PHRASES  and  QUOTES

"Reorganization - continually seek better, faster, more efficient ways to accomplish the same result."

Achieve; to Achieve Your Dreams, Remember Your A-Z's
      A-void negative sources, people, things and habits.
      B-elieve in yourself.
      C-onsider things from every angle.
      D-on't give up and don't give in.
      E-njoy life today: yesterday is gone and tomorrow may never come.
      F-amily and Friends are hidden treasures. Seek them and enjoy their riches.
      G-ive more than you planned to give.
      H-ang on to your dreams.
      I-gnore those who try to discourage you.
      J-ust do it!
      K-eep on trying, no matter how hard it seems. It will get better.
      L-ove yourself first and foremost.
      M-ake it happen.
      N-ever lie, cheat or steal. Always strike a fair deal.
      O-pen your eyes and see things as they really are.
      P-ractice makes perfect.
      Q-uitters never win and winners never quit.
      R-ead, study and learn about everything important in life.
      S-top procrastination.
      T-ake control of your own destiny.
      U-nderstand yourself in order to better understand others.
      V-isualize it
      W-ant it more than anything.
      X-ccelerate your efforts.
      Y-ou are unique of all of Nature's creations. Nothing can replace you.
      Z-ero in on your target, and go for it!

The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil. He mocks at our wisdom. But he trembles when we pray.

Does Prayer Change Things? They say that Prayer changes things, but does it REALLY change anything? Oh yes! It really does!

Does prayer change your present situation or sudden circumstances? No, not always, but it does change the way you look at those events.

Does prayer change your financial future? No, not always, but it does change who you look to for meeting your daily needs.

Does prayer change shattered hearts or broken bodies? No, not always, but it will change your source of strength and comfort.

Does prayer change your wants and desires? No, not always, but it will change your wants into what God desires!

Does prayer change how you view the world? No, not always, but it will change whose eyes you see the world through.

Does prayer change your regrets from the past? No, not always, but it will change your hopes for the future!

Does prayer change the people around you? No, not always, but it will change you - the problem isn't always in others.

Does prayer change your life in ways you can't explain? Oh, yes, always! And it will change you from the inside out!

So does prayer REALLY change ANYTHING?

Troubles are often the tools by which God fashions us for better things.

"If you do not know where you are going, every road will get you nowhere."

Though my troubles and my worries
Are sometimes all that I can see -
Still I always must remember
Life's not all about me.

Other souls are also hurting
And I know that it's God's plan
To reach out to help another -
To extend to them my hand.

With this purpose as my focus -
To be a comfort to a friend -
All my troubles and my worries
Seem to fade out in the end.

It is one of God's true lessons -
How my walk is meant to be -
True happiness I find when
Life's not only about me.

Against the backdrop of people who avoid work, cut corners, and do half hearted jobs, a diligent man stands out. Practicing diligence is an excellent way to stand out for Christ at home, in the workplace and even at church. Today, complete each one of your tasks, however, big or small, with diligence.

"Man must cease attributing his problems to his environment, and learn to exercise his will - his personal responsibility."

"Always look to yourself as the primary creative force in your own life."

"Learn from the negative as well as the positive, from the failures as well as the successes."

"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."

Refuse to be distressed, for when we are despondent our life cannot be blessed, for doubt and fear and worry close the door to faith and prayer, and there's no room for blessings.

So when we're lost in deep despair, remember when we're troubled with uncertainty and it is best to tell our Father what our fear is all about.

For unless we seek His guidance when troubled times arise, we are bound to make decisions that are twisted and unwise, but when we view our problems through the eyes of God above, misfortunes turn to blessings and hatred to love.

I told my psychiatrist that everyone hates me. My doctor said I was being ridiculous - everyone hasn't met me yet.

Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it in full."

Eternity will not be long enough to learn all He is, or to praise Him for all he has done, but then, that matters not; for we shall be always with Him, and we desire nothing more.

Many proclaim faith in God; few trust God.

"Out of clutter, find Simplicity. From discord, find Harmony. In the middle of difficulty lies Opportunity."

"Use the Trial and Success method; learn how to improve and succeed by falling and learning from your mistakes."

"If I have to make 10 decisions today, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that 50% of them will be wrong. Now, maybe you're smarter than that, so you won't have as many opportunities to learn."

A person achieves success through 15% intelligence, 35% common sense and 50% mistakes,

"Forget about the consequences of failure. Failure is only a temporary change in direction to set you straight for your next success."

Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible.

Faith is not belief without proof, but trust without reservation.

"If the average person realized the power he wields over his life and destiny, he would live in a perpetual state of wonder and thanksgiving."

"There are two kinds of people, those who do the work and those who take the credit. Try to be in the first group; there is less competition there."

"You don't become enormously successful without encountering and overcoming a number of extremely challenging problems."

Give
The more you give, the more you get -
The more you laugh, the less you fret -
The more you do unselfishly,
The more you live abundantly.

The more of everything you share
The more you'll always have a spare -
The more you love, the more you'll find
That life is good and friends are kind.

For only what we give away
Enriches us from day to day.

Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

Trust in the Lord with all you heart and lean not on your own understanding.

We were on our way from a family retreat week. My husband and I thought we would surprise our teenage sons by taking them parasailing at the beach before heading home. During the drive to the beach, the boys whined and complained: "What are we doing? Where are we going? How long will it take us to get there? Why don't we just go home?"

Finally we arrived at the beach, much to their surprise and delight. My husband asked them, "Why couldn't you just trust that we were planning something good?"

As my husband and I stood on the beach, I thought, "Isn't that just what we do with God many times?" We say, "Lord, where are you taking us? How much longer will you make us wait? Why don't you tell us where we're going?" We often whine and complain instead of trusting completely in our loving and caring heavenly Father, who is always faithful and wants to give us everything that is good.

The Art Of Thanksgiving
The art of thanksgiving is gratitude in action.......
It is thanking God for the gift of life by living it triumphantly.
It is thanking God for you talents and abilities by accepting them as obligations to be invested for the common good
It is thanking God for all that men and women have done for you by doing things for others.
It is thanking God for opportunities by accepting them as a challenge to achievement.
It is thanking God for happiness by striving to make others happy.
It is thanking God for beauty by helping to make the world more beautiful.
It is thanking God for inspiration by trying to be an inspiration to others.
It is thanking God for health and strength by the care and reverence you show your body.
It is thanking God for the creative ideas that enrich life by adding your own creative contributions to human progress.
It is thanking God for each new day by living it to the fullest.
It is thanking God by giving hands, arms, legs, and voice to your thankful spirit.
It is adding to your prayers of thanksgiving, acts of thanksgiving.

Pressing on in painful circumstances is the discipline of keeping our faith when everything not only goes wrong but becomes worse. It means holding onto the Lord during deep trials and asking Him to hold onto us when we feel weak in faith and hope.

"No pain that we suffer, no trial we experience is wasted. It ministers to our education, to the development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude, and humility. All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when we endure it patiently, build up our characters, purifies our hearts, expands our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable, more worthy to be called the children of God,.....and it is through sorrow and suffering, toil, and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come to acquire."

"You need to take pleasure in life's daily little Treasures. It is the most important thing in measuring success."

If you feel like you're at the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on! Because God is a God of miracles, and He's holding the other end.

God alone knows all the facts, sets all the goals, and determines morality. Nowhere in Scripture are His principles to be replaced in favor of human calculation. He allows us to play the game; He does not allow us to make the rules.

"Far better to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory, nor defeat."

"Think before you speak, and then speak clearly and distinctly. Face the customer directly, lean forward, smile and relax."

"When every physical and mental resource is focused, one's power to solve a problem multiplies tremendously."

Loving when you least feel like it and they least deserve it, is when you love like God. That kind of love can actually transform others in the same way that Christ's love transforms us.

What's love got to do with it? Everything! Listen: "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres"

Based on what you've just read, evaluate the quality of your love.
    Do you suffer patiently when others are being difficult?
    Are you kind, even when they are not?
    Do you refuse to envy them, or anything in their life?
    Do you make a point of giving them the credit?
    Do you refuse to treat them rudely?
    Do you refuse to demand your own way?
    Do you refrain from using threats or uncontrolled anger?
    Do you take no pleasure when something bad happens to them?
    Do you tell the truth, even when it's difficult?
    Do you handle "graciously" whatever comes?
    Do you believe in them, even when they don't believe in themselves?
    Do you love them regardless?

Well, how did you do?

The Ten Commandments: Rules Based On Love
When you think of the Ten Commandments, do you picture a stern schoolteacher or an unsmiling drill sergeant explaining rules to you? All those "thou shalt nots" can be intimidating at first. But behind each one is God's love and wisdom. God presented the Ten Commandments to guide us and protect us from the choices He knows will harm us.

Here are some principles to keep in mind about the Ten Commandments:

• God needs to be your top priority. If you give more time, energy, or attention to anyone or anything else in your life, you cannot live the abundant life that God wants to give you. It's only when you commit yourself completely to God that you invite Him to transform you completely so that you can grow to your fullest potential.
• Remember that you will become like the image you pursue. Who do you want to look like? If you pursue Christ, you'll be transformed more and more into His likeness. If you chase empty images created by society's whims, you'll end up feeling empty and looking impoverished.
• When you take God's name in vain, you're debasing it, because you're treating it much too casually, when it should be spoken with great reverence. God's name has great spiritual power - speaking it actually causes things to happen in the spiritual realms. Using it in a careless way - such as to "damn" a particular person or situation - can set unintended consequences into motion.
• God has designed you to need rest on a regular basis as part of His established rhythm of life. If you don't take a Sabbath break each week, your physical, mental, and spiritual health will suffer. If you do observe the Sabbath by worshipping and reflecting, you'll discover an eternal perspective on all aspects of your life that will help you tremendously the rest of the week.
• Honoring your parents is important; God used them to give you life. If God sees you visit them at inconvenient times (for you) when they need help, call them to express your love, and forgive them for any past mistakes, He will be pleased and decide to bless you as well.
• Most people can't imagine that they would ever murder someone. But when anger goes too far, that tragedy can actually result. And there are more ways to "murder" someone than physically killing that person. Anytime you injure anyone with your words or wish bad things to happen to them, you're committing murder against them in your heart. Take your anger to God and let Him heal your heart.
• Just as with murder, the seeds of adultery are sown in a person's mind. Don't fill your mind with images and experiences of which you know God doesn't approve, and ask God to help you focus your sexual desires on your spouse. Adultery can seem very enticing at times, but it never delivers any true satisfaction. Instead, it will destroy your relationships with God and other people. Remember that love is not feeling - it's an action. Whenever you choose to act in love toward your spouse, feelings of love will eventually result.
• You don't need to steal because God has promised to provide everything you need. And He is a Father who loves to give good gifts to His children. He genuinely cares, and He has your best interests at heart. Decide to trust Him.
• When you speak untrue or unkind words against your neighbors, you're committing injustices that will inflict great harm on people God loves. But when you encourage others with your words, you become a channel through which God's love flows, and the overflow will bless you. Be accountable to God and another person (such as a prayer partner). Spend time regularly worshipping and praising God so there won't be any room in your mind for false or negative words.
• Envy will destroy you. God wants you to have the peace that contentment offers. The strain of constantly wanting something you don't have and the burden of dealing with something you weren't meant to have can rob your life of the joy God intends for you.

"A pessimist is someone who complains about the noise when opportunity knocks."

"Loss creates a vacuum into which something greater always flows."

Does prayer change your present situation or sudden circumstances? No, not always, but it does change the way you look at those events.

Does prayer change your financial future? No, not always, but it does change who you look to for meeting your daily needs.

Does prayer change shattered hearts or broken bodies? No, not always, but it will change your source of strength and comfort.

Does prayer change your wants and desires? No, not always, but it will change your wants into what God desires!

Does prayer change how you view the world? No, not always, but it will change whose eyes you see the world through.