by Inspiration | Aug 24, 2023 | Archives, Featured, Inspiration
It was one of the hottest days of the dry season. We had not seen rain in almost a month. The crops were dying. Cows had stopped giving milk. The… It was one of the hottest days of the dry season. We had not seen rain in almost a month. The crops were dying. Cows had stopped giving milk. The creeks and streams were long gone back into the earth. It was a dry season that would bankrupt several farmers before it was through. Every day, my husband and his brothers would go about the arduous process of trying to get water to the fields. Lately, this process had involved taking a truck to the local water rendering plant and filling it up with water. But severe rationing had cut everyone off. If we didn’t see some rain soon…we would lose everything. It was on this day that I learned the true lesson of sharing and witnessed the only miracle I have seen with my own eyes. I was in the kitchen making lunch for my husband and his brothers when I saw my six-year-old son, Billy, walking toward the woods. He wasn’t walking with the usual carefree abandon of a youth but with a serious purpose. I could only see his back. He was obviously walking with a great
;
by Inspiration | Aug 22, 2023 | Archives, Featured, Spiritual Growth
They tell the story of a mountain climber who, desperate to conquer the Aconcagua, initiated his climb after years of preparation. But he wanted the glory for himself; therefore, he… They tell the story of a mountain climber who, desperate to conquer the Aconcagua, initiated his climb after years of preparation. But he wanted the glory for himself; therefore, he went up alone. He started climbing and it was becoming later and later. He did not prepare for camping but decided to keep on going. Soon it got dark. Night fell with heaviness at a very high altitude. Visibility was zero. Everything was black. There was no moon, and the stars were covered by clouds. As he was climbing a ridge at about 100 meters from the top, he slipped and fell. Falling rapidly he could only see blotches of darkness that passed. He felt a terrible sensation of being sucked in by gravity. He kept falling and, in those anguishing moments, good and bad memories passed through his mind. He thought certainly he would die. But then he felt a jolt that almost tore him in half. Yes! Like any good mountain climber, he had staked himself with a long rope tied to his waist. In those moments of stillness, suspended in the air he had no other choice
;
by Inspiration | Aug 21, 2023 | Archives, Featured, Relationship
A number of years ago, in a mental institution just outside Boston, Mass., a young girl known as “Little Annie” was locked in the dungeon. This institution was one of… A number of years ago, in a mental institution just outside Boston, Mass., a young girl known as “Little Annie” was locked in the dungeon. This institution was one of the more enlightened ones for the treatment of the mentally disturbed. However, the doctors felt that a dungeon was the only place for those who were “hopelessly” insane. In Little Annie’s case, they saw no hope for her, so she was confined to a small cage which received little light and even less hope. About that time, an elderly nurse in the institution was nearing retirement. She felt there was hope for all of God’s creatures, so she started taking her lunch into the dungeon and eating outside Little Annie’s cage. When the nurse started visiting her, Little Annie gave no indication that she was even aware of her presence. One day, the nurse brought some brownies to the dungeon and left them outside the cage. Little Annie gave no hint she knew they were there, but when the nurse returned the next day, the brownies were gone. From that time on, the nurse would bring brownies when she made
;
by Inspiration | Aug 20, 2023 | Archives, Featured, Relationship
Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before… Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work. One day he was walking along the shore. As he looked down the beach, he saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself to think of someone who would dance to the day. So he began to walk faster to catch up. As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man and the young man wasn’t dancing, but instead, he was reaching down to the shore, picking up something and very gently throwing it into the ocean. As he got closer he called out, “Good morning! What are you doing?” The young man paused, looked up and replied, “Throwing starfish in the ocean.” “I guess I should have asked, why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?” “The sun is up, and the tide is going out, and if I don’t throw them in they’ll die.” “But, young man, don’t you realize that there are miles and miles of
;
by Inspiration | Aug 19, 2023 | Archives, Featured, Inspiration
A little boy was spending his Saturday morning playing in his sandbox. He had with him his box of cars and trucks, his plastic pail, and a shiny, red plastic… A little boy was spending his Saturday morning playing in his sandbox. He had with him his box of cars and trucks, his plastic pail, and a shiny, red plastic shovel. In the process of creating roads and tunnels in the soft sand, he discovered a large rock in the middle of the sandbox. The lad dug around the rock, managing to dislodge it from the dirt. With no little bit of struggle, he pushed and nudged the rock across the sandbox by using his feet. (He was a very small boy and the rock was very huge.) When the boy got the rock to the edge of the sandbox, however, he found that he couldn’t roll it up and over the little wall. Determined, the little boy shoved, pushed, and pried, but every time he thought he had made some progress, the rock tipped and then fell back into the sandbox. The little boy grunted, struggled, pushed, shoved — but his only reward was to have the rock roll back, smashing his chubby fingers. Finally, he burst into tears of frustration. All this time the boy’s father watched from his
;
by Inspiration | Aug 18, 2023 | Archives, Featured, Inspiration
Balance Sheet of Life Our Birth is our Opening Balance! Our Death is our Closing Balance! Our Prejudiced Views are our Liabilities Our Creative Ideas are our Assets Heart is… Balance Sheet of Life Our Birth is our Opening Balance! Our Death is our Closing Balance! Our Prejudiced Views are our Liabilities Our Creative Ideas are our Assets Heart is our Current Asset Soul is our Fixed Asset Brain is our Fixed Deposit Thinking is our Current Account Achievements are our Capital Character and Morals, our Stock-in-Trade Friends are our General Reserves Values and Behaviour are our Goodwill Patience is our Interest Earned Love is our Dividend Children are our Bonus Issues Education is Brand/ Patent Knowledge is our Investment Experience is our Premium Account The Aim is to Tally the Balance Sheet Accurately. The Goal is to get the Award for Best Presented Accounts. Here are some good and bad things… The most destructive habit………………….Worry The greatest Joy………………………….Giving The greatest loss…………….Loss of self-respect The most satisfying work……………Helping others The ugliest personality trait………….Selfishness The most endangered species…Dedicated leaders Our greatest natural resource……………Our youth The greatest “shot in the arm”……….Encouragement The greatest problem to overcome……………..Fear The most effective sleeping pill…Peace of mind The most crippling failure disease…………Excuses The most powerful force in life………………Love The most dangerous pariah………………A gossip The world’s most
;
