The Alphabet Prayer

                                                           

"Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged with man.
Now the story goes, a little shepherd boy was watching his sheep one Sunday morning and heard the bells of the church ringing.  And watching the people walk along the pasture where he was, he happened to think to himself, "I would like to communicate with God!  But, what can I say to God?"

He had never learned a prayer.  So, on bended knee, he began to recite the alphabet.  Repeating this prayer several times, a man passing by, heard the boy's voice and peaked through the bushes.  He saw the young boy kneeling with folded hands, eyes closed, repeating the alphabet.  He interrupted the boy.  What are you doing, my little one?"  he asked.  The boy replied, "I was praying sir."  The man seemed surprised and said, "But why are you reciting the alphabet?"  The boy explained, "I don't know any prayers, sir.  But I want God to take care of me, and to help me care for my sheep.  And so I thought, if I said all I knew, He could put the letter together into words, and He would know all that I want and should say!"

The man smiled and said, "Bless our heart, God will!"  And he went on to church knowing full well that he had heard the finest sermon he could possibly hear that day.

Maybe if we thought like little children and let God put together the letters, what we should want, and what we should say, things would probably work out a lot better than we planned!"

Author Unknown

Finding Joy In Suffering

Life has its up and downs, its crises and catastrophes, good times and bad, pains and times of gain.
Can we really find joy in the suffering?

"Suffering" comes in many forms - shapes and sizes - has many faces.  It is not pleasant nor enjoyable.  Today during my devotional quiet time I was reminded of an exciting fact -  there will come a time when all suffering will cease, all tears will be dried, and all sorrow will be replaced with laughter.

How do we find "joy"?

 Let me share Romans 5:3-5.........

"Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts......"

Suffering is the training ground basically, that helps us acquire patience, learn all about compassion, develop strength of character, etc.   Perseverance = character = hope.  "Hope does not disappoint."

These are encouraging "words".  Sometimes while suffering we become impatient.  We expect the doctors and hospitals to have all the answers.  We don't understand delays or why the pieces to our unique puzzle don't fit.  Indeed, "sufferings" will cease (even if not on this earth).  Therefore, when frustration surrounds we are confident in our God who loves us,  gives joy and tranquil peace.  The worst sufferings, the worst disappoints of life cannot destroy this!

Simplicity

In his book, "Simple Faith", Charles R. Swindoll beautifully writes......
"Live one day at a time.  You've heard it before: Don't contaminate today by corrupting it with tomorrow's troubles.  Refuse - - yes, refuse - - to allow tomorrow's lagoon of worries to drain into today's lake.  Today is challenge enough!  And since you will need fresh energy and new insight to handle what tomorrow throws at you, wait until it dawns before taking it on.  Some of the things you do today may seem totally insignificant so far as tomorrow is concerned, but stay at it.  Keep life simple!  Do what you have to do today and, to your surprise, it may make an enormous difference in the world you wake up to tomorrow.  And while I'm tossing out all this advice, never underestimate the importance of even the most menial of tasks you carry out each day.  Don't think that some slight contribution you make on a given day is not worth the effort.....or won't make any difference tomorrow."

Eliminate The Negative

Do you want to take life by storm?  If so, then you need to change your outlook on life to POSITIVE.   After sharing some POSITIVE words with someone the other day the comment was made that in "their opinion" negative words seem to linger and have a greater effect than the positive words.   I have shared this with others of like believe and attitude and the consensus was..... "how tragic and sad it is for individuals that allow the negatives of this world to be more dominant than the positive."  Negative thoughts/words are an addiction!  In fact, most experts would agree -

Negative thoughts/words are a thousand times 

more addictive than drugs.

But - just maybe - people don't know "how" to grasp the reality of "choosing" to be POSITIVE and enjoying its rewards.

What is truly required is a change in your mindset.  To start, we first must understand that unfortunately we do live in a negative based society.   It will take effort to focus on removing negative words from your vocabulary, negative thoughts from your mind and constantly being aware of your situations.  We all face negative situations in our lives.  Someone may say something bad about you or a project you've worked real hard on is rejected.  But - our reactions are a choice.

Thinking POSITIVE doesn't work until you get rid of the negative.  

 It is very important to try and not let negative thoughts enter your mind.  Purge existing negative words, thoughts and attitudes.  Then, replace all of the negatives with the POSITIVE.   Concentrate - focus on the elimination of the negative - refill your mind with as much POSITIVE as possible.  If you are having difficulty, start by being thankful.  Affirm positive truths you know to be true - about yourself, your work, your spouse, etc.  Add words into your vocabulary that evoke strength and success.  

One last thought......Don't flip-flop between the POSITIVE person and the negative!  When you feel negativity coming on - remove yourself from the situation and flip to the POSITIVE side - and stay there!