"Do you know how to catch wild pigs?"

There was a chemistry professor in a large college that had some exchange students in the class. One day while the class was in the lab, the professor noticed one young man, an exchange student, who kept rubbing his back and stretching as if his back hurt.

The professor asked the young man what was the matter. The student told him he had a bullet lodged in his back. He had been shot while fighting communists in his native country who were trying to overthrow his country's government and install a new communist regime. In the midst of his story, he looked at the professor and asked a strange question. He asked: "Do you know how to catch wild pigs?"

The professor thought it was a joke and asked for the punch line. The young man said that it was no joke. "You catch wild pigs by finding a suitable place in the woods and putting corn on the ground. The pigs find it and begin to come every day to eat the free food".

"When they are used to coming every day, you put a fence down one side of the place where they are used to coming. When they get used to the fence, they begin to eat the corn again and you put up another side of the fence".

"They get used to that and start to eat again.You continue until you have all four sides of the fence up with a gate in the last side". "The pigs, which are used to the free corn, start to come through the gate to eat that free corn again. You then slam the gate on them and catch the whole herd".

"Suddenly the wild pigs have lost their freedom. They run around and around inside the fence, but they are caught. Soon they go back to eating the free corn. They are so used to it that they have forgotten how to forage in the woods for themselves, so they accept their captivity."

The young man then told the professor that is exactly what he sees happening in many countries. The government keeps pushing us toward Communism/Socialism and keeps spreading the free corn out in the form of programs such as supplemental income, tax credit for unearned income, tax exemptions, tobacco subsidies, dairy subsidies, payments not to plant crops, welfare entitlements, medicine, drugs, etc., while we continually lose our freedoms, just a little at a time as the government forces us to participate in many of these programs whether or not we want to.

One should always remember two truths: There is no such thing as a free lunch, and you can never hire someone to provide a service for you cheaper than you can do it yourself.

If you see that all of this wonderful government "help" is a problem confronting the future of democracy, you might want to share this with your friends.

God help us all when the gate slams shut!

Quote for today: "The problems we face today are there because the people who work for a living are now outnumbered by those that vote for a living."

Inconvenient Truths... God, please be our help and strength!

If you keep soliciting for human support for the gospel you preach, you will be forced to compromise God’s word to please your hearers. Your most important goal should be to please our Lord and Master Jesus Christ. Beware of the temptation to seek for human support; neither should you be afraid of the empty threats of the ungodly. If you are preaching God’s truth, you will be persecuted, abused, insulted and called names. Even our Lord was accused of being a servant of Satan.

Think for a moment what it means to be an earthly soldier, talk more of being a soldier of Christ. You will need to endure so much and free yourself from every form of entanglement which come in form of receiving flattery, gifts and accolades from the ungodly to pervert the truth.“You therefore must endure hardship as a true soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please Him who enlisted him as a soldier.” ~ 2 Tim. 2:3-4

If people are hearing what you preach and they are affirming you while continuing deeper in their sin, then you have been deceived by Satan to preach what pleases the flesh and people. When people affirm you, it should be because you have given them God’s undiluted truth that will set them free and this should cause them to glorify Jesus Christ NOT you. If it is God’s truth, it MUST pierce even to the division of the soul and spirit and of joints and marrow, discerning every thought and intent of the hearts of the hearers. To those who are being saved, the truth of God will be the aroma of life leading to life. To them who are perishing, it will be the aroma of death leading to death because they are refusing to receive the undiluted truth of God’s word; they fear that their evil deeds will be exposed.

ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT GOD NEVER DEALS WITH THE ‘MAJORITY’ -

DO NOT over-analyse, mis-interpret, rationalise, or dilute God’s word to suit the flesh and to please your hearers/readers. Please beware of preaching doctrines that indirectly glorify or protect Satan and demons. Let your motivation for preaching God’s word NOT be the number of ‘likes’, ‘comments’ or friends you get on Facebook, Twitter, G+ or other social web-sites, or how much applause you receive in the church services.

Do not be deceived by Satan to believe that you should apologise because someone got hurt when you preached God’s truth; never apologise to anyone for preaching or sharing God’s word against sin or for preaching righteousness, holiness and right-living - NEVER! "If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted ME, they will also persecute you..." ~ John 15:18-20

"Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven." ~ Matt. 10:27-33

NEVER STOP PREACHING GOD’S TRUTH JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE AFRAID OF LOSING FRIENDS AND SUPPORTERS. ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT THERE IS A SECTION (far worse than other sections) RESERVED IN HELL FOR COMPROMISING SERVANTS OF GOD; FEAR GOD! KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE CROWN OF LIFE THAT AWAITS YOU; AND THE RECEPTION THAT OUR LORD JESUS IS PREPARING FOR YOU FOR YOUR TRIUMPH AND FAITHFULNESS...

“Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.” ~ 1 Cor. 9:27

Don't let your emotions make you a bitch?

Some of our struggles involve making decisions, while others are a result of the decisions and choices we have made. Some struggles result from choices others make that affect our lives. We cannot always control everything that happens to us in this life, but we can control how we respond.


Many struggles come as problems and pressures that sometimes cause pain; others come as temptations, trials and tribulations...


Life may have different chapters, but one bad chapter doesn't mean its the end of your book. Its just a new beginning for you, see it as a second opportunity in life to be greater and do better in your next chapter. How successful you are is completely determined on how you appreciate what you've got and what you'll make out of what you have.

We often fear too much; that eventually our own fears cheat us out of our dreams; right now God is bigger than whatever you're worried about, even though life puts you in tough situations; don't ask why? Just say try me. Understand that every day is a challenge but not every day is the same challenge, its like a test; you pass or you fail, but that doesn't mean give up on yourself, believe in yourself enough to know what's your worth, and don't overlook the people, answers and signs He places in your path...


Life is not perfect; it never will be. You just have to make the very best of it and have to open your heart to what the world can show you, sometimes its terrifying and sometimes its incredibly beautiful. So, ignore the next person's ignorance, hate, drama and negativity - it stops you from becoming the best person you can be. Mistakes made are proof that you are trying; it's not proof that you'll never be successful - God hasn't given up on you, why would you want to give up on yourself?


You need to learn how to select you thoughts just the same way you select your clothes every day, this is a power you can cultivate. If you want to control things in your life so bad - work on the mind. That's the only thing you should be trying to control. Once you learn how to be happy, you won't tolerate being around people who make you feel anything less... - you are somebody's reason to smile... it is part and parcel of God's purpose for placing you here - find, embrace and revel in that purpose!


Godspeed, y'all! (",)

By the book...

Life, happens when you're making plans

flying high and shaking hands

a song will write you, you don't write it

I, didn't mean to fall in love

was rhythm that created us

I was running, we collided

Baseline, I will always make time,

I just wanna know that feeling's in your heart for me

Baseline, after all the great times,

I just wanna know that feeling's in your heart...

When the beat drops out

and the people gone

will you still be there, still be there

for me child

When the lights go out

and the morning come

will you still be there, still be there

for me child

When the beat drops out

and the people gone

will you still be there, still be there

for me child

When the lights go out

and the morning come

will you still be there, still be there

for me child

When the beat drops out...

With you, I found a new way to live

I see an alternative

Now we started, we can't stop it

I, I didn't mean to fall in love

last thing I was thinking of

was you and me, but we collided

Baseline, I will always make time,

I just wanna know that feeling's in your heart for me

Baseline, after all the great times,

I just wanna know that feeling's in your heart...

When the beat drops out

and the people gone

will you still be there, still be there

for me child

When the lights go out

and the morning come

will you still be there, still be there

for me child

When the beat drops out

and the people gone

will you still be there, still be there

for me child.

When the lights go out

and the morning come

will you still be there, still be there

for me child

When the beat drops out...

when the beat drops out...

when the beat drops out...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMiIrVDtHpw

Legal ORDER - harbour of unforgiveness - fruit of corrupted and reckless counsel...

Even to HAVE SUCH LAWSUITS with one another IS A DEFEAT for you. --- Why not just accept the injustice and leave it at that? Why not let yourselves be cheated? ----- INSTEAD, YOU YOURSELVES ARE THE ONES WHO DO WRONG AND CHEAT EVEN YOUR FELLOW BELIEVERS. --- DON’T YOU REALIZE THAT THOSE WHO DO WRONG WILL NOT INHERIT THE KINGDOM of GOD? ---- DON’T FOOL YOURSELVES. 1 COR 6:7 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * You may think you CAN CONDEMN such people, but you ARE JUST AS BAD, AND YOU HAVE NO EXCUSE! ----- WHEN YOU SAY THEY ARE WICKED AND SHOULD BE PUNISHED, YOU ARE CONDEMNING YOURSELF,---- FOR YOU WHO JUDGE OTHERS DO THESE VERY SAME THINGS. ----- AND WE KNOW THAT GOD, IN HIS JUSTICE, WILL PUNISH ANYONE WHO DOES SUCH THINGS.------ SINCE YOU JUDGE OTHERS FOR DOING THESE THINGS, -- WHY DO YOU THINK YOU CAN AVOID GOD’S JUDGMENT WHEN YOU DO THE SAME THINGS? ------DON’T YOU SEE HOW WONDERFULLY KIND, TOLERANT, and PATIENT GOD IS WITH YOU? ------- DOES THIS MEAN NOTHING TO YOU? -- -- -- CAN'T YOU SEE THAT HIS KINDNESS IS INTENDED TO TURN YOU FROM YOUR SIN? -- --- --- BUT BECAUSE YOU ARE STUBBORN AND REFUSE TO TURN FROM YOUR SIN, ---- YOU ARE STORING UP TERRIBLE PUNISHMENT FOR YOURSELF. --- FOR A DAY OF ANGER IS COMING, WHEN GOD’S RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT WILL BE REVEALED. ---- HE WILL JUDGE EVERYONE ACCORDING TO WHAT THEY HAVE DONE. ------ HE WILL GIVE ETERNAL LIFE TO THOSE WHO KEEP ON DOING GOOD, SEEKING AFTER THE GLORY AND HONOR AND IMMORTALITY THAT GOD OFFERS. ------ BUT HE WILL POUR OUT HIS ANGER AND WRATH ON THOSE WHO LIVE FOR THEMSELVES, -- WHO REFUSE TO OBEY THE TRUTH AND INSTEAD LIVE LIVES OF WICKEDNESS. THERE WILL BE TROUBLE AND CALAMITY FOR EVERYONE WHO KEEPS ON DOING WHAT IS EVIL — FOR THE Jew FIRST AND ALSO FOR THE Gentile. --- BUT THERE WILL BE GLORY and HONOR and PEACE FROM GOD FOR ALL WHO DO GOOD — FOR THE Jew FIRST AND ALSO FOR THE Gentile. --------- FOR GOD DOES NOT SHOW FAVORITISM. ROM 2:1 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * SO WE MUST LISTEN VERY CAREFULLY TO THE TRUTH WE HAVE HEARD, OR WE MAY DRIFT AWAY FROM IT. ---- FOR THE MESSAGE GOD DELIVERED THROUGH ANGELS HAS ALWAYS STOOD FIRM, -- AND EVERY VIOLATION OF THE LAW AND EVERY ACT OF DISOBEDIENCE WAS PUNISHED. ---- SO WHAT MAKES US THINK WE CAN ESCAPE IF WE IGNORE THIS GREAT SALVATION THAT WAS FIRST ANNOUNCED BY THE LORD JESUS HIMSELF AND THEN DELIVERED TO US BY THOSE WHO HEARD HIM SPEAK? Heb 2:1 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * WASH YOURSELVES AND BE CLEAN! ------ GET YOUR SINS OUT OF MY SIGHT. ------ GIVE UP YOUR EVIL WAYS. ----- LEARN TO DO GOOD. ---- SEEK JUSTICE. ---- HELP THE OPPRESSED. ----- DEFEND THE CAUSE OF ORPHANS. ---- FIGHT FOR THE RIGHTS OF WIDOWS. -- -- -- “COME NOW, LET'S SETTLE THIS,” says THE LORD .----- “THOUGH YOUR SINS ARE LIKE SCARLET, I WILL MAKE THEM AS WHITE AS SNOW. --- THOUGH THEY ARE RED LIKE CRIMSON, I WILL MAKE THEM AS WHITE AS WOOL. ----------- IF YOU WILL ONLY OBEY ME, -- YOU WILL HAVE PLENTY TO EAT. -- -- -- -- BUT IF YOU TURN AWAY AND REFUSE TO LISTEN, YOU WILL BE DEVOURED BY THE SWORD OF YOUR ENEMIES. --------- I, THE LORD , HAVE SPOKEN!” ISAIH 1:16 * * * * * * MAY THE GRACE OF GOD BE UPON YOU, AND HIS SPIRIT BE YOUR GUIDE. * * * SHALOM. * *

Loving Deliverance...

If you are wise enough to realise you need help - you will look for someone who can literally "take your hand", and walk the "grow up" path with you - until you are measurably competent to carry on yourself .. because YOU CAN! And the most exciting time of your life, has just begun - as you thunder ahead, making life 'deliver-up' on YOUR terms. But before that happy end result can be yours, have to FIND that "someone" who will 'take your hand' - I believe this with all my heart -

Too many struggle on by themselves - admirable persistence; but futile alone - get help! - seek assistance! - commune! - embrace fellowship! Just stop trying to do it all by yourself... (",)

A good special-friend can't fix all your problems, but they can promise you won't face them alone. Everyone you meet comes with baggage; find someone who loves you enough to help you unpack... When it comes to relationships, remaining faithful is never an option but a priority. Loyalty is everything.

Patiently rely on the promises of God, not on your emotions. A friendship based on emotions is shallow, if anything. Circumstances cannot change the character of God; hence His grace is still in full force. When we feel abandoned by God yet continue to trust Him, we worship Him in the deepest way.

The end of the road is but a bend in the road - Helen Steiner Rice

Love is not in those cards and gifts. It's when you hold each others' hand while crossing the road and you choose to face the oncoming traffic. Its when your heart regains a beat after searching for him or her in crowd. Its when just one look assures you that he or she won’t leave you. It's when you pray secretly that your beloved should succeed in everything!!!

When we feel we have nothing left to give 
And we are sure that the "song has ended"-- 
When our day seems over and the shadows fall 
And the darkness of night has descended, 

Where can we go to find the strength 
To valiantly keep on trying, 
Where can we find the hand that will dry 
The tears that the heart is crying-- 

There's but one place to go and that is to God 
And, dropping all pretense and pride, 
We can pour out our problem without restraint 
And gain strength with Him at our side-- 

And together we stand at life's crossroads 
And view what we think is the end, 
But God has a much bigger vision 
And he tells us it's only a bend-- 

For the road goes on and is smoother, 
And the "pause in the song" is a "rest," 
And the part that's unsung and unfinished 
Is the sweetest and richest and best-- 

So rest and relax and grow stronger, 
Let go and let God share your load, 
Your work is not finished or ended, 
You've just come to "a bend in the road." 

Life Duties... to yourself be true

Don't date because you are desperate
Don't marry because you are miserable. 

Don't have kids because you think your genes are superior. 

Don't philander because you think you are irresistible. 

Don't associate with people you can't trust. 

Don't cheat. Don't lie. Don't pretend. 

Don't dictate because you are smarter. 

Don't demand because you are stronger. 

  

Don't sleep around because you think you are old enough and know better. 

Don't hurt your kids because loving them is harder. 

Don't sell yourself, your family, or your ideals. 

Don't stagnate. 

Don't regress. 

Don't live in the past. Time can't bring anything or anyone back. 

   

Learn a new skill. 

Find a new friend. 

Start a new career. 

    

Sometimes, there is no race to be won. 

Only a price to be paid for some of life's more hasty decisions. 

  

To terminate your loneliness, reach out to the homeless. 

To feed your nurturing instincts, care for the needy. 

To fulfill your parenting fantasies, get a puppy. 

Don't bring another life into this world for all the wrong reasons. 

To make yourself happy, pursue your passions and be the best of what you can be. 

Simplify your life. 

Take away the clutter. 

Get rid of destructive elements: abusive friends, nasty habits, and dangerous liaisons. 

Don't abandon your responsibilities but don't overdose on duty. 

Don't live life recklessly without thought and feeling for your family. 

  

Be true to yourself. 

Don't commit when you are not ready. 

Don't keep others waiting needlessly. 

  

Go on that trip. Don't postpone it. 

 Say those words. Don't let the moment pass. 

 Do what you have to, even at society's scorn. 

  

Write poetry. 

Love Deeply. 

Walk barefoot. 

Dance with wild abandon. 

Cry at the movies. 

Take care of yourself...

Don't wait for someone to take care of you. 

You light up your life. 

You drive yourself to your destination. 

No one completes you - except YOU. 

  

It is true that life does not get easier with age... it only gets more challenging. 

Don't be afraid. 

Don't lose your capacity to love. 

Pursue your passions. 

Live your dreams. 

  

Don't lose faith in God. 

Don't grow old. Just grow YOU! 

“I will praise you with an upright heart as I learn your righteous laws.” -Psalm 119:7 

In break-ups - age is still but a number...

Whether it is called off by you or your partner, break up has always been the toughest decision we make in our lives. Breaking up with someone we love always brings some other emotions like shock, disbelief, relinquishment, chaos, guilt, anger, an eager search for a relief other than sorrow. But dealing with the pain is never easy; neither is easy to heal the broken hearts.

Sometimes, we find relief in another person; while sometimes we devote our time in our daily chores. But the throngs of a break up haunt us even if we are in a relationship with another person or become the busiest person in the world.

Maybe the impact of a break up can differ according to the age and the maturity level of a person. For most of the teens, handling a break up is next to impossible; while for most of the adults, break ups are just a phase of life. Teens start their lives from this age and parting away from a person, whom they love, is not an easy task. But adults should have more maturity and experience as they have learnt how to cope up with break ups since their teenage years. I guess it depends on your attitude towards life and how you can handle the whole situation.

Life in a Love by Robert Browning

Escape me?

Never— 

Beloved!

While I am I, and you are you,

So long as the world contains us both,

Me the loving and you the loth,

While the one eludes, must the other pursue.

My life is a fault at last, I fear— 

It seems too much like a fate, indeed!

Though I do my best I shall scarce succeed— 

But what if I fail of my purpose here?

It is but to keep the nerves at strain,

To dry one's eyes and laugh at a fall,

And baffled, get up to begin again,— 

So the chase takes up one's life, that's all.

While, look but once from your farthest bound,

At me so deep in the dust and dark,

No sooner the old hope drops to ground

Than a new one, straight to the selfsame mark,

I shape me— 

Ever

Removed!

The hurt and pain in the end is the same for everyone that a romantic dissolution touches and affects; be strong and keep your Compass close ~ Stafford

“To them God has chosen to make known...the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ.” -Colossians 1:27-28

Parallel of Hope for us – Natasha’s story

“It’s been two years since my delinquent husband (I’ll call him DH) was unfaithful. And what a heart-wrenching, confidence- melting, rooted-to-the-spot shock it was. It was raining when the news broke — it had to be, of course, in order to create the gloomiest atmosphere - and I had the flu.

I shrugged myself into an anorak - red, matching my runny nose - and spent the day walking in the rain, phone switched off, and tears of disbelief mingling with raindrops. Mumbling incoherently to myself as I walked, I tried to sort out my thoughts and my future. My plans oscillated between driving into the unknown to never return - tempting, but unfair on the family, and swallowing all the tablets that had accumulated in our medicine chest - clearly not the answer. At around the sixth kilometre, common sense must have kicked in.

I found myself at the bank isolating my various cheque and savings accounts and emptying my husband’s. Tired and feverish, I crawled back to bed and decided to do nothing further. In any case, I had been assured the affair was over. DH was still home and I had time to consider my next move.

Coincidentally, we’d booked a holiday and it was to be a marathon: a tour of the UK, a river cruise down the Rhine, then a drive down the Coast in Italy and, finally, on to Malta. It was an expensive dream and even more so after I’d treated myself to a new wardrobe. If we cancelled, we’d lose the lot - apart from the clothes, of course. I was too befuddled to make any life-changing decisions, so we went on holiday as planned. The river cruise was in the company of friends our age, all contentedly married for decades. As my husband’s gaze caught mine from time to time, I felt cheated and itched to rip his testicles away from his body with my bare hands.

Back from holiday, we went for therapy in the hope of becoming glued back together. Wearing a benevolent smile, our therapist allowed us to talk while mentally writing her shopping list. DH lied imaginatively and I believed what I wanted to hear. But he’s a terrible liar: stories would change mid-sentence, muddled up with former lies, becoming incomprehensible. It was only a question of time before he was exposed. “The Other Woman” was still on the scene. Should I cut up his ties, shorten his trouser legs, kick him out or should I leave?

I took legal advice. If I left, I’d be legally and financially disadvantaged. I pictured myself old and dishevelled, shuffling through town, possessions stuffed into bin liners, scavenging for food. It brought me to my senses, so I decided to throw him out instead. It was his turn to experience shock… Of course he came back - and I let him. Reality had burst his fantasy bubble. With “her” - a 37-year-old bus driver - he would have nothing. With me, he had a house, his classic cars and a good lifestyle. That’s hard to give up when you’re 55. As for me? He wanted a cook and cleaner and I fit the bill.

I convinced myself that he had returned because he loved me – the act even rekindled my affections. My excuse? I’m a romantic, gullible and blonde! Besides, I’ve always believed in fairies at the bottom of the garden. But you’re right, he was still seeing her. I didn’t even need to poke around to check on him; she rang me herself and told me to keep him away from her.

By now how many nails were there in my coffin? Let me tell you, that phone call was the last one. Instead of lying in darkness defused of will and self-worth, the lid was ripped open and I was set free. I looked at this man - clearly, seeing him for what he was - and I didn’t like what I saw. The spell was broken.

Of course the road to recovery took longer than that, but I was on the right path. A woman’s group and self-help books all assisted in healing me. I decided to let DH stay on. I would do the things expected of a wife. In return he would maintain the house and garden; complete the lifestyle I had come to enjoy and provide companionship upon request. 

Perversely, we get on - we always did but love was no longer on the menu. This new lifestyle was hard and lonely. Friends avoided us; either they didn't wish to take sides or else they didn't want to become unnecessarily involved.

Then, out of the mist appeared a man. Not just any man, but a “gentle” man. Not a knight in shining armour from some fairytale, but a “real” man. Not young - but wise, and kind and honest. Not just a lover, but something more precious and lasting - a true friend to laugh and cry with, to hug and confide in. Having lost his wife and still nursing his grief, he recognised my pain. And with a generosity of spirit, he reached out, restoring my faith in human nature with his kind, simple acts.

So remember when things are bad - really bad - do not give up. Someone somewhere will find you, if you let him or her. They will offer you a hand and help you to your feet, gently brush away your tears and soothe your troubled mind. I’ve discovered it’s true: there are fairies at the bottom of the garden.” ~ And a faithful and loving God above ~ 

I love and miss you more each day ~ SB

Daddy... It Hurts

My name is Chris,

I am three,

My eyes are swollen..

I cannot see.

I must be stupid,

I must be bad,

What else could have made,

My daddy so mad?

I wish I were better,

I wish I weren't ugly,

Then maybe my mommy,

Would still want to hug me.

I can't do a wrong,

I can't speak at all,

Or else I'm locked up,

All day long.

When I'm awake,

I'm all alone,

The house is dark,

My folks aren't home.

When my mommy does come home,

I'll try and be nice,

So maybe I'll just get,

One whipping tonight.

I just heard a car,

My daddy is back,

From Charlie's bar

I hear him curse,

My name is called,

I press myself,

Against the wall.

I try to hide,

From his evil eyes,

I'm so afraid now,

I'm starting to cry.

He finds me weeping,

Calls me ugly words,

He says it's my fault,

He suffers at work.

He slaps and hits me,

And yells at me more,

I finally get free,

And run to the door.

He's already locked it,

And I start to bawl,

He takes me and throws me,

Against the hard wall.

I fall to the floor,

With my bones nearly broken,

And my daddy continues,

With more bad words spoken.

I'm sorry! I scream,

But it's now much too late,

His face has been twisted,

Into a unimaginable shape.

The hurt and the pain,

Again and again,

O please God, have mercy!

O please let it end!

And he finally stops,

And heads for the door,

While I lay there motionless,

Sprawled on the floor.

My name is Chris ,

I am three,

Tonight my daddy,

Murdered me.

You ARE affected, Do something about it! So all I ask you to do, Is pass this on!
IF YOU ARE AGAINST CHILD ABUSE, Post this as 'Daddy ... It hurts'
At least 5 children each day from around the world die from child abuse!!!!
This happens across the board, no matter how much money they have or their ethnicity.


God have mercy on the abusers' rotten souls ~ SB


“So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.” -Luke 2:16-20

Peace of Mind

Peace of mind is something we all seem to want, and want more of. Few of us get it, and when we do it tends to be fleeting. I think the reason has something to do with how we think of "peace of mind." It is not something we can have and hold, but it is certainly something that we can learn to cultivate and allow to grow.

How do we do that? Here are a few steps.

1. Allow yourself time to just sit, without distractions, without something to do, or a place to go. No multitasking.

2. Use that time for you and get curious about your mind and experience just as it is. Look into your experience and just watch the goings on between your ears and in your heart. There is nothing to do, no state to achieve. Just practice being exactly where you are just as you are.

3. Notice the urge to change the experience or to pull out. These are the red flags that your old history is showing up, with all the old habits that compelling you to change your mind and body. In short, to be something other than you are.  These habits are the fuel for struggle, and if you practice just noticing them as thoughts and urges, reminders of the past --"ah, there's my old history, or there's a thought that..." -- you interrupt the old programming and disarm it.

4. If it helps, you can breathe into each moment and imagine leaning into it with a sense of curiosity and with a kind intention to just watch and be at peace. As you do that, you can watch and let go with each in breath and out breath.

Continue this practice for as long as you wish and end with the intention to be present with your mind and body just as it is just where you are, without fighting it, struggling with it, or changing it. When you do that, you are practicing peace and kindness for yourself. This is a skill that will become more automatic over time and something you can do where ever you find yourself.

Remember peace of mind is not something we have; it is a choice to lay down our arms and stop fighting our own experiences. This will help give you the presence and clarity to consider what you would like to do, what you would like to become, what you would like to be about in this life.

Practice peace of mind and see what happens over time. Make it a choice.

Miss you like crazy... will still exist though... no one comes between me and my GOD ~SB

Are You Working Too Hard?

For many people, work is now the emotional and spiritual centre of life. Professionals work an average of almost 44 hours a week. Some fields, such as law, finance,service industries and medicine, often require employees to work twice much.

We may live well, but that cannot ease the suspicion that we no longer live nobly. Many are burnt out from work, disillusioned with their professions. We seem spiritually damaged by the destructive cycle of working, wanting and having as ends in themselves. Workaholism and its hand-maidens, careerism and materialism, aren’t only social issues - they are religious issues. Someone once wrote: “Work is god for the compulsive worker, and nothing gets in the way of this god.” Work becomes an end in itself, a way to escape from family, the inner life, the world. All genuine religions are concerned with the shattering of false gods. How can we break the false gods of career?

• First, remember the most profound revolution in religious thinking: your Sabbath. Whether one celebrates it on Friday, Saturday or Sunday, its spiritual reality goes beyond ritual. It is the ultimate statement that the world does not own us; that we are made for rest and holiness as surely as we are made for ambition.

• Second, don’t sacrifice your family on the altar of career. The journey up the ladder to success may have brought us much wealth or stuff or adequacy to live. But it has also devalued the traditional role of the parent / care-giver as nurturer and teacher. From the time of the Industrial Revolution the anguish of the parent who has impaled himself on the sword of ambition has not changed. It has merely changed addresses.

• Third, don’t judge yourself by what you do, but by the meaning you bring to it. Many people have transformed dull work into a true vocation - into a place where they hear the voice of something deeper and higher. At the funeral for a woman who worked in a lingerie shop, her colleagues warmly eulogized her for the compassion and sensitivity she showed towards customers who had been mastectomy patients. The boss of a moving crew once said: “Moving is hard for most people. They’re nervous about going to a new community and about strangers packing their most precious possessions. I think God wants me to treat my customers with love and make them feel that I care about their lives.”

As are so many anonymous people, this man was a messenger of God. We never know what we do in our work that will be remembered, that will be holy. It has nothing to do with our job titles. It has everything to do with the faith, vision and love that we bring to it.

Happy in service ~ SB

Sshhh..!

Death of a Teenager - Death of Potential...

Recently I went to a funeral which nobody present is ever likely to forget. It had been a dramatic, tragic death. But it did not hit the headlines. It was much too common. The wooden box contained a boy, just 17, son of a work colleague. He was a healthy, happy, active youth, member of a local motorbike club - a leader of the pack. A very safe, careful rider, everyone said.

One Sunday he set out on an errand in his quiet suburban neighbourhood and never came back.  A week later, the police were still trying to work out what happened. Two cars and a concrete lamppost were involved. An ambulance came in record time. The doctors who spent several hours trying to put together the bits were weeping at the finish.

So were mourners at the cemetery. He must have been a popular boy. There were as many people standing as sitting in the crematorium, with every age, class, race and hairstyle represented. The occasion was secular and not too sombre. After the orations, his girlfriend played a few of his favourite rap songs. It seemed fitting. We were celebrating a good life: light-hearted, sensible, funny, generous, full of hope and love and promise.

There were many emotions as the blue curtains closed - shock, sympathy, anger at the pointless pity of it, even perhaps a frightful feeling that the fates had been propitiated: at least it wasn’t my child. For the funeral-parlour staff it was however just all part of the day’s work; there’s nothing unusual, after all, about the death of a teenager on two wheels.

Perhaps it is because road killings are so ordinary, when they happen to strangers that we take them for granted. Big, comfortably remote mega-death disasters get the attention. But it is the mundane, domestic motor smash that takes the most lives, causing violent death on a scale only exceeded by the slaughter of war. Drink is the biggest killer. Excessive speed, faulty brakes or steering, a split second’s inattention, a signal not given, can also be deadly. And the victim’s only offence is usually to have been, by bad luck, in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“He will be remembered,” it was said at the funeral. Yet what will never be known, or remembered, are the things which those that are lost might have said, or done, or been. “If only” gives birth to a thousand regrets. Unpredictable and unmotivated, accidents shatter faith in an ordered world and destroy belief in reason and endeavour. Sickness has a cause. An accident is often sheer stupidity.

Yet which of us can say that we have never - behind a wheel - gambled with the lives of others? Accidents provide no explanation, no comfort for the bereaved. If, however, a moment’s reflection on their absurdity may lead a driver to drink one glass less, or check the mirror before turning, a mother or brother or lover maybe luckier than they will ever know - and a commonplace statistic will not have been in vain.

Everything happens for a reason – this happening may be the wake up call for some wayward motorist; or maybe the wake up call for another to the fleetness of life and how unprepared we may be for the hereafter… - God bless ~ SB