Passing Judgement

"In men whom men condemn as ill
I find so much of goodness still,
In men whom men pronounce divine
I find so much of sin and blot
I do not dare to draw the line
Between the two, where God has not."

~Joaquin Miller~

The Cost of a Smile

A SMILE

A smile costs nothing, but gives much-
It takes but a moment, but the memory of it usually lasts forever.
None are so rich that can get along without it-
And none are so poor but that can be made rich by it.
It enriches those who receive, without making poor those who give-
It creates sunshine in the home,
Fosters good will in business,
And is the best antidote for trouble-
And yet it cannot be begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is of no value
Unless it is given away.
Some people are too busy to give you a smile-
Give them one of yours-
For the good Lord knows that no one needs a smile so badly
As he or she who has no more smiles left to give.

(Author Unknown)

Things Are Not Always As They Seem

We look and think we see. But do we, really?

RICHARD COREY

Whenever Richard Cory went down town,
We people on the pavement looked at him:
He was a gentleman from sole to crown,
Clean favored, and imperially slim.
And he was always quietly arrayed,
And he was always human when he talked;
But still he fluttered pulses when he said,
"Good-morning," and he glittered when he walked.
And he was rich, yes, richer than a king,
And admirably schooled in every grace:
In fine, we thought that he was everything
To make us wish that we were in his place.
So on we worked, and waited for the light,
And went without the meat, and cursed the bread;
And Richard Cory, one calm summer night,
Went home and put a bullet through his head.

~Edwin Arlington Robinson~

We look and think we see. But do we, really? (selah)

Make Me A Blessing

An old gospel hymn that used to be sung in church goes like this:

Out on the highways and byways of life,
Many are the weary and sad;
Carry the sunshine where darkness is rife,
Making the sorrowing glad.
Chorus:
Make me a blessing, make me a blessing;
Out of my life may Jesus shine.
Make me a blessing, O Saviour I pray,
Make me a blessing to someone today.
(Words by Ira B. Wilson)

The message of that song got stuck somewhere in my psyche, and I've never been able to shake it. Maybe the message that I was hearing so clearly was NOT what a blessing I could be to others, but rather what a delight it would be to have someone bring "sunshine" into MY life. I felt the exhilerating sensation of it in my young imagination. But it was in that moment of selfish, self-centered experience, that I understood the incredible power of a person who could bring sunshine into the life of another. There was a transforming paradigm shift in my heart, and I wanted to be the BRINGER of sunshine! I wanted to be able to make that kind of difference. I wanted to deliver the exhilerating electricity that I had so effectively imagined. It was a defining ephipany. It is not until we are destitute of joy that we fully realize how priceless it is to ride upon the coattails of another person's sunshine. It is vicarious joy..."VIRTUAL" joy to the receiver, and ecstacy to the conduit.

When we were children, my mother quoted to us from memory the following:

Wouldn't this old world be better
If the folks we meet would say-
"I know something good about you!"
And Treat us just that way?
Wouldn't it be fine and dandy
If each handclasp, fond, and true,
Carried with it this assurance-
"I know something good about you!"
Wouldn't life be lots more happy
If the good that's in us all
Were the only thing about us
That folks bothered to recall?
Wouldn't life be lots more happy
If we praised the good we see?
For there's such a lot of goodness
In the worst of you and me!
Wouldn't it be nice to practice
That fine way of thinking, too?
You know something good about me,
I know something good about you?
(Louis C. Shimon)

Hurdles

Sadness is but a wall between two gardens. ~~Kahlil Gibran

To Dream The Impossible Dream

Those who abandon their dreams will discourage yours.

We used to call it the "cold water committee", people who can't stand to see the energy and passion of a mission, a dream, so they douse the dream of another. It happens often to young people who discover God, and then have a transforming experience because of it. The natural response, "GO TELL THE WORLD!" And often, they are encouraged to do so. But somewhere along the line, the enthusiasm (en-theos) takes on a life of its own, and like a locomotive on a straightaway, the power of such passion solicits fear from the onlooker. Why? Maybe it's because it looks like a runaway train, rather than a locomotive "on the right track". Why is it that thousands of screaming people in a football stadium are called "fans", but a single individual passionate about his relationship with the God of the universe is called a "fanatic"? The impossible dream is to believe that this world, as short sighted as it is, will embrace the dream of one who desires to share the freedom, peace, security, and passion found in a genuine relationship with God. More sad still, is the fact that very often the "cold water committee" is comprised of church goers: deacons, Sunday School teachers, or even pastors. I say, "Dream on!" Don't ever stop dreaming! And my earnest prayer, above all else, is that I will never be guilty of throwing cold water on the passion of a dream. (jgr)

Gratitude

"Constant thankfulness makes a human magnet out of a common personality".

It is a joy to be around a grateful person. Gratitude is like a luminary on a pathway. You find yourself following the light. There are enough cranky and disgruntled people in the world. But we're spoiled. Yes, spoiled. We have been blessed beyond measure, but it is status quo to us. Living in America with all the wealth and convenience that the American culture has afforded us, we have become greedy and demanding. Think about it. If you were annonymously given $1000 a week for 60 years, and one day, the money stopped, for no apparent reason, what would be your reaction? Would you be angry? Disappointed? Depressed? Be honest. Would your initial reaction be one of gratitude for all those years of bounty? I doubt it. Human nature dictates that we become dependent upon the things that we are used to. Do you think that the average American, after receiving that $1000 a week, would fall to his knees and thank God for such unique supply after it had just stopped? Wouldn't that be the ethical and moral thing to do? You and I are NOT grateful. We're greedy. How much is enough? One man, in response to that question said, "Just a little bit more." The echo of that statment resounds across America. No wonder we, as a culture, are despised in many struggling and third-world countries. At the end of the day, it is our duty and privilege to bow our heads and thank God for one more day of life, plenty, and the opportunity for more, as greedy as it is. Blessed beyond measure, we owe it to ourselves and to an onlooking world to maintain a spirit of gratitude. (jgr)

Enthusiasm

It started with a student on an average, ho-hum day at the office. The energy that breezed in was phenomenal. The door opened and like a backdraft from an edifice ablaze, the force of his enthusiasm almost knocked me off my feet. Like the movie “Awakenings,” I was asleep, or comatose, or maybe dazed from the mundaneness of life, when all of a sudden, there was an awakening. It was powerful, euphoric. What is it about enthusiasm that breathes new life into a dead soul? The answer to that questions lies in the very origin of the word. Imagine my surprise when I investigated the root. It comes from two Greek words: en [within] and theos [God]. When the infinite and spirtual "God-likeness" in us connects with the merciful "man-likeness" in God, the phenomenon called en-theos [enthusiasm] takes place. Have we gotten so far away from a God who loves us unconditionally that we cease to be enthusiastic? The doldrums of life are a sign that we have neglected to have the pleasure of God's company on a regular basis. My mom used to always say, "You will become like the people you hang around." The truth of that statement was never more true than in this scenario. For if you hang around the God of the universe, getting to know Him, listening to His words, quoting Him, singing of Him and speaking of Him as a very best friend, the by-product becomes ENTHUSIASM. You cannot walk and talk with the Alpha and Omega, and come away empty. To know and understand that nothing you can do can make God love you any more, and nothing you can do can make God love you any less, should be sufficient to start you on the road to en-theos. Unconditional acceptance is the fertile soil within which enthusiasm grows, and the root from which grows the fruit of the spirit: Love, Joy, Peace...
(jgr)

When God is near, with light my path is glowing
My cup of life with gladness overflows
And in the garden of my heart is growing
The flower of love more fragrant than the sweetest rose

When God is near , so near I hear Him speak to me
My every need His boundless grace supplies
When God is near, my heart is filled with ecstasy
And all the world's a paradise when God is near
And all the world's a paradise when God is near
[taken from the Singperation song series]

Caged

A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a song. ~~Chinese Proverb

When you are trapped behind bars of circumstance, the desire to sing is usually not a natural byproduct. There are "what if's, what am I going to do, why did this happen to me, and what did I do to deserve this?" I'm sure that was the mindset of many a prisoner of war, caged in less than humane circumstances, cold, hungry, lonely and afraid. What makes on POW survive the cruelty of incarceration and another succomb? Survival, in some circumstaces, has often been attributed to faith and family. One of the

"Everything can be taken away from man but one thing-to choose one's attitude in a given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way." The sane are those who accept this charge and do not expect happiness by right." (Victor Frankl)

The sacrifice of praise

A Smile

A smile at the right moment can act like sunlight on a closed up flower.
It may be the turning point for a struggling life.
~ Unknown ~

Walk down any street in any town or city in America, and you will be lucky if you see even one smiling face. It is a phenomenon that will always amaze me. We have SO much for which to be thankful. We live in a land of plenty. The most poor in our land have more than the masses of many countries. We are blessed...and we don't know it. If we know it, we DON'T show it. In a church service I attended, a singer got up to sing and asked the following: "How many of you are happy?" Hands went up all over the audience. To which she responded, "Then tell you face!" Are you happy? Do you have anything about which TO be happy? Then tell your face. SMILE! It does wonders for your complection, and is an instant and inexpensive face lift. Do an experiment. Walk down the street or into a room and smile. Make eye contact with just one person and smile. It is a powerful tool that we are negligent in using. The real phenomenon is that even though the smile is designed to solicit a warm response from the recipient, in actuality, the investor receives the return one hundred fold. Something happens on the inside of the person who smiles. Endorphins are released, well-being is ignited, and peace, like oxygen, flows through the body. Try it. You will be amazed, as will the people to whom you give the gift of a smile.

Pro 17:22
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.