94% said it was important to forgive, but it is not something we frequently offer. (In the same survey, only 48% said they usually tried to forgive others.)

Perhaps this is because forgiveness is something we don't fully understand, or we associate forgiveness with weakness as Friedrich Nietzsche did. Some view forgiveness, as an almost saintly quality that blesses only the very special and most certainly cannot be learned. In fact, the opposite is true. Forgiveness is a sign of strength. Research conducted at the University of Wisconsin in 1997 indicates forgiveness can be taught, with positive results.

I told a friend of mine that if she wanted to find a healthier source of strength after her separation from an abusive husband, she must forgive him before she could find her own way to happiness. "After what I have been through with that bastard? When hell freezes over." was her answer.

I suggested she try the three affirmations below for a few weeks and see if she still felt the same way. - I am good, compassionate and I now have the strength to forgive. - I deserve to be happy and successful. - I am now ready to receive more love, support, and wealth from the vast supply of the universe.

After two weeks of affirmations she told me that the most difficult thing was to think of him and all the bad incidents. The pain, despair, and guilt would come back but she now understood that she wanted to be able to forgive and in her prayers she asked God to help her to forgive.

I knew then she had found her path. Forgiving is not condoning; hurtful actions have consequences. Yet couples that communicate forgiveness may hold the key to stable marriages.

What makes some marriages last a lifetime, while others falter and fall apart? According to Professor Douglas Kelley of Arizona State University West, the key to long-term conjugal bliss may be in how well a couple communicates forgiveness. "These days the notion of equality, an eye for an eye, is prominent," says Kelley. "That makes forgiveness counter-intuitive - but at the same time, a lot of people who don't call themselves religious or spiritual are forgiving one another. Is it because they sense that they will reap the benefits of forgiving for years to come, or is there some other motive?"

In the end, Kelley hopes that embracing and communicating forgiveness can provide a sense of well-being and stability for couples living in an increasingly stressed society.

Forgiving doesn't change what has passed, neither does it justify or make it all right. It allows you to focus on your life from a pain free emotional state. The past no longer makes you cringe, cry or swear.

Forgiveness simply helps you to let go of that negative baggage and makes a place for all the positive things you wish to have. I know a lot of people who after a lover's break up or a friend's betrayal have vowed, "I will never let anyone hurt me like that again."

It is quite justifiable, it is your survival instinct, a protective shield taking over, but be careful that this shield will also prevent you from connecting with new people and eventually making new friends.

This is negative living, and most people are not even aware of it. Forgiveness is letting go of that negative emotional baggage and starting on a new path stronger than before. It is very difficult, I know, to accept the fact that someone you loved and trusted, who has betrayed and stabbed you in the back, deserves your forgiveness.

When I lost a best friend of 25 years to what I thought was petty gossip, I was devastated and questioned the sincerity of her friendship all those years. After forgiving her I can now look back and laugh at the good moments we had together. Sincerity is no longer a question, my love for her is the same, but I no longer need to see, speak or interact with her. Our roads just took different directions, that's all.

Make an assessment of the people in your life, and the ones who are gone. What are your feelings about them? Is there someone you feel "I dislike (or hate) that SOB" either for personal reasons or because of malicious gossip? Or is there someone you distanced from and in your book is unforgivable?

You are carrying some heavy negative emotional baggage. Get rid of it AS SOON AS POSSIBLE if you want the good energy of positive living to reach you.

An important, well documented and proven factor is that your anger, hurt and pain not only will affect the way you communicate with others, but eventually will exclude you from social contact. Your self worth is constantly being questioned and if you don't take action it will eventually break down.

"Forgiveness allows one to overcome a situation that would otherwise be a major source of stress, both mentally and neurobiological. Forgiveness is thought to dramatically change the individual's biological homeostatic equilibrium. He will assess the neurobiological response associated with forgiveness and unforgiving-ness." Study of the Brain Functional Correlates of Forgiveness in Humans -Pietro Pietrini, M.D., Ph.D., Pisa - Italy.

Forgiveness benefits both, but you the most, because you left the negative baggage behind. You are now ready to receive the positive force, energy, love, wealth and success the universe has in store for you. The other person doesn't even need to know, it is irrelevant. Neither do you have to bring that person into your life or closer circle any more.

What matters is your thoughts and therefore your actions. If it is clean, clear, and positive, so will your life, your friends, and your future. "Forgiveness is both a decision and a real change in emotional experience. That change in emotion is related to better mental and physical health." Everett L. Worthington, Jr., Ph.D. Executive Director, A Campaign For Forgiveness Research.

From a decade-old grudge against the third-grade bully to deep-seated rage against a cheating spouse, millions of Americans harbor long-term grievances. Dr. Carl Thoresen, a professor at Stanford University, and his colleague, Dr. Fred Luskin, are exploring whether the unresolved anger that blights many people's lives can be alleviated with the help of an age-old concept: forgiveness.

Together, the pair launched a comprehensive research project: The Stanford Forgiveness Study. Thoresen and Luskin hope the impact of their work will be preventative as well as therapeutic. "It's our hope that family and school violence, including shootings, road rage, gang violence and workplace conflict will be diminished - if not avoided - if more people understand the role that forgiveness can play in interpersonal relations," says Thoresen.

"It takes courage and commitment to act in a more forgiving fashion. It's not at all a sign of weakness but a mark of strength." Dr. Carl Thoresen is a professor of Education, Psychology and Psychiatry at Stanford University. Dr. Fred Luskin is a research associate at the Stanford Center for Research in Disease Prevention.

Have a great journey.

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ton Pascal is a self thought, self help advocate and author and submitted this story for our MDI subscribers.  His Dream Your Life Positively is a beautiful guide to visualization and meditation. He believes that the times we are facing in our world require a more spiritual approach to our everyday lives. You can reach Ton at tonpascal@dreamyourlifepositively.com  His website is:  http://www.dreamyourlifepositively.com