Tag Archives: Religion

The 01/01/13 ‘Joy Jar’

1 Jan
Moi started her ‘Joy Jar’ in response to what some interpreted as ‘The Mayan Apocalypse ‘ which was supposed to occur on December 21, 2012. This is the deposit into the ‘Joy Jar’ for January 1, 2013:
Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. (NLT)
Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
“The object of a new year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul”
G. K. Chesterton
Another fresh new year is here . . .
Another year to live!
To banish worry, doubt, and fear,
To love and laugh and give!
This bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest . . .
To daily grow and try to be
My highest and my best!
I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs!
– William Arthur Ward

New Year’s Day now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual.
Mark Twain
Let’s begin the year hoping Mark Twain will not be proved right.

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The 12/31/12 ‘Joy Jar’

30 Dec
The first definition of enthusiasm in the Merriam-Webster dictionary is:
: belief in special revelations of the Holy Spirit
Today’s deposit in the ‘Joy Jar’ is enthusiasm.

Chief Tecumseh’s words of wisdom

So live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart.
Trouble no one about their religion;
respect others in their view, and demand that they respect yours.
Love your life, perfect your life, beautify all things in your life.Seek to make your life long and its purpose in the service of your people.
Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide.
Always give a word or a sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend,
even a stranger, when in a lonely place.
Show respect to all people and grovel to none.When you arise in the morning give thanks for the food and for the joy of living.
If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself.

Abuse no one and no thing, for abuse turns the wise ones to fools
and robs the spirit of its vision.

When it comes your time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled
with the fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep
and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way.
Sing your death song and die like a hero going home.

Chief Tecumseh 1768-1813 Shawnee Nation

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The 12/28/12 ‘Joy Jar’

30 Dec

Sometimes as you walk along the paths of life, there is a presence walking beside you. Sometimes it feels as if the presence is not there and you wonder where the presence has gone. But, you know the presence is always with you and has not left. Today’s deposit in the ‘Joy Jar’ is faith.

 

“When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.
This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it. “Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you you’d walk with me all the way, but I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don’t understand why when I needed you most you would leave me.” The Lord replied, “My precious, precious child, I love you and would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”
Mary Stevenson
“Faith is walking face-first and full-speed into the dark. If we truly knew all the answers in advance as to the meaning of life and the nature of God and the destiny of our souls, our belief would not be a leap of faith and it would not be a courageous act of humanity; it would just be… a prudent insurance policy.”
Elizabeth Gilbert
“God will not look you over for medals, degrees or diplomas but for scars.”
Elbert Hubbard
“Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want. It is the belief that God will do what is right.”
Max Lucado, He Still Moves Stones
“The function of prayer is not to influence God, but rather to change the nature of the one who prays.”
Søren Kierkegaard
“Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”
Corrie ten Boom

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The 12/26/12 ‘Joy Jar’

30 Dec
All of us need grace and we all hope that people will grant us grace. It is harder to give others grace and forgiveness, but that is what we must learn to do. Today’s deposit in the ‘Joy Jar’ is grace for ourselves and others.

“By judging others we blind ourselves to our own evil and to the grace which others are just as entitled to as we are.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship

“Our worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s grace. And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God’s grace.”
Jerry Bridges

“Life is grace. Sleep is forgiveness. The night absolves. Darkness wipes the slate clean, not spotless to be sure, but clean enough for another day’s chalking.”
Frederick Buechner, The Alphabet of Grace

“You must pay for everything in this world one way and another. There is nothing free except the Grace of God. You cannot earn that or deserve it.”
Charles Portis, True Grit

“The grace of God means something like: Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are because the party wouldn’t have been complete without you.”
Frederick Buechner

“When grace moves in… guilt moves out”
― Max Lucado, Max on Life: Answers and Insights to Your Most Important Questions

“If I’m not showing grace . . . have I forgotten the grace I’ve been shown?”
― John F. MacArthur

“Never give a sword to a man who can’t dance.”
Confucius, The Analects

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The 12/25/12 ‘Joy Jar’

30 Dec
People should have a vision or goals to help guide them along their life journey. Today’s deposit in the ‘Joy Jar’ deals with vision:
Proverbs 29:18 “For lack of vision my people perish”
“A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at.”
Bruce Lee
“The most pathetic person in the world is some one who has sight but no vision.”
Helen Keller
Life is one big road with lots of signs. So when you riding through the ruts, don’t complicate your mind. Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy. Don’t bury your thoughts, put your vision to reality. Wake Up and Live!
Bob Marley
I’m most proud of the blessings that God has bestowed upon me, in my life. He’s given me the vision to truly see that you can fall down, but you can still get back up. Hopefully I’ll learn from my mistakes and have the opportunity to strengthen and improve the next thing I do.
Martin Lawrence

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The 12/23/12 ‘Joy Jar’

30 Dec
Optimism is the fuel that keeps your engine going. Today’s deposit in the ‘Joy Jar.. is optimism:
“Promise Yourself

To be so strong that nothing
can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity
to every person you meet.

To make all your friends feel
that there is something in them
To look at the sunny side of everything
and make your optimism come true.

To think only the best, to work only for the best,
and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others
as you are about your own.

To forget the mistakes of the past
and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times
and give every living creature you meet a smile.

To give so much time to the improvement of yourself
that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear,
and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world,
not in loud words but great deeds.
To live in faith that the whole world is on your side
so long as you are true to the best that is in you.”
― Christian D. Larson, Your Forces and How to Use Them

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The 12/22/12 ‘Joy Jar’

30 Dec
Today’s deposit in the ‘Joy Jar’ is hope:
According to Rev. Trev:
All of us are one phone call away from slipping from our perch on the rope . It’s good to take time to be reminded how to hope.
1. Hope brings strength –

but those who hope in the LORD 
will renew their strength. 
They will soar on wings like eagles; 
they will run and not grow weary, 
they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31

2. Hope brings joy and peace –

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 
Romans 15:13

3. Hope brings unfailing love –

May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, 
even as we put our hope in you. Psalm 33:22

4. Hope makes effective witnesses –

Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. 2 Corinthians 3:12

5. Hope brings rest –

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; 
 my hope comes from him. Psalm 62:5

http://revtrev.com/hope/why-is-hope-so-important/

“There is neither happiness nor misery in the world; there is only the comparison of one state with another, nothing more. He who has felt the deepest grief is best able to experience supreme happiness. We must of felt what it is to die, Morrel, that we may appreciate the enjoyments of life.
” Live, then, and be happy, beloved children of my heart, and never forget, that until the day God will deign to reveal the future to man, all human wisdom is contained in these two words, ‘Wait and Hope.”
― Alexandre Dumas
“It’s really a wonder that I haven’t dropped all my ideals, because they seem so absurd and impossible to carry out. Yet I keep them, because in spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.”
― Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl
“Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul
And sings the tune without the words
And never stops at all.”
― Emily Dickinson

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The 12/21/12 ‘Joy Jar’

30 Dec
Looks like we are all here and the world didn’t end. Today’s deposit in the ‘Joy Jar’ is Dare to Be
“Dare to Be

When a new day begins, dare to smile gratefully.

When there is darkness, dare to be the first to shine a light.

When there is injustice, dare to be the first to condemn it.

When something seems difficult, dare to do it anyway.

When life seems to beat you down, dare to fight back.

When there seems to be no hope, dare to find some.

When you’re feeling tired, dare to keep going.

When times are tough, dare to be tougher.

When love hurts you, dare to love again.

When someone is hurting, dare to help them heal.

When another is lost, dare to help them find the way.

When a friend falls, dare to be the first to extend a hand.

When you cross paths with another, dare to make them smile.

When you feel great, dare to help someone else feel great too.

When the day has ended, dare to feel as you’ve done your best.

Dare to be the best you can –

At all times, Dare to be!”
― Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free

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The 12/21/12 ‘Joy Jar’

30 Dec
Depending upon whom you believe, December 21 will be the end of the world. Not for moi, she is starting a ‘Joy Jar.’ Every day she will put a positive affirmative or goal in her jar for the next year. December 21 truly is the beginning of the rest of moi’s life. The first affirmation:

New International Version (©1984) Psalm 118:24
This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
This is moi’s change:

This is the year that the LORD has made, moi will rejoice and be glad in it.

Happy December 21!

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Very bad things do happen to very good people

15 Dec

Here’s today’s COMMENT FROM AN OLD FART: Times of trial try the faith of the believer. Christina Ng of Good Morning America reports in the article, Priest’s ‘Horrible’ Job Telling Parents of Children’s Deaths:

A Newtown, Conn., priest had the “horrible” job of informing families this morning that their children had been killed in the elementary school massacre.

There were 20 children among the 27 people brutally killed the day Adam Lanza, 20, invaded Sandy Hook Elementary School and opened fire on staff and students. Lanza was also found dead in the school.

Medical examiners have completed the grim work of identifying all of the victims at the school and families were informed early this morning that their loved ones had been killed.

“We were gathered until after midnight and we were sent out with teams to go to the homes of the victims,” parish priest Monsignor Robert Weiss told “Good Morning America” today. “We went to their homes early this morning to confirm the death of their children and it was just horrible.” http://gma.yahoo.com/priests-horrible-job-telling-parents-childrens-deaths-165442686–abc-news-topstories.html

It could have been a priest, it could have been a rabbi, it could have been a minister or the head of a Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim or Sikh temple. It could have been some person of no faith who would see the Sandy Hook massacre as one more reason not to believe. It is at times when one tries to fathom the death of children with reasons known only to the tortured soul of the killer that folks first ask why and then go on to what it is they believe.

REM poses the question for many in their ditty “Losing My Religion”

Oh life, it’s bigger
It’s bigger than you
And you are not me
The lengths that I will go to
The distance in your eyes
Oh no, I’ve said too much
I set it up

That’s me in the corner
That’s me in the spotlight
Losing my religion
Trying to keep a view
And I don’t know if I can do it
Oh no, I’ve said too much
I haven’t said enough….

Some of those who suffer unfathomable lose will indeed lose their religion, while other will find their faith. The answer depends on the question that they ask.

The question is an age old question which is why do bad things happen to good people? Job asked this very question of God. Rabbi Harold Kushner wrote the 1978 book When Bad Things Happen to Good People which attempted to explain why good people suffer.

Kushner outlines the various ways that people try to salvage their view of God and His orderly world. They explain that misfortune occurs because

  1. Someone made a mistake, or failed in the observance of some religious duty.
  2. God has a hidden purpose, or is making use of knowledge we don’t have.
  3. Suffering itself will turn out to be good for us.
  4. God’s purpose is in the grand design of the Universe (which is good and beautiful), not in the life of the individual.
  5. Suffering teaches something, either to us or to those who see us suffer.
  6. Suffering is a test.
  7. Death leads us and our loved ones to a better place.

Kushner rejects all of these explanations.

“All the responses to tragedy which we have considered have at least one thing in common. They all assume that God is the cause of our suffering, and they try to understand why God would want us to suffer. … There may be another approach. Maybe God does not cause our suffering. Maybe it happens for some reason other than the will of God.” http://www.gurus.org/dougdeb/Courses/bestsellers/Kushner/BT-1.htm

Modern society is loath to deal with the concept of evil, because evil cannot be treated with Prozac, or therapy, or meditation. It is simply easier to hold God responsible and walk away.

Over the next months and years many will be losing their religion and many others will find their faith. Because of the evil that exists in the world, some very bad things happen to some very good people.

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