Pearls of Light
* SEVEN DEADLY SINS *
Wealth without work,
Pleasure without conscience,
Knowledge without character,
Commerce without morality,
Science without humanity,
Worship without sacrifice,and
Politics without principle.
* NO ONE MAKES IT ALONE *
Back in the fifteenth century,
in a tiny village near Nuremberg, lived a family with eighteen children.
Eighteen!
In order merely to keep food on
the table for this mob, the father and head of the household, a goldsmith by profession,
worked almost eighteen hours a day at his trade and any other paying chore he
could find in the neighborhood.
Despite their seemingly hopeless
condition, two of the eldest children had a dream. They both wanted to pursue
their talent for art, but they knew full well that their father would never be
financially able to send either of them to Nuremberg to study at the Academy.
After many long discussions at
night in their crowded bed, the two boys finally worked out a pact. They would
toss a coin. The loser would go down into the nearby mines and, with his
earnings, support his brother while he attended the academy.
Then, when that brother who won
the toss completed his studies, in four years, he would support the other
brother at the academy, either with sales of his artwork or, if necessary, also
by laboring in the mines.
They tossed a coin on a Sunday
morning after church. Albrecht Durer won the toss and went off to Nuremberg.
Albert went down into the dangerous mines and, for the next four years,
financed his brother, whose work at the academy was almost an immediate
sensation.
Albrecht's etchings, his
woodcuts, and his oils were far better than those of most of his professors,
and by the time he graduated, he was beginning to earn considerable fees for
his commissioned works.
When the young artist returned
to his village, the Durer family held a festive dinner on their lawn to
celebrate Albrecht's triumphant homecoming. After a long and memorable meal,
punctuated with music and laughter, Albrecht rose from his honored position at
the head of the table to drink a toast to his beloved brother for the years of
sacrifice that had enabled Albrecht to fulfill his ambition.
His closing words were,
"And now, Albert, blessed brother of mine, now it is your turn. Now you
can go to Nuremberg to pursue your dream, and I will take care of you."
All heads turned in eager
expectation to the far end of the table where Albert sat, tears streaming down
his pale face, shaking his lowered head from side to side while he sobbed and
repeated, over and over, "No ...no ...no ...no."
Finally, Albert rose and wiped
the tears from his cheeks. He glanced down the long table at the faces he
loved, and then, holding his hands close to his right cheek, he said softly,
"No, brother. I cannot go
to Nuremberg.
It is too late for me. Look ...
look what four years in the mines have done to my hands! The bones in every
finger have been smashed at least once, and lately I have been suffering from
arthritis so badly in my right hand that I cannot even hold a glass to return
your toast, much less make delicate lines on parchment or canvas with a pen or
a brush.
No, brother ... for me it is too
late."
More than 450 years have passed.
By now, Albrecht Durer's hundreds of masterful portraits, pen and silver-point
sketches, watercolors, charcoals, woodcuts, and copper engravings hang in every
great museum in the world, but the odds are great that you, like most people,
are familiar with only one of Albrecht Durer's works. More than merely being
familiar with it, you very well may have a reproduction hanging in your home or
office.
One day, to pay homage to Albert
for all that he had sacrificed, Albrecht Durer painstakingly drew his brother's
abused hands with palms together and thin fingers stretched skyward. He called
his powerful drawing simply "Hands," but the entire world almost
immediately opened their hearts to his great masterpiece and renamed his
tribute of love
"The Praying Hands."
The next time you see a copy of
that touching creation, take a second look. Let it be your reminder, if you
still need one, that no one,
No One - ever makes it alone!
An old
Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life.
"A fight is going on inside me",he said to the boy.
"It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves.
One is evil he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment inferiority, lies,
false pride, superiority and ego."
He continued, "The other is good he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity,
humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and
faith. The same fight is going on inside you and inside every other person,
too."
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then
asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"
The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed. "."
* IF
I HAD MY LIFE TO LIVE OVER *
I
would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go
into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.
I
would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in
storage.
I
would have talked less and listened more.
I
would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained, or
the sofa faded.
I
would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less
about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.
I
would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.
I
would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.
I
would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because
my hair had just been teased and sprayed.
I
would have sat on the lawn with my grass stains.
I
would have cried and laughed less while watching television and more while
watching life.
I
would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show
soil, or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.
Instead
of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and
realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to
assist God in a miracle.
When
my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get
washed up for dinner." There would have been more "I love
you's." More "I'm sorry's."
But
mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute... look at it
and really see it... live it... and never give it back. Stop sweating the small
stuff.
Don't
worry about who doesn't like you, who has more, or who's doing what. Instead,
let's cherish the relationships we have with those who do love us.
I've learned that when
I wave to people,
they stop what they are doing and wave back,
that just when I get my room the way I like it,
I have to clean it up again,
that if you want to cheer yourself up,
you should try cheering someone else up,
that although it's hard to admit it,
I'm secretly glad my parents were strict with me,
that silent company is often more healing than words of advice,
that wherever I go the world's worst drivers have followed me there,
that if someone says something unkind about me,
I must live so that no one will believe it,
that there are people who love you dearly but just don't know how to show it,
that you can make someone's day by simply sending them a little note,
the greater a person's sense of guilt,
the greater his or her need to cast blame on others,
that children and grandparents are natural allies,
that no matter what happens,
or how bad it seems today,
life does go on,
and it will be better tomorrow,
that motel
mattresses are better on the side away from the phone,
that you can tell a lot about a man by the way he handles these three things:
a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights,
that keeping a vegetable garden is worth a medicine cabinet full of pills,
that regardless of your relationship with your parents,
you miss them terribly after they die,
that making a living is not the same thing as making a life,
that life sometimes gives you a second chance,
that you shouldn't go through life with a catchers mitt on both hands,
You need to be able to throw something back,
that if you pursue happiness it will elude you,
But if you focus on your family, the needs of others, your work,
meeting new people, and doing the very best you can,
happiness will find you,
that whenever I decide something with kindness,
I usually make the right decision,
that everyone can use a prayer,
that it pays to believe in miracles,
And to tell the truth,
I've seen several,
that even when I have pains,
I don't have to be one,
that every day you should reach out and touch someone,
People love holding hands,
a warm hug and a friendly pat on the back,
that I still have a lot to learn,
and that you should pass this on to someone you care about,
Sometimes they just need a little something to make them smile.
Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who
signed the Declaration of Independence?
Five signers were
captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes
ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army;
another had two sons captured.
Nine of the 56 fought
and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.
They signed and they
pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.
Twenty-four were
lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large
plantation owners; men of means, well educated. But they signed the Declaration
of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were
captured.
Carter Braxton of
Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by
the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in
rags.
Thomas McKeam was so
hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.
He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His
possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.
Vandals or soldiers
looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward,
Ruttledge, and Middleton.
At the battle of
Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr, noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken
over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George
Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.
Francis Lewis had his
home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a
few months.
John Hart was driven
from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their
lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he
lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children
vanished. A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.
Norris and Livingston
suffered similar fates.
Such were the stories
and sacrifices of the American Revolution. These were not wild-eyed,
rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means and education. They
had security, but they valued liberty more. Standing tall, straight, and
unwavering, they pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm
reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each
other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."
They
gave you and me a free and independent America.
* Buddha *
If We Are
Facing in The Right Direction,
All We Have To Do is To Keep On Walking.
* THE
CURE *
The
cure for all the ills and wrongs, the cares,
the sorrows, and the crimes of humanity, all lie
in the one word: Love. It is the divine vitality
that everywhere produces and restores life.
* THE
FIREMAN *
In
Phoenix AZ. a 26-year-old mother stared down at her son who
was dying of terminal leukemia. Although her heart was filled
with sadness, she also had a strong feeling of determination.
Like any parent she wanted
her son to grow up and fulfill all his
dreams. Now that was no longer possible. The leukemia would see
to that. But she still wanted her son's dreams to come true. She
took her son's hand and asked, "Billy, did you ever think about
what you wanted to be once you grew up? Did you ever dream and
wish what you would do with your life?"
"Mommy, I always wanted
to be a fireman when I grew up."
Mom smiled back and said,
"Let's see if we can make
your wish come true."
Later that day she went to
her local fire department in Phoenix,
Arizona, where she met Fireman Bob, who had a heart as big as
Phoenix. She explained her son's final wish and asked if it might
be possible to give her six-year-old son a ride around the block
on a fire engine. Fireman Bob said, "Look, we can do better than
that. If you'll have your son ready at seven o'clock Wednesday
morning, we'll make him an honorary fireman for the whole day.
He can come down to the fire
station, eat with us, go out all
the fire calls, the whole nine yards! "And if you'll give us his
sizes, we'll get a real fire uniform for him, with a real fire
hat-not a toy one-with the emblem of the Phoenix Fire Department
on it, a yellow slicker like we wear and rubber boots. They're
all manufactured right here in Phoenix, so we can get them fast."
Three days later Fireman Bob
picked up Billy, dressed him in his
fire uniform and escorted him from his hospital bed to the
waiting hook and ladder truck. Billy got to sit on the back of
the truck and help steer it back to the fire station. He was in
heaven.
There were three fire calls
in Phoenix that day and Billy got to
go out on all three calls. He rode in the different fire engines,
the paramedic's van, and even the fire chief's car. He was also
videotaped for the local news program.
Having his dream come true,
with all the love and attention that
was lavished upon him, so deeply touched Billy that he lived
three months longer than any doctor thought possible.
One night all of his vital
signs began to drop dramatically and
the head nurse, who believed in the hospice concept that no one
should die alone, began to call the family members to the
hospital.
Then she remembered the day
Billy had spent as a fireman, so she
called the Fire Chief and asked if it would be possible to send
a fireman in uniform to the hospital to be with Billy as he made
his transition.
The chief replied, "We
can do better than that. We'll be there in
five minutes. Will you please do me a favor? When you hear the
sirens screaming and see the lights flashing, will you announce
over the PA system that there is not a fire? It's just the fire
department coming to see one of its finest members one more time.
And will you open the window to his room?"
About five minutes later a
hook and ladder truck arrived at the
hospital and extended its ladder up to Billy's third floor open
window. 16 firefighters climbed up the ladder into Billy's room.
With his mother's permission, they hugged him and held him and
told him how much they loved him. With his dying breath, Billy
looked up at the fire chief and said, "Chief, am I really a
fireman now?"
"Billy, you are, and
the Head Chief, Jesus, is holding your
hand," the chief said. With those words, Billy smiled and
said, "I know, He's been holding my hand all day, and the
angels have been singing." He closed his eyes one last time.
* Yoda *
Fear
leads to Anger
Anger leads to Hate
Hate leads to Suffering
* SMILING
*
Smiling
is infectious, you catch it like the flu.
When someone smiled at me today, I started smiling too.
I passed around the corner, and someone saw my grin -
and when he smiled I realized, I'd passed it on to him.
I thought about that grin, then I realized its worth,
A single smile, just like mine, could travel round the earth.
So, if you feel a smile begins, don't leave it undetected -
Let's start an epidemic quick and get the world infected !
* WEALTH,
SUCCESS & LOVE *
A
woman came out of her house and saw 3 old men
with long white beards sitting in her front yard...
She did not recognize them... She said:
"I don't think I know you, but you must be hungry...
Please come in and have something to eat"...
"Is the man of the
house home?", they asked.
"No", she said. "He's out"...
"Then we cannot come in", they replied...
In the evening when her
husband came home,
she told him what had happened...
Go tell them I am home and invite them in...
The woman went out and
invited the men in...
"We don't go into a house together", they replied...
"Why is that?" she
wanted to know...
One of the old men explained:
"His name is Wealth...he said pointing to one of his friends...
and said pointing to another one, "He is Success and I am Love"...
Then he added, "Now go in and discuss with your husband
which one of us you want in your home."
The woman went in and told
her husband what was said...
Her husband was overjoyed... "How nice", he said!!...
"Since that is the case, let us invite Wealth...
Let him come and fill our home with wealth"....
His wife disagreed...
"My dear, why don't we
invite Success"? ...
Their daughter-in-law was listening from the other corner
of the house... She jumped in with her own suggestion:
"Would it not be better to invite Love...
Our home will be filled with love"...
"Let us heed our daughter-in-law's advice",
said the husband to his wife...
"Go out and invite Love to be our guest."
The woman went out and asked
the 3 old men,
"Which one of you is Love? Please come in and be our guest."
Love got up and started walking toward the house...
The other 2 also got up and followed him...
Surprised, the lady asked Wealth and Success:
"I only invited Love, why are you coming in?"
The old men replied
together: "If you had invited Wealth
or Success the other two of us would've stayed out...
but since you invited Love, wherever he goes, we go with him...
Wherever there is Love there is also wealth and success !!!
* ABUNDANCE
*
Not what we have
But what we enjoy,
constitutes our abundance.
* COURAGE
*
True
courage is like a kite;
a contrary wind raises it higher.
* MOTIVATION
*
Striving
for excellence motivates you;
striving for perfection is demoralizing.
{ Cree Prophecy }
Only after the last tree has
been cut down,
Only after the last river has been poisoned,
Only after the last fish has been caught,
Only then will you find money cannot be eaten.
*
THE GOD TEACH
ME *
GOD
teach me quiet,
as the grasses are still with new light.
GOD teach me suffering,
as old stones suffer with memory.
GOD teach me humility,
as blossoms are humble with beginning.
GOD teach me caring,
as mothers nurture their young.
GOD teach me courage,
as the tree that stands alone.
GOD teach me limitation,
as the ant that crawls on the ground.
GOD teach me freedom,
as the eagle that soars in the sky.
GOD teach me acceptance,
as the leaves that die each fall.
GOD teach me renewal,
as the seed that rises in the spring.
GOD teach me to forget
myself,
as melted snow forgets its life.
GOD teach me to remember
kindness,
as dry fields weep with rain.
* LOVE
*
The
chemist who can extract from his heart's elements,
compassion, respect, longing, patience, regret, surprise,
and forgiveness and compound them into one can create
that atom which is called love.
* LOVE
*
The
greatest weakness of most humans
is their hesitancy to tell others
how much they love them
while they're still alive.
* LOVE
*
To
fall in love is easy,
even to remain in it is not difficult;
our human loneliness is cause enough.
But is a hard quest worth making
to find a comrade through whose steady presence
one becomes steadily the person one desires to be.
* A
ROSE WITHIN *
A
certain man planted a rose and watered it faithfully,
and before it blossomed, he examined it. He saw the
bud that would soon blossom and also the thorns.
And he thought, "How can any beautiful flower come
from a plant burdened with so many sharp thorns?"
Saddened by this thought, he neglected to water the rose,
and before it was ready to bloom, it died.
So it is with many people.
Within every soul there is a rose.
The God-like qualities planted in us at birth
grow amid the thorns of our faults.
Many of us look at ourselves
and see only the thorns and the defects.
We despair, thinking that nothing good
can possibly come from us.
We neglect to water the good within us,
and eventually it dies.
We never realize our potential.
Some people do not see the
rose within themselves;
someone else must show it to them.
One of the greatest gifts a person can possess
is to be able to reach past the thorns
and find the rose within others.
This is the characteristic
of love,
to look at a person, and knowing his faults,
recognize the nobility in his soul,
and help him realize that he can
overcome his faults.
If we show him the rose,
he will conquer the thorns.
Then will he blossom, blooming forth thirty,
sixty, a hundred-fold as it is given to him.
Our duty in this world is to
help others
by showing them their roses and not their thorns.
Only then can we achieve the love
we should feel for each other;
only then can we bloom in our own garden.
A
man walking
along a California beach was deep in
prayer.
All of a sudden, he said out loud, Lord grant
me
one wish." Suddenly the sky clouded above
his
head and in a booming voice the Lord said,
"Because
you have TRIED to be faithful to me in all
ways,
I will grant you one wish.
The
man said, "Build a bridge to Hawaii so I can
drive
over anytime I want."
The
Lord said, "Your request is very materialistic.
Think
of he enormous challenges for that kind of
undertaking.
The supports required to reach the
bottom
of the Pacific! The concrete and steel it
would
take! I can do it, but it is hard for me to
justify
your desire for worldly things. Take a little
more
time and think of another wish, a wish you think
would
honor and glorify me."
The
man thought about it for a long time. Finally he
said,
"Lord, I wish that I could understand women. I
want
to know how they feel inside, what they are
thinking
when they give me the silent treatment, why
they
cry, what they mean when they say 'nothing',
and
how I can make a woman truly happy."
The
Lord replied, "You want two lanes...or four lanes
on that
bridge?"
*
LIBERTY *
I
would rather belong to a poor nation that was free
than to a rich nation that had ceased to be in love with liberty.
{ Woodrow T. Wilson, 1856-1924, 28th President of
the USA }
* LIBERTY
*
Liberty
has never come from government.
Liberty has always come from the subjects of it.
The history of liberty is a history of resistance.
The history of liberty is a history of limitations of
governmental power, not the increase of it.
{ Woodrow T. Wilson, 1856-1924, 28th President of
the USA }
* LIBERTY
*
When
liberty comes with hands dabbled in blood
it is hard to shake hands with her.
{ Oscar Wilde, 1856-1900, British Author }
* MAKING
LIFE COUNT *
Sometimes people come into your life and you know
right away that they were meant to be there, to serve
some sort of purpose, teach you a lesson, or to help
you figure out who you are or who you want to become.
You never know who these people may be - a roommate,
a neighbor, a professor, a friend, a lover, or even a
complete stranger - but when you lock eyes with them,
you know at that very moment they will affect your
life in some profound way.
Sometimes things happen to you that may seem horrible,
painful, and unfair at first, but in reflection you find
that without overcoming those obstacles you would
have never realized your potential, strength, will power, or heart.
Illness, injury, love, lost moments of true greatness,
and sheer stupidity all occur to test the limits of
your soul. Without these small tests, whatever they
may be, life would be like a smoothly paved straight
flat road to nowhere. It would be safe and
comfortable, but dull and utterly pointless.
The people you meet who affect your life, and the
success and down falls you experience, help to create
who you are and who you become. Even the bad
experiences can be learned from. In fact, they are
sometimes the most important ones.
If someone loves you, give love back to them in
whatever way you can, not only because they love you,
but because in a way, they are teaching you to love
and how to open your heart and eyes to things.
If someone hurts you, betrays you, or breaks your
heart, forgive them, for they have helped you learn
about trust and the importance of being cautious to
whom you open your heart.
Make every day count. Appreciate every moment and take
from those moments everything that you possibly can
for you may never be able to experience it again. Talk
to people that you have never talked to before, and
listen to what they have to say.
Let yourself fall in love, break free, and set your
sights high. Hold your head up because you have every
right to. Tell yourself you are a great individual and
believe in yourself, for if you don't believe in
yourself, it will be hard for others to believe in you.
You can make anything you wish of your life. Create
your own life and then go out and live it with absolutely
no regrets. And if you love someone tell them, for you
never know what tomorrow may have in store.
{ Author Unknown - Contributed by Lucinda. Thnx }
* KEEP
YOUR FORK *
There
was a young woman who had been diagnosed with a terminal
illness and had been given three months to live. So as she was getting
her things in order, he contacted her pastor and had him come to her
house to discuss certain aspects of her final wishes She told him which
songs she wanted sung at the service, what scriptures she would like read,
and what outfit she wanted to be buried in.
Everything was in order and the
pastor was preparing to leave when the
young woman suddenly remembered something very important to her.
"There's one more thing,"
she said excitedly.
"What's that?" came the
pastor's reply.
"This is very important,"
the young woman continued.
"I want to be buried with a fork
in my right hand."
The pastor stood looking at the young
woman,
not knowing quite what to say.
"That surprises you, doesn't it?"
the young woman asked.
"Well, to be honest, I'm puzzled
by the request," said the pastor.
The young woman explained. "My
grandmother once told me
this story, and from there on out, I have always done so.
I have also, always tried to pass along it's message to those
I love and those who are in need of encouragement.
"In all my years of attending
church socials and potluck dinners,
I always remember that when the dishes of the main course were
being cleared, someone would inevitably lean over and say,
'Keep your fork.' It was my favorite part because I knew that
something better was coming... like velvety chocolate cake or
deep-dish apple pie. Something wonderful, and with substance!"
So, I just want people to see me
there in that casket with a fork
in my hand and I want them to wonder "What's with the fork?"
Then I want you to tell them:
"Keep your
fork ..the best is yet to come."
The pastor's eyes welled up with
tears of joy as he hugged the
young woman good-bye. He knew this would be one of the last
times he would see her before her death. But he also knew that
the young woman had a better grasp of heaven than he did.
She had a better grasp of what heaven would be like than many
people twice her age, with twice as much experience and knowledge.
She KNEW that something better was
coming. At the funeral people
were walking by the young woman's casket and they saw the pretty
dress she was wearing and the fork placed in her right hand.
Over and over, the pastor heard the question "What's with the fork?"
And over and over he smiled. During
his message, the pastor told
the people of the conversation he had with the young woman
shortly before she died. He also told them about the fork and
about what it symbolized to her. The pastor told the people how
he could not stop thinking about the fork and told them that they
probably would not be able to stop thinking about it either.
He was right...
So the next time you reach down for
your fork,
let it remind you ever so gently,
that the best is yet to come...
...Friends are very rare jewels indeed. They make you smile and
encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share a word
of praise, and they always want to open their hearts to us.
Show your friends how much you care.
Remember to always be there for them,
even when you need
them more. For you never know when it may be their time to
"Keep your
fork."
Cherish the time you have, and the
memories you share ... being
friends with someone is not an opportunity but a sweet responsibility.
And...
Always Keep Your Fork.
I LOVE QUOTES. Generally speaking, a
good quote is not just
someone's opinion, but is in essence
the pearl of wisdom,
crystallized from a lifetime of
experience and wisdom. Why
must we learn everything the hard
way, through painful
experience? I prefer to learn from
the great ones instead.
Their quotes summarize their lifetime
of service and experience.
Can you think of a better and wiser
teacher? I truly hope you
enjoy these quotes from a great man,
who devoted his life
to this world. His name is Mahatma
Gandhi...
ALL THESE QUOTES ARE BY :
Mahatma Gandhi
1869-1948
Indian Political & Spiritual
Leader
He shares with us his wisdom,
his love for You,
and our World.
* Action *
Whatever you do may seem
insignificant,
but it is most important that you do
it.
* Country *
The greatness of a nation can be
judged
by the way its animals are treated.
* Faith *
I claim to be an average man
of less than average ability.
I have not the shadow of a doubt
that any man or woman can achieve
what I have, if he or she would make
the same effort and cultivate the
same hope and faith.
* Forgiveness *
The weak can never forgive.
Forgiveness is the attribute of the
strong.
* Friends and Friendship *
It is easy enough to be friendly to
one's friends.
But to befriend the one who regards
himself as
your enemy is the quintessence of
true religion.
The other is mere business.
* Humankind *
As human beings, our greatness lies
not so much
in being able to remake the world --
that is the myth of the atomic age --
as in being able to remake ourselves.
* Humankind *
You must not lose faith in humanity.
Humanity is an ocean;
if a few drops of the ocean are
dirty,
the ocean does not become dirty.
* Jesus Christ *
A man who was completely innocent,
offered himself as a sacrifice for
the
good of others, including his
enemies,
and became the ransom of the world.
It was a perfect act.
* Love *
Whenever you are confronted with an
opponent.
Conquer him with love.
* Love *
A coward is incapable of exhibiting
love;
it is the prerogative of the brave.
* Nonviolence *
Non-violence is not a garment
to be put on and off at will.
Its seat is in the heart, and it must
be
an inseparable part of our very
being.
* Potential *
The difference between what we do
and what we are capable of doing
would suffice to solve most
of the world's problem.
* Poverty and The Poor *
Poverty is the worst form of
violence.
* Power *
I have learned through bitter
experience
the one supreme lesson to conserve my
anger,
and as heat conserved is transmitted
into energy,
even so our anger controlled can be
transmitted
into a power that can move the world.
* Prayer *
Let everyone try and find
that as a result of daily prayer
he adds something new to his life,
something with which nothing can be
compared.
* Prayer *
Prayer is not an old woman's idle
amusement.
Properly understood and applied,
it is the most potent instrument of
action.
* Prayer *
Prayer is not asking.
It is a longing of the soul.
It is daily admission of one's
weakness.
It is better in prayer to have a
heart without words
than words without a heart.
* Quality *
It is the quality of our work
which will please God
and not the quantity.
* Right and Rightness *
Rights that do not flow
from duty well performed
are not worth having.
* Self-control * (For Charles)
Not to have control over the senses
is like sailing in a rudderless ship,
bound to break to pieces on coming in
contact
with the very first rock.
* Service *
Consciously or unconsciously,
every one of us does render some
service or other.
If we cultivate the habit of doing
this service deliberately,
our desire for service will steadily
grow stronger,
and will make, not only our own
happiness,
but that of the world at large.
* Service *
The best way to find yourself
is to lose yourself in the service of
others.
* Truth *
Whenever you have truth it must be
given with love,
or the message and the messenger will
be rejected.
* Violence *
I object to violence
because when it appears to do good,
the good is only temporary;
the evil it does is permanent.
* Vow *
Personally, I hold that a man,
who deliberately and intelligently
takes a pledge and then breaks it,
forfeits his manhood.
* Will and Will Power *
Strength does not come from physical
capacity.
It comes from an indomitable will.
* Worry *
There is nothing that wastes the body
like worry,
and one who has any faith in God
should be
ashamed to worry about anything
whatsoever.
*
WORLD *
After
one look at this planet
any visitor from outer space would say
''I WANT TO SEE THE MANAGER.''
{ William S. Burroughs, 1914-1997, American Writer }
* WORLD
*
The
world does not need tourists who
ride by in a bus clucking their tongues.
The world as it is needs those who
will love it enough to change it,
with what they have,
where they are.
{ Robert Fulghum, American Writer, Minister, Working
Cowboy }
* WORLD
*
To
see the earth as we now see it,
small and beautiful in that eternal silence where it floats,
is to see ourselves as riders on the earth together,
brothers on that bright loveliness in the unending night --
brothers who see now they are truly brothers.
{ Archibald Macleish, 1892-1982, American Poet }
* WORLD
POPULATION *
If this is half true, and I suspect it is probably close,
it sure don't leave us much justification,
for feeling sorry for ourselfs, does it ???
If we could shrink the earth's population to a village
of precisely 100 people, with all the existing human
ratios remaining the same, it would look something
like the following: There would be:
57 Asians
21 Europeans
14 from the Western Hemisphere, both north and south
8 Africans
52 would be female
48 would be male
70 would be non-white
30 would be white
70 would be non-Christian
30 would be Christian
89 would be heterosexual
11 would be homosexual
6 people would possess 59% of the entire world's
wealth and all 6 would be from the United States.
80 would live in substandard housing
70 would be unable to read
50 would suffer from malnutrition
1 would be near death; 1 would be near birth
1 (yes, only 1) would have a college education
1 would own a computer
When one considers our world from such a compressed
perspective, the need for acceptance, understanding
and education becomes glaringly apparent.
The following is also something to ponder...
If you woke up this morning with
more health than illness...
you are more blessed than the million
who will not survive this week.
If you have never experienced the danger of battle,
the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture,
or the pangs of starvation... you are ahead of
500 million people in the world.
If you can attend a church meeting without fear
of harassment, arrest, torture, or death...
you are more blessed than three billion people in the world.
If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on
your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep...
you are richer than 75% of this world.
If you have money in the bank, in your wallet,
and spare change in a dish someplace ...
you are among the top 8% of the world's wealthy.
If your parents are still alive and still married...
you are very rare, even in the United States and Canada.
If you can read this message, you just received a
double blessing in that someone was thinking of you,
and furthermore, you are more blessed than over
two billion people in the world that cannot read at all.
Someone once
said:
What goes around comes around.
Work like you don't need the money.
Love like you've never been hurt.
Dance like nobody's watching.
Sing like nobody's listening.
Live like it's Heaven on Earth.
{ Author Unknown }
Quote:
Dennis Abma
Hope this day will be to your liking
and the evening brings you joy
Please refer your friends to: www.PearlsOfLight.com