Pause For Thought

[MajestyJo]

Sometimes in life, you find a special friend;
Someone who changes your life
just by being part of it.
Someone who makes you laugh
until you can't stop;
Someone who makes you believe
that there really is good in the world.
Someone who convinces you that there
really is an unlocked door just waiting
for you to open it.

This is Forever Friendship.
This is the sacred RED ROSE.

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/flower12R.jpg

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR8KnRnvGN8bjyHtoAfuQRebbrNUIN1A TFcycBZYH2CU8HeUAmh

The Serenity Prayer Broken Down (a bit differently)

GOD ....
With the saying of this word I am admitting the existence of a Higher Power; a being far greater than I.

GRANT...
With the repeating of this second word I am admitting that this Higher Power is an authority who can bestow and give.

ME....
I am asking something for myself. The Bible states that if I ask, I shall be given. It is not wrong to ask for betterment of myself for with the inprovement of my character, people around me will be made happier.

SERENITY..
I am asking for calmness, composure, and peace in a life which will enable me to think straight and govern myself properly.

TO ACCEPT..
I am resigning myself to conditions as they are right now.

THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE..
I am accepting my lot in life as it is. Until I have the courage to change any part of my life I don't like, I must accept it and not accept it grudgingly.

COURAGE...
I am asking for conditions to be different.

TO CHANGE...
I am asking for a quality of spirit to face conditions without flinching.

THE THINGS I CAN..
I am asking for help to make the right decisions. Everything is not perfect in my life. I must continue to face reality and constantly work towards continued growth and progress.

WISDOM..
I am asking for the ability to form sound judgments in any and all matters.

TO KNOW..
I want to be able to understand clearly, truths of facts.

the DIFFERENCE...
I want to see things differently in my life so there can be some distinction. I need to sense a definite value in love over selfishness.

~ anonymous

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQII8TMJw5Md9sna3A11MeIMX1bWKowy ZZ95Ma9xil7veYSlXjR

The Spirit-filled home

"How do you remember your childhood home? Was it a loving and welcoming place? Maybe there were evidences of kindness and generosity-fresh homemade cookies, a dollhouse or model planes you and your dad built together, a warm welcome always waiting for you, an old couch to be shared with brothers and sisters.

Perhaps you don't have such wonderful childhood memories. Not everyone does. Homes can be places of cruelty as well-places full of criticism and humiliation, places characterized by conflict, jealousy, and pain. Loving homes don't just magically appear. They are the result of a husband and wife's commitment to letting God's Spirit control their lives. When you follow the Spirit's leading, God produces kindness, goodness, patience, and love in your lives. Then the home a marriage creates can become a light to the neighborhood, a place where friends and neighbors can experience genuine love and acceptance. If you are married, what type of home do you want your marriage to create? Ask God today to plant the seeds of loving kindness in your life, your marriage, and your home.

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-cartoons/0002.gif

"Having trouble, Piglet?"

"The lid on this jar is stuck," gasped Piglet.

"Yes, it...is, isn't it. Here, Pooh, you open it."

(Pop.)

"Thanks, Pooh,"said Piglet.

"Nothing, really," said Pooh.

"How did you get that lid off?" asked Tigger.

"It's easy," said Pooh. "You just twist on it like this, until you can't twist any harder. Then you take a deep breath and, as you let it out, twist. That's all."

"Let me try that!" yelled Tigger, bouncing into the kitchen. "Where's that new jar of pickles? Ah, here it is."

"Tigger," began Piglet nervously, "I don't think you'd better - "
"Nothing to it. Just twist and - "

CRASH!

"All right, Tigger," I said. "Get those pickles off the floor."
"Slipped out of my paw," explained Tigger.

"He tried too hard," said Pooh.

"Yes," said Piglet, "Rabbit's clever."

"And he has a Brain."

"Yes," said Piglet, "Rabbit has a Brain."

"I suppose," said Pooh, "that that's why he never understands anything."

"Ouch!" said Pooh, landing on the floor.

"That's what happens when you go to sleep on the edge of the writing table," I said. "You fall off."

"Just as well," said Pooh.

"Why's that?" I asked.

"I was having an awful dream," he said.

"Oh?"

"Yes, I'd found a jar of honey....," he said, rubbing his eyes.
"What's awful about that?" I asked.

"It kept moving," said Pooh. "they're supposed to sit still."

"Yes, I know"

"But whenever I reached for it, this jar of honey would sort of go someplace else."

"A nightmare," I said.

"Lot's of people have dreams like that," I added reassuringly.
"Oh," said Pooh. "About Unreachable jars of honey?"

"About the same sort of thing," I said. "That's not unusual. The odd thing , though, is that some people live like that."

"Why?" asked Pooh.

"I don't know," I said. "I suppose because it gives them Something to Do."

"It doesn't sound like much fun to me," said Pooh.

No it doesn't. A way of life that keeps saying, "Around the next corner, above the next step," works against the natural order
of things and makes it so difficult to be happy and good that only a few get to where they would naturally have been in the first place -Happy and Good- and the rest give up and fall by the side of the road, cursing the world, which is not to blame but which is there to help show the way.

Those who think that the rewarding things in life are somewhere beyond the rainbow----

"Burn their toast a lot," said Pooh.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-cartoons/0097.gif

~~~~~

Inspiration Plus

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Remain open.
There is something bigger than you know going on here."
-- Iyanla VanZant

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/greetingspod/greetingspod75.jpg

For me, it is about listening to that voice, those little messages, thoughts, and direction I get on a daily basis and how God works in my life.

Thursday night I went to the Women's Group because I felt I really needed a meeting after having a using dream. I not only dreamt about alcohol but other addictions and defects of character such as men, food, anger, resentments and looking for attention.

At the end of the meeting, the women all join hands and say The Promises and they give out Hope Stones which vary in shapes, sizes and colours. There is nothing more powerful that joining together in that circle. I saw a shape and said to the lady beside me, "that has my name on it and picked it up to find that it was an empty snail shell. I love earth tones and that attracted me to it. I looked up snails on the inter net and found that they were good for skin problems. I have cirrhosis, and a skin disorder that I don't know the correct spelling of - it is when your skin is dry and turns red.

On Friday when I went to the market, I got the thought to buy squash. It isn't one of my favorite vegetables but decided to night to add maple syrup and butter to it when I mashed it. After dinner, I looked up the booklet from Shaman Wisdom Cards and it reads as follows:


Quote:

I am Squash. I am Gourd. I grow well unattended. Let things be. Do not try to control situations or events. My vines spread out to encompass all. I help you create your abundance through my diversity. I am the Sustenance of your life. Combined with Beans and Corn, we are the life force.


Nothing like a subliminal message to someone who has control issues.
Definitely a spiritual cast iron frying pan.

Many times I get thoughts and discount them, only to find that I should have listened to them. Take something out for supper and I allow mysefl to get interrupted and don't take action on the thought. When supper time comes, nothing taken out for dinner. Often when playing bridge, I get a thought and don't follow through only to find that it was the only way to make a contract.

Get the thought of someone, say a little prayer for them, and often I get a call from them or meet them on the street or at a meeting. The light will change and go red so I will walk in a new direction instead of waiting for the light to change, and often I will meet someone or as my friend says, perhaps it was to avoid something or someone I wasn't suppose to meet.

Thanks for letting me share.

From my site JoAnne's Sacred Space

Those signals where coming through today, they always do, when I start my day with the Step Three Prayer and Seventh Prayer.

It always give me the warm fuzzies, when I see an old post, and seeing it at work in my life today.

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/kitten/kitten19.jpg


We can act ourselves into right thinking easier than we can think ourselves into right acting.

~Anonymous~

The best thing for us to do in our 12 Step Program is to be honest in how we act and think. We must be true to that belief.

We can't think for others, and they can't think for us. Friends can tell us the lessons they have learned from their experiences. If those lessons fit us, we can use them to help guide us and our thinking. We often hear, "Take what you need and leave the rest."

As good for us as our ideas are, we must not force them on others. We can only offer them. And we won't be true to ourselves if we are jealous of other people's ideas. We never know what we can do until we try, and we can't be sure what ideas are best for us until we test them.

Am I dedicated to the beliefs that are best for me in my recovery?


You are reading from the book:

Easy Does It by Anonymous

It was so important for me to learn that all I could do was share my experience, strength, and hope. That what was good for me, might help someone and it might not help others. What works for one person, may not work for another, or it may work in part. Just because someone is in recovery, doesn't mean there word is law and truth. It is their truth. It is their ESH, but you need to find what is your ESH and what works for you.

[MajestyJo]

A friend asked me to bring up the topic of substitution.

http://angelwinks.net/images/humorpod/humorpod76.gif

How often we substitute other (people, places and things) for our drug of choice. This can materialize in many forms but it all leads to the same soul sickness.

I was told that anything that came between me and the kind of person God wants me to be and becomes an obsessive, compulsive action in my life and it becomes the 'god' of my life

Sobriety for me means soundness of mind. Anything that takes me out of that state puts me at risk, and I may pick up. I can be clean and sober and not have sobriety.

It has materialized in many forms for me:

1) My bed (hiding from reality and life as a whole

2) Food - stuffing feelings I don't want to deal with or I have allowed myself to become empty and I am looking for something outside of myself to 'fill' me up.

3) Work - redirecting my energies so I don't have to stop and look at myself. An outlet for the emotions I don't want to acknowledge and takes away from time I need to work on my recovery.

4)My compuer - this is a biggy for me. Even though a lot of the work I do on the computer is recovery it is generally to help others, and often I am copy typing, or reading other people's material, and even if I can identify, I need time to process that material. If I don't take that time, then it doesn't do me any good if I don't apply it to my life. I don't like to admit it, but a couple of times I have had friends say to me, "Practice what you preach!" Apply what you know to yourself! Take time for you, this is a living program. All I have is today. Am I living or am I back existing?

5) People, a biggy for me who has been Ms. Caretaker for many years. It is always so much easier to focus and help someone else rather than look at myself. There is also that old "If you don't love me, then I will find someone else who does" Syndrome, along with that "What's good for the goose is good for the gander" Solution which generally hurts everyone.

6) Things like chocolate (sweets are good when you first come into recovery and the cure becomes a curse), pills (depression and nervous disorders which are common to detoxing becomes treated with the "almighty" pill and becomes like "dried-up" alcohol to our system, meetings (go to 90 meetings in 90 days - then what do you do? Stop? I don't think so! Yet they can be a dependency too, and you don't want to leave the safe stronghold and step out into the real world.

Maybe that is why this is called a "One Day At A Time" program. We have to live it, each moment, each hour of the day.

Maybe you have some substitutions you would like to share? We can't know what we haven't been taught or experienced!

[MajestyJo]

GOD'S HOTEL

http://angelwinks.net/images/nostalgicpod/nostalgicpod76.jpg

I checked you in again last night, my child,

Because it hurt me so bad to see you out there running wild.

All tired and sucked up you appeared to me

But put a mirror in front of you, and you can't even see;

That you are a number among the walking dead,

Sores all over your body, confusion in your head.

Jail is not the place you want to be

But it's my hotel, where I can work on thee you see.

You weren't just arrested, you were rescued from yourself.

I had to bring you back here, to put your habit on the shelf.

Give you some rest, some food, and some talk

Encourage you and love you, before I let you walk.

Don't be like a mule that's led around by a bit,

Just listen to your warnings, and I can help you quit.

This could be the last time you have to come into this place,

Just listen to me the Creator Of All with tears upon my face...


Original Source Unknown - posted on FB's Addict's Mom

[MajestyJo]

The Book of Rememberance

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-butterflies/0055.gif

"The Book of Remembrance is written in God's Presence for those who Love the Lord and who meditate on The Name". (Malachi 3:16)

"Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat." (Isaiah 55:1)

aspire.com

Quote:
Hello Friends of Reiki,

The entire contents of the Book of Remembrance (over 300 pages) is now printed on our website for everyone to read.

http://www.AscensionReiki.com

We share the information in this Reiki Manual freely as a
service to the Reiki Community and all of humanity.

The purpose of this book and website is to bring about an awareness that there is a great outpouring of the Spirit of Love on this Earth and that it is all around us.

In Love and Light,
Jayson

Received with thanks from my friend Lordès
Spiritual Vibrational Paintings

Spiritual Alternative Healing and Counselling for the body, mind and soul.

From The Five As

[MajestyJo]

Tip of the Day for March 08, 2004 from the Five As

Still sounds usable in March 25, 2013

Nothing soothes like a hot rice pack on the back of your neck or
wherever aches you most. The simplest way to create one is with an intact tube sock or pillow case. Just pour in several cups of dry, raw rice--any rice except instant rice works fine. Tie the sock or pillow case closed with a good knot.

Toss your sack in the microwave for about two minutes or so, until it reaches the perfect hot temperature to relax any muscle spasm.

Heating time depends on the size of your sack and the strength of
your microwave. When it begins to cool, place it directly on your
clothes or skin. Rice sacks heat up more intensely than electric
heating pads and are much safer. Their flexible consistency is
particularly soothing.

(Source: "Ten Tips on Living with Fibromyalgia Syndrome" by Deborah A. Barrett, Ph.D.
www.paintracking.com.) This tip provided courtesy of
ImmuneSupport.com

[MajestyJo]

Exercise: A Healthy Habit to Start and Keep

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/avatars-100x100-objects/0047.gifhttp://www.animated-gifs.eu/avatars-100x100-objects/0031.gif

How much exercise do I need?
Talk to your doctor about how much exercise is right for you. A good goal for many people is to work up to exercising 4 to 6 times a week for 30 to 60 minutes at a time. Remember, though, that exercise has so many benefits that any amount is better than none.

How do I get started?

Sneak exercise into your day

a.. Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

b.. Go for a walk during your coffee break or lunch.

c.. Walk all or part of the way to work.

d.. Do housework at a fast pace.

e.. Rake leaves or do other yard work.

Start by talking with your doctor. This is especially important if you haven't been active, if you have any health problems, or if you're pregnant or elderly.

Start out slowly. If you've been inactive for years, you can't run the Boston Marathon after 2 weeks of training. Begin with a 10-minute period of light exercise or a brisk walk every day and gradually increase how hard you exercise and for how long.

How do I stick with it?

Here are some tips that will help you start and stick with an exercise program:

· Choose something you like to do. Make sure it suits you
physically, too. For instance, swimming is easier on arthritic joints.

· Get a partner. Exercising with someone else can make it more fun.

· Vary your routine. You may be less likely to get bored or injured if you change your routine. Walk one day. Bicycle the next. Consider activities like dancing and racquet sports, and even chores like chopping wood.

· Choose a comfortable time of day. Don't work out too soon after eating or when it's too hot or cold outside. Wait until later in the day if you're too stiff in the morning.

· Don't get discouraged. It can take weeks or months before you notice some of the changes from exercise.

· Forget "no pain, no gain." While a little soreness is
normal after you first start exercising, pain isn't. Stop if you hurt.

· Make exercise fun. Read, listen to music or watch TV while riding a stationary bicycle, for example. Find fun things to do, like taking a walk through the zoo. Go dancing. Learn how to play tennis.

Making exercise a habit

a.. Stick to a regular time every day.

b.. Sign a contract committing yourself to exercise.

c.. Put "exercise appointments" on your calendar.

d.. Keep a daily log or diary of your activities.

e.. Check your progress. Can you walk a certain distance
faster now than when you began? Or is your heart rate slower now?

f.. Ask your doctor to write a prescription for your exercise program, such as what type of exercise to do, how often to exercise and for how long.

g.. Think about joining a health club. The cost gives some people an incentive to exercise regularly.

How can I prevent injuries?

Start every workout with a warm-up. That will make your muscles and joints more flexible. Spend 5 to 10 minutes doing some light calisthenics and stretching exercises, and perhaps brisk walking. Do the same thing when you're done working out--until your heart rate returns to normal.

Pay attention to your body. Stop exercising if you feel very out of breath, dizzy, faint or nauseated, or have pain.

Benefits of regular exercise
a.. Reduces your risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, diabetes and obesity

b.. Keeps joints, tendons and ligaments flexible so it's
easier to move around

c.. Reduces some of the effects of aging

d.. Contributes to your mental well-being and helps treat
depression

e.. Helps relieve stress and anxiety

f.. Increases your energy and endurance

g.. Helps you sleep better

h.. Helps you maintain a normal weight by increasing your metabolism (the rate you burn calories).

What is a target heart rate?

Measuring your heart rate (beats per minute) can tell you how hard your heart is working. You can check your heart rate by counting your pulse for 15 seconds and multiplying the beats by 4.

The chart to the right shows the target heart rates for people of different ages. When you're just beginning an exercise program, shoot for the lower target heart rate (60%). As your fitness improves, you can exercise harder to get your heart rate closer to the top number
(85%).

What is aerobic exercise?
Aerobic exercise is the type that moves large muscle groups and causes you to breathe more deeply and your heart to work harder to pump blood.

It's also called cardiovascular exercise. It improves the health of your heart and lungs.

Examples include walking, jogging, running, aerobic dance, bicycling, rowing, swimming and cross-country skiing.

What is weight-bearing exercise?
The term weight-bearing is used to describe exercises that work against the force of gravity. Weight-bearing exercise is important for building strong bones. Having strong bones helps prevent osteoporosis and bone fractures later in life.

Examples of weight-bearing exercises include walking, jogging, hiking, climbing stairs, dancing and weight training.

What about weight training?
Weight training, or strength training, builds strength and muscles. Calisthenics like push-ups are weight-training exercises too. Lifting weights is a weight-training exercise. If you have high blood pressure or other health problems, talk to your family doctor before beginning weight training.

What is the best exercise?
The best exercise is the one that you will do. Walking is considered one of the best choices because it's easy, safe and cheap. Brisk walking can burn as many calories as running, but is less likely than running or jogging to cause injuries. And it doesn't require any training or special equipment, except for good shoes.

Walking is an aerobic and weight-bearing exercise, so it is good for your heart and helps prevent osteoporosis.

O M S H A N T I

Love, Samuel

Please include a link back to The Antesian Road To Enlightenment in forwarded material, Thank you.

EXPANDING CONSCIOUSNESS

I know what to do, I know what is best for me, but sometimes the intentions are there, the thought comes to mind, but for the most part, I allow fatigue and pain to intervene.

[MajestyJo]

The Year 1905


This will boggle your mind, I know it did mine!

The year is 1905, more than one hundred years ago. What a difference a century makes!


Here are some of the U.S. statistics for the Year 1905:

The average life expectancy in the U.S. was 47 years.

Only 14 percent of the homes in the U.S. had a bathtub.

Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.

A three-minute call from Denver to New York City cost eleven dollars.

There were only 8,000 cars in the U.S., and only 144 miles of paved roads.

The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.

Alabama, Mississippi, Iowa, and Tennessee! were each more heavily populated than California.

With a mere 1.4 million people, California was only the 21st most populous state in the Union.

The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower!

The average wage in the U.S. was 22 cents per hour.

The average U.S. worker made between $200 and $400 per year

A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year,

a dentist $2,500 per year,

a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and

a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.

More than 95 percent of all births in the U.S. took place at home.

Ninety percent of all U.S. doctors had no college education.

Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and by the government as "substandard."

Sugar cost four cents a pound.

Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.

Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.

Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used borax or egg yolks for shampoo.

Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.

Five leading causes of death in the U.S. were:

1. Pneumonia and influenza
2. Tuberculosis
3. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease
5. Stroke

The American flag had 45 stars.

Arizona, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Hawaii, and Alaska hadn't been admitted to the Union yet.

The population of Las Vegas, Nevada, ! was only 30!!!

Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and ice tea hadn't been invented yet.

There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.

Two out of every 10 U.S. adults couldn't read or write.

Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.

Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores.

Back then pharmacist said, "Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health."
(Shocking!)

Eighteen percent of households in the U.S. had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.

There were about 230 reported murders in the entire U.S.

Now I forwarded this from someone else without typing it myself, and sent it to you in a matter of seconds!

Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years.

Sometimes time seems to just mark time, other times it just disappears. If we don't live in today, we miss out on so much, before we know it, it is gone.


http://www.animated-gifs.eu/avatars-100x100-objects/0065.gifhttp://www.animated-gifs.eu/avatars-100x100-objects/0066.gifhttp://www.animated-gifs.eu/avatars-100x100-objects/0070.gif

[MajestyJo]

DON'T EVER...

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/kids-animals/0040.gif

Don't ever try to understand everything,
some things will just never make sense.

Don't ever be reluctant to show your feelings
when you're happy, give into it!
When you're not, live with it.

Don't ever be afraid to try
to make things better,
you might be surprised at the results.

Don't ever take the weight of the world
on your shoulders.

Don't ever feel threatened by the future,
take life one day at a time.

Don't ever feel guilty about the past,
what's done is done.
Learn from any mistakes you might have made.

Don't ever feel that you are alone,
there is always somebody there
for you to reach out to.

Don't ever forget that you can achieve
so many of the things you can imagine,
imagine that!
It's not as hard as it seems.

Don't ever stop loving,
Don't ever stop believing,
Don't ever stop dreaming your dreams.

- author unknown to me

[MajestyJo]

http://i546.photobucket.com/albums/hh410/Lightworking/TrueNobility.png

[MajestyJo]

When You Need God The Most

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/insects-butterflies/0307.gif

His strongest grace
is for your weakest moment;

His sweetest fellowship
is for your loneliest journey;

His richest supply
is for yur neediest hour;

His closest embrace
is for your deepest sorrow;

His brightest light
is for your darkest day.

-Unknown

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/insects-butterflies/0270.gif

Dads feel there is no problem breaking a promise of a fishing trip to a son or daughter when there is something more important -- like free tickets to a professional basketball game or a little extra work at the office.

After all, there are more weekends for fishing and
those tickets are a one time thing. (They never consider the effect broken promises have on the heart of a child.)

Employers are always promising more pay and less work when the reality is just the opposite. Store advertisements promise to have a certain product at a really good price -- the product "didn't come in on the last shipment -- and no we don't give rain checks on sale items."

Have you paid close attention to commercials lately? What do they sell? Looked at a flower catalogue? Have you ever received a package from them that looks like the product on the cover? You more than likely received a packet of dried up seeds or ugly roots. All of these are selling a promise. "Buy this and you will get that." Often the promises are unfulfilled.

Abram (later called Abraham) was offered a promise, "Go to a country I will show you in the future and I will
bless you." Sounds a lot like a telemarketer I talked
to the other day. The only difference was that I was
talking to a human with a slick line and Abram was
talking with the Almighty God. Evidently Abram had
dealings with God before. He trusted Him. Was the promise fulfilled? Certainly.

Has God made promises to you? Has he fulfilled them?
(Careful before you say "no". His promises are recorded
in Scripture. Any other promises you may claim He made -- personal prophecy -- are subject to human emotion and error.) God promises salvation. He delivers. God promises eternal life. He delivers. God promises answers to prayer. He delivers -- but not always the way we want Him to answer. Our God is faithful and true. Hallelujah, Amen.

From my friend Bette - Posted on Caressa's Spiritual Place

[MajestyJo]

The Love of a Dog

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-dogs-love/0034.gif

You are the human I love,

My love for you lives inside of me,

I feel no anger for you, no resentment,

no fatigue or weariness.

My love for you does not change, or wither.

I lean as close to your body as I can,

I drink in your smells, your feelings.

I think of you all the time,

when you are here, when you are not.

I go with you wherever you go,

in my heart, in your heart.

I will always lean my soul,

as close to you as I can get,

my love for you is without words,

for you, for me,

it us beyond your consciousness,

or understanding.

But my love for you is our language, our vows,

our bond, our reality, we don't need the words.

When humans fail you, or life empties your spirit,

My eyes see the wondrous truth,

of who you really are.

By author Jon Katz who has the wonderful red border collie that tens of thousands (at least) adore due to his blog.

Received with thanks from my friend Carey in Texas

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-mice-7/0076.gif

My parents told me about Mr. Common Sense early in my life and told me I would do well to call on him when making decisions. It seems he was always around in my early years but less and less as time passed by until today I read his obituary. Please join me in a moment of silence in remembrance. For Common Sense had served us all so well for so many generations.

Obituary

Common Sense


Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was since his
birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.

He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as knowing
when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm, life isn't always fair, and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound fina ncial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not children are in
charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens su spended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job they themselves failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer Aspirin, sun lotion or a sticky plaster to a student; but could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar can sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap , and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by three stepbrothers; I Know my Rights, Someone Else is to Blame, and I'm a Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

Author unknown

Originally posted on my site Nature's Inspiration

Don't always have common sense when it comes to food. God and I are still working on this. It has been up and down, off and on, for too many years for my liking. One thing I did learn, stuffing was not good, moderation and quality and quantity, help to keep me eating healthy. Over indulgency, keeps me acting out in my disease.

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-mice-7/0095.gif

Quote: "Sometimes I think I'm going to die from the sadness. Not that anyone ever died from crying for two hours, but it sure feels like it."

As a survivor of child (sexual) abuse you have a lot to grieve for. You will grieve for the way you were hurt. You will grieve for not being protected, for the things you missed out on as a child. You will grieve for the time and money it takes to heal, for the relationships and happiness you have lost.

If you covered up your pain by pretending you had a happy childhood, you will have to grieve for the ideal family you didn't really have. You'll have to give up the idea that the abuser had your best interests at heart.

You may have to grieve for the fact that you don't have suitable grandparents for your children, or a family you can depend on.

You must also grieve for the shattered image of a world that is fair and safe for children. You will grieve for your lost innocence and ability to trust.

Quote: As a survivor of child 'sexual' abuse you have a lot to grieve for.

Buried grief

Buried grief poisons you. It limits your ability to feel joy or to be fully alive. An important part of healing is to express the grief you've carried inside.

When you were young, you had to hide your feelings. Now, to move on in your life, you need to go back and relive the experiences you had as a child. You have to feel the grief and anguish, but this time with the support of caring people. You might wonder how going back into the pain can help release you from it. But this is how healing from trauma works.

The way to move beyond grief is to experience your pain fully and honor your feelings. When you face your feelings, and they are met with caring and compassion, they change.

- A first book for Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse by Ellen Bass and Laura Davis


A lot of my pain was done by a psychic healer and by using Dyanetics written by L. Ron Hubbard.,which is a tool of The Church of Scientology. I don't believe in the church but I believe in the tool that is offered. It goes beyond Steps Ten, Eleven and Twelve and helps you to heal at a deeper level.

Some of the pain I revisited, but a lot of it was just a mass of pent up energy, that I needed to release and let go of in a healthy way. I didn't have to "live" in it, I could revisit but come back to the present and not stay there which is so important when healing this type of pain. That was then, this is now; but what happened back then, can affect me in today until I heal and let it go.

About Grief

You may feel foolish crying over events that happened so long ago. But grief stays stored up until you have a chance to express it.

Quote: The way to move beyond grief is to experience your pain fully and honor your feelings.

Grief has its own timing. You can't say, "This is it. I'm going to grieve now." You have to make room for grief as it arises. You need to give yourself the time and space to let go.


Quote: "I had been in therapy for several months and I began to feel safe. There were weeks when I entered the building, went up the stairs, and checked in, all with a smile on my face. Then I'd enter the office, and my therapist would close the door. Before she could even get to her chair, I'd be crying. Deep within me I help those feelings, waiting until I new there would be time and compassion."

However your grieve, allow yourself to release the feelings you've been holding inside. Grieving can be a grief relief.


Many times over the years, especially the last eleven years of recovery; I have sat in meditation after asking for what I needed to heal, and the ability to let go of what I didn't need, want or desire. I have sat there with tears just streaming down my face. Most times, not knowing the source, but other times, as a result of something that had triggered me in today.

Tears are a great healer. They cleanse the soul.

Written in 2010

[MajestyJo]

The following was a post I made in January of 2004 at my site Star Choices

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-mice-7/0085.gif

A drug is a drug, no matter what you use. Anything that is mind altering and allows you to escape yourself. I once heard someone say, "Anything that stands between you and your God and what he would have you do and be, in today!"

Love Always,

CC

Since I started going to NA 18 years ago, I have repeatedly come across people who think that just because I was addicted to prescription pills, and didn't do "street" drugs, I am not a 'real' addict.

Several times over the years I have heard people say "I am a 'real' alcoholic. Well prescription drugs where dried up alcohol for me. I didn't have blackouts with alcohol, but I did with pills. I didn't like all kinds of alcohol, but I sure liked all kinds of pills.

When I quit smoking, I tried Zyban. I took a pill and waited for the 'craving' to disappear. I didn't read the instructions, I thought I knew! The Ms. Know It All Addict thought she knew what she was doing. It ended up I was allowed to take the pills for five days and smoke too. I quit smoking and took the pills expecting the instant fix! When I finally read the instructions, it gave me permission to smoke, and I tried it their way and all the pill did was make the cigarettes taste bad, so I quit the pills and the cigarettes.

Since I have been going through the problem with doctors and having to deal with pain with no medication, it has been so difficult to 'take as prescribed' the meds I am allowed. I had not been to a meeting for three weeks because of pain, life and the holidays. I found myself cussing, totally addicted to my computer games, and not posting on my sites or here. I had nothing to give!

I went to CA on Friday night for a three and a four year anniversary, and then to my friend's five year anniversary on Saturday in AA, and if I hadn't felt in so much pain, drained of energy and so tired, I would have done NA on Sunday. Then I got word that my Aunt who is 81 had a stroke. I thought of her Sunday, was near her building and 3 p.m. and she had the stroke at 4 p.m. I had a lot of guilt because I didn't follow the thought and go see her, although I know I was powerless over stopping her stroke. What I have been beating myself up for was the fact that I didn't listen to myself. I have spent years learning to listen to that inner voice, what I call my Higher Self, and I didn't follow through on it. Perhaps I wasn't meant to, and it happened as it should, but I have also found it happening in little things, like at my bridge club tonight.

It has been a big lesson, and I know that for me, sometimes "thought" can mess me up. Being an Aries, it isn't always good to intellectualize everything, and it is difficult for me to "Let Go" and trust that God is doing His part, without me having my fingers in the pie!!!!

In the telling of this, I am starting to smile and have a chuckle, it sure helps to put it into words.

[MajestyJo]

The 4 D's of spiritual growth

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-angels/0224.gif

"Strive to be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind. To be too wise for worry, too tolerant for hate, and too courageous to be fearful. In short, to be happy."

-- Unknown Source

Reflect on this pathway for meaningful growth:

DISCIPLINE - To create change in our lives, we need to consistently focus on what we want.
DETACHMENT - Practice the art of detached observation. Let go of automatic defenses and patterns.
DISCERNMENT - Seek to discern the lower from the higher. What is self-serving and what is soul-inspired? Discernment carries no judgment. There are no goods and bads. Remain as a detached witness.
DHARMA - This is an East Indian word meaning "living your unique purpose." How do you find meaning and fulfillment in ways that are natural to you? How do you best serve and contribute to the world?

"If you wish to travel far and fast, travel light. Take off all your envies, jealousies, unforgiveness, selfishness, and fears."

-- Glenn Clark

[MajestyJo]

Something I posted on another site 2010:


I was just thinking of the hypocrisy I found in a lot of people in the church to my way of thinking, of course, not giving any thought to my own rebellion of all the 'thou shall nots' that I didn't want to adhere to.

If I could find fault with someone else, then I didn't have to look at me.

I love the spiritual part of the program. It doesn't matter what your religious belief may be, you can meet on common ground.

I highly dislike game playing, dishonesty, and self-righteous sinners. I don't even like the word sin. For me, sin means "Soul In Need" and it doesn't mean I was a bad person, it meant that I was a sick person trying to get better.

For so many years, I look for some person, place or thing outside of myself to make me feel better. Just in the saying, shows the insanity of the disease.

I am reminded of that verse, "He that is without sin, cast the first stone." Don't remember where it is found, I just know it is there.

I am so glad that my God is forgiving and His Love is unconditional.

The biggest problem was me, trying to figure it out and/or thinking I knew it all, after all I had been going to church all my life, who are you to tell me, that I don't know God.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-angels/0226.gif

[MajestyJo]

Eight Gifts that Do Not Cost A Cent

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-angels/0429.gif

1. THE GIFT OF LISTENING...
But you must REALLY listen.
No interrupting, no daydreaming,
no planning your response.
Just listening.

2. THE GIFT OF AFFECTION...
Be generous with appropriate hugs,
kisses, pats on the back, and handholds.
Let these small actions demonstrate the
love you have for family and friends.

3. THE GIFT OF LAUGHTER...
Clip cartoons.
Share articles and funny stories.
Your gift will say, "I love to laugh with you."

4. THE GIFT OF A WRITTEN NOTE...
It can be a simple
"Thanks for the help" note or a full sonnet.
A brief, handwritten note may be remembered
for a lifetime, and may even change a life.

5. THE GIFT OF A COMPLIMENT...
A simple and sincere,
You look great in red," "You did a super job,"
or "That was a wonderful meal"
can make someone's day.

6. THE GIFT OF A FAVOR...
Every day, go out of your way
to do something kind.

7. THE GIFT OF SOLITUDE...
There are times when we want nothing better
than to be left alone.
Be sensitive to those times and give
the gift of solitude to others.

8. THE GIFT OF A CHEERFUL DISPOSITION...
The easiest way to feel good is
to extend a kind word to someone.
Really, it's not that hard to say,
Hello or Thank You.

[MajestyJo]

THE BRAND NEW YOU
By Max Lucado

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-angels/0458.gif

Have you ever noticed the way
a groom looks at his bride
during the wedding? I have.
Perhaps it's my vantage point.
As the minister of the wedding,
I'm positioned next to the groom.
By the time we reach the altar,
I've been with him for some time backstage
as he tugged his collar and mopped his brow.
But all that changes when she appears.
And the look on his face is
my favorite scene in the wedding.

Most miss it.
Most miss it because they are looking at her.
But when other eyes are on the bride,
I sneak a peek at the groom.
If the light is just so and the angle just right,
I can see a tiny reflection in his eyes.
Her reflection.
And the sight of her reminds him why he is here.

And such are precisely the feelings of Jesus.
Look long enough into the eyes of our Savior
and, there, too, you will see a bride.
Dressed in fine linen.
Clothed in pure grace.
From the wreath in her hair
to the clouds at her feet,
she is royal;
she is the princess.
She is the bride.
His bride.
Walking toward him,
she is not yet with him.
But he sees her,
he awaits her,
he longs for her.

“Who could bear to live without her?”
you hear him whisper.

And who is that bride?
Who is this beauty who occupies
the heart of Jesus?

You are.
You have captured the heart of God.
“As a man rejoices over his new wife,
so your God will rejoice over you”
(Isa. 62:5).

The challenge is to remember that.
To meditate on it.
To focus on it.
To allow his love to change
the way you look at you.
__________________________________
From "When Christ Comes"

From my site Soundness of Mind

[MajestyJo]

~THE BANDIT OF JOY~
By Max Lucado

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-angels/0068.gif

Black Bart terrorized the Wells Fargo stage line for thirteen years, roaring like a tornado in and out of the Sierra Nevadas, spooking the most rugged frontiersmen.

During his reign of terror between 1875 and 1883, he is credited with stealing the bags and the breath away from twenty-nine different stagecoach crews.

A hood hid his face.

No victim ever saw him.

No artist ever sketched his features.

No sheriff could ever track his trail.

He never fired a shot or took a hostage.

He didn't have to.

His presence was enough to paralyze.

He reminds me of another thief-one who's still around.

You know him.

Oh you've never seen his face, either.

You couldn't describe his voice or sketch his profile.

But when he's near, you know it in a heartbeat.

If you've ever been in the hospital, you've felt the leathery brush
of his hand against yours.

If you've ever sensed someone was following you, you've felt his cold breath down your neck.

If you've awakened late at night in a strange room, it was his husky whisper
that stole your slumber.

You know him.

It was this thief who left your palms sweaty as you went for the job
interview.

It was this con man who convinced you to swap your integrity for
popularity.

And it was this scoundrel who whispered in your ear as you left the cemetery, “You may be next.”

He's the Black Bart of the soul.

He doesn't want your money.

He doesn't want your diamonds.

He won't go after your car.

He wants something far more precious.

He wants your peace of mind-your joy.

His name?

Fear.

His task is to take your courage and leave you timid and trembling.
Fear of death, fear of failure, fear of God, fear of tomorrow-his arsenal is vast.

His goal?

To create cowardly, joyless souls.
_____________________________
From The Applause of Heaven

From my site Soundness of Mind

[MajestyJo]

Ten things God Won't Ask

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/water-frogs/0239.gif

1...God won't ask what kind of car you drove; He'll ask how many people you drove who didn't have transportation.

2...God won't ask the square footage of your house, He'll ask how many people you welcomed into your home.

3...God won't ask about the clothes you had in your closet, He'll ask how many you helped to clothe.

4...God won't ask what your highest salary was, He'll ask if you compromised your character to obtain it.

5...God won't ask what your job title was, He'll ask if you performed your job to the best of your ability.

6...God won't ask how many friends you had, He'll ask how many people to whom you were a friend.

7...God won't ask in what neighborhood you lived, He'll ask how you treated your neighbors.

8...God won't ask about the color of your skin, He'll ask about the content of your character.

9...God won't ask why it took you so long to seek Salvation, He'll lovingly take you to your mansion in heaven, and not to the gates of Hell.

10...God won't ask how many people you forwarded this to, He'll ask if you were ashamed to pass it on to your friends.

Read 1st line Carefully

Happy moments, praise God.

Difficult moments, seek God.

Quiet moments, worship God.

Painful moments, trust God.

Every moment, thank God.


An oldie but a goodie.

[MajestyJo]

Had a lot of guilt, because of my religious upbringing, I was very angry at God when I came into recovery. Found out it was more about the church and the "Thou Shall Nots" I was brought up in the Gospel Halls and you couldn't dance, play cards, couldn't go outside and have fun because it was Sunday. My mom broke down and let us go to a few drive in movies, we went to see one on forest fires, I got triggered from when our house got struck by lightening. I started crying, burying my head in my lap and was totally terrified. We left, my mother felt guilty and stopped us from going to movies.

When I came into recovery, the only God I knew was the God of my childhood. I am afraid my belief, faith, and trust was conditional and they talked about a Higher Power, and my attitude was, `Don`t tell me, show me.` My God showed Himself to me and as you know, I like to say, God is, as He reveals Himself to me in today.

I used only my Bible for meditation for my first year, later I was given the book Serenity, the New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs, which were cross reference with the Steps. I found that I had been working and living the Steps without knowing it. I said a prayer each night, opened the book, and read the page I opened to, and anything that spoke out to me, I wrote down.

It started small asking for help every morning to stay clean and sober for that day and giving thanks at night. When I came up upon something new or troublesome, the Serenity Prayer saved the day. I found out that I could wear it out. There is certainly a difference by saying it and meaning it, rather than just playing lip service.

In today, I KNOW my God is there. I can be walking down the street and saying, Hey Big Guy, this one is for you. I am just as apt to say, Can you not give me a little hint so we both know.

I try to take time outs during my day and asking for help, especially when my pain is bad. I ask for what I need to change, let go, unblock what is preventing me to connect to my God or to the answers that I know are there and I can not see in the moment. My faith is knowing it is there, it is about me surrendering it ALL to Him, not giving up but giving over, because I know my way does not work.

I am grateful that in today, that my God is loving, caring, forgiving, and oh so much more. As the verse in the Bible says, He strengthens me and all things are possible according to His Divine Plan.

The most helpful prayer is praying for the willingness to be willing.

I was told to not pray for specifics for myself or family and friends. That is playing God with other people's lives. I was told to pray for what they needed according to their Higher Good. When I did healing sessions with a friend, I would tell people, this is a contract between my God and your God, as to how much you receive and how open and willing you are to receive.

I was just a channel, and sometimes I was given thoughts as to what I needed to do or get them to do for their health and well being.

All we can do is pray and leave the outcome to our God. As they say, you can't help those who are not willing to change.

We may not all have the same view and perspective of God, but the Spirituality of the program, brings us together as one.

http://angelwinks.net/images/kidpod/kidpod1146.jpg

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-koalas/0024.gif

Work hard at what you like to do and try to overcome all obstacles

Laugh at your mistakes and praise yourself for learning from them

Pick some flowers and appreciate the beauty of nature

Say hello to strangers and enjoy the people you know

Don't be afraid to show your emotions laughing and crying make you feel better

Love your friends and family with your entire being they are the most important part of your life

Feel the calmness on a quiet sunny day

Find a rainbow and live your world of dreams always remember life is better than it seems.

Author Unknown to me

If a Kiss was a raindrop,

I'd send you showers.

If a hug was a second,

I'd send you hours.

If a smile was water,

I'd send you the sea.

If love was a person,

I'd send you me.

Have A Great Day!

[MajestyJo]

http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/vv36/MajestyJo/More/XYZ/heart.gif

When you are tired and discouraged
from fruitless effort,

GOD knows how hard you have tried.

When you've cried so long your
heart is in anguish,

GOD has counted your tears.

If you feel that your life is on hold
and time has passed you by,

GOD is waiting for you.

When nothing makes sense and you
are confused or frustrated,

GOD has the answer.

If suddenly your outlook is brighter
and you find traces of hope,

GOD has whispered to you.

When things are going well and you
have much to be thankful for,

GOD has blessed you.

When something joyful happens
and you are filled with awe,

GOD has smiled upon you.

Remember that wherever you are or
whatever you are feeling,

GOD knows!

[MajestyJo]

WARPAINT

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/halloween-dolls/0010.gif

Here, put this on- this cheek color,
and cover up all your freckles,
don’t forget to curl your hair,
eyeliner goes right here,
mascara makes your eyelashes long,
but not for long,
if you use all these things,
you won’t have to share your heart,
you won’t have to take the chance,
he’ll see the fear in your eyes, as you
remember all the others who's lies,
you believed before...

Melody Jackson

How we perceive our self, is not what others see. So many time we wore that mask, hoping it will not only cover our face, but what we feel inside.

[MajestyJo]

Bishop Spong, Q & A,

... from Elko, Nevada writes:

"What part did the oral tradition play in the development of the New Testament?" Dear Lee,

The oral tradition is the only way that the stories of Jesus could have lived between his death in 30 C.E. (approximately) and the writing of the Gospels between 70 C.E. and 100 C.E. This means that everything we know about Jesus lived for 40 to 70 years in oral transmission before it was written down. The real questions are where was this tradition preserved, by whom and in what context?

When I wrote "Liberating the Gospels: Reading the Bible with Jewish Eyes," I defended the thesis that it was in the synagogue that the oral tradition was born and in the synagogue that it thrived. Most of the gospel stories existed first as sermons, preached about Jesus against the background of the synagogue readings of the Torah and the prophets In this process, Jesus in the oral tradition came to be understood as the fulfillment of both the expectations of the Torah and the hopes of the prophets.

I also argued in that book that stories of Jesus appropriate to the great feasts and fasts of the Jewish year were developed in the oral tradition that enabled the gospels to suggest that not only was the crucifixion of Jesus to be interpreted against the Passover, but also that every other major Jewish holy day was in time given Christian content by the oral tradition during the synagogue phase of Christian history.

In my life, this point of view has opened the gospels to a freshness that treating them as literal history could never create. Try it; I believe you will like it.

-- John Shelby Spong

November 2004

[MajestyJo]

It is my own beliefs that God is all encompassing, just too great for me as a person to comprehend. Our program says, "The God of our own understanding," that means it is God as seen through my eyes, my heart and my soul. The God, who I have come to believe in, has a sense of humour, is patient and tolerant, is kind and compassionate, love me unconditionally, and probably shakes His Head and His Finger at me daily, but that is okay. Whatever defect I have in today, WE are working on them together. He is my loyal, companion, friend and mentor and I can't begin to describe Him to you. You just need to go looking for Him yourself.

As for who would read it, heaven knows. Received the article from my friend and is a spiritual religionist.

So much of life and tradition has been handed down by word of mouth. Some of this is good, while others I believe have been inhibiting. Too many people over the years have rebelled as a result of laws, yet structure and discipline is important. Today's world is a good example of what happens when it is taken away. I like the thought that spiritual law transcends earthly law. I sure hope this is true, what a better place this world would be if people all came to believe.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/religion-christian-cross/0070.gif

[MajestyJo]

Forgiveness

http://gi155.photobucket.com/groups/s312/NVVLYPTNO3/be-1.jpg

In the long run, it's not a question of whether they
deserve to be forgiven. You're not forgiving them for
their sake, you're doing it for yourself. For your own
health and well-being, forgiveness is simply the most
energy-efficient option. It frees you from the
incredibly toxic, debilitating drain of hold a grudge.
Don't let these people live rent free in your head.
99.9% of the time, the only person a grudge affects
is the person holding on to it. If they hurt you before,
why let them keep doing it year after year in your mind.
It's not worth it but it takes heart effort to stop it.
You can muster that heart power to forgive them
as a way of looking out for yourself. It's one thing you
can be totally selfish about.

- - unknown

[MajestyJo]

Unlimited Choice

Any number of alcoholics are bedeviled by the dire conviction that if ever they go near A.A. they will be pressured to conform to some particular brand
of faith or theology. They just don't realize that faith is never an imperative for A.A. membership; that sobriety can be achieved with an easily minimum of it, and that our concepts of a Higher Power and God - as we understand Him - afford everyone a nearly unlimited choice of spiritual belief and action.

<<<>>>

In talking to a prospect, stress the spiritual feature freely. If the man be agnostic or atheist, make it emphatic that he does not have to agree with your conception of God. He can choose any conception he likes, provided it makes sense to him. The main thing is that he be willing to believe in a Power greater than himself and that he live by spiritual principles.

As Bill Sees It - July 20, 2004

So many times my God was watching over me and I didn't know it. I had a resentment against the God of my understanding and had to make Him more personal, not some distant being that seemed just out of reach.

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/angel82.jpg

[MajestyJo]

Letting Go...

Fear (any emotion), notice it, recognize it, but don't breathe into it. Keep the fear at a distance. As you breathe, release what you don't need. Breathe in what you do need.


Releasing the Past

Today I have the willingness to release myself from the past and give myself the gift of comprehending all that exists in my present.

I am tired of being mired in the past, running my every experience through the old damaged notions that seemed to have gotten stamped on every cell in my body. I am tired of using misinformation as if it was truth and recreating over and over for myself the same result. I am tired to the bone and yet when I try to escape this alone, I sense my efforts are useless.

I believe that a power greater than myself can release me from the bondage of my past. I ask this higher power to help me now find the truth of my present. It feels unfamiliar to stop the movie of my past from running in the background and encounter silence in its place. But I practice learning to sit still with the quiet. Gradually, I awaken to what is here in my present. I let myself know it is enough. I am well when I let myself be.

You are reading from the book:

Daybreak by Maureen Brady

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-christmas/0039.gif

Love this, is posted on my site The Five As on Yahoo.

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSHhRtmnTbbvkdlCF6CWyLr_UpclUn15 WjVaR-NIiuQJVo2RXYT

The well-known maxim, "While there is life there is hope." has deeper meaning in reverse: "while there is hope there is life."

Hope comes first, life follows. Hope gives power to life. Hope rouses life to continue, to expand, to grow, to reach out, to go on.

Hope sees a light where there isnt' any.

Hope lights candles in millions of despairing hearts.

Hope is the miracle medicine of the mind. It inspires the will to live. Hope is the physician's strongest ally.

Hope is man's shield and buckler against defeat.

"Hope," wrote Alexander Pope, "springs eternal in the human breast." And as long as it does man will triumph and move forward.

Hope ever sounds retreat. Hope keeps the banners flying.

Hope revives ideals, renews dreams, revitalizes visions.

Hope scales the peak, wrestles with the impossible, achieves the highest aim.

"The word which God has written on the brow of every man," wrote Victor Hugo, "is Hope." As long as man has hope no situation is hopeless.

Wilfred A. Peterson

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-religion/21.gif

First, my car broke down
I was very late for work
But I missed that awful accident
Was that your handiwork?


I found a house I loved
But others got there first
I was angry, then relieved
When I heard the pipes had burst!


I know you're watching over me
And I'm feeling truly blessed
For no matter what I pray for
You always know what's best!

I have this circle of E-mail friends,
Who mean the world to me;
Some days I "send" and "send,"
At other times, I let them be.


I am so blessed to have these friends,
With whom I've grown so close;
So this little poem I dedicate to them,
Because to me they are the "Most"!

When I see each name download,
And view the message they've sent;
I know they've thought of me that day,
And "well wishes" were their intent.

So to you, my friends, I would like to say, !
Thank you for being a part;
Of all my daily contacts,
This comes right from my heart.

God bless you all is my prayer today,
I'm honoured to call you "friend";
I pray the Lord will keep you safe,
Until we write again.


Happiness comes through doors you didn't know you left open

[MajestyJo]

FRIEND

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/friendsforever/friendsforever12.jpg

Take my hand my friend,
I wish to help you along.
Just knowing there are two of us
Can help to make you strong.

I know life seems unfair
and sometimes gets you down,
But know that I am here for you
I'll always be around.

So set a day aside
And together we will walk
Down all your troubled pathways,
For it helps sometimes to talk.

If you should need some time
To do this on your own,
Then I will be here waiting
Since you wish to be alone.

I guess I want to say
That I hold your friendship dear.
And if you ever need me
just reach out, cause I am here.

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/countries-usa-native/0027.gif

Humility asks us to allow ourselves to be vulnerable, to remain teachable (The Wolf means Teacher), and to admit we don't know it all and open to knew ideas, concepts, and thoughts. Our disease is an addiction, that allows back into our lives, and we allow it back into our thoughts to take us back to our addiction, instead of giving thanks to the Creator for all His Blessings.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humility

[MajestyJo]

Guarded by an angel

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/religion-angels/0070.gif

A drunk man in an Oldsmobile

They said had run the light

That caused the six-car pileup

On 109 that night.


When broken bodies lay about

And blood was everywhere,

The sirens screamed out eulogies,

For death was in the air.


A mother, trapped inside her car,

Was heard above the noise;

Her plaintive plea near split the air:

Oh, God, please spare my boys!


She fought to loose her pinned hands;

She struggled to get free,

But mangled metal held her fast

In grim captivity.



Her frightened eyes then focused

On where the back seat once had been,

But all she saw was broken glass and

Two children's seats crushed in.

Her twins were nowhere to be seen;

She did not hear them cry,

And then she prayed they'd been thrown free,

Oh, God, don't let them die!


Then firemen came and cut her loose,

But when they searched the back,

They found therein no little boys,

But the seat belts were intact.


They thought the woman had gone mad

And was traveling alone,

But when they turned to question her,

They discovered she was gone.

Policemen saw her running wild

And screaming above the noise

In beseeching supplication,

Please help me find my boys!

They're four years old and wear blue shirts;

Their jeans are blue to match.



One cop spoke up, They're in my car,

And they don't have a scratch.

They said their daddy put them there

And gave them each a cone,

Then told them both to wait for Mom

To come and take them home.

I've searched the area high and low,

But I can't find their dad.

He must have fled the scene,

I guess, and that is very bad.


The mother hugged the twins and said,

While wiping at a tear,

He could not flee the scene, you see,

For he's been dead a year.



The cop just looked confused and asked,

Now, how can that be true?

The boys said, Mommy, Daddy came

And left a kiss for you.

He told us not to worry

And that you would be all right,

And then he put us in this car with

The pretty, flashing light.

We wanted him to stay with us,

Because we miss him so,

But Mommy, he just hugged us tight

And said he had to go.

He said someday we'd understand

And told us not to fuss,

And he said to tell you, Mommy,

He's watching over us.



The mother knew without a doubt

That what they spoke was true,

For she recalled their dad's last words,

I will watch over you.



The firemen's notes could not explain

The twisted, mangled car,

And how the three of them escaped

Without a single scar.

But on the cop's report was scribed,

In print so very fine,

An angel walked the beat tonight on Highway 109.

He who has a thousand friends has not a friend to spare.

This morning when the Lord opened a window to Heaven, He saw me, and he asked: 'My child, what is your greatest wish for today?'

I responded: 'Lord please, take care of the person who is reading this message, their family and their special friends.

They deserve it and I love them very much. '

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/body-shoes/0037.gif

I showered and shaved.............. I adjusted my tie.

I got there and sat.............. In a pew just in time.

Bowing my head in prayer......... As I closed my eyes..

I saw the shoe of the man next to me..... Touching my own. I sighed.

With plenty of room on either side...... I thought, 'Why must our soles touch?'

It bothered me, his shoe touching mine... But it didn't bother him much.

A prayer began: 'Our Father'............. I thought, 'This man with the shoes, has no pride.

They're dusty, worn, and scratched. Even worse, there are holes on the side!'

'Thank You for blessings,' the prayer went on.

The shoe man said............... A quiet 'Amen.'

I tried to focus on the prayer....... But my thoughts were on his shoes again.

Aren't we supposed to look our best. When walking through that door?

'Well, this certainly isn't it,' I thought, Glancing toward the floor..

Then the prayer was ended........... And the songs of praise began.

The shoe man was certainly loud..... Sounding proud as he sang.

His voice lifted the rafters........ His hands were raised high.

The Lord could surely hear. The shoe man's voice from the sky.

It was time for the offering...... And what I threw in was steep.

I watched as the shoe man reached.... Into his pockets so deep.

I saw what was pulled out............ What the shoe man put in.

Then I heard a soft 'clink' . As when silver hits tin.

The sermon really bored me............ To tears, and that's no lie.

It was the same for the shoe man.... For tears fell from his eyes.

At the end of the service...... As is the custom here.

We must greet new visitors, And show them all good cheer.

But I felt moved somehow.............. And wanted to meet the shoe man.

So after the closing prayer........ I reached over and shook his hand.

He was old and his skin was dark.... And his hair was truly a mess.

But I thanked him for coming......... For being our guest.

He said, 'My names' Charlie............ I'm glad to meet you, my friend.'

There were tears in his eyes........ But he had a large, wide grin.

'Let me explain,' he said.......... Wiping tears from his eyes.

'I've been coming here for months.... And you're the first to say 'Hi.''

'I know that my appearance............'Is not like all the rest.

'But I really do try.................'To always look my best.'

'I always clean and polish my shoes..'Before my very long walk.

'But by the time I get here..........'They're dirty and dusty, like chalk.'

My heart filled with pain.......... And I swallowed to hide my tears.

As he continued to apologize........... For daring to sit so near

He said, 'When I get here..............'I know I must look a sight.

'But I thought if I could touch you..'Then maybe our souls might unite.'

I was silent for a moment........... Knowing whatever was said

Would pale in comparison... I spoke from my heart, not my head.

'Oh, you've touched me,' I said......'And taught me, in part;

'That the best of any man...............'Is what is found in his heart.'

The rest, I thought,..................... This shoe man will never know.

Like just how thankful I really am... That his dirty old shoe touched my soul

You are special to me and you have made a difference in my life.
I respect you, and truly cherish you.

Send this to your friends,
No matter how often you talk,
Or how close you are,

Let old friends know you haven't forgotten them, and tell new friends you never will.

Remember, everyone needs a friend..

Someday you might feel like you have no friends at all.

Just remember this e-mail and take comfort in knowing that

Someone out there cares about you.....

And always will.
Live each day as your last, it could be!!!!! Amen

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/christmas-socks-1/0007.gifhttp://www.animated-gifs.eu/christmas-socks-1/0007.gif

[MajestyJo]

FREE TO BE YOU

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/christmas-uk/7.gif

Watch your attitudes, know that you are responsible for yourself and not others. Realize that all judgment of, criticism of, condemnation, and anger towards other people is to be released to their own good. Bless all people as they travel the highway of life and always remember that you are free to be you. And therefore, everybody else is free to be themselves.

Begin to enjoy everyone around you. Keep in mind that love, intelligence and courage is always present enabling us to always be who we are. We can rise up and accomplish all that we desire and maintain the joy, happiness and fulfillment we seek - all we need do is practice our spiritual exercises, study and act as we believe with deep faith. II TIMOTHY 1: 7 reads, "For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but the power and love and sound mind."

Antestian Newsletter - Road to Enlightenment

[MajestyJo]

Effective Tool

from: "Foreword"

"Many people, nonalcoholics, report that as a result of the practice of A.A.'s Twelve Steps, they have been able to meet other difficulties of life. They think that the Twelve Steps can mean more than sobriety for problem drinkers. They see in them a way to happy and effective living for many, alcoholic or not."

© 1952, Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, pages 15-16

They say the Twleve Steps are a tool which fits any nut who walks through the doors of recovery.

Whatever the addiction, whatever stands between you and God, all leads to the same soul sickness.

The Twelve Steps are a tool which I can apply to all parts of my life. I think that this is because a lot of my life is a result of my thinking either growing up or as a result of the experiences in my life to get to where I am in today.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/christmas-characters/0029.gif

This is an old time picture and I posted it in 2004. The message is still applicable in today, and the tool still works in 2013.

[MajestyJo]

Today 12-31-2008

Today is not just another day. No day is just another day.Every day is a day of hope, love, joy and prosperity......physically, mentally and spiritually.

Today is the first day of the rest of your life and also the last day of the rest of your life. So, every day is the beginning of a new year.What you make of it, is up to you.You are given a new chance each and every day to make it right.

Embrace each day as though it is your last.... who knows... it just might be !!!Scary thought , but true. So, live each day as if it was your last and enjoy each and every moment and all those that come in and go out of your life.

Make your own sunshine !!!And you will hel
p others to make theirs without even trying.Smile from your heart and soul and you will touch thousands untold ... especially strangers who wander and need just a glimmer of hope.This may even be family and friends who don't want to be a burden, a bother or any trouble at all.

Today and every day is another chance to get it right !!!
I wish for each and everyone of you love, peace, joy, harmony, prosperity and all the things that you wish for yourself.Learn your lessons so that you can move on and continue to grow and learn.Stop making excuses or pointing fingers, or feeling sorry for others and for yourself.The time is now if ever there was one to take a stand to be who you really are.

Your life is your life.

Embrace it, love yourself and this will be a gift to all those that love you, know you and come in contact with you.
Take a moment every day to breeeeeeathe in Divine Love & Light.Just Breathe ......

God Bless

Lordiel

Received from a beautiful lady who does spiritual paintings and talks.

[MajestyJo]

After reading this,You will never look at a deck of cards in the same way.

Here is a new way to look at a deck of cards!! For me, there is always a spiritual gift to be found. There is always positive to be found even in the most negative situation. Nothing is ALL positive, there will be negative traits if we go looking for them. So often that is what we focus on, finding fault, listening to old tapes, and blocking our minds from what could be and not willing to learn a lesson or experience a new awakening and enlightenment.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-religion/0019.gif

Deck of Cards

It was quiet that day, the guns and the mortars, and land mines for some reason hadn't been heard.

The young soldier knew it was Sunday, the holiest day of the week.

As he was sitting there, he got out an old deck of cards and laid them out across his bunk.

Just then an army sergeant came in and said, 'Why aren't you with the rest of the platoon?'

The soldier replied, 'I thought I would stay behind and spend some time with the Lord.'

The sergeant said, 'Looks to me like you're going to play cards.'

The soldier said, 'No, sir . You see, since we are not allowed to have Bibles or other spiritual books in this country, I've decided to talk to the Lord by studying this deck of cards.'

The sergeant asked in disbelief, 'How will you do that?'

'You see the Ace, Sergeant? It reminds me that there is only one God.

The Two represents the two parts of the Bible, Old and New Testaments.

The Three represents the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost.

The Four stands for the Four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John .

The Five is for the five virgins there were ten but only five of them were glorified.

The Six is for the six days it took God to create the Heavens and Earth.

The Seven is for the day God rested after making His Creation.

The Eight is for the family of Noah and his wife, their three sons and their wives -- the eight people God spared from the flood that destroyed the Earth.

The Nine is for the lepers that Jesus cleansed of leprosy He cleansed ten, but nine never thanked Him.

The Ten represents the Ten Commandments that God handed down to Moses on tablets made of stone.

The Jack is a reminder of Satan, one of God's first angels, but he got kicked out of heaven for his sly and wicked ways and is now the joker of eternal hell.

The Queen stands for the Virgin Mary.

The King stands for Jesus, for he is the King of all kings.

When I count the dots on all the cards, I come up with 365 total, one for every day of the year.

There are a total of 52 cards in a deck; each is a week - 52 weeks in a year.

The four suits represent the four seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter.

Each suit has thirteen cards -- there are exactly thirteen weeks in a quarter.

So when I want to talk to God and thank Him, I just pull out this old deck of cards and they remind me of all that I have to be thankful for.'

The sergeant just stood there. After a minute, with tears in his eyes and pain in his heart, he said, 'Soldier, can I borrow that deck of cards?'

Please let this be a reminder and take time to pray for all of our soldiers who are being sent away, putting their lives on the line fighting.

Prayer for the Military

In God We Trust!

[MajestyJo]

Do you own your life?

"The meaning of life is to give life meaning."

-- Ken Hudgins

When we own our lives, we accept what we've inherited and the experiences we hold in our memories. We also claim our right to create new conditions if we're not happy with what's come before. We assume responsibility for changing what does not suit us. We acknowledge our own special talents and skills, and truly comprehend our right to enjoy the journey. In short, we embrace the meaning and purpose, the mystery and the beauty of our lives.

Do you feel that you own your life at the moment?

"I think of life itself now as a wonderful play that I've written for myself... and so my purpose is to have the utmost fun playing my part."

-- Shirley MacLaine

"Life is too short to be little."

-- Benjamin Disraeli

"Every man dies, but not every man lives...."

-- Garth Brooks

- Higher Awareness used with permission

For many years this was a big issue for me. Then I realized that I had to accept my limitations and my fibromyalgia and just try to be the best me I can be each day. To do what I can do and not wish the world away.

I was the only one who could make it happen. I wouldn't let my pain rule my day. I made some healthy choices and learned to live each day as it came, not look into the past or project into the future. Just live each day as it comes. Some days i can, some days I can't, and that is okay.

http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=13769

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSlI-l-SaTzC7LEz1BAPAevgUJPtcjxNc4fnsQKiIoF4Y6vaEXf

[MajestyJo]

DAILY FORGIVENESS

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-planets/0003.gif

"As long as you don't forgive, who and whatever it is will occupy rent-free space in your mind."
-- Isabelle Holland

We cannot avoid daily resentment and thoughts of guilt. They are a part of human nature. What we can do is release their grip on us. We can forgive others and ourselves daily.

Forgiveness requires nothing in return. There are no conditions. It gets rid of old baggage and clears up unfinished business. It leads us to a life of authenticity, lightness and directness. Forgiveness is the highest form of letting go of resentment and ego.

True forgiveness is more than an apology, understanding and acceptance. There is an element of recreating and re-imagining. There is a need to envision ourselves as more loving, interdependent, courageous and compassionate. Forgiveness requires honouring the sacred journey of learning about life - our life and others'.

"Whatever we have done, we can always make amends for it without ever looking back in guilt or sorrow."
-- Eknath Easwaran

*** Journey through the traps of ego into a life of meaning, purpose, joy and service. Make sense of your life, the world around you and your spiritual journey.

From Higher Awareness - used with permission

[MajestyJo]

GOD'S HOTEL

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-rain/0074.gif

I checked you in again last night, my child,

Because it hurt me so bad to see you out there running wild.

All tired and sucked up you appeared to me

But put a mirror in front of you, and you can't even see;

That you are a number among the walking dead,

Sores all over your body, confusion in your head.

Jail is not the place you want to be

But it's my hotel, where I can work on thee you see.

You weren't just arrested, you were rescued from yourself.

I had to bring you back here, to put your habit on the shelf.

Give you some rest, some food, and some talk

Encourage you and love you, before I let you walk.

Don't be like a mule that's led around by a bit,

Just listen to your warnings, and I can help you quit.

This could be the last time you have to come into this place,

Just listen to me the Creator Of All with tears upon my face...

Original Source Unknown - posted on FB's Addict's Mom

[MajestyJo]

FILL UP YOUR TANK

http://angelwinks.net/images/generalpod/generalpod1091.jpg

"How do we keep our inner fire alive? Two things, at minimum, are needed: an ability to appreciate the positives in our life - and a commitment to action. Every day, it's important to ask and answer these questions: 'What's good in my life?' and 'What needs to be done?'"
-- Nathaniel Branden

I have found there's a very different quality to my action when it springs from a sense of abundance as opposed to a feeling of being impoverished.

When I sense I'm not good enough or that I don't have enough, I feel driven to be better and to have more. Whatever I do takes effort - there's an element of struggle involved. And this makes sense because there's no fuel - I'm working on an empty tank.

When I'm feeling abundant, I act out of my own inspiration. I'm rich and full and so the energy flows naturally. This action at times feels almost effortless.

It's important to remember that we don't need money to be abundant. All we need is appreciation of all that we have.

" ...what I focus on in life is what I get. And if I concentrate on how bad I am or how wrong I am or how inadequate I am, if I concentrate on what I can't do and how there's not enough time in which to do it, isn't that what I get every time? And when I think about how powerful I am, and when I think about what I have left to contribute, and when I think about the difference I can make on this planet, then that's what I get. You see, I recognize that it's not what happens to you; it's what you do about it."
-- W. Mitchell

*** Tackle your financial challenges holistically!

From Higher Awareness used with permission

[MajestyJo]

HARD WORK

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTCVfJ486O7iUmLHJua8Cc0qH61P6VBE g0vfCOcm0Yh9WnNRPDpKw

"Work should be in order to live. We don't live in order to work. That shift in awareness is necessary."
-- Matthew Fox

What are your beliefs around work? Do you believe it's necessary to work hard to earn a living? No pain, no gain? Do you believe women's work is never done? That play is a waste of time?

While there are merits to the work ethic, over-work takes a serious toll on the quality of our lives. Our ability to contribute to life requires us to have a sense of balance, joy, playfulness, time to stop and smell the flowers.

"Learning to let go of the ways we inadvertently and unconsciously contribute to our own pain is the key to finding radiant physical and emotional health."
-- Ingrid Bacci

"To do great work a man must be very idle as well as very industrious."
-- Samuel Butler

"The true object of all human life is play."
-- G.K. Chesterton

[MajestyJo]

Love -or- Hate

“Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life;
love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it.”
- -Martin Luther King, Jr


In recovery, I have learned to not only love myself but like myself too. I may hate parts of me on any given day, but on the whole, I do love myself.

There are very few people in my life that I can honestly say that I hate. I may hate what they are doing, but don't hate them as a person. It helps to look at them as a child of God, and they are deserving of recovery even though they may choose not to go that route. All I can do is pray for them.

I know that my God loves me. I know He loves you too!

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/avatars-100x100-insects/0145.gif

[MajestyJo]

Befriend yourself

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR_5w3mJDHezGgKL2m04isdkHIiy7eiD HHrH0bi3Yu33dZx5vS7

"Self-contempt never inspires lasting change."
-- Jane R. Hirschmann & Carol H. Munter

The journey to know ourselves ideally brings us to self-understanding and acceptance. It is NOT a quest for self-improvement.

When we open to love and accept ourselves, no matter what, we allow our innate love, power and wisdom to emerge naturally.

"Who you really are is enough."
-- Oriah Mountain Dreamer

[MajestyJo]

Archangel Michael~

Oh beautiful splendor of love and light,
shine forth your essence of
joy to this world,
illuminating all darkness with your
divine presence of light.
For within you resides an inner
well of unfathomable joy,
unspeakable splendor,
unending love,
untouchable peace,
and unmovable truth so deep,
that nothing can penetrate
or even come close
to touching it's essence.~

http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/vv36/MajestyJo/0031.gif

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-dogs/0119.gif

We are co-creators of our own universe. Often our thoughts are left unsaid and they end up stewed and boiling around in our head and they come out in ways that are better left unsaid or they are spewed out in anger and resentment.

What we can cook up in our own head can be astonishing, especially when we are using, any substance, not just food!

We try to manipulate, intellectualize, change things around so that they are of our own thinking and the way we want them to be, rather than the reality of what they are.

We often embellish by adding things on so they sound good, or we make them the way we think others would have us do, or we leave them unseasoned, and they come out uninteresting and totally blah! Or they are so hot and spicy, they aren't edible and something others don't want to partake of.

We often disguise them in a way, so that things are hidden and we are trying to get our own way and we don't want people to really know that they originated with someone else, rather than taking ownership for our actions and words.

We say things which we try to make good so we will be accepted, loved, affirmed and validated.

I think it is called being human. But with my Higher Power, I no longer have to listen to my Lower Power, and I can change for the good.

[MajestyJo]

http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/vv36/MajestyJo/reflection.gif

This is a program of reflection. What we put out, we get back, not always from the same source.

I found myself in the rooms of recovery. I was told to take what I found there, apply it to my life and take it into my home and the community.

Sometimes when things get dark, I know there is a solution through the 12 Steps and Traditions of recovery. I recovered my relationship with my God, and no matter where He leads, I know He will see me through it.

Isaiah 54:10
Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the LORD, who has compassion on you.

[MajestyJo]

I came across this little prayer, it really defines God in my life..and reminds me that God is always there..

I am with you

In the springtime of your life, when joy is new

And when summer brings the fullness of your faith
I am there with you

I am with you in the autumn of your years, to turn to gold

Every memory of yesterdays, to banish winter's cold.

I am with you in the sunshine, when your world glows warm and bright.

I am with you when life's shadows bring long hours of endless night.

I am with you every moment, every hour of every day..

Go in peace upon life's journey, for I am with you all the way.

Peace, Schell

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcangels446.jpg

God is there!

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTFNjdAczt192WUGgvEzRScTwkT0OrEc gnHtvO5bQ9YCJ4m1MXEHg


Scriptures that offer encouragement in your daily life and provide inspiration and strength as you cope with life's challenges.

Psalm 119:50
My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life.

Psalm 120:1
I call on the LORD in my distress, and he answers me.

[MajestyJo]

God called and said, Solitude is...

When we cease to fear loneliness
and begin to cherish and use our solitude to advantage,
we have come a long way.
We realize a little solitude is necessary
to think and to try to work some of the Steps.
In solitude, we take our inventories.
In solitude, we admit the exact nature of our wrongs.
In solitude, our spirits seek that Power greater than we are;
in solitude, we seek through prayer and meditation to be aware of God's will for us.

- Came To Believe . . ., p. 109

Grace is a wonderful quality of the Spirit. When it is manifested in our lives, it brings the energy that uplifts our vibrations and clears the inner barriers.

To be in a state of grace is to put into practice the certainty that if we knock the door will be opened, and if we ask it will he be given unto us.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-angels/0176.gif

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-bears-leisure/0034.gif

I cannot change the way I am,
I never really try,
God made me different and unique,
I never ask him why.
If I appear peculiar,
There's nothing I can do,
You must accept me as I am,
As I've accepted you.
God made a casting of each life,
Then threw the old away,
Each child is different from the rest,
Unlike as night from day.
So often we will criticize,
The things that others do,
But, do you know, they do not think,
The same as me and you.
So God in all his wisdom,
Who knows us all by name,
He didn't want us to be bored,
That's why we're not the same.

~Author unknown~

[MajestyJo]

"Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" - Book

Along the road well travelled, there are many pity potholes.

Not sure about the rest of you, but this speaks to me from all directions. I think all members from whatever fellowship has been on a pity pot and often let it grow into a party, most times it is a party of one, although I have been where there have been two and three. Not a nice place, and not somewhere you want to stay long at, you say your hellos and then a quick goodbye if you are lucky. If you look at the other participants, you can see your reflection and you will not want any part of it, when you are alone, you tend to stay there longer.

When pity comes out, it is time for a gratitude list. As my sponsor said, "If you have one hand in the hand of your Higher Power and the other hand in the hand of a newcomer, you have no hands left to pick up. What are you doing, bring your Higher Power to the pity pot or did you leave Him behind? Mind you better the hole than the pot!

Many years ago, I got snowed in at work and couldn`t get home and a friend let me have a bed for the night. I had to go out and buy a few essentials and I was not a happy camper. On the third day, I went in to see my boss for a price check, and he said, `Go away, I don`t have time for that.` I told him that I needed it right away and not to give me a hard time, I wasn`t in a good mood because I had to wear the same clothes three days in a row. He replied, `That isn`t my fault. Get off the pity pot, you probably have one of those old out houses out back.` I said, `No, that was pushed over last Halloween.` He burst out laughing and gave me my price. He was very brisk and his bark was worse than his bite. You just couldn`t let him intimidate you.

When I think of pity pot, I think of the two-seater we had when I was growing up on the farm. ;)

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/clowns/clowns14.gif

[MajestyJo]

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/specbeingbestcard.jpg

All we are asked to do is try. The failure comes when we don't pick ourselves up and try again. Don't give up until the miracle happens.

Psalm 120:1
I call on the LORD in my distress, and he answers me

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-butterflies/0536.gif

Time passes.
Life happens.
Distance separates.
Children grow up.

Jobs come and go.
Love waxes and wanes.
Men don't do what they're supposed to do.

Hearts break.
Parents die.
Colleagues forget favors.
Careers end.


BUT.........

Sisters are there,
No matter how much time and how
Many miles are between you.
A girl friend is never farther away
Than needing her can reach.


When you have to walk that lonesome valley and you
Have to walk it by yourself, the women in your life
Will be on the valley's rim, cheering you on,
Praying for you, pulling for you, intervening on
Your behalf, and waiting with open arms at the
Valleys' end.

Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk
Beside you...Or come in and carry you out.
Girlfriends, daughters, granddaughters,

Daughters-in-law, sisters, sisters-in-law, Mothers,
Grandmothers , aunties, nieces, cousins, and extended
Family, all bless our life!

The world wouldn't be the same without women, and
Neither would I. When we began this adventure called
Womanhood, we had no idea of the incredible joys or
Sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we
Would need each other.

Every day, we need each other still.

- Unknown

[MajestyJo]

You are worthy of recovery. Even though I have to take a break, that doesn't mean that I am finished. Tonight, I know the words will come, but when I am in pain, it is sometimes difficult to hear them. I need to practice self-care.


James 1:5-8
If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossedA by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

http://angelwinks.net/images/lovepod/lovepod82.gif

[MajestyJo]

http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s309/kai2k7/quotes/SMILE.jpg

How Can I Make You Smile Again?

How can I mend your broken heart?
Your pain… I sadly see
How can I wipe your tears away?
And take them all for me

To see the joy sparkle… once more
Upon the face I love
How can I make you smile again?
My always cherished friend

How can I let you know?
The sun will rise tomorrow
Where someday soon the tears will fade
Leaving joyful memories... not sorrow

How can I let you know?
The stars will shine once more
Even more beautiful and glorious
Than they ever did before

If God chose me to paint a rainbow
I’d place it in your heart
Filling it with promises and love
Adding all your dreams and hopes

How can I make you smile again?
If I could… I’d take your pain
Yet, I'll lift my voice in sweetest prayer... instead
And there... I'll add your name


By Brenda Conley (c) 2003

Read between the lines, and read what isn't being said. The best way is to get out of self, and help someone else. It is amazing how small your problems are when you see someone who is suffering more than you.

[MajestyJo]

Do I put too much reliance on any one member of the group? That is, do I make a tin god out of some one person? Do I set that person on a pedestal? If I do, I am building my house on sand.

Twenty-four Hours a Day

This happened to me. I felt like I was being used. I think they looked at me as their HP and looked to be for their good orderly direction. I can share my experience, strength, and hope, yet they need to connect to their own God, to find the Divine Orderly Good in their own lives.

A friend of mine use to act like she was her husband's Higher Power. He would learn things in recovery and she would discount them and it was to be her way. Thankfully he stayed sober with only one relapse.

The group as a whole was my Higher Power for a while because I was angry at the God I was raised with. Until I could find one of my own understanding, it worked. A group of alcoholics showing me a new way to live. When I look at the group as a whole, instead of individuals, I can maintain a healthy outlook.

Higher Power is an energy force working in my life, not a person. Humans are vulnerable and not always infallible, as much as they would like to think they are. What is good for someone, may not be good for someone else. We are unable to see the whole picture, the grand scheme of things.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infallibility

[MajestyJo]

It Was
=======

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,

it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness,

it was the epoc of belief, it was the epoc of incredulity,

it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness,

it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair,

we had everything before us, we had nothing before us,

we were all going direct to heaven,
we were all going direct the other way

in short, the period was so far like the present period...


This was written by Charles Dickens, from the novel,
"A Tale of Two Cities," about the times of the French revolution.

Sounds very much like today doesn't it?

There is nothing new under the sun.

Received with thanks from my friend Anne

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/generalpod/generalpod1153.jpg

1 Peter 5:7
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

[MajestyJo]

Spend time with your soul

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT0x1NeqFBdCbILR2nG5kUBRs0UxzlWO n1cNzsnAnRKpjvY9iKFIA

"Be mindful of how you approach time. Watching the clock is not the same as watching the sun rise."

-- Sophia Bedford-Pierce

What would your soul consider a waste of time?

To a soul, the only real time is right NOW. Not the future or the past. It lives in connecting deeply with the rich experience of each moment. Through awareness we can be in touch with our authentic self and how it perceives all of the energies and guidance around and within us.

"Chronos is clocks, deadlines, watches, calendars, agendas, planners, schedules, beepers. Chronos is time at her worst. Chronos keeps track. ...Chronos is the world's time. Kairos is transcendence, infinity, reverence, joy, passion, love, the Sacred. Kairos is intimacy with the Real. Kairos is time at her best. ...Kairos is Spirit's time. We exist in chronos. We long for kairos. That's our duality. Chronos requires speed so that it won't be wasted. Kairos requires space so that it might be savored. We do in chronos. In kairos we're allowed to be ... It takes only a moment to cross over from chronos into kairos, but it does take a moment. All that kairos asks is our willingness to stop running long enough to hear the music of the spheres."

-- Sarah Ban Breathnach

"He who postpones the hour of living rightly is like the rustic who waits for the river to run out before he crosses."

-- Horace

- Higher Awareness

From Jo's Kitchen

[MajestyJo]

What depletes your soul?


https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSB1uJ96OuA92FlZGxngLgzc3fnqisuu fTr1mXIybMtUrgVFcCCKA

"Certain activities, attitudes, foods, and persons support the cultivation of an unconscious life. They draw us away from our center. They throw us off-balance. They deplete the soul."

-- Patricia Lynn Reilly

Some activities we think are restful are, in fact, draining. Set an intention to really become aware of how you feel after you’ve engaged in different activities. Solitude and awareness help us make better choices for ourselves.

"Enlightenment is not about imagining figures of light but of making the darkness conscious."

-- C.G. Jung

Higher Awareness


From Jo's Kitchen originally, posted on another site. It is a good feeling when I come across something that meant so much to me, and isn`t completely lost because the sites were closed.

[MajestyJo]

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/spring/spring4.jpg

I believe that when I surrender and say, "Help, I need help, I am empowered to do what I need to do for myself. My God doesn't do anything for me that I can do for myself. I can't just sit back and expect Him to do it for me.

He gave me freedom of choice. If I make the wrong choice, I am given the ability to change my mind. He doen't take me by the scruff of the neck and say, "Hey you, what the heck are you doing!" He lets me learn by my mistakes.

I am given the direction, and what I do with it in the moment is my choice. I can ignore it, yet it has been my experience that He keeps bringing me back until I learn the lesson. He often keeps a person in my life until I have learned the lesson, or He will bring in a new person if I am not listening to the first one.

As I posted the other day, God is or He isn't! It is my choice as to whether I choose to make Him a part of my day. I often say to people, examine your motives. When you think of doing something ask yourself, "Can I take God with me! Would God approve of this action! Am I acting on my will and completely self-centered or am I aligning my will with Gods, and am acting for the Good of God and the Whole.

God is only in charge if I allow Him to be. I can ask Him to be a part of my life, but if I don't listen and follow the direction I am given, as much as is presence is there, it is me who is taking charge of my life. There is a big difference.

My God and I are friend. I feel a very strong connection and very seldom in my life do I not take a moment to meditate and ask for the good orderly direction I need. Not only daily, but through out the day. I am not a saint believe me. I have been known to tell Him "Where to go! What I think of His opinion!" and have repeatedly said, "This isn't funny!" only to find myself breaking out in laughter.

God has a sense of humor, He has to. to have put up with me for so many years. I often think He sits there looking down and saying, "Tsk! Tsk! Didn't she learn her lesson the last time! Don't tell me we have to go through this again!"

Each day is a new beginning. What I do with it is my choice. Today is a good day. I wish the same for you!

[MajestyJo]

When you reach the end of your rope,
tie a knot in it and hang on.
-Thomas Jefferson


Remember "This Too Shall Pass!" This means the good and the not so good times.

Know you are not alone, although the way may seem dangerous, overwhelming and fearful, know that if your God brought you to it, He/She will see you through it.

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTwm9aD3ZN3stCBsssmXA3m4iuVXvbf9 F5Wmy1QTTKeqmMj76xaKQ

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-love/0037.gif

There's nothing in the world, I know,
That can escape from love,
For every depth it goes below,
And every height above.

It waits, as waits the sky,
Until the clouds go by,
Yet shines serenely on
With an eternal day,
Alike when they are gone,
And when they stay.

Implacable is love,
Foes may be bought or teased
From their hostile intent,
But he goes unappeased
Who is on kindness bent.

- Henry David Thoreau

[MajestyJo]

DO YOU JUST BELONG?

ARE YOU AN ACTIVE MEMBER,
THE KIND THAT WOULD BE MISSED
OR ARE YOU JUST CONTENTED
THAT YOUR NAME IS ON THE LIST?

DO YOU ATTEND THE MEETINGS
AND MINGLE WITH THE FLOCK?
OR DO YOU MEET IN PRIVATE
AND CRITICIZE AND KNOCK?

DO YOU TAKE AN ACTIVE PART
TO HELP THE WORK ALONG?
OR ARE YOU SATISFIED TO BE
THE KIND THAT JUST BELONGS?

DO YOU WORK ON COMMITTEES,
TO THIS THERE IS NO TRICK;
OR LEAVE THE WORK TO JUST A FEW,
AND TALK ABOUT THE CLIQUE?

PLEASE COME TO THE MEETINGS OFTEN,
AND HELP WITH HAND AND HEART.
DON'T BE JUST A MEMBER
BUT TAKE AND ACTIVE PART.

THINK THIS OVER, MEMBERS,
YOU KNOW WHAT'S RIGHT FROM WRONG.
ARE YOU AN ACTIVE MEMBER
OR DO YOU JUST BELONG?

Origin unknown

[MajestyJo]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

http://angelwinks.net/images/humorpod/humorpod28.gif

You spend more time with yourself than with anyone else. Doesn't it make sense to put something into that relationship?

I am my own best friend and value my own companionship.

- Pocket Sponsor

It is important to get to know myself. I lived my life through others for so many years. I had to find myself so I could look at what needed changing and to look at what needed nurturing.

If no one has told you today, I love you. Learn to love yourself. Give yourself a hug!

I found myself reflected in the people in the rooms of recovery. As they say, "It takes one to know one." I took a little from one person, a lot from another, none from that one thank you very much for showing me how not to work my program.

Be kind to yourself. Go to a meeting! Get to know yourself through the fellowship of the spirit.

[MajestyJo]

“At the end, it won’t matter where you came from, or on what side of the tracks you lived. It won’t matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant. Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant.

· So what will matter? How will the value of your days be measured?
· What will matter is not what you bought, but what you built.
· What will matter is not what you got, but what you gave.
· What will matter is not your success, but your significance.
· What will matter is not what you learned but what you taught.
· What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion, courage, or sacrifice that enriched, empowered, or encouraged others.
· What will matter is not your competence, but your character.
· What will matter is not how many people you knew, but how many will feel a lasting loss when you’re gone.
· What will matter is not your memories, but the memories that live on in those who loved you.
· What will matter is not how long you will be remembered, but by whom and for what.”

Received with thanks from my friend Carey

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-farm/0055.gif

[MajestyJo]

Biblical guidance on forgiveness and how important it is to forgive others as we have been forgiven by the blood of Christ. Read verses from the Holy Bible about forgiveness in relation to God, Jesus Christ, and the Christian faith.

Matthew 6:14-15
For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Acts 3:19
Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.


Sometimes they seem like small things, yet when we look at where the act and thought took us, we can see they are big things, not only to others and to ourselves too.


http://angelwinks.net/images/nostalgicpod/nostalgicpod71.jpg

[MajestyJo]

A drug is a drug, no matter what you use. Anything that is mind altering and allows you to escape yourself. I once heard someone say, "Anything that stands between you and your God and what He would have you do and be, in today!"

Since I started going to NA eighteen years ago, I have repeatedly come across people who think that just because I was addicted to prescription pills, and didn't do "street" drugs, I am not a 'real' addict.

Several times over the years I have heard people say "I am a 'real' alcoholic. Well prescription drugs where dried up alcohol for me. I didn't have blackouts with alcohol, but I did with pills. I didn't like all kinds of alcohol, but I sure liked all kinds of pills.

When I quit smoking, I tried Zyban. I took a pill and waited for the 'craving' to disappear. I didn't read the instructions, I thought I knew! The Ms. Know-It-All Addict thought she knew what she was doing. It ended up I was allowed to take the pills for five days and smoke too. I quit smoking and took the pills expecting the instant fix! When I finally read the instructions, it gave me permission to smoke, and I tried it their way and all the pill did was make the cigarettes taste bad, so I quit the pills and the cigarettes.

Since I have been going through the problem with doctors and having to deal with pain with no medication, it has been so difficult to 'take as prescribed' the meds I am allowed. I had not been to a meeting for three weeks because of pain, life and the holidays. I found myself cussing, totally addicted to my computer games, and not posting on my sites. I had nothing to give! If it wasn't copy and paste, I had nothing to say.

What I have been know to do is beat myself up for was the fact that I don't listen to myself. I have spent years learning to listen to that inner voice, what I call my Higher Self, and I don't always follow through on it. Perhaps it wasn't meant to, and it happened as it should, but I have also found it happening in little things, like at my bridge club tonight. If I get a thought, like "take something out for dinner" and don't follow through on it, dinner time comes and everything is frozen.

It has been a big lesson, and I know that for me, sometimes "thought" can mess me up. Being an Aires, it isn't always good to intellectualize everything, and it is difficult for me to "Let Go" and trust that God is doing His part, without me having my fingers in the pie!!!!

In the telling of this, I am starting to smile and have a chuckle, it sure helps to put it into words.

It hasn't been about alcohol for a good many years. What I can end up substituting is food, my computer, my books, and other things that seem less harmful, yet when it becomes an addiction, it all leads to the same soul sickness. I have had to turn them over to my Higher Power. That included my bed. I used my bed for years to hide from the world because I didn't like my reality. I have to ask myself, what is my motive and intent. Do I really need the sleep, am I using my bed to keep my from doing what I need to do for my own health and well being. do I really need this food, am I hungry or am I just stuffing my feelings.

Am I procrastinating, am I in denial, am I hiding from myself. Am I being the best me I can be in today. Sometimes I fall far short of my own expectations. I have to remember my humanness although I had a resentment against it for years. I beat myself up royally for being less than. Not in God's eyes, but in my own.

Thanks for letting me share.


Something I shared in 2010.

A drug is a drug and comes in many forms, the thing that identifies it is anything that takes over your mind and all your thoughts are centered on it, instead of living your day, according to your God's Plan.

[MajestyJo]

We Were Meant To Be

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qc2redroses1.jpg

Something about us
seems so natural and complete,
like we were always
meant to be together
and nothing could ever
change the way we feel.
Maybe it's the way we know
what the other
person is thinking.
Maybe it's how our
moods and emotions
compliment each other so well.
Or maybe it's that
we dream the same dreams
and share the same values...
Whatever it is,
it grows stronger
and deeper every day.
Whatever it is...
it means that I Love You.

- Author Unknown

[MajestyJo]

When I Whine
~~~~~~~~~

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTCKyF7PhIpk8MqDlBgnn4INZ7SaOXM8 359qEzBJkk03zpgVY7cow

Today, upon a bus, I saw a girl with golden hair
I looked at her and sighed and wished I was as fair.
When suddenly she rose to leave,
I saw her hobble down the aisle.
She had one leg and used a crutch
But as she passed, she passed a smile.
Oh, God, forgive me when I whine
I have 2 legs, the world is mine.
~~~
I stopped to buy some candy
The lad who sold it had such charm
I talked with him a while, he seemed so very glad
If I were late, it'd do no harm.
And as I left, he said to me,
"I thank you, you've been so kind.
It's nice to talk with folks like you.
You see," he said, "I'm blind."
Oh, God, forgive me when I whine.
I have 2 eyes, the world is mine.
~~~
Later while walking down the street,
I saw a child with eyes of blue
He stood and watched the others play
He did not know what to do.
I stopped a moment and then I said,
"Why don't you join the others, dear?"
He looked ahead without a word.
And then I knew, he couldn't hear.
Oh, God, forgive me when I whine.
I have 2 ears, the world is mine.
~~~
With feet to take me where I'd go.
With eyes to see the sunset's glow.
With ears to hear what I would know.
Oh, God, forgive me when I whine.
I've been blessed indeed, The world is mine.
~~~
We have soooooo much to be thankful for!!!
~~~
Sorrow looks back,
Worry looks around,
Faith looks up.
~~~

Source unknown to me

I always ask people, do you want some cheese to go with that whine. An alternative, depending on who I am speaking to, it is should I bring out the little or the big violin.

My son was about 5 years old and I bought him his first black and white high topped running shoes. He insisted on wearing them out of the store. Then he whined and cried because it started to rain and he was going to get his new shoes all dirty.

[MajestyJo]

The Gift Of Living

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcrainbow1.jpg

Thank You, God, for giving
Me the gift of living
In this curious, strange
World where all things change
And where I can grow to be
My best and utmost me.
Thank You that I desire
Always to mount up higher
And be something more
Than I have been before,
And thank You for my mind
That always seeks to find
The beautiful and true
And be one with You.

© By James Dillet Freeman

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/religion-messages/0053.gif

http://www.biblestudytools.com/topical-verses/inspirational-bible-verses/

Isaiah 40:31
...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.

[MajestyJo]

A Friend So Dear

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcdognkittens1.jpg

What a joy it is to have
A friend as dear as you
To think about and care about
And count on always too.

And so today I'd like to say,
I'm grateful as can be
For all you do and all you are
And all you mean to me.

Give to yourself so you can freely give to others.

[MajestyJo]

Earth Bound Angel

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/antinybearang.gif

Occasionally, we are graced
with the presence of an earth
bound angel. They are unable
to stay with us for long, but
while they do, they bring
unprecedented joy and
happiness to all they touch.
While they are here, we bask
in their goodness and marvel at
their contribution to the world.
When they leave, we are left
with the devastation that comes
with losing such a wonderful being.
But we must remember...the earth
bound angels are not ours to keep.
They are ours to enjoy, learn from,
and behold until they return home.

~Author Unknown~

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/flowerli.gif


Someone Thought About You Today
In A Very Special Way
Someone Who Cares About You
And Is Reaching Out To Touch Your Heart

[MajestyJo]

I Care About You

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcsunset1.jpg

Caring starts with little things...
A smile, a word, a deed,
The quiet understanding
Of another person's need.
It grows with every thoughtful act,
Each laugh or secret shared,
And all the little kindnesses
that whisper "someone cared."
I care...Just wanted you to know.

[MajestyJo]

A Hug Just For You

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcbearshugging2.jpg

There are hugs that say I like you
and I hold your friendship dear.
There are hugs that say
"good going" you deserve
a great big cheer.
There are hugs that say goodbye,
good luck in all that lies ahead.
There are hugs that say I love you
when no other words are said.
There are hugs that soothe
and say to us you're free
from cares and harms.
The kind of hug we feel
when God holds us
within His arms.

- Author Unknown

[MajestyJo]

Pass A Smile Along

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcteabears.jpg

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...
When he smiled I realized,
I'd passed it on to him.
I thought about that smile,
then I realized its worth,
A single smile, just like mine,
could travel round the earth.
So, if you feel a smile begin,
don't leave it undetected...
Let's start an epidemic quick
and get the world Smile Infected!

- Author Unknown

[MajestyJo]

God Somehow Knew

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/angelwflower3.jpg

God knew there would be times
You'd need a word of cheer
Someone to praise a triumph
Or brush away a tear.
He knew you'd need to share
The joy of little things
In order to appreciate
The happiness life brings.
He knew your troubled heart
Would sometimes throb with pain
At trials and misfortunes
Or some goals you can't attain.
He knew you'd need some comfort
And loving guidance, too,
So He answered the
heart's great need
And sent an Angel just for You.

- Author Unknown

[MajestyJo]

~ Serenity Prayer ~

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcchildpraying2.jpg

God grant me
the Serenity to
accept the things
I cannot change,
Courage to change
the things I can,
And the Wisdom to
know the difference.

You're in my
Thoughts and Prayers

[MajestyJo]

You're A Special Friend

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qckittenonfence1.jpg

Sometimes when I'm lonely
I sit and think of you
Instantly my mood is lifted
And I'm no longer blue.

I know that you're special
A kind and loving friend
Thoughts of you and your smile
Bring my sad feelings to an end.

It takes a rare person
With a heart so big and true
I wish you all God's blessings-
It's so wonderful knowing you!

©AngelWinks 2000

[MajestyJo]

May You Be Blessed

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcsmangelpraying2.jpg

Each thought of you
brings memories
Of the happy times
we've shared,
Memories of
the many ways
You've shown how
much you cared...
And at this time
it means a lot
To say a prayer for you
That you will be
especially blessed
Today and all year through.

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/anmousehearttou1.gif

http://angelwinks.net/images/generalpod/generalpod1216.jpg

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcmyspecfriendpoemcard.jpg

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcchimp447.jpg

A good woman is proud of herself. She respects herself and others.
She is aware of who she is. She neither seeks definition from the person she is with, nor does she expect them to read her mind. She is quite capable of articulating her needs.

A good woman is hopeful. She is strong enough to make all her dreams come true. She knows love, therefore she gives love. She recognizes that her love has great value and must be reciprocated. If her love is taken for granted, it soon disappears.

A good woman has a dash of inspiration, a dabble of endurance. She knows that she will, at times, have to inspire others to reach the potential God gave them.

A good woman knows her past, understands her present and moves toward the future.

A good woman knows God. She knows that with God the world is her playground, but without God she will just be played.

A good woman does not live in fear of the future because of her past.

Instead, she understands that her life experiences are merely lessons, meant to bring her closer to self knowledge and unconditional self love.

Girl--

Smile.....YOU KNOW YOU HAVE IT GOING ON! So Keep ON Keeping On.

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcillusionB.jpg

Sorry I missed yesterday's post. There were not enough hours in the day.

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qc2monkiessmiling.jpg

What is spirituality? What do I need to feed my soul and kindle my spirit?

For me it is about being whole and connected to the God of my understanding. Food for the soul can be anything from a daily reading, to a smile or a kind word from a stranger, a hug, a sunny day such as I am seeing out my window with sailboats gliding over Hamilton Bay (you can't see the polution, all you can see is the pretty picture), word from a friend I haven't heard from in a long time or just a phone call from a loved one. Picking up the phone because someone comes to mind. Giving a smile or a hug to someone who crosses your path. The other morning, while waiting for the bus to go to the meeting, I was sitting on my walker, and a gentleman who I didn't know, walked by me and said hello. Didn't break stride, just kept walking but acknowledged me as a person.

For me it is also getting out my candles and meditating, using my crystals and using them for meditation and prayer and asking for the healing and comfort I need in the moment. Giving what was so freely given to me back to others. It doesn't always come from the same source, and it doesn't always go back from where it was received. Yet when I acknowledge it, open up to receive it, accept it, gives thanks for it, it is mine to pass on to someone else.

From my old site Freedom Angels

.. there is no cure except to keep so close to the thought of God that nothing, no other interest, can seriously come between you and God. Sure of that, you can stay on God's side.

24 Hours A Day



What an empowering thought. This is part of todays' reading. My spiritual advisor use to say that anything that came between me and who God would have me be, becomes the God of my life. I need to stay close to Him and not let the outside things take over my obsessive, compulsive mind.

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcdognkitten2.jpg

I'm so glad
I have you
to share with
to laugh with,
to dream with...
I'm so glad
you're the special
kind of person
that you are...
tender, caring
and understanding.
I'm so glad-
You came into my life!

Some may think these are kind of mushy, but when I look at them, they also describe the love I have for my God.

[MajestyJo]

The Power of Attitude

For all of us, there are turning points in our lives. One of mine was the first time I heard The Strangest Secret in 1964. I was a freshman in college. It was then, and still is, the most powerful and thought-provoking message I've ever heard.

The Strangest Secret was a recording by Earl Nightingale, and in a nutshell, the secret was...

"You become what you think about. Negative thoughts reap negative results. If you think positive thoughts, you will get positive results."

All Mac Anderson books are $10 each today: Shop now!
Not exactly rocket science, but this 15-minute recording on the power of goals and attitudes changed my life forever.

Therefore, a few years ago, when given the opportunity to write a book, I chose the topic that I knew best, and simply called it...The Power of Attitude. Having been the founder of Successories (started in 1988), I understood the power of beautiful photographs when combined with inspirational quotes. Therefore, I wanted the book to have photos and quotes, but also wanted to share personal stories to reinforce what has worked for me in maintaining a positive approach to life.

I'm pleased to say the book has been successful beyond my wildest dreams selling almost 500,000 copies. Today, I'd like to share the introduction. Enjoy!

An excerpt from:

The Power of Attitude
by Mac Anderson

In many ways, we're alike; however, one little difference almost always makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude.

William James, over a century ago, said, "The greatest discovery of this generation is that a human being can alter their life by altering their attitude." I believe this with all my heart, and over the years have seen it happen countless times. What most people fail to realize is that your attitude not only impacts your happiness and your success, it also can impact the happiness and success of all the people around you...your family, your friends, and your peers at work. Attitudes truly are contagious, and from time to time we need to ask ourselves..."is mine worth catching?"

There is no way to overstate the importance of a positive attitude in your life. However, no one can underestimate the difficulty in maintaining it. It's not easy, and it's a very personal thing, but it can be done.

The Power of Attitude was written with that in mind. I only can share with you what works for me in developing and maintaining a positive approach to life. My goal is that some of the ideas and stories I'll share will inspire you to live the life of your dreams and to make a positive difference in the lives of others.

It's my hope that this book will be a useful tool in helping you:

• Manage your energy levels
• Keep your soul alive
• Take new paths
• Reduce stress
• Develop the "Human Touch"
• Attack your fears
• Live in awe
• Savor small successes
• Burn brightly without burning out
• Hang on when the storms blow through

Most importantly, I'd ask you to keep this book handy, so whenever you feel a little down, pick it up and read a few pages. I guarantee it will make you feel better for the journey ahead.

From Simple Truths

http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRYBRqxFTiBdHaIgJZYqmpcDxWe2gbSY 83oyKAZ9ImwNGVyCrIn

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcbluebirdsnbath1.jpg

Bob and the Lord stood by to observe a baseball game. The Lord's team was playing Satan's team. The Lord's team was at bat, the score was tied zero to zero, and it was the bottom of the 9th inning with two outs.

They continued to watch as a batter stepped up to the plate whose name was Love. Love swung at the first pitch and hit a single, because Love never fails.

The next batter was named Faith, who also got a single because Faith works with Love. The next batter up was named Godly Wisdom. Satan wound up and threw the first pitch. Godly Wisdom looked it over and let it pass: Ball one.

Three more pitches and Godly Wisdom walked, because Godly Wisdom never swings at what Satan throws. The bases were now loaded. The Lord then turned to Bob and told him He was now going to bring in His star player. Up to the plate stepped Grace. Bob said, "He sure doesn't look like much!"

Satan's whole team relaxed when they saw Grace. Thinking he had won the game, Satan wound up and fired his first pitch. To the shock of everyone, Grace hit the ball harder than anyone had ever seen. But Satan was not worried; his center fielder let very few get by. He went up for the ball, but it went right through his glove, hit him on the head and sent him crashing on the ground; then it continued over the fence for a home run!

The Lord's team won! The Lord then asked Bob if he knew why Love, Faith, and Godly Wisdom could get on base but could not win the game. Bob answered that he did not know why.

The Lord explained, "If your love, faith, and wisdom had won the game you would think you had done it by yourself. Love, Faith and Wisdom will get you on base but only My Grace can get you Home.

Psalm 84:11, "For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly."


This post was received from a group called Crystal Folk.

I thank them for giving us permission to use their material. They believe something good is to be shared and passed on to others. We thank them for their caring and sharing.

[MajestyJo]

Something I posted on another site in 2004:

In April, Maya Angelou was interviewed by Oprah (on her show) for Dr.Angelou's 74th birthday. Oprah asked her what she thought of growing older. And, there on television, she said it was "exciting." Regarding body changes, she said there were many, occurring every day... like her breasts. They seem to be in a race to see which will reach her waist first, she said. The audience laughed so hard they cried. Dr. Angelou also said:

"I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.

I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.

I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life.

I've learned that making a "living" is not the same thing as making a "life.

"I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.

I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.

I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision.

I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one.

I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.

I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.

I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."

Please send this to five phenomenal women today. If you do, something good will happen: You will boost another woman's self-esteem.

If you don't...the elastic will break and your panties will fall down around your ankles.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-bears-leisure/0044.gif

[MajestyJo]

Someone has written these beautiful words. Try to understand the deep meanings in them.

They are "like" the Ten Commandments meant to be followed in life all the time.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://angelwinks.net/images/nostalgicpod/nostalgicpod112.jpg


1] Prayer is not a "spare wheel" that you pull out when in trouble; it is a "steering wheel" that directs us in the right path throughout life.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2] Do you know why a car's WINDSHIELD is so large and the rear view mirror is so small? Because our PAST is not as important as our FUTURE. So, look ahead and move on.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3] Friendship is like a BOOK. It takes few seconds to burn, but it takes years to write.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4] All things in life are temporary. If going well enjoy it, they will not last forever. If going wrong don't worry, they can't last long either.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

5] Old friends are like Gold! New friends are Diamonds! If you get a Diamond, don't forget the Gold! Because to hold a Diamond, you always need a base of Gold!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6] Often when we lose hope and think this is the end, GOD smiles from above and says, "Relax, sweetheart, it's just a bend, not the end!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

7] When GOD solves your problems, you have faith in HIS abilities; when GOD doesn't solve your problems HE has faith in your abilities.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

8] A blind person asked St. Anthony: "Can there be anything worse than losing eye sight?" He replied: "Yes, losing your vision."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

9] When you pray for others, God listens to you and blesses them; and sometimes, when you are safe and happy, remember that someone has prayed for you.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

10] WORRYING does not take away tomorrow's TROUBLES; it takes away today's PEACE.

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcmauveroses2.jpg

When others look at you, do they see God working through you. What kind of picture do people see. What is your body language saying? Do your words reveal that you are recovery and are no longer the person you use to be.

After a weekend at a Bible Conference, when the topic was forgiveness, I went back to church and took communion as an amend to my God. I had lived a life that was far from what He had wanted me to be. I had been taught, but I left my principles, values, and self-respect, self-esteem, and self-worth along the way. I was a big void, and I am grateful that I was empty of what was and had room to fill myself up with spirituality and God given gifts.

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTvGrntwJ5Vysd2G4PPiqQxM10NQ773g Bw_PXUI4AmapgbEp8hflQ

My faith has found a resting place

1
My faith has found a resting place,
Not in device nor creed;
I trust the Ever-living One,
His wounds for me shall plead.
I need no other argument,
I need no other plea;
It is enough that Jesus died,
And that He died for me.
2
Enough for me that Jesus saves,
This ends my fear and doubt;
A sinful soul I come to Him,
He’ll never cast me out.
3
My heart is leaning on the Word,
The written Word of God,
Salvation by my Savior’s name,
Salvation through His blood.
4
My great Physician heals the sick,
The lost He came to save;
For me His precious blood He shed,
For me His life He gave.

[MajestyJo]

"THOUGHT FOR THE DAY"

Quotations for Motivation, Inspiration or Contemplation


http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-stars/0014.gif


Thoughts Of The Day

If there was no Yesterday, and Tomorrow were to never come, what would you do Today?"

Written in 2014 by Jason L. Addicott --- North Dakota
I am the one that has thought it and liked it to where I decided to share it with the world. Makes you think a little more of what you should do with each day that everyone is blessed with.


Thoughts For The Day

I might not be the man you want to see, but I see in me the man I want to be."

Written in 2014 by Eniola Opeyemi --- Nigeria
My favourite


Thought Of The Day

Just like waves in the ocean come and go, no challenge is permanent. Problems will come and go too. We must enjoy the Challenges just like we enjoy the Waves."

Written in 2014 by RVM --- India

[MajestyJo]

If your heart is troubled, go to the Source. Go to nature,go find a quiet space for yourself if possible. Read the literature of recovery and you can go to this link to look at God's word and check out His Word on what you are feeling.

God's Yellow Pages

http://www.divinepeace.com/yellow/Gods_Yellow_Pages.html

Go to The Scripture Tree and find your God's message in today behind a flower. I heard a bird singing, that was bonus.

http://thescripturetree.com/

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/flower9.jpg

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQYdBmI8NTqtaEmPem7szAVIrm-zY9TYygoKRz90XhFn6WAOFCSpw

Day by day, and with each passing moment,
Strength I find, to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment,
I’ve no cause for worry or for fear.
He Whose heart is kind beyond all measure
Gives unto each day what He deems best—
Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure,
Mingling toil with peace and rest.
Every day, the Lord Himself is near me
With a special mercy for each hour;
All my cares He fain would bear, and cheer me,
He Whose Name is Counselor and Pow’r.
The protection of His child and treasure
Is a charge that on Himself He laid;
“As thy days, thy strength shall be in measure,”
This the pledge to me He made.
Help me then in every tribulation
So to trust Thy promises, O Lord,
That I lose not faith’s sweet consolation
Offered me within Thy holy Word.
Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting,
E’er to take, as from a father’s hand,
One by one, the days, the moments fleeting,
Till I reach the promised land.

My Mom's favourite Hymn which we played at her funeral. Not an unahappy thought, a joyous one, because she had faith and trust as to where she was going, and those who knew her, knew it too.

[MajestyJo]

“All journeys have secret destinations
of which the traveler is unaware.”
Martin Buber

“All the pathos and irony
of leaving one’s youth behind
is thus implicit in every joyous moment of travel:
one knows that the first joy
can never be recovered,
and the wise traveler
learns not to repeat successes
but tries new places all the time.”
Paul Fussell

“Certainly, travel is more than
the seeing of sights;
it is a change that goes on,
deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.”
Miriam Beard

=====

“Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.”
Franz Kafka

“A man should hear a little music,
read a little poetry,
and see a fine picture every day of his life,
in order that worldly cares
may not obliterate the sense of the beautiful
which God has implanted in the human soul.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"The wonder of the beautiful
is its ability to surprise us.
With swift sheer grace,
it is like a divine breath that blows the heart open.”

John O'Donohue

http://angelwinks.net/images/naturepod/naturepod379.jpg

[MajestyJo]

http://cdn-5.motivateus.com/images/from-others/lauren-god-will-replace-better.jpg



Inspirational Quote by Maya Angelou

Learn to let go and let God

Submitted by Lauren Covington


"I know that when I pray, something wonderful happens. Not just to the person or persons for whom I'm praying, but also something wonderful happens to me. I'm grateful that I'm heard."
Maya Angelou --- Submitted by Jack Hayes --- Ohio


"Hope means: Helping Other People Every-time or Everywhere.v Written in 2014 by Tanveer Khan --- Thailand


"Sometimes, to fly you must fall."
Written in 2014 by Nora Ryan

[MajestyJo]

The Grumble Family

There's a family nobody likes to meet;
They live, it is said, on Complaining Street
In the city of Never-Are-Satisfied,
The River of Discontent beside.

They growl at that and they growl at this;
Whatever comes, there is something amiss;
And whether their station be high or humble,
They are all known by the name of Grumble.

The weather is always too hot or cold;
Summer and winter alike they scold.
Nothing goes right with the folks you meet
Down on that gloomy Complaining Street.

They growl at the rain and they growl at the sun;
In fact, their growling is never done.
And if everything pleased them, there isn't a doubt
They'd growl that they'd nothing to grumble about!

But the queerest thing is that not one of the same
Can be brought to acknowledge his family name;
For never a Grumbler will own that he
Is connected with it at all, you see.

The worst thing is that if anyone stays
Among them too long, he will learn their ways;
And before he dreams of the terrible jumble
He's adopted into the family of Grumble.

And so it were wisest to keep our feet
From wandering into Complaining Street;
And never to growl, whatever we do,
Lest we be mistaken for Grumblers, too.

Let us learn to walk with a smile and a song,
No matter if things do sometimes go wrong;
And then, be our station high or humble,
We'll never belong to the family of Grumble!

- - unknown - -

http://angelwinks.net/images/generalpod/generalpod1254.jpg

Often get the Grrrrrrrrs. Always need to remember to be grateful, a much better a Grrrrrrr than a grumble. Grumbles seem to last longer. Doing some grrrrrr tonight as my computer is really slow.

[MajestyJo]

http://stickywallpapers.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/quotes-about-faith-in-god-479.jpg

How often we forget it is in His Time, not ours. When we check our attitude, it is generally, "I want it and I want it right now, yesterday even."

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQGYNCY__N7gqSDMzHLLgUKSZgn4KwFP LA3bja-yIAdAHWkiArL

It is surprising how far that first step can take you, especially when you follow it up with other Steps.

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQGOgbMCsRiFxZ9xJo8Pd5z5HesxmKcz iZrRkfEIK7fTFN6EjU1bA

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day

Friday, June 20, 2014

I’ll be out of the office….
No, actually, I’ll be IN the office!
I will be in San Diego over the weekend attending a conference of Life Coaches.

I’m looking forward to meeting my instructor and classmates
from the year-long, on-line course leading to certification as a Life Coach.

(If I pass everything and get all my assignments in I will be one next year!)

So, no Thoughts will be coming your way for the next couple of days.

I’ll miss you!
Marynance

“Our battered suitcases
were piled on the sidewalk again;
we had longer ways to go.
But no matter, the road is life.”
Jack Kerouac

“There are those who travel
and those who are going somewhere.
They are different and yet the same.
The success has this over his rivals:
He knows where he is going.”
Mark Caine

“Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry,
but by demonstrating that all peoples cry,
laugh, eat, worry, and die,
it can introduce the idea
that if we try and understand each other,
we may even become friends.”
Maya Angelou

http://angelwinks.net/images/greetingspod/greetingspod16.jpg

[MajestyJo]

We become that which has influenced us the most. -Wilfred Peterson

In the past, many of us ran with a crowd whose main intent was to be high. As a consequence, we generally behaved thoughtlessly, even toward those who were dearest in our life. We weren't surrounded by positive influences and our actions reflected it. We had not chosen a warm, caring relationship with a Higher Power. We felt isolated and suspicious about situations and most people.

Most of us have observed young children who are already mean-spirited, and we can easily guess the circumstances surrounding their lives. None of us escapes being influenced by those forces and factors that, by their daily presence in our life, demand our attention.

Our program for living is daily influencing us to act from a posture of love rather than selfish- ness. We are thereby growing in our understanding that to give is to receive. We have to continue on our recovery path to ensure our well-being and the well-being of those people who will be influenced by our behavior .

My actions will influence others today, and I want to be remembered as a positive influence.

- In God's Care by Karen Casey


Most of my life was spent in rebellion. Always running away, and with an attitude that said, "Don't tell me what to do, watch me!" The stubborness of our disease is rooted in our childhood and we need to learn to heal and let go and ask our Higher Power to open our hearts to a more loving way of life.

The rebellion and anger only hurts me and the past is long gone. The fear of authority and the anger at being told what to do also stems back from those mixed messages we received long ago.

Through the fellowship of the Spirit, I am made whole and can learn my way into new living and healthier thinking. I am what I feed my body, mind and spirit.

Posted on another site in 2005

Each day I have to watch that those old thoughts don't creep in. It is important to recognize them for what they are before I act out on them.

This is a one day at a time program. I choose to live in today and not bring my past into it. I had to take and inventory of what was there and as I work the Steps, it reveals new truths ans awareness, and each day I can pick up the tools for recovery and not act out in my dis-ease.

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRuMq9VJ82r9rNYxeg_N8Ek44zKNpvGx 24z6Q_vTv15vvX6bh5Aew

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/generalpod/generalpod1262.jpg

Thoughts for the Day

“Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing in the world to do.
But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that's true strength.”

Unknown

“Courage doesn't always roar.
Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow."

Mary Anne Radmacher

“At the end of a matter ask, "what will I learn from this to make me better?"

Mary Anne Radmacher

“Consider calling it a challenge rather than calling it a crisis.”

Mary Anne Radmacher

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/gen2.gif

(The conference last weekend was intense, inspiring,
challenging, enlightening, thought-provoking, and tiring!
A big thank you to everyone who sent me encouraging words!)
When faced with two choices, simply toss a coin.
It works not because it settles the question for you,
but because in that brief moment
when the coin is in the air,
you suddenly know what you are hoping for.

Cormac McCarthy

No Country for Old Men

“The heart of human excellence often begins to beat
when you discover a pursuit that absorbs you,
frees you, challenges you,
and gives you a sense of meaning, joy and passion.”

Terry Orlick

“The best part of life is not just surviving,
but thriving with passion, style, compassion,
generosity, humor and kindness.”

Maya Angelou

[MajestyJo]

"Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid." Matthew 5:14

"The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" Psalm 27:1

From Belief Net

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Matthew 5:16


http://hanzflorentino.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Novena-To-Gods-Love-2.jpg

[MajestyJo]

Letting Go of Fear

Fear is at the core of codependency. It can motivate us to control situations or neglect ourselves.

Many of us have been afraid for so long that we don't label our feelings fear. We're used to feeling upset and anxious. It feels normal.

Peace and serenity may be uncomfortable.

At one time, fear may have been appropriate and useful. We may have relied on fear to protect ourselves, much the way soldiers in a war rely on fear to help them survive. But now, in recovery, we're living life differently.

It's time to thank our old fears for helping us survive, then wave good bye to them. Welcome peace, trust, acceptance, and safety. We don't need that much fear anymore. We can listen to our healthy fears, and let go of the rest.

We can create a feeling of safety for ourselves, now. We are safe, now. We've made a commitment to take care of ourselves. We can trust and love ourselves.

God, help me let go of my need to be afraid. Replace it with a need to be at peace. Help me listen to my healthy fears and relinquish the rest.

From: Messages of Recovery (Discussion Forum)

www.Open-Mind.org/cgi-bin/bbs/YaBB.cgi

Please include link back to Antesian Road To Enlightenment in forwarded material antesianroadtoenlightenment-subscribe@yahoogroups.com


Detachment and letting go doesn't mean I don't love, I think that is my biggest fear of all.

Thank goodness you don't have to like it in order to accept it.

Hugs to all.

http://angelwinks.net/images/generalpod/generalpod1267.jpg

[MajestyJo]

Heard at meetings:

"I believe G-d wants every alcoholic sober. The miracle happens when the alcoholic wants that too."

"Being on the wagon is just transportation between two drunks."

"Alcoholism is a lot like pregnancy--you're no more pregnant at eight months than you are at conception--it only shows more."

"I'm grateful G-d gave me mercy instead of justice."

"I don't like stoplights, but I still DO what they say!"
(think about that one...LOL)

And one of my favorites:

"People keep telling me to 'get in touch' with my inner-child. I don't NEED to get in touch with my inner-child! I AM my inner-child! What I NEED is to get in touch with my outter-adult!"

atience is finding something to do while you wait."

"Lord---please remove her brain. Amen." (you'd think that I think too much, huh?! LOL)

"Experience gives you the test first and the lesson afterwards."

And:

"The steps keep me from killing myself, the traditions keep me from killing everybody else!"

"The difference between a winner and a whiner is the sound the 'I' makes."

"I do NOT have to attend every arguement I'm invited to." (yep, that one worked for me to hang on to!)

"If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague!"

"If at first you don't succeed--you're running about average."

"Fate is what happens to you--destiny is what you do with it."

And....."Rudeness is a weak mans imitation of strength." Think about that one...

imitations are opportunites to open new doors."

"Be kind to your enemies--it'll drive them crazy!"

"I LIKE getting a good jump on worrying about something." LOL

And one from Karl C who taught me a whole lot--"The difference between a demand and a request is humility."

~graced~

I had to learn to apply the traditions to live long enough to work the steps.

I believe in miracles, I am one!

Don't critize, utilize.

Hesitate and meditate.

THINK THINK THINK - I can't work that slogan, I can't do three things at once.

A little thought of yesterday, a little thinking of tomorrow and keep your thoughts in today.

F - friends

I - me, myself and I

N - Need

E - Everyone (of them).

or

Frustrated

Insecure

Neurotic

Emotional (and enjoying it).

http://angelwinks.net/images/iq/qcanhearts300.gif

[MajestyJo]

Positive Thought Of The Day

"Acts of kindness should not be measured by how much is given to help others, but by how much care is put into thinking of others enough to give."

Written in 2014 by Jesse Marie Kavumpurath --- Connecticut


Thought For The Day

"It costs nothing to dream but are you willing to pay the price to make it reality?"

Written in 2014 by Robert Moore --- Massachusetts


Thoughts Of The Day

"Never ever will there be a dearth of growth for a person whose mind is filled with godly thoughts."

Written in 2014 by Leandro Pasamba --- Philippines

Wisdom comes when one is fond of reading articles dealing with life's lessons. Hence, moral uprightness is developed once the lessons learned are put into action. Resolve to do this thing unfailingly and reap the handsome dividend that goes with it.

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/flower21.jpg

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTsK2tYBfTlzJiLON0nQGn9H0g_PJ3pF 5IT2vNYt2tyJJJLwcJk

Just because I said so!

How many times I heard this phrase and got a major resentment; and yet, in later years I found myself saying it.

If you don't stop crying, I'll give you something to cry for!

How often was I to repeat this same phrase; yet I had promised myself I never would.

Don't be so stupid!

How could I have been so hurtful and repeat such a phrase, when it had been so devastating to me.

Just because it was said to me, doesn't mean I have to repeat it!

Just for today, I can learn to stop the cycle.

Just because I had a motto for years which said, "Do it with style and grace!"

Just for today, I can learn to not expect perfection of myself.

Just because I can't stand stupidity in myself; is no reason to be intolerant of others and myself.

Just for today, I choose to learn a new way of thinking.

Just because I was told, doesn't mean it was my truth.

Just for today, I will find my truth and walk in it.

Just because I remember, doesn't mean I can't forget and let go.

Just for today, I will live in the moment and deal with my past as it makes itself known instead of continuing to look over my shoulder at yesterday.

Just because I lived in fear all my life, doesn't mean I can't change it into faith today.

Just for today, I know I am not alone and that there is no room for fear and faith in the same space.

Posted on my first site http://www.harmonyandpeace.i8.com/jb.html

[MajestyJo]

BEST POEM IN THE WORLD

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-water/0011.gif

I was shocked, confused, bewildered
As I entered Heaven's door,
Not by the beauty of it all,
Nor the lights or it's decor.

But it was the folks in Heaven
Who made me sputter and gasp --
The thieves, the liars, the sinners,
the alcoholics and the trash.

There stood the kid from seventh grade
Who swiped my lunch money twice.
Next to him was my old neighbor
Who never said anything nice.

Herb, who I always thought
Was rotting away in hell,
Was sitting pretty on cloud nine,
looking incredibly well.

I nudged Jesus, 'What's the deal?
I would love to hear Your take.
How'd all these sinners get up here?
God must have made a mistake'.

'And why is everyone so quiet,
So somber - give me a clue.'
'Hush child', He said. they're all in shock.
No one thought they'd be seeing you.'

JUDGE NOT!!

Remember....Just going to church doesn't make you a
Christian any more than standing in your garage makes you a car.

Every saint has a PAST...
Every sinner has a FUTURE!

Now it's your turn to share this poem.

[MajestyJo]

Our Quest For Happiness and Fulfillment

http://angelwinks.net/images/animatedpod/animatedpod1084.gif

Nearly all of us - regardless of social status, wealth, age, gender, race, culture, et cetera - tell ourselves that I could be really happy if only...

What is it Health Money Power Intelligence Spirituality Will these things really make you happy You've heard it before but I'm telling you again - nothing will bring you happiness if you're not already happy. Sounds like a load of hooey and in some respects, it is. But almost always what we consider a solution to our unhappiness is only a quick fix. The problem is still there. The person that wins the lottery is elated but soon goes back into debt (nearly one third of lottery winners eventually file for bankruptcy - New York Post, 1997). The person that loses 50 pounds on a fad diet soon regains the weight. The person that rises in power loses friends and finds happiness only in self-delusion. There are exceptions, of course, and maybe you're one of those exceptions. Or maybe not.

What is it you most desire Why are you in such need Consider a desire for money. Are you living within your means Are you using credit cards to pay bills or buy food Those are problems that might persist even if you suddenly fell into a fortune. Are you doing fulfilling work Is there something you desire that requires a great deal of money, like travel or a house Those are legitimate reasons to want a lot of money but what are you doing about it

Have you researched inexpensive travel, like stand-by or courier services Have you pursued your dream job When you think of your needs, what do you do Make wishes to an invisible genie Light candles and cast spells Wish upon a star Pray Scream out to the aliens Consider the 6 billion people that live on earth. What makes you more deserving of a free ride that any of them Why do you plead to the sky but take no action Chances are, you're over-whelmed and confused. Your problems seem insurmountable and inaction feels better than the thought of taking action. The hardest thing is MOTIVATION

Think about what you want and why you want it. Ask yourself how it will benefit you, benefit others, what harm it might do, and how much effort it will take. Prioritize your goals according to the most rewarding and get busy achieving them. With time, dedication, and motivation, you can be healthier, smarter, wealthier.

We look at great people - people who have, through merits of intelligence, creativity and talent, made a mark on history and our lives - and we marvel.

Some of us shrug, accepting our lot in life as an unfortunate accident of birth. Others aspire but give up too soon, comparing themselves to their heroes and finding themselves far from being as great. It's true that we can't all be Einsteins but we can be more than what we are. We can be stronger, faster, achieve a greater aesthetic ideal, richer, more confident, and, yes, even smarter. Few of us use our brains to its full potential. We live our lives as if in a dream. But we can wake up. You only need to want it enough to make an effort.

Source unknown to me

Originally posted on another site in 2006

Happiness comes from within, I am responsible for my own happiness. It is a feeling like everything else, something to enjoy when it comes and realize that this too shall pass.

[MajestyJo]

Pocket Sponsor - Book - Quote

The Twelve Steps: One to Three: Clear up; Four to Nine: Clean up; Ten to Twelve: Contact up. These are also called the Foundation Steps, the Action Steps, and the Maintenance Steps respectively. Are you looking for something easier?

The easier, softer way is the Twelve Steps.

This could have gone under the Steps, but I am thinking back to when I came into recovery. I was one of the really sick ones. All I was capable of doing was go to meetings, go to meetings, go to meetings. What I did do, was go to Step meetings and Big Book meetings and discussion meetings where the Steps and Traditions were discussed and well as topics like acceptance, patience, tolerance, surrender, honesty, willingness, all the things, I need to learn about staying sober.

I had this big empty void that needed to be filled. I filled it up with meetings and people of recovery. Every meeting was a deposit in my insurance account and as a dear woman shared many years ago, one day when I can no longer go to meetings, I will be able to reap the dividends. Today, I am reaping the dividends of going to 2 meetings a day for 2 years.

They say 90 meetings in 90 days. That is the easy softer way. What are you suppose to do then. Are you suppose to be cured and fixed. I don't think so, you aren't even detoxed. In 90 days, you shouldn't be past the first step to my way of thinking, but then most people don't think the way I do. Most people's 4th Step is a 1st Step in disguise. I did my 1st 4th when I was two years sober.

These Steps aren't there to play lip service and say, there I'm done. Know what you do? You start again!

Someone said, "You must not have been honest." I was as honest as I was capable of being. For the most part, I didn't remember nothing, it was all a blank and a lot of things took years to come up. Maybe that is because I am old, but it was the way it was. I was honest to the best of my ability. As I grew in the program and as I healed, my perception changed, and I was able to get more honest and see things from a different reality and from a broader sense that before.

The easier softer way is to push it under the carpet and say that happened then, this is now, I can't change it, forget it. If you don't heal, if you don't deal with it, what took you to the bottle and to the drugs, will take you back out. A proven fact, many times over, especially those who have never done a 4th & 5th Step.

You only get out of it what you put into it.

Posted in July 2012. It is still true in today.

Dream big, all things are possible when our God is at the helm.

http://angelwinks.net/images/secretpal/secretpal63.jpg

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day
Tuesday, July 15, 2014

“For every negative experience that enters our lives,
there is always something to learn
and a way to grow from it.
Identify the lesson learned.
Recognize how you have grown from it
and then be thankful for the experience.
It is from our difficult experiences
that we learn and grow the most.
You can allow yourself to let go of the anger,
resentment, and negative emotions
that are attached to that individual or situation.”
Sonia Ricotti

"Unlike any other creature on this planet,
humans can learn and understand, without having experienced.
They can think themselves into other people’s places.”
J.K. Rowling

Harvard commencement address
"A mistake is an opportunity to learn but,
an opportunity to learn
doesn't necessarily have to be a mistake."
Anonymous

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-critters/0002.gif

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day
Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Smile.
Have you ever noticed how easily puppies make human friends?
Yet all they do is wag their tails and fall over.
Walter Anderson
It takes seventeen muscles to smile and forty-three to frown.
Author Unknown

“A warm smile is the universal language of kindness.”
William Arthur Ward

“If in our daily life we can smile,
if we can be peaceful and happy,
not only we, but everyone will profit from it.
This is the most basic kind of peace work.”
Nhat Hanh

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-critters/0033.gif

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day
Thursday, July 17, 2014

“To free us from the expectations of others,
to give us back to ourselves –
there lies the great, singular power of self-respect.”
Joan Didion

"Respect your fellow human beings,
treat them fairly, disagree with them honestly,
enjoy their friendship,
explore your thoughts about one another candidly,
work together for a common goal
and help one another achieve it."
Bill Bradley

"There is overwhelming evidence
that the higher the level of self–esteem,
the more likely one will be to treat others
with respect, kindness, and generosity."
Nathaniel Branden

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-critters/0047.gif

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day
Friday, July 18, 2014

"Violence is an admission
that one's ideas and goals cannot prevail on their own merits."
Edward Kennedy

"Violence is not power, but the absence of power."
Ralph Waldo Emerson

“We can never obtain peace in the outer world
until we make peace with ourselves.”
Dalai Lama XIV

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-critters/0027.gif

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day
Saturday, July 19, 2014

“Today I wish you a day of ordinary miracles ~
A fresh pot of coffee you didn't make yourself….
An unexpected phone call from an old friend….
Green stoplights on your way to work….
The fastest line at the grocery store….
A good sing-along song on the radio…
Your keys found right where you left them.”
Julia M. Chambers

“All change is a miracle to contemplate;
but it is a miracle which is taking place every second.”
Henry David Thoreau

“You can become blind by seeing each day as a similar one.
Each day is a different one,
each day brings a miracle of its own.
It's just a matter of paying attention to this miracle.”
Paulo Coelho

http://angelwinks.net/images/kidpod/kidpod1139.jpg

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day
Sunday, July 20, 2014

"The true Southern watermelon is a boon apart,
and not to be mentioned with commoner things.
It is chief of this world's luxuries,
king by the grace of God
over all the fruits of the earth.
When one has tasted it, he knows what the angels eat.
It was not a Southern watermelon that Eve took;
we know it because she repented."
Mark Twain

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/fruits-melons/0016.gif

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day
Monday, July 21, 2014

“You can’t just write and write and put things in a drawer.
They wither without the warm sun of someone else’s appreciation.”
Anne Morrow Lindbergh

"Feeling gratitude and not expressing it
is like wrapping a present and not giving it."
William Arthur Ward

“Don't forget,
a person's greatest emotional need is to feel appreciated.”
H. Jackson Brown Jr.,
Life's Little Instruction Book:
511 Suggestions, Observations, and Reminders
on How to Live a Happy and Rewarding Life

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-love/0270.gif

[MajestyJo]

In The Valleys I Grow

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-christmas/0132.gif

Sometimes life seems hard to bear,
Full of sorrow, trouble and woe
It's then I have to remember
That it's in the valleys I grow.
If I always stayed on the mountain top
And never experienced pain,
I would never appreciate God's love
And would be living in vain.
I have so much to learn
And my growth is very slow,
Sometimes I need the mountain tops,
But it's in the valleys I grow.
I do not always understand
Why things happen as they do,
But I am very sure of one thing.
My Lord will see me through.
My little valleys are nothing
When I picture Christ on the cross
He went through the valley of death;
His victory was Satan's loss.
Forgive me Lord, for complaining
When I'm feeling so very low.
Just give me a gentle reminder
That it's in the valleys I grow.
Continue to strengthen me, Lord
And use my life each day
To share your love with others
And help them find their way.
Thank you for valleys, Lord
For this one thing I know
The mountain tops are glorious
But it's in the valleys I grow!
Have a blessed day!
REMEMBER...
The shortest distance between a problem and a solution
is the distance between your knees and the floor.
The one who kneels to the Lord,
can stand up to anything.

~ Jane Eggleston ~

[MajestyJo]

Life is Beautiful

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/birds-bald-eagles/0030.gif

You can't quit until you try
You can't live until you die
You can't learn to tell the truth
Until you learn to lie

You can't breathe until you choke
You gotta laugh when you're the joke
There's nothing like a funeral to make you feel alive

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?

I know some things that you don't
I've done things that you won't
There's nothing like a trail of blood
to find your way back home

I was waiting for my hearse
What came next was so much worse
It took a funeral to make me feel alive

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?


...song by Sixx A. M.


I needed to read this and thought to share it with you. A sign for me that my God leads me to where I need to be and what I need to see.

The Hawk is the messenger according to Jamie Sams.

http://www.whats-your-sign.com/symbolic-hawk-meaning.html

[MajestyJo]

How aware are you? Here is another tip on "getting control" from Higher Awareness.

The shocking fact is that most of us are unconscious of 80% of what we do, think and say. WE'RE NOT AWARE of our defenses, our emotional reactions, our beliefs and deep-seated habits. Of our fears, negative self-talk and judgments.

Why is this so important? Because THESE UNCONSCIOUS FORCES ARE
RUNNING OUR LIVES! When we're not aware, we stay stuck in patterns that limit our ability to enjoy life. In fact, we stay stuck in patterns that cause us pain. Without awareness, we don't know how to think, create, love and reap the bounty of our world.

If you want to gain more control in your life, you will need to cultivate greater awareness. It's the MOST POWERFUL RESOURCE we have to effect change.

To be aware, we must STOP AND PAY ATTENTION. We must pull back our perspective to impartially observe what we are doing, feeling and thinking and what is going on around us. This detachment allows us to recognize our automatic patterns and reactions. And new insights let us break free of our patterns and defences. This allows us to choose something different for ourselves, if we want.

If we are unconscious, our future is created from our past, through patterns in our subconscious. If we are aware and conscious, our future is created anew in each moment.

Do you want to go through life on auto-pilot, letting old tapes dictate how you act? Or do you want to truly live life by clearly seeing the choices before you, and claiming your power to choose what you most want? It's up to you.

"To acquire knowledge, one must study; but to acquire wisdom, one must observe." -- Marilyn vos Savant

From Higher Awareness - used with permission

=======================================

As I have grown in recovery I have found that there have been stages where I seemed to get a shot of awareness, and I have to look at things, and do something about them. If I don't then I become uncomfortable in my own skin, and I can end up substituting other "things" and start looking for something or someone outside of myself to make me feel better.

For me, my conscious contact with my Higher Power is a connection I can not afford to lose or even slacken even a little bit. My disease is cunning, baffling and powerful and it just seems to be waiting for that moment that it can sneak back into my life. I don't have to physically pick up to have a relapse.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/cartoons-peanuts/0100.gif

[MajestyJo]

Some times I can be caught up in things and I can't see my nose from my face as my father told me many years.

He said,"The house could burn down and you wouldn't be aware when you have your nose in a book." In today, I try to put the book down to check out on what is going on, I no longer have to finish it before I set it down. My books are not a priority, but they are good when your feet are swollen and you have trouble getting around.

I think that books are the reason that I took an adult mature student test and graded 13+. I also started playing bridge to keep my mind active so I could exercise my mind and keep it busy, they say it is good to think. Unfortunately for me, when I turn on the TV I want to be entertained and informed, I don't want to have to think about I am watching and wait until next week to see what happens, not built that way. ;)

When I don't know, I pray for clarity and new awareness.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/cartoons-peanuts/0049.gif

[MajestyJo]

"It takes time to grow into freedom. We have time yet.

- Anne Wilson Schaef

This covers a lot of ground. My freedom as a woman, who no longer lives her life through other people, who is not afraid to be her 'own' person is the biggest freedom I have gained in recovery.

I hear freedom from active addiction, and for the most part that is true, but that is the reason for the second statement. I may be free from my drug of choice, but I am always vulnerable about other substance coming into my life and want to take over." So I have to work on my freedom daily, to allow myself freedom from the bondage of self and the nature of my disease.

I never had a concept of "just one" in my life! I had no understanding of "one day at a time", which frees me from the mistakes and cares of yesterday, release of me from the self-imposed obligation of looking at tomorrow (because I have have is the past to base my projections on), which allows me to live in today free to enjoy life in the moment, in God's care with love and faith, instead of my manipulations, guilt, and fear.

There is no price high enough to give up my freedom of today.

Posted in 2004

Could have written it in today. :)

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/insects-bees/0100.gif

[MajestyJo]

Willingness

from: "A Late Start"

"Small miracles keep offering new opportunities just when I need change and growth. New friends have shown me hidden truths in those sayings that I once found so shallow. The lessons of tolerance and acceptance have taught me to look beyond exterior appearances to find the help and wisdom so often lurking beneath the surface. All my sobriety and growth, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, are dependent upon my willingness to listen, understand, and change."

© 2001, Alcoholics Anonymous, page 542

Am I willing to make changes in my life today?

Am I willing to make plans for a new beginning for 2015?

Am I willing to let go of 2014 so I can have that new beginning in the year ahead?

What garbage do I need to let go of in today, so that I don't take it into the tomorrows of a new year?

Are you willing to accept the gifts of recovery by working the Step into your life and become willing to be free of the bondage of self and active addiction one day at a time.

I received an e-mail from a friend which said, why do good people get problems to deal with. It said, "To make them better people."

Not sure I agree with this. Often we are as a result of choices made, also our willingness to do what we need to do has a big part of it also.

Many people say God challenges us, but in truth, I think we challenge God.

I wrote him back and said, "Good people get challenged to bring them to a closer God-consciousness, and awareness. If they are challenged it doesn't mean they are a "bad" and perhaps they have a lesson to learn or their God wants to bring them closer to Him/Her/It.

Many times I have asked, "Are you sure about this? This isn't funny! Only to respond with, "Okay, so it is!" My HP seems to have more faith in me than I have in myself.

By showing that faith, my faith in Him/Her/It has grown and no matter where I am led, I know that any challenge that is presented to me will be overcome.

When I surrender, I was empowered to do what I needed to do for myself.

http://angelwinks.net/images/naturepod/naturepod436.jpg

This was posted in 2004 on another site, I changed it to the present.

[MajestyJo]

I grew up in the fifties with practical parents -- a Mother, God love her, who washed aluminum foil after she cooked in it, then reused it. She was the original recycle queen, before they had a name for it...

Father who was happier getting old shoes fixed than buying new ones.

Their marriage was good, their dreams focused. Their best friends lived barely a wave away. I can see them now, Dad in trousers, tee shirt and a hat and Mom in a house dress, lawn mower in one hand, dishtowel in the other.

It was the time for fixing things -- a curtain rod, the kitchen radio, screen door, the oven door, the hem in a dress. Things we keep.

It was a way of life, and sometimes it made me crazy.

All that re-fixing, reheating, renewing, I wanted just once to be wasteful. Waste meant affluence. Throwing things away meant you knew there'd always be more.

But then my Mother died, and on that clear summer's night, in the warmth of the hospital room, I was struck with the pain of learning that sometimes there isn't any 'more.'

Sometimes, what we care about most gets all used up and goes away...never to return.

So...while we have it...it's best we love it.....and care for it.....and fix it when it's broken.....and heal it when it's sick.

This is true.....for marriage.....and old cars.....and children with bad report cards.....and dogs with bad hips.....and aging parents.....and grandparents.

We keep them because they are worth it, because we are worth it.

Some things we keep.

Like a best friend that moved away -- or -- a classmate we grew up with.

There are just some things that make life important, like people we know who are special.....and so, we keep them close!

I received this from someone who thought I was a 'keeper'! Then I sent it to the people I think of in the same way. Now it's your turn to send this to those people that are "keepers" in your life.

I love pansies, I call them pretty ladies. On the internet it was called heart ease. They have always been a keeper in my life, along with butterflies.

http://healing.about.com/od/animaltotems/tp/insects.htm


http://www.angelwinks.net/images/angel151.jpg

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/countries-usa-native/0085.gif

Like the Eagle I fly,
I soar with the clouds on High.
Wind in my feathers,
like a breeze blowing through heather.

I ride the wind with out thought or care,
wishing this feeling I could share.
The higher i soar the cord stretches thin,
I disconnect from Mother Earth, leaving my Kin.

I long to fly, to the Sun...beyond,
this earthly body leave behind with the flick of a wand.
Fly on and on to new places and worlds,
a messenger of love, a peace I heard.

I reach the end of the cord feel it pull,
I look back at my home that tiny world.
The more I look the further back I fall
Then I slam back into my body in no time at all.

As I catch my breath, taking my journey to mind.
I realize only glimpses leaving the bulk behind.
The feelings however are held deep in my heart,
Which is still soaring the heavens, never the two shall part .

~EagleShadow 2006

Originally posted at Spirit of Rain

[MajestyJo]

I Was Chosen

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-angels/0019.gif

I don’t deserve to be here today
I still can’t comprehend how I found my way
At times I was unable to fight
From a world of darkness to a world of light
Nevertheless, I had made it through
And I began to construct a life anew
Somehow a second chance I received
A new outlook upon life I now perceived

I have no clue why someone chose me
‘cause I wasn’t going to grow up to be
The savior to bring the world to peace
Leave that to one who knows what to do at least
I also won’t cure any disease
I don’t know how to put my stomach at ease
So someone, why me, may I question?
Why am I, an awful mess, your selection?

One of three places I should have been
For all of the misery I have given
Either locked up in a cold, damp cell
And the inmates, I would get to know quite well
Or have padded walls surrounding me
Then one of the crazy people I would be
Or I could make a major blunder
Place three for me should have been six feet under

The torture I’ve caused you must not know;
The destruction I caused many years ago
For their grief I am to blame
Through being a villain I had earned my fame
And I know their lives can never be
Restored to sanity, all because of me
So why I was chosen I don’t know
Despite the agony I caused years ago

I knew in my heart I could not win;
Tried to force myself into oblivion
But then I threw out one final prayer
Sobbing to anyone who just might be there
I don’t know what changed in me that day
Through that darkness I had discovered my way
Back then that wasn’t of my concern
Since a whole new life I was about to earn

I found some people of my own kind
Which I thought existed just in my own mind
For the first time I wasn’t alone
With these people I had found a comfort zone
Even though they were complete strangers
I was certain that they possessed no dangers
For they helped me to regain my life
To a world of new hope from a world of strife

I’m a walking miracle I keep hearing
Despair around me keeps on clearing
Scars of yesterday are history
While tomorrow’s life remains a mystery
Now I can see the light in my heart
Even when my hands can’t pull the darkness apart
The sun finally begins to shine
And this heavenly world can now be all mine

Someone out there wanted to save me
Restore my hectic life back to sanity
They must have seen something inside me
That something, must have established me worthy
I haven’t found that divine force yet
Whatever it is, I’m forever in debt
‘cause it somehow chose me to survive
Although I shouldn’t be, I am still alive

~*~*~Mandie~*~*~

~*~"I haven't found that divine force yet whatever it is, I'm forever in its debt. 'Cause somehow it chose ME to survive, although I shouldn't be, I'm still alive"~*~

Lest we forget where we came from.

Something I posted on another site in 2010.

[MajestyJo]

GOD'S HOTEL

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/animals-cats-mice/0027.gif

I checked you in again last night, my child,

Because it hurt me so bad to see you out there running wild.

All tired and sucked up you appeared to me

But put a mirror in front of you, and you can't even see;

That you are a number among the walking dead,

Sores all over your body, confusion in your head.

Jail is not the place you want to be

But it's my hotel, where I can work on thee you see.

You weren't just arrested, you were rescued from yourself.

I had to bring you back here, to put your habit on the shelf.

Give you some rest, some food, and some talk

Encourage you and love you, before I let you walk.

Dont be like a mule that's led around by a bit,

Just listen to your warnings, and I can help you quit.

This could be the last time you have to come into this place,

Just listen to me the Creator Of All with tears upon my face...

Original Source Unknown - posted on FB's Addict's Mom

[MajestyJo]

PERSONAL POWER

http://www.angeleyes1.com/platinum6/pictures/images/an/angel77.jpg

When you consciously invoke growing, you consciously invoke the parts of yourself that are not whole to come into the foreground of your life. With each recurrence of anger, jealousy, or fear, you are given the choice to challenge it, or to give in to it. Each time you challenge it, it loses power and you gain power.

- Gary Zukav

For so many years, I gave away my personal power. I did not know I had a choice.

Each time I am faced with an old scenario, I am given the choice in recovery as to whether I am going to let it continue to play out in my life or am I going to step up to the plate and challenge it and do what I can do to heal and change things.

When I surrender, I am empowered to do what I need to do for myself. I no longer have to give those old patterns and behaviors the power to rule my life.

Just for today, I take back my power. I am worthy of a new life and a new sense of well being and peace.

Just because you are a strong woman, there is no reason to give up a part of yourself for someone else. It is okay to be you. Own your own power.

[MajestyJo]

TEXT Today we hear a lot about "Happy, Joyous and Free" but as life happens in sobriety, we all go through rough times.

This recalls a statement an old-timer told me many years ago. He said "AA doesn't promise you a rose garden but will teach you to live life on life's terms SOBER.

There will be times we are not happy, joyous but we will always be free if we *accept* life on life's terms SOBER!.........just for today. TEXT

Tiger

How true this is! Yet when you think of it, in order to get the roses and see them bloom, it takes a lot of work, turning over the soil, adding the fertilizer, pampering and care, love and attention, food and water, digging out the weeds and trimming the bush so the picture and plant is whole.

That is what recovery and the Twelve Steps have done for me. Now I have the privilege of seeing some blossoms, but I know it takes continuous work, to keep the plant alive.

Originally done by Lynn Anderson

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/martinamcbride/ineverpromisedyouarosegarden.html

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/religion-angels/0124.gif

[MajestyJo]

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/princessdiana3.jpg

1 On this day in 1997, the funeral of Diana,
the young Princess of Wales, was held
in Westminster Abbey. The following
words were sung, and they can be our
words of commitment today:

2 I would be true
- for there are those who trust me.
I would be pure
- for there are those who care.
I would be strong
- for there is much to suffer.
I would be brave
- for there is much to dare.

3 I would be friend of all,
the foe, the friendless.
I would be giving,
and forget the gift.
I would be humble,
for I know my weakness.
I would look up,
laugh, love and live.

[MajestyJo]

HOW TO LOVE YOURSELF

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/angel112.jpg

STOP ALL CRITICISM.
Criticism never changes a thing. Refuse to criticize yourself. Accept
yourself exactly as you are. Everybody changes. When you criticize yourself, your changes are negative. When you approve of yourself, your changes are positive.

DON'T SCARE YOURSELF.
Stop terrorizing yourself with your thoughts. It's a dreadful way to live.

Find a mental image that gives you pleasure (mine is yellow roses), and
immediately switch your scary thought to a pleasure thought.

BE GENTLE AND KIND AND PATIENT.
Be gentle with yourself. Be kind to yourself. Be patient with yourself as you learn the new ways of thinking. Treat yourself as you would someone you really loved.

BE KIND TO YOUR MIND.
Self-hatred is only hating your own thoughts. Don't hate yourself for having the thoughts. Gently change your thoughts.

PRAISE YOURSELF.
Criticism breaks down the inner spirit. Praise builds it up. Praise yourself as much as you can. Tell yourself how well you are doing with every little thing.

SUPPORT YOURSELF.
Find ways to support yourself. Reach out to friends and allow them to help you. It is being strong to ask for help when you need it.

BE LOVING TO YOUR NEGATIVES.
Acknowledge that you created them to fulfill a need. Now you are finding new, positive ways to fulfill those needs. So lovingly release the old negative patterns.

TAKE CARE OF YOUR BODY.
Learn about nutrition. What kind of fuel does your body need to have optimum energy and vitality? Learn about exercise. What kind of exercise can you enjoy? Cherish and revere the temple you live in.

MIRROR WORK.
Look into your eyes often. Express this growing sense of love you have for yourself. Forgive yourself looking into the mirror. Talk to your parents looking into the mirror. Forgive them too. At least once a day say: "I love you, I really love you!"

LOVE YOURSELF... DO IT NOW.
Don't wait until you get well, or lose the weight, or get the new job, or the new relationship. Begin now - and do the best you can.

by Louise Hay




This was why I was in codependent relationships. I always looked to others to make me feel good because I couldn't find it within myself. Always looking for the validation and approval outside of myself, thank God for recovery.

[MajestyJo]

ACCEPTING

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-faces/0161.gif

Samuel Thadeus Short

“God speaks to all individuals through what happens to them moment by moment.” — J. P. DECAUSSADE

What if we were to open ourselves peacefully and trustingly to accepting good rather than pugnaciously trying to coerce life into responding to us? What if we came to life with our palms out and raised upward rather than greeting it with a double fist? We would develop a consciousness of acceptance of good which is immense and would unfold into every area of our existence.

Such a consciousness of this sort invites the natural wholeness of God to enrich us at every turn. We discover that the atom of God is always flowing through our thoughts and through our deeds.

We can come to know and trust this action to support our good at all times. As we accept only good for ourselves we do the same for all other life forms as well. The perfect manifestation of God comes through us.

The Antesian Road To Enlightenment
antesianroadtoenlightenment-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

EXPANDING CONSCIOUSNESS

THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

When I read this, one thought came to mind. When I get out of the way, God works through me. When I am willing to be a channel of His Blessing, I live my life in today, that when I surrender that direction is there and it is my acceptance and acknowledgement of that good orderly direction, which determines how smoothly my day goes, how well equipped I am to hand today on life's terms, and accepting that God knows what is good for me, more so than my own narrow minded concepts and outlook at myself and others.

So many times I have been grateful that God doesn't think like I do, but I am sure He has thought that He is very grateful His thinking isn't based on my thoughts.

Today He is companion and friend. I have been known to question His actions, yet I have found that He has much more acceptance of me than I have had of Him over the years.

[MajestyJo]

What Do I Accept?

1. Do I accept I have an addiction to substances?
2. Do I accept my addiction is a disease, that cannot be cured?
3. Do I accept that all mood altering substances are all equally bad for me because of my disease of addiction?
4. Do I accept I cannot change past events that happened to me or my past actions?
5. Do I accept I cannot control other people?
6. Do I accept that I am responsible for the effort I put into my recovery and my life, but I cannot control the outcomes?
7. Do I accept that bad things do happen to people in recovery?
8. Do I accept that there is no situation, good or bad , that a drink or drug won't make worse
9. Do I accept that if I do not change my thinking and my attitude, my recovery may be at risk?
10. Do I accept that if I keep doing what I did, I'll keep getting what I got?
11. Do I accept that when I am drinking or using I become a slave to the alcohol or drugs and it is my master?
12. Do I accept that I can learn something from every situation good or bad if I am open to learning?
13. Do I accept that recovery is hard work and requires rigorous honesty?
14. Do I accept that the 12 steps (of any of our programs) work if I work the steps?
15. Do I accept suggestions?
16. Do I accept I cannot control situations or people , but I can control how I respond to them
17. Do I accept that recovery needs to be the number 1 priority in my life?
18. Do I accept that I have choices today and I need to accept the consequences of my choices?
19. Do I accept there are always excuses to use or drink but they are all lies I tell to myself
20. Do I accept that when I was drinking or using my Higher Power was drugs and alcohol (gambling, sex, food etc)
21. Do I accept that if I continue to drink or drug my options in life are" insanity, jail, or death?
22. Do I accept that I am responsible for my own recovery, others may help , but the responsibility is mine?

by. Del Larkin

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-bears-series/0016.gif

[MajestyJo]

Accept me as I am I have no guarantee.

A claim to perfection I have not. Perfect I cannot be.

I, like you.....am human. Prone to make mistakes.

Failure is not a character flaw, Just a part of the human makeup.

I live, I laugh and I also learn. My knowledge is incomplete.

I am searching all the time, in waking hours as well as sleep.

I have a long road to travel, as well as you do.

We learn our lessons on the way. Wisdom we shall accrue.

So please accept me as I am Because I am .... Just me.

No one like me in the world. That is my only guarantee.

This is how I feel I have a heart, open it and see
Please take care That's all I am, just me.


--Author Unknown

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/avatars-100x100-animals/0215.gif

[MajestyJo]

Acceptance of others is easier for me than of where I am in the moment. I also find that when I don't listen to myself, I get resentful. Often that puts me in places, with others, that I wish not to be around. Accepting of them, tolerance is another matter. I am grateful for the knowledge of knowing where people come from, yet have very little acceptance and tolerance for those who excuse their behavior by saying, "I'm an alcoholic you know?" I am an adult child, what do you expect? I am an addict, that is what addicts do. Recovery is about change and not staying in old behaviour, about moving ahead and not going back to where I came from. So, you can see, I can still be judgmental, yet I am my hardest critic!

Knowingness is such a powerful thing. To be able to be in the 'know' instead of the chaos and uncertainty of active addiction, be it living with my own, or someone else's. Being at one with oneself, in the know with what is best for me it a great gift. I lived my life through other people for so many years and I had no identity of my own.

Serenity and being comfortable with myself is certainly a God given gift of this program, through working the Steps, I not only found God, I found myself.

Acceptance is the key to all areas of recovery, it doesn't matter what substance you use, be it people, places, and/or things.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-pigs-3/0004.gif

[MajestyJo]

This is probably posted somewhere on the board but something I needed to read, so copied it from another site. It was originally posted in 2013.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-bears-love/0082.gif

A is for Acceptance. Accepting what is in the moment, knowing it is subject to change. Accepting that I have a dis-ease, which cause me to look for something outside of myself. When I found something, I couldn't stop there, I always had to have more and it because a disease that made me obsessive compulsive and wanting more. I developed an allergy, because I couldn't metabolize the drugs and alcohol the same way normal people do. I had a disease of perception, and thought I was in control, when in fact it was an illusion. When I wanted to stop, I couldn't.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-hedgehogs-love/0007.gif

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/abranda/abranda5.jpg

Our pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding. --Kahlil Gibran


Quiz - Are you in a true state of being?

Adapted from On the Toltec Path,
by Ken Eagle Feather (Inner Traditions, 2006).

Simple Solution

Many teachings focus on how to develop the state of true being.
Although the word "being" sounds passive, a state of true being is highly dynamic. It embodies a quiet flow of deep awareness.

Take this quiz to see how close you may be to experiencing a state of true being:

See how many of these statements are TRUE for you:

* I experience immediate attention to the here and now.

* I experience a sense of newness in all my activities, no matter
how repetitive.

* I experience peacefulness.

* My perception accentuates the environment more, focusing less on myself.

* I feel a sense of rightness or perfection about everything.

* I experience little or no thought.

* I experience a touching, or at least a getting closer to, my core
nature.

* I feel a strong, clear connection with the world.

* I experience reality as a reflection of myself.

* I feel an innate sense of purpose.

* I experience a complete abandon or surrender.

* I feel nonattachment.

* I experience balanced energies.

* I feel unconditional love.

* I experience joy and/or bliss.

* I feel patience.

* I experience the sense of residing in a timeless present that
stretches throughout eternity.

No matter how many of these statements were or were not true for you, these are all experiences that are attainable with practice.

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/generalpod/generalpod1136.jpg

What would you do if for every moment you were truly happy there would be 10 moments of sadness?

What would you do if your best friend died tomorrow and you never got to tell them how you felt?

So, I just wanted to say, even if I never talk to you again in my life, you are special to me and you have made a difference in my life.

I look up to you, respect you, and truly cherish you.

Let old friends know you haven't forgotten them, and tell new friends you never will.

Remember, everyone needs a friend, someday you might feel like you have NO FRIENDS at all, just remember and take comfort in knowing somebody out there cares about you and always will.

I'll Always Be There in times of trouble,
In times of need,
If you are feeling sad,
You can count on me.

I will give you a wink,
Until you smile,
Give you a hug,
And stand by your side.

I'll be there for you till the end,
I'll always and forever, be your friend!

[MajestyJo]

An old one, but a good one.

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/flower23.jpg

I've never made a fortune, and it's probably too late now.
But I don't worry about that much, I'm happy anyhow
And as I go along life's way,
I'm reaping better than I sowed.
I'm drinking from my saucer,
'Cause my cup has overflowed.

Haven't got a lot of riches,
and sometimes the going's tough
But I've got loving ones all around me,
and that makes me rich enough.
I thank God for his blessings,
and the mercies He's bestowed.
I'm drinking from my saucer,
'Cause my cup has overflowed.

I remember times when things went wrong,
My faith wore somewhat thin.
But all at once the dark clouds broke,
and the sun peeped through again.

So Lord, help me not to gripe,
about the tough rows I have hoed.
I'm drinking from my saucer,
'Cause my cup has overflowed.

If God gives me strength and courage,
When the way grows steep and rough.
I'll not ask for other blessings,
I'm already blessed enough.

And may I never be too busy,
to help others bear their loads.
Then I'll keep drinking from my saucer,
'Cause my cup has overflowed.

Original source unknown to me

Something I posted in 2005 :(

[MajestyJo]

Have been surfing the sites looking for spiritual food because I have been hurting the last few days. Here is another good one:

Many times we come to a place were we feel very alone and feel that God has forsaken us. We don't seem to be connected to God and we don't seem to be getting any direction.

I was in this place not to long ago, and I came to the realization that: l) I wasn't hearing what I wanted to hear; 2) It wasn't time to move into a new direction because I hadn't completed and finished the feelings concerning where I had been and what I had done; and 3) I was still in the blame mode and not willing to take responsibility for my part.

A lot of what blocked me from God was my anger, and my inability to deal with the hurt, pain and rejection. Not only was their feelings in the present, but there were buried feelings that I hadn't dealt with and were in denial about.

When I am angry, I can't get to God and He can't get to me. Denial is a blanket which we often draw around us which prevents us from seeing and dealing with things until we come to a time where we are feeling like looking at and dealing with them, or the pain is so bad that we have to face the issue because staying where we are at is too painful and it is time to let go.

When this happens, all I can do is to continue to pray. Often for me, I need to pray for the blockages and walls to be taken down, so there is nothing obstructing me from God. I have found many times that people have prayed for me and yet, because of my walls, the healing and love couldn't get through.

The prayer of willing to be willing, has been a blessing to me.


I will never forget the time I had a situation going on while living with a friend. I did not know what to do. I left her, went upstairs, knelt beside my bed and I felt like God had touched me with His Hand and I felt peace flow from the top of my head to the tip of my toes. I was able to get up and do what I needed to do to help my friend. I have had a few special incidents where I knew I had been touched, other times I am just able to go within and know He is there.

Went into the hospital to visit a friend who had fallen off a ladder and broke his back. I went in to do a healing and prayer time with him, you could feel the energy flowing in the room, even a nurse who came in asked to borrow some from him. He said, "Sure any time." He left the hospital much sooner than they expected and were surprised at how fast he had healed. All things are possible through prayer.

Posted in 2011

Have been close to there recently, I felt connected, but the energy is blocked in my body because of swelling and I found I had erected barriers. I am working on them, with God we will come out on the other side.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-angels/0145.gif

[MajestyJo]

A young, new preacher was walking with an older, more seasoned preacher in the garden one day. Feeling a bit insecure about what God had for him to do, he was asking the older preacher for some advice.

The older preacher walked up to a rose bush and handed the young preacher a rosebud and told him to open it without tearing any of the petals. The young preacher looked in disbelief at the older preacher and was trying to figure out what a rosebud could possibly have to do with his wanting to know the will of God for his life and ministry. But, because of his great respect for the older preacher, he proceeded to try to unfold the rosebud while keeping every petal intact . . . It wasn't long before he realized how impossible this was to do.

Noticing the young preacher's inability to unfold the rosebud without tearing it, the older preacher began to recite the following poem:


It is only a tiny rosebud
A flower of God's design;
But I cannot unfold the petals
With these clumsy hands of mine.

The secret of unfolding flowers
Is not known to such as I.
GOD opens this flower so sweetly,
Then, in my hands, they die.

If I cannot unfold a rosebud,
The flower of God's design,
Then how can I have the wisdom
To unfold this life of mine?

So, I'll trust in Him for leading
Each moment of my day.
I will look to Him for His guidance
Each step of the Pilgrim's way.

Original Source Unknown, something I posted on one of Tammy's old sites

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRYxvx-xq-6Yjg19dS-jBdiJ5kbJHalHz7kkFlOo0v7RI1UDXjbcQ

http://www.oprah.com/own-super-soul-sunday/Finding-Faith-and-Yourself-6-Quotes-from-Karen-Armstrong

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTX4KPZpTKjfnx52ghtL2Y1GHYnJVjen wVkboAjpCyayaJykRrM

[MajestyJo]

http://i259.photobucket.com/albums/hh313/lglg787/Greetings/GoodEvening.jpg

This looks like it could be in another section, but that is okay with me. This is a prayer I say, in one form or another, every day.

Instead of getting angry, resentful, and hurt because of my "A's" actions, words, and non-actions, I just ask that he be reminded that there is another way, and hopefully he will see the program working in me, instead of me, having hissy fits, shouting matches, and all those other behaviors that I picked up over the years.

As the slogan says, "Let It Begin With Me." It isn't about the "A" in my life, it is about me and my recovery. I can't change him/her, but I can change me and my attitude.


http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/vv36/MajestyJo/Today/0199.gif

[MajestyJo]

We have a disease of perception. My perception was off, and I should have posted last week, so I am late! End of story, so now I will have to look for more material and find something that speaks to me and share it with you.

I remember this post. It made me smile, because tend to question myself and ask myself if my perception is in need of healing? So I try to pray each day that it BE HEALED!

This is a disease of perception. How I perceive things may not mean the same to someone else.

Not sure if this is computer has the blues or a flood of e-mails, or is it just all washed up? That was my thoughts when I saw this picture, what is your view? I think the original picture had blue water.

In the long run, what does it matter? For me, my computer is my lifeline. It is a two way street.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/computing-computers/0040.gif

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for Sunday,
October 26, 2014
“We all have angels guiding us…
They look after us.
They heal us, touch us,
comfort us with invisible warm hands…
What will bring their help?
Asking. Giving thanks.”
Doreen Virtue
“Open yourself to an encounter with heaven,
be as a little child.
Release your desire to the winds of the universe.
Trust your angels to catch your wish
and bring it to you
in a delightfully surprising way.”
Doreen Virtue
"Every time you see someone in distress,
you have the opportunity
to work as a team with Heaven’s angels.
You become the channel for your angels
to provide loving care to those in need.”
Doreen Virtue
The Angel Lady, Doreen Virtue, is Sunday’s keynote speaker
at the “I Can Do It” Conference!

Thoughts for the Day
Saturday, October 25, 2014

“People do not need saving.
People need love, support, and encouragement
that they can withstand any trials
and will always come out stronger,
wiser, and more compassionate.
I cannot shelter anyone from the storms of life,
or they will never grow, learn, and expand.”
Brian L. Weiss
Miracles Happen: The Transformational Healing Power of Past-Life Memories
“If you rely exclusively on the advice of others,
you may make terrible mistakes.
Your heart knows what you need.
Other people have other agendas.”
Brian L. Weiss
Only Love Is Real: A Story of Soulmates Reunited
“Come from the heart,
the true heart, not the head.
When in doubt, choose the heart.
This does not mean to deny your own experiences
and that which you have empirically learned
through the years.
It means to trust your self
to integrate intuition and experience.
There is a balance,
a harmony to be nurtured,
between the head and the heart.
When the intuition rings clear and true,
loving impulses are favored.”
Brian L. Weiss
Messages from the Masters: Tapping Into the Power of Love

Thoughts for the Day
Friday, October 24, 2014
“With everything that has happened to you,
you can either feel sorry for yourself
or treat what has happened as a gift.
Everything is either an opportunity to grow
or an obstacle to keep you from growing.
You get to choose.”

“When you're at peace with yourself
and love your self,
it is virtually impossible
to do things to yourself
that are destructive.”
“The more you see yourself
as what you'd like to become,
and act as if
what you want is already there,
the more you'll activate
those dormant
forces that will collaborate
to transform your dream into your reality.”
Quotes from Wayne W. Dyer

Thoughts for the Day
Thursday, October 23, 2014
"You will turn over many a futile new leaf
till you learn we must all write
on scratched-out pages."
Mignon McLaughlin
The Neurotic's Notebook, 1960

"People don't change when
you tell them there is a better option.
They change when they concede
that they have no other option."
Michael Mandelbaum
“We must always change,
renew, rejuvenate ourselves;
otherwise we harden.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Thoughts for the Day
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
“You do not have the right to quit trying.
(The universe wobbles when you do.)
You have the right to quit Toxic People.
(They're contagious.)”
Dr. SunWolf
professorsunwolf.com
“Take control of your destiny.
Believe in yourself.
Ignore those who try to discourage you.
Avoid negative sources, people,
places, things and habits.
Don't give up and don't give in.”
Wanda Carter
“Someone's opinion of you
does not have to become your reality.”
Les Brown

Thoughts for the Day
Monday, October 20, 2014
“If everyone swept in front of their own door,
the world would be a cleaner place.”
Louise L. Hay and David Kessler
You Can Heal Your Heart
"Just remember,
there's a right way and a wrong way to do everything
and the wrong way is to keep trying
to make everybody else do it the right way."
M*A*S*H, Colonel Potter
"Be not angry
that you cannot make others as you wish them to be,
since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be."
Thomas à Kempis
Imitation of Christ

[MajestyJo]

Just for today: I will view the world and my life through the clean spiritual lenses of my program.

pg. 297

- Just For Today

This reminds me of my rose coloured glasses I wore before recovery. Denial sure can give you tunnel and blurred vision.

Love the concept of a spiritual lens. It brings me to a quote I heard many years ago, "Though I see through a glass darkly..." It reminds me to bring things out of the darkness and into the light so I can have an honest appraisal of them.

When I take off the blinders, I can see God in all things.

http://englishsbuffalofarm.com/tradingpost/images/uploads/Puzzles/Autumn%20Maiden%20%20--%20%20MPZ063-2%20%20--%20%20100%20pieces.jpg

[MajestyJo]

Don't think away your feelings

“When emotions are managed by the heart, they heighten your awareness of the world around you and add sparkle to life. The result is new intelligence and a new view of life.”

-- Doc Childre and Howard Martin

How do you intellectualize your emotions?

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/insects-butterflies/0234.gif

Many of us live so much in our heads that we intellectualize our emotions. We analyze, rationalize and explain them away so quickly that we don’t actually experience them.

Learn to honour your emotions at all times by being willing to feel them. Of course, you may need to exercise some judgment over how and when you express them.

"Learning to be aware of feelings, how they arise and how to use them creatively so they guide us to happiness, is an essential lifetime skill."

-- Joan Borysenko

(C) Reproductions Permitted: http://www.higherawareness.com

[MajestyJo]

This is a one day at a time program. It is about my connection to my God, working my program, and how willing I am to practice it in all areas of my life. It just isn't about drinking and drugging, it is about my thinking that can take me out of myself, instead of going within, to connect with the Spirit within.

A good thing to read at the moment. I had a good day, and now I am hurting. Last night my feet hurt a lot too, and now I know why. It is raining. How easy it is to forget. It is simple. Acceptance is the key. The weather lets me know it is on the way. It is suppose to snow, even though it was in the 60s today.

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ3qij_UxTNLA_HC0tcGRLkFoukQXXTZ JWaYoR7GXJEms5MtbocdA

[MajestyJo]

http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z281/CindyBug555/QUOTES/ff0dd1a5ec49f4de515c84376cd1d2b5.jpg

LITTLE THINGS

It’s the little things we do and say
That mean so much as we go our way.
A kindly deed can lift a load
From weary shoulders on the road,
Or a gentle word, like summer rain,
May sooth some heart and banish pain.
What joy or sadness often springs
From just the simple little things!

— Unknown

[MajestyJo]

Journeys

"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Courage

"Good timber does not grow with ease. The stronger the wind the stronger the trees."

- Williard Marriott

~ ~ ~ ~ ~


As they say, recovery is a journey not a destination. It takes courage to take that journey and I found that I needed to go to my God in order to maintain it.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-christmas/0044.gif

[MajestyJo]

WHENEVER YOU FEEL CLOISTERED AND SURROUNDED BY DOOM AND GLOOM, know THAT THERE IS LIGHT AVAILABLE FOR THE ASKING. EVERYTHING IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-butterflies/0402.gif

If you look closely at what Butterfly is trying to teach you, you will realize that it is the never-ending cycle of self-transformation. The way to discern where you are in this cycle is to ask yourself:

1) Is this the egg stage: Is it just a thought or idea?
2) Is this the larva stage: Do I need to make a decision?
3) Is this the cocoon stage: Am I developing and doing something to make my idea a reality?
4) Is this the birth stage: Am I sharing my completed idea?

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-cats/0062.gif

ONLY YOU CAN SAY THERE IS A PROBLEM!

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-cats/0107.gif

WHEN LIFE HAS YOU TURNED AROUND, PRAY AND GET IT BACK ON TRACK.

[MajestyJo]

It is January 1st – the beginning of a banner year. So here’s a short, positive TO-DO list for 2015 – Five things to start doing for yourself:

1. Start being yourself, genuinely and proudly. – Trying to be anyone else is a waste of the person you are. Be yourself. Embrace that individual inside you that has ideas, strengths and beauty like no one else. Be the person you know yourself to be – the best version of you – on your terms. Above all, be true to YOU, and if you cannot put your heart in it, take yourself out of it.

2. Start making your own happiness a priority. – Your needs matter. If you don’t value yourself, look out for yourself, and stick up for yourself, you’re sabotaging yourself. Remember, it IS possible to take care of your own needs while simultaneously caring for those around you. And once your needs are met, you will likely be far more capable of helping those who need you most.

3. Start noticing how wealthy you are right now. – Even when times are tough, it’s always important to keep things in perspective. You didn’t go to sleep hungry last night. You didn’t go to sleep outside. You had a choice of what clothes to wear this morning. You hardly broke a sweat today. You didn’t spend a minute in fear. You have access to clean drinking water. You have access to medical care. You have access to the Internet. You can read. Some might say you are incredibly wealthy, so remember to be grateful for all the things you do have.

4. Start entering new relationships for the right reasons. – Enter new relationships with dependable, honest people who reflect the person you are and the person you want to be. Choose friends you are proud to know, people you admire, who show you love and respect – people who reciprocate your kindness and commitment. And pay attention to what people do, because a person’s actions are much more important than their words or how others represent them.

5. Start forgiving yourself and others. – We’ve all been hurt by our own decisions and by others. And while the pain of these experiences is normal, sometimes it lingers for too long. We relive the pain over and over and have a hard time letting go. Forgiveness is the remedy. It doesn’t mean you’re erasing the past, or forgetting what happened. It means you’re letting go of the resentment and pain, and instead choosing to learn from the incident and move on with your life.

And of course, if you're struggling with any of these points, know that you are not alone. Many of us are right there with you, working hard to feel better, think more clearly, and live a life free of headaches and heartache.

Received with thanks from my friend Carey in Texas

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-mice/0112.gif

[MajestyJo]

The Power of Now: Daily Guru

"There are two kinds of men who never amount to much: those who cannot do what they are told, and those who can do nothing else."

-- Cyrus H. Curtis

"Compassion, caring, teaching, loving, and sharing your gifts, talents, and abilities are the gateways to power."

-- Jamie Sams

Need to let go of control?

"The world is not to be put in order; the world is order, incarnate. It is for us to harmonize with this order."

-- Henry Miller

Need to let go of control?

"The world is not to be put in order; the world is order, incarnate. It is for us to harmonize with this order."

-- Henry Miller

Ego believes that it needs to protect us from external dangers. Through control and manipulation, it aims to keep us safe. This need of ego is based in fear.

If we hope to live in love, we must become acquainted with soul. Experiencing soul brings a deep knowing that this is a loving universe. Experiencing soul also builds faith. We learn to trust that we don’t have to run the show. And when we do this, we tap the source of true freedom and joy.

"It is not action or effort that we must surrender; it is self-will, and this is terribly difficult. You must do your best constantly, yet never allow yourself to become involved in whether things work out the way you want."

-- Eknath Easwaran

"True spiritual surrender responsibly opens itself to the unknown."

-- Stephen V. Doughty


http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo165/petrifiedsprings/MAYGODBLESSYOU.jpg

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRfPsKVKm9Qd24MhQexx6r8F12e8-LLeKO8cbL_j6jtYENKV1oPYg

"What shape are my thoughts in?" Wasn't too sure I liked the shape of some of them. I need to change the negative to a positive.

On inspection, I saw some inflated, some doubtful, and some a little tired, but on the whole, quite looking forward to the new things being implemented in my life.

I believe, I am my thoughts, so it is important that I exercise them, develop them, and feed them the fuel they need daily to be healthy.

What I think, goes out and comes back to me. We may not thinking it is an action, but we are a part of the whole, and that energy, be it directed at someone or something, has much more power than we often realize.

So going to make a conscious effort to do some mental push ups and get my thoughts in a row, may change a few, and hopefully some will develop into something good.

Good is God. God is good. When I think good, good things happen.

Was thinking, when I get bent out of shape, my mind often follows.

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-cherubs/0071.gif

Opportunity may knock once, but temptation
bangs on your front door forever.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Quit griping about your church;
if it was perfect, you couldn't belong.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

If the church wants a better pastor,
it only needs to pray for the one it has.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

God Himself does not propose to
judge a man until he is dead.
So why should you?

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Some minds are like concrete
thoroughly mixed up and
permanently set.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Peace starts with a smile.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

I don't know why some people
change churches;
what difference does it make
which one you stay home from?

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

A lot of church members who are singing
"Standing on the Promises"
are just sitting on the premises.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

We were called to be witnesses,
not lawyers or judges.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Be ye fishers of men
You catch them - He'll clean them.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Coincidence is when God
chooses to remain anonymous.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Don't put a question mark
where God put a period.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Don't wait for 6 strong
men to take you to church.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Forbidden fruits create many jams.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

God doesn't call the qualified,
He qualifies the called.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

God grades on the cross, not the curve.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

God loves everyone, but probably prefers
"fruits of the spirit" over "religious nuts!"

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

God promises a safe landing,
not a calm passage.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

He who angers you, controls you!

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

If God is your Co-pilot - swap seats!

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Prayer:
Don't give God instructions -- just report for duty!

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

The task ahead of us is never as
great as the Power behind us.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

The Will of God never takes you to where the Grace of God will not protect you.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

We don't change the message,
the message changes us.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

You can tell how big a person is
by what it takes to discourage him.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

The best mathematical equation I have ever seen:
1 cross + 3 nails = 4 given.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.ca/images/nostalgicpod/nostalgicpod36.jpg

“Failure is never a person, it’s only an event.
And the person who sets a goal,
makes a plan, takes action, evaluates results,
adjusts their plan, learns from their mistakes
and continues toward their goal never fails.”
http://www.Guideposts.org

“For it is not failure that stops most people,
but rather the belief that failure is permanent.
Failure is nothing more than a storm
in the weather forecast for the week –
it comes and it goes,
and it waters next season’s yield
because it teaches us where we can improve.”
Jake Ducey

[MajestyJo]

THE DRINKERS 23RD PSALM

King Alcohol is my shepherd.
I shall always want.
He maketh me lie down in the gutter.
He leadeth me beside troubles waters.
He destoyeth my soul.
He leadeth me in the paths of wickedness
For the effect's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of poverty
And have delirium tremens,
I will cling to drink,
For thou art with me
To bite and sting and torment me.
Thou preparest an empty table
In the presence of my family.
Thou annointest my head with hellishness.
My cup of wrath runneth over.
Surely destruction and misery shall follow me
All the days of my life,
And I shall dwell in the house of the damned forever.

received in email

[MajestyJo]

Thoughts for the Day
Saturday, April 4, 2015

“The ultimate meaning of the Bible escapes human limits
and calls us to a recognition that every life is holy,
every life is loved,
and every life is called to be all
that that life is capable of being.”
John Shelby Spong

“Being holy …
does not mean being perfect but being whole;
it does not mean being exceptionally religious
or being religious at all;
it means being liberated from religiosity
and religious pietism of any sort;
it does not mean being morally better,
it means being exemplary;
it does not mean being godly,
but rather being truly human.”
William Stringfellow

A Keeper of the Word: Selected Writings
“Ironic that those most holy
are least likely to see themselves that way.”
Mark Buchanan
The Holy Wild: Trusting in the Character of God

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/easter-uk/0375.gif

[MajestyJo]

Easter Sunday
April 5, 2015

“Let the Resurrection joy lift us
from loneliness and weakness and despair
to strength and beauty and happiness.”
Floyd W. Tomkins

"This is the Easter message,
that awakening is possible,
to the goodness of God,
the sacredness of human life,
the sisterhood and brotherhood of all."
Anne Lamott

“Spirit is calling.
Do you hear it?
The soft tones from the sounds of love,
Joy and harmony welcome you
As they wrap around your body, mind and soul
To give comfort and peace to you.
Feel each blessing and give thanks.
It has been sent to you on angel wings
To bring light and love to you this day.”
Petey

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/easter-uk/0272.gif

[MajestyJo]

One Caring Smile

http://angelwinks.ca/images/nostalgicpod/nostalgicpod64.jpg

Everything's gone
wrong today.
No one reacts to
anything you say.

No matter how much
you scream and cry,
the world seems to
be passing you by.

No one seems to notice or care,
that you are trying to be heard
over your despair.

But on one face a
smile shines through,
a smile that knows
and cares about you.

A smile with love to lend,
on a face you recognize
as a friend!

Original Source Unknown

Posted originally on my site The Gathering of Eagles

[MajestyJo]

Read Each One Carefully and Think About It a Second or Two

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRBQtDc9WStfgss5BjWT2FrrhSgbw-x8hexEYMa67Qrq2mn_Fe3

1. I love you not because of who you are, but because of who I am when I am with you..

2. No man or woman is worth your tears, and the one who is, won't make you cry.

3. Just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to, doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have.

4.. A true friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your heart.

5. The worst way to miss someone is to be sitting right beside them knowing you can't have them.

6. Never frown, even when you are sad, because you never know who is falling in love with your smile.

7. To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.

8. Don't waste your time on a man/woman, who isn't willing to waste their time on you.

9. Maybe God wants us to meet a few wrong people before meeting the right one, so that when we finally meet the person, we will know how to be grateful.

10. Don't cry because it is over, smile because it happened.

11. There's always going to be people that hurt you so what you have to do is keep on trusting and just be more careful about who you trust next time around.

12. Make yourself a better person and know who you are before you try and know someone else and expect them to know you.

13. Don't try so hard, the best things come when you least expect them to.

REMEMBER: WHATEVER HAPPENS, HAPPENS FOR A REASON.

True friends: How many people actually have 8 true friends?

Hardly anyone I know! But some of us have all right friends and good friends!!

You have been Tagged by the Green Dog!

,-._,-.
\/)"(\/
(_o_)

ruff!!!!!!

,-._,-.
\/)"(\/
(_o_)

ruff!!!!!!

,-._,-.
\/)"(\/
(_o_)

ruff!!!!!!


Posted Jan. 19, 2005

[MajestyJo]

Breakfast at McDonald's

This is a good story and is true, please read it all the way through until the end! (After the St or y, there are some very interesting facts!):

I am a mother of three (ages 14, 12, 3) and have recently completed my college degree.

The last class I had to take was Sociology.

The teacher was absolutely inspiring with the qualities that I wish every human being had been graced with.

Her last project of the term was called, 'Smile.'

The class was asked to go out and smile at three people and document their reactions.

I am a very friendly person and always smile at everyone and say hello anyway. So, I thought this would be a piece of cake,

Literally.

Soon after we were assigned the project, my husband, youngest son, and I went out to McDonald's one crisp March morning.

It was just our way of sharing special playtime with our son.

We were standing in line, waiting to be served, when all of a sudden everyone around us began to back away, and then
Even my husband did.

I did not move an inch... An overwhelming feeling of panic welled up inside of me as I turned to see why they had moved.

As I turned around I smelled a horrible 'dirty body' smell, and there standing behind me were two poor homeless men.

As I looked down at the short gentleman, close to me, he was 'smiling'

His beautiful sky blue eyes were full of God's Light as he searched f or acceptance....

He said, 'Good day' as he counted the few coins he had been clutching..

The second man fumbled with his hands as he stood behind his friend. I realized the second man was mentally challenged and the blue-eyed gentleman was his salvation.

I held my tears as I stood there with them.

The young lady at the counter asked him what they wanted.

He said, 'Coffee is all Miss' because that was all they could afford. (If they wanted to sit in the restaurant and warm up, they had to buy something. He just wanted to be warm).

Then I really felt it - the compulsion was so great I almost reached out and embraced the little man with the blue eyes..

That is when I noticed all eyes in the Restaurant were set on me, judging my every action.

I smiled and asked the young lady behind the counter to give me two more breakfast meals on a separate tray.

I then walked around the corner to the table that the men had chosen as a resting spot. I put the tray on the table and laid my hand on the blue-eyed gentleman's cold hand.

He looked up at me, with tears in his eyes, and said, 'Thank you..'

I leaned over, began to pat his hand and said, 'I did not do this for you.. God is here working through me to give you hope.'

I started to cry as I walked away to join my husband and son.... When I sat down my husband smiled at me and said, 'That is why God gave you to me, Honey, to give me hope..'

We held hands for a moment and at that time, we knew that only because of the Grace that we had been given were we able to give.

We are not church goers, but we are believers.

That day showed me the pure Light of God's sweet love.

I returned to college, on the last evening of class, with this story in hand.

I turned in 'my project' and the instructor read it.

Then she looked up at me and said, 'Can I share this?'

I slowly nodded as she got the attention of the class.

She began to read and that is when I knew that we as human beings and being part of God share this need to heal people and to be healed.

In my own way I had touched the people at McDonald's, my son, the instructor, and every soul that shared the classroom on the last night I spent as a college student.

I graduated with one of the biggest lessons I would ever learn:

UNCONDITIONAL ACCEPTANCE.

Much love and compassion is sent to each and every person who may read this and learn how to

LOVE PEOPLE AND USE THINGS - NOT LOVE THINGS AND USE PEOPLE.

An Angel wrote:

Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.

To handle yourself, use your head..

To handle others, use your heart.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/characters-angels-2/0007.gif

God Gives every bird it's food, but He does not throw it into its nest.

[MajestyJo]

FOLLOW YOUR OWN PATH


"Life is complex. Each one of us must make his own path through life. There are no self-help manuals, no formulas, no easy answers. The right road for one is the wrong road for another ... The journey of life is not paved in blacktop; it is not brightly lit, and it has no road signs. It is a rocky path through the wilderness."
-- M. Scott Peck

We each have our own pathways to develop both personally and spiritually. They are based on our character and past experiences. No one else can identify our paths for us. Tune in to your inner guidance system and follow its direction.
-- John Robson

"What every man needs, regardless of his job or the kind of work he is doing, is a vision of what his place is and may be. He needs an objective and a purpose. He needs a feeling and a belief that he has some worthwhile thing to do. What this is no one can tell him. It must be his own creation."
-- Joseph M. Dodge

Slow down


"The soul requires duration of time -- rich, thick, deep, velvety time -- and it thrives on rhythm. Soul can't be hurried or harried .... We may go through many events in the day and experience nothing because the soul has not had the opportunity to feel them from many different points of view."
-- Robert Sardello

Soul cannot exist when our connections in life remain superficial. An experience of soul requires that we take time to be fully present to the details of our lives.

Explore what happens when you take the time to STOP and PAY ATTENTION. When we choose to slow down and really experience the qualities of our lives, we get a whole new perspective on what living is all about.
-- John Robson

"We must not allow the clock and the calendar to blind us to the fact that each moment of life is a miracle and mystery."
-- H. G. Wells

"The well of Providence is deep. It's the buckets we bring to it that are small."
-- Mary Webb

The Daily Guru

[MajestyJo]

Faith is the messenger that bears your prayers to God.

- 24 Hours

Loved this quote. It reminds me of my mother's words, "Is your faith so weak that it hits the ceiling and bounces back."

It is important to have faith and yet I know I have to do the footwork and leave the results up to him. Repeatedly asking for the same things in the same way tells me I have very little faith and that I don't trust God and keep reminding Him so He doesn't forget. It is best for me not to ask for specifics and just ask Him to lead and direct my life. I have faith that He will do that. I sometimes feel that He has more faith in me than I have in Him. Yet having said that, I know He is always there and He doesn't forsake, it is me who goes away.


https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTAs3OGstNhh5uQPTg28nFSdkMcNiKuO yvM6KlxfAZf2AD8IRRQhg

[MajestyJo]

MY FRIEND

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT1xU-hPgdxTxfc-Eg7kqjTayH1sXAjete-HLgsS3_CNa19h4R2xA

As I travel down life's highway,
I know my Lord's always there,
And I know I can rely upon
His tender loving care,

For He knows all of the byways
that I'm likely to explore
So He watches over me
because He's been that way before.

And when my road seems all uphill
and shadows gather round,
His understanding presence is
a blessing so profound.

I know that when I seek Him and
on Him my problems place,
He turns each stumbling-block
into a stepping-stone of faith.

If I follow His directions,
on the Lighted Path I'll stay,
And I'll reach my destination in the most straightforward way,

For He will not see me burdened
with a weight I cannot bear,
With His help I can stand straight and tall,
because His strength I share.

To me, each day's a beginning,
and a chance for me to show
Just how much I love and trust Him,
how much closer we can grow.

Just imagine, the Creator of the earth,
moon, stars and sun
Is my Friend and, to Him,
my soul is a very special one.

For I know He really loves me,
with a love that has no end,
And for comfort and enrichment
I can truly recommend

The assurance that He gives me,
and the hope that my heart feels,
As my strength grows stronger
with each truth His faithfulness reveals.

There's no limit to His Loving,
to His Patience, to His Power,
As He teaches me and guides me,
day by day and hour by hour.

So, if miracles are missing from your life,
don't muddle through,
Please, just call Him, He will hear you.
My friend could be your Friend too!

Jacqueline Ramm (c)

[MajestyJo]

Men who come to God not to dictate but to receive have approached prayer from the right angle. They have seen that prayer is giving God an opportunity to bestow what he is more willing to give than we are to welcome.

"Prayer is not to ask what we wish of God, but what God wishes of us."

Harry Emerson Fosdick

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTJr-G-GAQEqz1X3iRuuqwTEQ_innoa3G42D7Wl9RIjo_i0XQ4f

[MajestyJo]

Friends Are Like Angels

http://angelwinks.ca/images/iq/qcangel4.jpg

Our friends are like angels
who brighten our days
In all kinds of wonderful,
magical ways.

Their thoughtfulness comes
as a gift from above
And we feel we're surrounded
by warm, caring love.

Like upside-down rainbows
their smiles bring the sun
And they fill ho-hum moments
with laughter and fun.

Friends are like angels
without any wings,
Blessing our lives
with the most precious things.

By -Emily Matthews

[MajestyJo]

Friendship Forever

http://angelwinks.ca/images/iq/qcbearnbunnyboat.jpg

We're joined in a friendship,
that time cannot sever
with bonds we have built,
we'll remain friends forever.

We're welded in spirit
attached by our hearts,
and fused by the feelings
that friendship imparts.

We're tied by emotions
connected by dreams
reinforced by our hopes
unified by extremes.

No longer a function
of time or of space
our love is a substance
that life won't replace.

No matter how distant
we'll always endeavor
to sense the full meaning of
~Friendship Forever~

- Author Unknown

[MajestyJo]

"Take Advantage of the Storm"

By Bob Perks

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-rain/0083.gif

Answers to life can be found in everyday events.

Watching nature, watching people and watching
animals interact with each other provides some
of the simplest solutions to life's biggest problems.

This became more apparent to me yesterday.

It caused me to ask myself, "How do I respond to
the storms in life?"

People run when it starts to rain. I love to walk in
it.

My wife, hates thunder. I love to stand on my front
porch and feel it. I grew up doing it and never really
felt the fear many people do when a bolt of lightening
flashes and the windows rattle in my house.

I remember a religious sister telling how wonderful
the storm was the night before. "Oh, the power of
God!" she proclaimed.

They have proven that the animal world senses far in
advance changes in the weather, earthquakes, tsunamis
and approaching storms.

My dog, Ricky begins to shake long before the storm
is close enough to notice.

I was about to feed my three dogs yesterday and as
usual, I let them out in the yard first.

They weren't even off the deck when thunder rolled
across the skies and they did an immediate about face.

I have learned long ago that there is no sense forcing them
to remain there. They will accomplish nothing.

So, I placed their food in their bowls and called Ricky
into the kitchen. If he could have crawled any closer to
the floor he'd be a snake.

I thought he'd never eat, but he began to do so and I
walked away.

Phil shakes like one of those old electric football games
that vibrated the players across the field. So I expected
nothing from him.

Upon my return to the kitchen Ricky was just standing
there in place next to his bowl.

I always mix a little white meat chicken in his food. He
apparently was brave enough to eat some it right out
of the dry food leaving most everything else.

The thunder became louder and more frequent. The
wind caused a few branches to bang against the roof
thus forcing him to abandon his meal.

I urged him to go lie down and he did.

Then I watched Phil. Shaking like a wind up toy he made
his way across the tiled kitchen floor and stood over
Ricky's bowl.

He ate all the remaining tiny pieces of chicken and a few
of the dry.

Normally, if Ricky was standing there, he wouldn't dare
come close.

But today, he took advantage of the storm.

In spite of his fear, he saw an opportunity to get what
he wanted. His desire for the prize outweighed his
fear of the storm.

That's when it hit me. There was a powerful lesson in it
for me and I hope for you.

As humans we face all kinds of storms. They roll in
unannounced, pass through quickly or stay for much
too long.

Sometimes we crawl into a corner or pull the blankets
of false security over our heads and shake and shiver
praying it will all pass so we can get on with life.

If you dare stick your head out for a moment you might
be surprised to discover there are people out there in
the same storms doing what they must do to get what
they must have out of life.

Most storms are like those natural storms. Yes, there is
the reality of experiencing some damage or loss, but
for the most part they are all thunder and lightening putting
on a show of God's magnificent power.

Isn't it time you decided to

"Take Advantage of the Storm?"

[MajestyJo]

You're An Angel To Me

http://angelwinks.ca/images/iq/qcchildangeloncloud1.jpg

You're always finding reasons
to make someone feel a part
of all the love and gentleness
you carry in your heart.

And, like a special Angel,
you do such caring things
that you deserve to have
your very own Angel wings!

- Author Unknown

[MajestyJo]

Unlimited Choice

Any number of alcoholics are bedeviled by the dire conviction that if ever they go near A.A. they will be pressured to conform to some particular brand of faith or theology. They just don't realize that faith is never an imperative for A.A. membership; that sobriety can be achieved with an easily acceptable minimum of it, and that our concepts of a Higher Power and God - as we understand Him - afford everyone a nearly unlimited choice of spiritual belief and action.

<<<>>>

In talking to a prospect, stress the spiritual feature freely. If the man be agnostic or atheist, make it emphatic that he does not have to agree with your conception of God. He can choose any conception he likes, provided it makes sense to him. The main thing is that he be willing to believe in a Power greater than himself and that he live by spiritual principles.

As Bill Sees It

AA is a spiritual program not a religious one. Anyone of any religious belief can enter the doors of recovery and work the 12 Steps. The 12 Steps are applicable to those who are atheists and agnostic too. They are a way of life. They are not a way of religion.

[MajestyJo]

"What Is Faith?"

Faith is knowing that a positive outcome awaits, seeing
the possibilities, and then taking positive actions.

Faith is not only expecting a dream to come true. It is
also having a deep assurance that it is within reach.

Faith is saying, "I am capable. I deserve the best. I
expect to be tested, and I will become stronger and
wiser because of my challenges."

Faith is beginning where you are and knowing that you
can improve with practice.

Faith is knowing that you can achieve your goals
through hard work and persistence.

Faith is looking to the future with joy, and having an
expectation of better things to come.

Faith is the knowledge that life is everlasting--that
miracles happen every day.

Faith is knowing that God may test you, but He will not
ever abandon you.

Faith is one of God's greatest gifts; it is the
magic that inspires people to keep trying, learning,
loving, and living.


© Copyright 2006 by Denise J. Janson.
All Rights Reserved

[MajestyJo]

You Never Gave Up On Me

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-butterflies/0301.gif

I often said you didn’t exist
Because my eyes wouldn’t see
I may have given up on you lord
But you never gave up on me

When troubles happened in my life
I would hang my head and cry
You let these happen to me
And at times I wondered why

I was quick to say if there was a God
He wouldn’t let these happen to me
I may have given up on you lord
But you never gave up on me

At many times during my life
When the troubles were hard to bear
I forgot the teachings of my youth
And said you were not there

I’ve heard your word again dear Lord
And my eyes they finally see
I thank you every day of my life
That you never gave up on me.

- - by William A. Predeau

[MajestyJo]

Life Is Beautiful Lyrics

You can't quit until you try
You can't live until you die
You can't learn to tell the truth
Until you learn to lie

You can't breathe until you choke
You gotta laugh when you're the joke
There's nothing like a funeral to make you feel alive

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?

I know some things that you don't
I've done things that you won't
There's nothing like a trail of blood
to find your way back home

I was waiting for my hearse
What came next was so much worse
It took a funeral to make me feel alive

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?

Just open your eyes
Just open your eyes
And see that life is beautiful.
Will you swear on your life,
That no one will cry at my funeral?


...song by Sixx A. M.

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQKG3sCXSuuIIZubavFeH-OhKwa3l1SwthAiNuTV4e-P6xSuJil

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSCOFYH9Rl8gBvGtA0EXZtWAZvdSSVzh 4H_sGjp6OKyyZVr_com

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRmvU2-4xzwwOdubcGANsQEOyOm38U28EjBnntTVlqFrkgN_PvF

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT5XO14VGzLquVIvJ2tfuqv5XJ05P2vb Adfp7ums2AkKE0Ijgo

[MajestyJo]

Chose the High Road

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-landscapes/0193.gif

When faced with life's uncertainties,
we have a choice to make...
We can suffer with anxiety,
or choose which road to take.

Let's choose to take the high road
where God is waiting there...
To bind our hearts together
as one body, joined in prayer.

We can face what life delivers,
as long as we are strong...
And trust that God will lead us
to the place where we belong.

We can find the right perspective
and unite in one accord...
If we keep our hands together
and our eyes fixed on the Lord.

by Jill Lemming

[MajestyJo]

"Take Advantage of the Storm"

By Bob Perks

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-rain/0014.gif

Answers to life can be found in everyday events.

Watching nature, watching people and watching
animals interact with each other provides some
of the simplest solutions to life's biggest problems.

This became more apparent to me yesterday.

It caused me to ask myself, "How do I respond to
the storms in life?"

People run when it starts to rain. I love to walk in
it.

My wife, hates thunder. I love to stand on my front
porch and feel it. I grew up doing it and never really
felt the fear many people do when a bolt of lightening
flashes and the windows rattle in my house.

I remember a religious sister telling how wonderful
the storm was the night before. "Oh, the power of
God!" she proclaimed.

They have proven that the animal world senses far in
advance changes in the weather, earthquakes, tsunamis
and approaching storms.

My dog, Ricky begins to shake long before the storm
is close enough to notice.

I was about to feed my three dogs yesterday and as
usual, I let them out in the yard first.

They weren't even off the deck when thunder rolled
across the skies and they did an immediate about face.

I have learned long ago that there is no sense forcing them
to remain there. They will accomplish nothing.

So, I placed their food in their bowls and called Ricky
into the kitchen. If he could have crawled any closer to
the floor he'd be a snake.

I thought he'd never eat, but he began to do so and I
walked away.

Phil shakes like one of those old electric football games
that vibrated the players across the field. So I expected
nothing from him.

Upon my return to the kitchen Ricky was just standing
there in place next to his bowl.

I always mix a little white meat chicken in his food. He
apparently was brave enough to eat some it right out
of the dry food leaving most everything else.

The thunder became louder and more frequent. The
wind caused a few branches to bang against the roof
thus forcing him to abandon his meal.

I urged him to go lie down and he did.

Then I watched Phil. Shaking like a wind up toy he made
his way across the tiled kitchen floor and stood over
Ricky's bowl.

He ate all the remaining tiny pieces of chicken and a few
of the dry.

Normally, if Ricky was standing there, he wouldn't dare
come close.

But today, he took advantage of the storm.

In spite of his fear, he saw an opportunity to get what
he wanted. His desire for the prize outweighed his
fear of the storm.

That's when it hit me. There was a powerful lesson in it
for me and I hope for you.

As humans we face all kinds of storms. They roll in
unannounced, pass through quickly or stay for much
too long.

Sometimes we crawl into a corner or pull the blankets
of false security over our heads and shake and shiver
praying it will all pass so we can get on with life.

If you dare stick your head out for a moment you might
be surprised to discover there are people out there in
the same storms doing what they must do to get what
they must have out of life.

Most storms are like those natural storms. Yes, there is
the reality of experiencing some damage or loss, but
for the most part they are all thunder and lightening putting
on a show of God's magnificent power.

Isn't it time you decided to

"Take Advantage of the Storm?"

[MajestyJo]

http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/vv36/MajestyJo/More/XYZ/heartfelt.gif

If God brings you to it,
God will bring you through it.

Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.

----------------------------------

God answer knee-mail. I will never forget the day that I was so stressed, shaking, fearful of the situation. I detach from it, went to my bedroom, knelt beside my bed, and I felt the Hand of God touch me. I felt the peace go from the top of my head to the tip of my toes. I was able to get up and handle the situation.

God is Good. Good is God.

http://s14052.storage.proboards.com/374052/t/65SpwZix4JBlgPAEL15M.jpg

[MajestyJo]

HAVE A GREAT DAY!

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/mammals-dogs/0331.gif

I am only one, but I am one;
I cannot do everything
But I can do something.
What I can do, I ought to do,
And what I out to do,
By the grace of God I will do.

If God brings you to it,
God will bring you through it.

Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God.

http://www.wholeperson-counseling.org/ndoc/dayofrest.html

[MajestyJo]

Just too cute!

https://ci6.googleusercontent.com/proxy/9IsxIRNjw5hr1NMAhoYHxh72JWN_JwTKfdT0sAjzWu1TPutYIS ZGWIaNwCz8vHWJ2YsdVbBsNsqllHxYyEfjQ14vJsQqfwYS1eF6 qW3WjXjcXMBOxYkwwGE1YA=s0-d-e1-ft#http://www.bhhsdrysdale.com/EmailInlineAttachments/12587/29483389.jpg

https://ci5.googleusercontent.com/proxy/k8bkncONOMl7QCG17VC9Kav56Zi1juKenHmXhSntU6oONT1IGs vISB4n5Ea3YgC1I-9dAlo84wgAqYJpU314nsnYwmKr6lu1q-bz637WXttMBGY-qM_Ra9wXgg=s0-d-e1-ft#http://www.bhhsdrysdale.com/EmailInlineAttachments/12587/29483395.jpg

[MajestyJo]

A keen sense of humor helps us to overlook the unbecoming, understand the unconventional, tolerated the unpleasant, overcome the unexpected, and outlast the unbearable.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-farm/0055.gif

http://www.whats-your-sign.com/symbolic-rabbit-meanings.html

[MajestyJo]

'I AM'

I was regretting the past and fearing the future.
Suddenly I heard God speaking, "My Name is 'I AM.'"

He paused. I waited.

He continued,
"When you live in the past with its mistakes and regrets,
it is hard for you because I am not there.
My Name is not: 'I WAS.'"

"When you live in the future with its unknowns and fears,
it is hard for you because I am not there.
My Name is not: 'I WILL BE.'"

But when you live in this moment, it is not hard,
because I am here.
My Name is: 'I AM.'"

— Unknown

[MajestyJo]

Beginning Today

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/holidays-thanksgiving/0011.gif

Beginning today
I will no longer worry about yesterday.
It is in the past
and the past will never change.
Only I can change by choosing to do so.

Beginning today
I will no longer worry about tomorrow.
Tomorrow will always be there,
waiting for me to make the most of it.
But I cannot make the most of tomorrow
without first making the most of today.

Beginning today
I will look in the mirror
and I will see a person worthy
of my respect and admiration.
This capable person looking back at me
is someone I enjoy spending time with
and someone I would like to get to know better.

Beginning today
I will cherish each moment of my life.
I value this gift bestowed upon me in this world
and I will unselfishly share this gift with others.
I will use this gift to enhance the lives of others.

Beginning today
I will take a moment to step off the beaten path
and to revel in the mysteries I encounter.
I will face challenges with courage and determination.
I will overcome what barriers there may be which
hinder my quest for growth and self-improvement.

Beginning today
I will take life one day at a time, one step at a time.
Discouragement will not be allowed
to taint my positive self-image,
my desire to succeed or my capacity to love.

Beginning today
I walk with renewed faith in human kindness.
Regardless of what has gone before,
I believe there is hope
for a brighter and better future.

Beginning today
I will open my mind and my heart.
I will welcome new experiences.
I will meet new people.
I will not expect perfection from myself
nor anyone else:
perfection does not exist
in an imperfect world.
But I will applaud the attempt
to overcome human foibles.

Beginning today
I am responsible for my own happiness
and I will do things that make me happy . . .
admire the beautiful wonders of nature,
listen to my favorite music,
pet a kitten or a puppy,
soak in a bubble bath . . .
pleasure can be found in
the most simple of gestures.

Beginning today
I will learn something new;
I will try something different;
I will savor all the various flavors life has to offer.
I will change what I can and the rest I will let go.
I will strive to become the best me I can possibly be.

Beginning today.

And every day.

Just a thought,
As I often think of you
and realize how much God loves you,
sometimes I think we need to also
love ourselves through His eyes.
God Bless.

[MajestyJo]

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/computing-computers-users/0039.gif

"The Man Who Thinks He Can"

If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you don't;
If you'd like to win, but think you can't;
It's almost a cinch you won't.
If you think you'll lose, you're lost,
For out in the world we find
Success begins with a fellow's will;
It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you're outclassed, you are;
You've got to think high to rise.
You've got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man;
But soon or late the man who wins
Is the man who thinks he can.

--Walter D. Wintle

[MajestyJo]

http://i292.photobucket.com/albums/mm28/soccerhottie5938/colors.png

Sunshine and shadow and laughter and tears,
These are forever the paints of the years,
Splashed on the canvas of life day by day,
We are the artists, the colors are they.
We are the painters, the pigments we use
Never we're wholly permitted to chose.
Grief with its gray tint and joy with its red
Come from life's tubes to be blended and spread.

Here at the easel, the brushes at hand,
Each for a time is permitted to stand.
White was the canvas when first we began,
Ready to picture the life of a man.
Now we ar splashing the pigments about,
Knowing the reds and blues must give out,
Soon we must turn to the dull hues and gray,
Painting the sorrows that darken the way.

Now with the sunshine and now with the shade
Slowly but surely the picture is made.
Even the gray tints with beauty may glow
Recalling the joy of the lost long ago.
Let me not daub it with doubt and despair,
Deeds that are hasty, unkind and unfair,
But when the last bit of pigment is dried
Let me look back at my canvas with pride.

- - Edgar Guest

[MajestyJo]

http://images.ucomics.com/comics/ga/2005/ga051221.gif

Sometimes, there are experiences in life that from your vantage point may seem confusing, alarming, or worrisome. Or there may be events that look insignificant from where you are standing right now. Try seeing them from another point of view. Bury your face in the grass and look at the world from a bug's vantage point. Explore your home as if you were a small child. Take a ride in a small aircraft and experience the world from a bird's eye view. Just as kneeling down sometimes helps you see you more closely when you are looking for lost treasure, so can standing back help you appreciate the broader picture of what you are looking at. In doing so, you'll experience very different worlds.

As BW shared on another site, "If we are willing to surrender God will give us a New pair of glasses."

To that I say, "Amen!"

[MajestyJo]

MERRY CHRISTMAS
YOUR FIRST CHRISTMAS CARD

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/phone-240x320-christmas/0152.gif

T'was two months before Christmas
When all through our land,

Not a Christian was praying

Nor taking a stand.

Why the PC Police had taken away
The reason for Christmas - no one could say.


The children were told by their schools not to sing

About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.

It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say

December 25th is just a ' Holiday '.


Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, cheques and credit

Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!

CD's from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-Pod

Something was changing, something quite odd!


Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa

In hopes to sell books by Fran-ken & Fonda..

As Targets were hanging their trees upside down
At Lowe's the word Christmas - was nowhere to be found.

At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears
You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.

Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-is-ty

Are words that were used to intimidate me.

Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton,
Wolf Blitzen

On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Clinton !

At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter

To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.


And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith

Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace

The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded
The reason for the season, stopped before it started.


So as you celebrate 'Winter Break' under your 'Dream Tree'

Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me.

Choose your words carefully, choose what you say

Shout "MERRY CHRISTMAS",
Not "Happy Holiday "!


Please, all Christians join together and
Wish everyone you meet

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Christ is The Reason for the Christ-mass Season!

Received with thanks from my friend Carey

[MajestyJo]

-Giving someone all your love is never an assurance that they'll love you back! Don't expect love in return; just wait for it to grow in their heart but if it doesn't, be content it grew in yours. It takes only a minute to get a crush on someone, an hour to like someone, and a day to love someone, but it takes a lifetime to forget someone.

-Don't go for looks; they can deceive. Don't go for wealth; even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright. Find the one that makes your heart smile.

-Dream what you want to dream; go where you want to go; be what you want to be, because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you want to do.

Received with thanks from Lady Linda

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRbQqi_9RbNu68l4Du9lxgcNDzqXfoPc 4nFmXP-V0C7lha5fhbo

[MajestyJo]

Odd title, but read this to the end. It will surprise you.

A long time ago in China , a girl named Li-Li got married & went to live with her husband and mother-in-law. In a very short time, Li-Li found that she couldn't get along with her mother-in-law at all.

Their personalities were very different, and Li-Li was angered by many of her mother-in-law's habits. In addition, she criticized Li-Li constantly.

Days passed, and weeks passed. Li-Li and her mother-in-law never stopped arguing and fighting.

But what made the situation even worse was that, according to ancient Chinese tradition, Li-Li had to bow to her mother-in-law and obey her every wish. All the anger and unhappiness in the house was causing Li-Li's poor husband! d great distress.

Finally, Li-Li could not stand her mother-in-! law's bad temper and dictatorship any longer, and she decided to do something about it! Li-Li went to see her father's good friend, Mr. Huang, who sold herbs.

She told him the situation and asked if he would give her some poison so that she could solve the problem once and for all.

Mr. Huang thought for awhile, and finally said, "Li-Li, I will help you solve your problem, but you must listen to me and obey what I tell you."

Li-Li said, "Yes, Mr. Huang, I will do whatever you tell me to do."Mr. Huang went into the back room, and returned in a few minutes with a package of herbs. He told Li-Li, "You can't use a quick-acting poison to get rid of your mother-in-law, because that would cause people to become suspicious Therefore, I have given you a number of herbs that will slowly build up poison in her body. Every other day prepare some delicious meal and put a little of these herbs in her serving.

Now, in order to make sure that nobody suspect you, when she dies, you must be very careful to act very friendly towards her. "Don't argue with her, obey her every wish, and treat her like a queen." Li-Li was so happy.

She thanked Mr. Huang and hurried home to start her plot of murdering her mother-in-law.

Weeks went by, and months went by, and every other day, Li-Li served the specially treated food to her mother-in-law. She remembered what Mr. Huang had said about avoiding suspicion, so she controlled her temper!r, obeyed her mother-in-law, and treated her like her own mother.

After six months had passed, the whole household had changed. Li-Li had practiced controlling her temper so much that she found that she almost never got mad or upset. She hadn't had an argument with her mother-in-law in six months because she now seemed much kinder and easier to get along with.

The mother-in-law's attitude toward Li-Li changed, and she began to love Li-Li like her own daughter. She kept telling friends and relatives that Li-Li was the best daughter-in-law one could ever find. Li-Li and her mother-in-law were now treating each other like a real mother and daughter.

Li-Li's husband was very happy to see what was happening. One day, Li-Li came to see Mr. Huang and asked for his help again She said, "Dear Mr. Huang, please help me to keep the poison from killing my mother-in-law. She's changed into such a nice woman, and I love her like my own mother. I do not want her to die because of the poison I gave her."

Mr. Huang smiled and nodded his head. "Li-Li, there's nothing to worry about. I never gave you any poison. The herbs I gave you were vitamins to improve her health. The only poison was in your mind and your attitude toward her, but that has been all washed away by the love which you gave to her."

HAVE YOU REALIZED that how you treat others is exactly how they will treat you? There is a wise Chinese saying: "The person who loves others will also be loved in return."

WE ARE ALL OF ONE SEED . TREAT EACH OTHER WITH DIGNITY AND RESPECT !

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/ps-santa/0008.gif

[MajestyJo]

IF I WERE SANTA - YOU KNOW WHAT I WOULD DO...

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/christmas-merry/0359.gif


I'd dump silly gifts that are given to you
And deliver some things just inside your front door
Things you have lost, but treasured before.

I'd give you back all your maidenly vigor,
And to go along with it, a neat tiny figure.
Then restore the old color that once graced your hair
Before rinses and bleaches took residence there.

I'd bring back the shape with which you were gifted
So things now suspended need not be uplifted.
I'd draw in your tummy and smooth down your back
Till you'd be a dream in those tight fitting slacks.

I'd remove all your wrinkles and leave only one chin
So you wouldn't spend hours rubbing grease on your skin
You'd never have flashes or queer dizzy spells
And you wouldn't hear noises like ringing of bells.

No sore aching feet and no corns on your toes
No searching for spectacles when they're right on your nose
Not a shot would you take in your arm, hip or fanny
From a doctor who thinks you're a nervous old granny.

You'd never have a headache, so no pills would you take.
And no heating pad needed since your muscles won't ache
Yes, if I were Santa, you'd never look stupid
You'd be a cute little chick with the romance of a cupid.

I'd give a lift to your heart when those wolves start to whistle
And the joys of your heart would be light as a thistle.
But alas! I'm not Santa.I'm simply just me
The matronest of matrons you ever did see.

I wish I could tell you all the symptoms I've got
But I'm due at my doctor's for an estrogen shot.
Even though we've grown older this wish is sincere
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND HAPPY NEW YEAR.

[MajestyJo]

The Answer

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/christmas-merry/0398.gif

A woman once lost in a life filled with pain
Feeling lonely, rejected; paralyzed by the shame
Of losing the battle waging deep from within
Her heart torn and battered
Not to be made whole again.

Is there an answer to this hell, she does cry?
Can someone please give me the reason that I
Feel so alone, so fearful, so desperate to find
The woman, the girl, the child locked inside?

Then a miracle happened
An answer to prayer
That lifted me up from the depths of despair
For someone much greater than I did appear
to lift me, to guide me, to lessen the fear
To give me the strength that I needed to prepare
To face who I am
To risk and to share.

To make the decision to set myself free
Free from the bondage of denial I now see
Would continue to hold me
As a prisoner of war.

Now the gift of sobriety has allowed me to soar
To heights much higher than I could perceive
Acceptance of self and the choice to believe
In the power of God, and the courage that I need
To maintain sobriety; to be honest and free.

Now there aren't enough words I can use to describe
The wonderful feelings I now feel inside
Self-love and self-confidence
Acceptance and pride
No longer behind dark emotions to hide
A woman now blessed with the skills to begin
A life filled with promise
Recovery begins.

- Lois Stargratt

[MajestyJo]

Balanced Diet

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/kitchen-cannibals/0001.gif

www.quotationspage.com/search.php3?homesearch=Balance

[MajestyJo]

How Can I Make You Smile Again?

http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s309/kai2k7/quotes/SMILE.jpg

How can I mend your broken heart?
Your pain… I sadly see
How can I wipe your tears away?
And take them all for me

To see the joy sparkle… once more
Upon the face I love
How can I make you smile again?
My always cherished friend

How can I let you know?
The sun will rise tomorrow
Where someday soon the tears will fade
Leaving joyful memories... not sorrow

How can I let you know?
The stars will shine once more
Even more beautiful and glorious
Than they ever did before

If God chose me to paint a rainbow
I’d place it in your heart
Filling it with promises and love
Adding all your dreams and hopes

How can I make you smile again?
If I could… I’d take your pain
Yet, I'll lift my voice in sweetest prayer... instead
And there... I'll add your name


By Brenda Conley (c) 2003

Read between the lines, and read what isn't being said. The best way is to get out of self, and help someone else. It is amazing how small your problems are when you see someone who is suffering more than you.

[MajestyJo]

PERSONAL WORTH:

http://www.angelwinks.net/images/heavenlyanangel.gif

No matter how intelligent, attractive, or talented you may be - to the degree you doubt your worthiness you tend to sabotage your recovery efforts and undermine your relationships. Life is full of gifts and opportunities; you will open to receive and enjoy them to the degree that you begin to appreciate your innate worth, and to offer to yourself the same compassion and respect that you would give to others. Discovering your worth sets your spirit free.

Many factors shape our lives, including beliefs, support systems, motivation, relationships, family dynamics, fate, karma. But the central premise is that our sense of self-worth is the single most important determinant of the health, abundance, and joy we allow into our lives. Discovering your Worth is no more or less important than other potentials but only when you recognize your personal worth will you be open to other life potentials. Discovering your worth provides a foundation from which to build, one potential at a time, a new way of life. Finding your worth is the first step in creating enlightenment and enhancing your recovery work.

At its core, your level of self-worth is your answer to a single internal question: "How deserving am I?" Or, to put it more directly as it pertains to your daily life: "How good can I stand it today?" If you observe your life very closely, you will discover that you don't necessarily get what you deserve. Your addictions or life problems has not diminished your worth as a person. Only to the degree that you appreciate your innate human worthiness will your subconscious mind open up to life's gifts.


Success involves talent, effort, and creativity, but first of all, it requires a willingness to receive. Do you feel worthy of being well? When a window of opportunity appears, do you pull down the shade? Each of us has a specific degree of pleasure that feels right and appropriate. If that level is exceeded it makes us anxious. Many recovering people fear success because they do not feel worthy.

Because many people assume that self-esteem and self-worth mean the same thing, it seems important for me to note the distinction between the two. Self-worth (associated with self-respect) refers to your overall sense of value, worth, goodness, and deservedness. Your sense of worth can change over time based upon your actions. For example, my sense of self-worth has increased over time as I gradually learned to be a responsible person, loving father, a good friend and partner, my work as a therapist, and whatever minor assistance I bring to Dynamics Of Recovery or other services that I become involved in.

Self-esteem (associated with self-confidence) refers to liking or feeling good about yourself, your appearance, or your abilities. Your sense of self-esteem may change moment to moment, based on appearance, ability or situation. For example, as a clinical therapist I feel high self-esteem (confidence) in therapeutic situations, but less self-esteem at parties or social gatherings.

The central theme of this lesson/posting is that you "subconsciously" choose or attract into your life those people and experiences you believe you deserve! In everyday life pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional - a by-product of poor choices. Get it? Want to argue the point? Your sense of worth or deserving shapes your life by creating tendencies. If you feel unworthy and undeserving, you tend to make destructive or limiting choices. Do you see why this is the first lesson?

At each and every crossroads you are free to choose the high road - by being kind to others, working hard, finding supportive partners, and following good role models. Or you may choose the low road - by burning your bridges, practicing addictive behaviors, or choosing destructive relationships. Your sense of self-worth tends to influence whether you choose to learn easy lessons or difficult ones, to strive or to struggle, to cave in to difficulties or rise above them. Such choices determine your educational and income level, your health habits - even your longevity. Those of us with a strong sense of self-worth are less likely to get caught up in self-destructive habits with addictions or other abberant behaviors..

There is a danger of studying self-worth from a distance - exploring the issue the way some people explore a territory from an airconditioned bus. Keeping a safe distance is more comfortable but far less useful than feeling its impact on your life right now. Remember that your sense of self-worth - of deservedness - is related to your perception of your relative goodness.

Self-worth is not a thing; it is a perception. The first step is to realize that you are not alone. We have all made mistakes as part of our life and growth. We have all said, thought, felt, and done things we regret. Our worth is not dependent upon being perfect. If we can stop judging our mistakes so harshly, we can also stop ourselves from reactively engaging in the negative behaviors.

The second realization is that no matter what your behavior, you have done the best you could every day of your life. You may not agree with this. So before we tackle that question, consider this principle in relation to your parents or other caregivers: Whether they were kind or abusive, they were doing the best they knew how in light of their own limitations, wounds, beliefs, fears, values, and anxieties. Their best may have been wonderful, or terrible, or somewhere in between. In the same way, even though you have certainly fallen short of your ideal many times and made mistakes, you have also done the very best you were capable of at the time.

Most of us have replayed in our minds an incident we wish we could do over. Maybe we could have done better on a job interview, an exam, or a performance. You cannot change past mistakes, but you can avoid repeating them. The past no longer exists except as a set of memories and impressions you keep alive in the present. By focusing on doing what you can do now - by reviewing your mistakes with eyes of compassion and asking for forgiveness - you do much to heal your fragmented sense of worth.

Trust the process. The next time you feel that something good can't last, remind yourself that evolution moves in an upward spiral and that life can, and usually does, get better over time. You live and learn, stumble and fall, fail and grow, expand, and progress.

Courage is not the towering oak that sees storms come and go; it is the fragile blossom that opens in the snow.

-Alice Mackenzie Swaim

Originally posted at Dynamics of Recovery and taken from my group Star Choices

[MajestyJo]

I found out that it was 'could' not necessarily 'would'! Lately my days are highly suspect!

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQJ7BKwcsF9bxrYlTboKJ79zWPRC-zEBmt7sGBUgRIlRYS_u0CoFg

[MajestyJo]

Work hard at what you like to do and try to overcome all obstacles

Laugh at your mistakes and praise yourself for learning from them

Pick some flowers and appreciate the beauty of nature

Say hello to strangers and enjoy the people you know

Don't be afraid to show your emotions laughing and crying make you feel better

Love your friends and family with your entire being they are the most important part of your life

Feel the calmness on a quiet sunny day

Find a rainbow and live your world of dreams always remember life is better than it seems.

http://www.animated-gifs.eu/meteo-rainbows/0042.gif

[MajestyJo]

https://scontent-ord1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/12654540_993744214052089_7851201367419355763_n.jpg ?oh=8347ae23f7830694e575254f9af693c7&oe=5738208B

[MajestyJo]

Just a little late:

https://scontent-ord1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfp1/v/t1.0-0/s526x395/12688100_10153981988479479_3027577677966139187_n.p ng?oh=2dff2ba7100d2a48582d881cfd315b3f&oe=572EB43F

[MajestyJo]

https://scontent-ord1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xat1/v/t1.0-0/s526x395/12439510_960797147290973_9175366565477301932_n.jpg ?oh=a844057bd222fb163c0c70d5417e596a&oe=575F4DCE

[MajestyJo]

https://scontent-ord1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/1000279_742034752493935_1692334800_n.jpg?oh=3cf73b f12b8f20cd61baf21de2b52e97&oe=5766B71A

[MajestyJo]

https://scontent-ord1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/v/t1.0-0/s480x480/11745690_10153357782730380_4934834013807546496_n.j pg?oh=77a27a7def20279a439752e82b9fbaaf&oe=575FA8BF

[MajestyJo]

Sometimes we come across a sentence in a book or hear a comment which halts us in our tracks because it's so true. I had this feeling when I was reading Arthur Hailey's novel about life in a great hotel. One of the guests, an elderly widower, tells a young couple who are much in love with each other: "You never know how much you share with someone till the sharing ends. So grab on to every minute there is. Don't waste any time. You never get it back."

That advice says everything, doesn't it?

- Francis Gay


Old friends are like old slippers -
You're always glad they're there,
So easy on life's "bunions",
So comforable to wear!

- Anne Kreer

This reminds me it is one day at a time. This too shall pass, be it good or the not so good things in our life. Live each day to it's fullest. We are given a second chance at life, enjoy it, be grateful and show it.

http://angelwinks.ca/images/iq/qcteddy485.jpg

[MajestyJo]

Found this on my site Soundness of Mind. It is probably posted here on the site somewhere, but it is a good thought in today. Originally posted in 2011.

While a man was polishing his new car, his 4 yr old son picked up a stone and scratched lines on the side of the car. In anger, the man took the child's hand and hit it many times; not realizing he was using a wrench.

At the hospital, the child lost all his fingers due to multiple
fractures. When the child saw his father.....with painful eyes he asked, `Dad when will my fingers grow back?' The man was so hurt and speechless; he went back to his car and kicked it a lot of times.

Devastated by his own actions..... . .sitting in front of that car he
looked at the scratches; the child had written `LOVE YOU DAD'.
The next day that man committed suicide. . .

Anger and Love have no limits; choose the latter to have a beautiful, lovely life..... Things are to be used and people are to be loved, But the problem in today's world is that, People are used and things are loved.... During this year, let's be careful to keep this thought in mind: Things are to be used, but People are to be loved ... Be yourself.... . This is the only day we HAVE.

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.

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTcZHzw7tQ_L058GlXuOFor79GjOLCD_ Ma7AH-tYxXtNeEJNsqi

[MajestyJo]

Walk through life with a caring heart,
You'll always find someone in need;
Go out of your way to help,
And you will be blessed by the deed.

For all life's blessings are born,
From a heart that's filled with love,
And all your good acts are seen
By the eyes of God above.

So as you travel through life
Always find some time to spare,
To give someone a helping hand,
With a heart that is full of care.

Received with thanks from my friend Bette

[MajestyJo]

A Time To Believe



To believe is to know that
every day is a new beginning.
It is to trust that miracles happen,
and dreams really do come true.

To believe is to see angels
dancing among the clouds,
To know the wonder of a stardust sky
and the wisdom of the man in the moon.

To believe is to know the value of a nurturing heart,
The innocence of a child's eyes
and the beauty of an aging hand,
for it is through their teachings we learn to love.

To believe is to find the strength
and courage that lies within us
When it is time to pick up
the pieces and begin again.

To believe is to know
we are not alone,
That life is a gift
and this is our time to cherish it.

To believe is to know
that wonderful surprises are just
waiting to happen,
And all our hopes and dreams are within reach.

If only we believe.

~ Author Unknown to me ~

[MajestyJo]

Dealing With Frustrations

For me it is the Serenity Prayer (it won't wear out), talking about it and trying to let it go. My sponsor always told me to inventory my side of the street, clean it, and change what is my to own and let go of what isn't. As you say SunnyGirl, it is freedom of choice. Most times it is good to detach myself from things, like going downtown or going to bridge, it never solved anything but sitting and looking at four walls. If I get tired of being on the internet and reading, I can always go downstairs to sit in the community room. Sometimes belong along with me is not being in good company and I need to get out of the self by helping others or being with others. If I isolate, I isolate the problem and sometimes my thinking can blow it out of proportion and that is why it is good for me to pick up the phone and call my sponsor, a friend, and/or my sister.

I will also do a meditation with my cards, and work with stones on crystals, or use my books on the cards and stone. In order to use them, I need to say the Serenity Prayer, quiet my mind, and ask for help and they give me direction and guidance and they calm me down so I can go within to find my own truth. Over the years, I have learned that I don't need them to do that to get there, but they were a tool to show me the way and now when I just don't know or am in too much pain and overwhelmed, they bring me back to where I need to be. I don't have the money to invest in all the stones, so the cards work for me.

In my book Osho Transformation they say the following:

Worry for me is another word for frustration

Have you ever taken note of one thing?- the present is always juicy, the present is always blissful. Worry and suffering are created either by what you wanted to do in the past and could not do, or by what you want to do in the future and don't know whether you will be able to do or not. Did you ever notice, did you every look at this small truth, that there is no suffering in the present, there is no worry? This is is why the present does not distrube the mind-anxiety disturbs the mind. There is no suffering in the present. The present doesn't know suffering-the present is such a small moment that suffering cannot fit into it. In the present only heaven can fit, not hell. Hell is too big! The present can only be peace, can only be happiness.

This has always given me help to staying in the moment. My sponsor always use to say she had three seconds because she was narcoleptic (a sleeping disorder and she would have seisures on the bus or where ever she sat down and people would think she was sleeping not realizing that she needed to be woke up).

What ever you call it frustration, worry, stress, anxiety, anger, it all boils down to emotion and it is about dealing with them in a way that is good for us.

Anger (What frustration can build into!

Next time you feel angry, go and run around the house seven times, and afterwards sit under a tree and watch where the anger has gone. You have not repressed it, you have not controlled it, you have not thrown it on somebody else....

Anger is just a mental vomit. There is just no need to throw it on somebody. Do a little jogging, or take a pillow and beat the pillow until your hands and teeth are relaxed.

In transformation you never control, you simply become more aware. Anger is happening-it is a beautiful phenomenon, it is just like electricity in the clouds....

My counsellor had me do the pillow thing. I never really felt the anger and yet it was there buried very deep. What I didn't know was that it was okay to have these feeling and I tended to exaggerate them because they were unknown to me. I find I can still go into those old habits that allow me to stuff instead of letting them go because the role is familiar and seems to be the much easier softer way and we know that doesn't work in the long run.

[MajestyJo]

Being powerless is why I need acceptance, surrender and honesty to take Step One and it is an on going process for me my friend. I am just happy that people come by. It is my goal to make sure there is something here for them to read. Not just my two cents, my perception of a topic, but words of wisdom and hence one of my reasons for wanting to post cut and paste. I am not a guru and I have not come to the understanding that those of us who post here are either. I tried stopping playing God with my life and that of others a long time ago. She probably noticed that it hasn't changed much and that the same complaint that made her make the decision to leave is still alive and well on the site. I really miss her and her input into the site. Perhaps she will come back again, at least she signed in and let us know she was here and not just come visit.

I am not powerless over changing myself. I prefer to think of it as personal empowerment. I need the willingness to surrender, ask for help, and follow up the thought with action. Thought alone never got me any where.

My son considers me wrong period! I have to chuckle when he says things like: "You didn't teach me to cook mom, I just watched you." He won't let me in the kitchen when he is concocting. If I go in and give my two cents he leaves.

He is just not open to hearing anything especially anything about recovery.

I have cut back on what I add to the site and just try to respond and share with topics posted like ABCs, Chips, HAGD, and a share by another member.

It was good to see a few members sign in. It is good to see visitors. People coming by and not participating has been a long time issue here. I think some people don't feel comfortable and think their posts have to be just so, they don't know how to add pictures, they don't have the words to say what they want to say, some don't know how to navigate the board, and the list goes on.

I would like to encourage everyone, there is no right way or wrong way to share. Whether your words are many or few, it is nice to know that you are here and identify with what is posted here. We would like your likes and dislikes. What do you want to read when you visit us. We share because we care. Please keep coming.

Don't like think of myself as the power. I am powerless, except through my Higher Power. Only through my God, and this program was I able to change, not of myself.

It took acceptance of the fact that I had a problem. Acceptance that the program would work for me, and acceptance of the fact that I needed to work it one day at a time.

Acceptance is the key. Yet I can still fight it in today, even though I have been in recovery for several 24 hours. When I do, I stay stuck. I know the solution, and I often have to pray for the willingness to be willing to be willing.

If I am frustrated, it is because I am not accepting and I have put expectations on myself or projected them onto someone else. Things aren't happening in my time and I am back trying to play 'god' with my life or that of someone else's. There are many things, lack of patience, intolerance, and a lot of other defects of character that can get in the way, which need a time out and a prayer to before they become an action instead of a thought.

From a post on another site in 2009 and 2015.

No one can make me angry if I don't allow them to. These are words I said to a friend this morning.

http://img1.123tagged.com/en/GreatDay/102.gif

[MajestyJo]

A day that dawns bright and optimistic, can unravel as quickly and completely as one that begins with a tangle of trouble.

Whether I see it coming, or not, whether the undoing is of my own doing, or not, there are days when I find myself on the backside of the bright side.

Life sends everyone for a ride on the backside. People let you down. You disappoint yourself or someone else. Things hoped for, don't materialize. Jobs disappear. Finances escalate. Health deteriorates. Loved ones pass away.

Unless you live in an insulated bubble, a ride on the backside is inevitable.

Experience on the backside has taught me not to run to the company of misery -- those faithless, open, outstretched arms of self pity & hopelessness. I am not pitiful. I am not without hope and I am faith-filled. I have returned, victorious, to the bright side after every experience on the backside.

Where I am, is never as important as, who I am, while I'm there.

I can sit in darkness and I can despair over being there. I can moan and groan, pick up the phone and wail about my troubles to everyone who will listen. I can pound people with my problems every chance I get. I can seek out the company of those who enjoy misery's embrace and learn nothing from the experience.

Or...

I can poke a hole in the veil that separates the backside from the bright side and create a small stream of light to serve as reminder of the victory ahead. I can pray, and I can work my way through trials with ever increasing patience and ever growing strength of endurance. I can pay attention to the parts of my character that show up during difficult times and acknowledge the areas of weakness that need building up.

I can stand straighter and taller each step of the way, until the day I can rip the veil from top to bottom and claim my victory.

Even when life is at its darkest, you are never on the backside of nowhere. The bright side is always there, waiting for you to step back into it and experience your victory.


I AM
The Ancient One-Lordès

Used with permission)

A gift that was shared with me in 2004

Will always be grateful for this person. She makes me think of the piece of prose "A Reason, A Season, A Lifetime."

http://angelwinks.ca/images/iq/qckittens431.jpg

[MajestyJo]

A Candle

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a253/Silmefea/candle-animated.gif

Sit down and light a candle
Watch the flame, a story it will tell
Bringing back the secrets
Of memories you know so well
The flame will waver up and down
Reaching high and drifting low
Its movement will vary slowly
As the air begins gently to flow
When the flame moves upward
It depicts the highs in our life
Then flickering low once again
Tells of occasional strife

A lighted candle brings back memories
Of yesterday's peace and joy we felt
Priceless memories live once again
As we watch the candle melt
Light a candle and watch it burn
And reminisce as old memories return
Give thanks to God in heaven above
For all sweet memories of love

- - Glenna M. Baugh

[MajestyJo]

HARMONY

“I've got a theory, it could be bunnies...

I've got a theor-

Bunnies aren't just cute like everybody supposes
They've got them hoppy legs and twitchy little noses.
And what's with all the carrots-?
What do they need such good eyesight for anyway?
Bunnies, bunnies it must be bunnies!


...or maybe midgets...”

― Joss Whedon

https://sp.yimg.com/xj/th?id=OIP.M1be1208db3be0233146dc6fbda9bc3ffH0&pid=15.1&P=0&w=300&h=300

[MajestyJo]

https://scontent-ord1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/13076620_1189226871141332_8993575639853140332_n.pn g?oh=eb043b855dd2c96f9c32d84327139cef&oe=57A1FF27

[MajestyJo]

Words to Live By

https://sp.yimg.com/xj/th?id=OIP.Ma36ff80651f31a02d65fecd8c302f624H0&pid=15.1&P=0&w=300&h=300

Accept that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue.
Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.
Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.
Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be recalled by their maker.
Eat a live toad in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you for the rest of the day.
If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.
If you lend someone $20, and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.
Never buy a car you can't push.
Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you don't have a leg to stand on.
Nobody cares if you can't dance well. just get up and dance.
The early worm gets eaten by the bird, so sleep late.
When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
Birthdays are good for you; the more you have, the longer you live.
Ever notice that the people who are late are often much jollier than the people who have to wait for them?
If ignorance is bliss, why aren't more people happy?
You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.
Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.
Don't cry because it's over; smile because it happened. We could learn a lot from crayons: some are sharp, some are pretty, some are dull, some have weird names, and all are different colors but they all have to learn to live in the same box.
A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.
Happiness comes through doors you didn't even know you left open.
Have an awesome day, and know that someone has thought about you today.

[MajestyJo]

Down with the letter "I"
I say, Up with the letter "U",
Down with the phrase "Let's not bother",
And up with the phrase "Let's do!"

- Anne Kreer

[MajestyJo]

Once heard someone say, "You may use my God in the moment." You need to find your own God, because I need mine.

Go on a spiritual journey to find out Who your God is to you. A woman use to spell God as G-d, because to her, He/She was all encompassing. I like the concept. Fill in the blank.

http://angelwinks.ca/images/versepod/versepod976.jpg

[MajestyJo]

Another Chance

http://i259.photobucket.com/albums/hh312/schelpje67/quotes%20en%20teksten/inspiration_quote_graphic_a3.gif

How often we wish for another chance
to make a fresh beginning.
A chance to blot out our mistakes
And change failure into winning.

It does not take a new day
To make a brand new start,
It only takes a deep desire
To try with all our heart.

To live a little better
And to always be forgiving
And to add a little sunshine
To the world in which we're living.

So never give up in despair
And think that you are through,
For there's always a tomorrow
And the hope of starting new.


by Helen Steiner Rice

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/versepod/versepod1034.jpg

[MajestyJo]

TRY SMILING

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v229/lewah_09/Quotes/smile-1.gif

When the weather suits you not,
Try smiling.
When your coffee isn’t hot,
Try smiling.
When your neighbors don’t do right,
Or your relatives all fight,
Sure ‘tis hard, but then you might
Try smiling.
Doesn’t change the things ,of course–
Just smiling.
But it can not make them worse—
Just smiling.
And it seems to help your case,
Brightens up a gloomy place,
Then, it sort o’ rests your face—
Just smiling,

Unkown

[MajestyJo]

Balance material and spiritual

http://images.hellokids.com/_uploads/_tiny_galerie/20090311/tree-source_qf6.gif

"What is [the role of money] in the search for meaning? Is our relationship to it one of the chief factors that keeps us in our prison, or could it also be a tool for breaking out, for awakening to a life filled with intensity of purpose?"

-- Jacob Needleman

Our personality has a need for security. As a human in a material world, we need money to survive. If we don’t have enough for basics, our lives cannot function. At the same time, with too much emphasis on the material, we lose the spiritual awareness that brings meaning and fulfillment. The key lies in the balance.

What draws most of your attention, time and energy: spiritual growth or money? Reflect on (or better yet, journal on) the balance or lack of balance of these two in your life.

"Money is not required to buy one necessity of the soul."

-- Henry David Thoreau

"View money and things not as something you create to fill a lack, but as tools to help you more fully express yourself and realize your potential."

-- Sanaya Roman and Duane Packer

Received from Higher Awareness - used with permission

[MajestyJo]

"If you wish to know the mind of a man, listen to his words."

-- Chinese Proverb

What passes over your lips each day?

Are your words typically negative, critical, gossiping, deceptive,
illusory, justifying, blaming, manipulative and argumentative? Are
they more uplifting, inspirational, positive, questioning, beautiful,
loving, universal, truthful, accepting and supportive?

The throat is our center of _expression. Who we are sneaks out in our attitudes and in what we say.

"Handle them carefully, for words have more power than atom bombs."

-- Pearl Strachan Hurd

"The wise weigh their words on a scale with gold."

-- Bible

Found this on my site Soundness of Mind and part of a reading from Higher Awareness.

My first thought was my fingers instead of your lips. My fingers do most of my talking in today. Not only to others but to my son on FB.

It gave me pause for thought. Two of my biggest character defects were/are rationalization and justification. It is better in today and yet I can still go there.

I try to carry a positive message and yet I know I can still go into that "Oh woe is me" way of thinking.

Sometimes it isn't what we say but what we don't say! Am I being completely honest in today?


I was told, "Your body language speaks volumns." There are a lot of Energy Vampires out there, it is amazing how the sound and meaning behind the words can hurt others.

[MajestyJo]

My favorite slogan is "Let it begin with me."

It reminds me that my recoveryis about me and not about the other person. No matter what someone says or does, it is about me, my thoughts and my actions.

The slogan that has probably helped me the most and has helped me to change my old habits and behaviors is "Hesitate and Meditate." Stop before I think and react.

With it goes the slogan "Listen to Learn, Learn to Listen." It was always about me and what I needed. I had to learn to stop and listent to others and to what they had to say. Sometimes the best way you can help somone is to just listen to them.

But for the Grace of God - I would not be here. My name in real life means God's Gracious Gift. I did not think it was so for many years. I used and abused myself and allowed others to do so. I had to come to realize that I was loved, that this second chance at life was given to me, it was up to me to give back to others, the special gift that I had been given.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RwgWpre_AYA/Ti-sp7hBIXI/AAAAAAAADrk/HaRgTce9svY/s1600/macik-001_130287_27433.gif

[MajestyJo]

A slogan that I have problems with is "Easy Does It...but do it!" I seem to always go gung-ho at anything I do (except dishes), and I put all my energy into it, and then after go, go, going, I crash and go boom.

So it is easy does it, do what you need to do when you need to do it! Many times, I would go so easy, I wouldn't get it done! I have never been good at doing things a little at a time. I don't even like to put a book down after I start reading it.

http://fondos-animados.com/gifs/osito-durmiendo.gif

[MajestyJo]

What do the recovery symbols mean?

The Camel- A figure of perserverance that shows us how to walk through the day with our head held high, and stay for this day completely dry.


Unity Symbol - A mark of wholeness in recovery through unity, recovery, and service.

Sailboat - A reminder that we can't control the direction of the wind, but we can always adjust our sails.

Amethyst - Once believed to ward off the effects of alcohol, the name of this symbol means "not drunken" in Greek

Butterfly - an image of rebirth and the light and beauty that can emerge from a cacoon of darkness and isolation.

Originally posted by BW on another site, hope she doesn't mind me sharing her post here.

Thank you for sharing this. I was given a camel with a rhinestone in it's eye early in recovery. I was told it meant that you could go long periods of time without drinking. I like your definition too.

In D. J. Conway's book, butterfly's attributes are: Reincarnation, beauty, love. Transformation of the personality and life. Understanding wher eyou are in the cycle of your life and using it to the fullest. Divination concedrning future events that have a bearing on your cycle of life and rebirth.

JaneAnn Dow says that Amythests develop intuition and aid meditation. She says she uses it for people who are new to spirituality and are just opening up to new awareness. I carried one for years in early recovery.

I just realized I had them reversed. The ABCs of recovery, I have posted as the CBAs.

Posted in 2010

Don't remember seeing the sailboat used in Canada. The Amethyst is suppose to help prevent over indulging. It is also spiritual in nature.

http://www.crystalvaults.com/crystal-encyclopedia/amethyst

The butterfly was a big symbol for me, every time I saw one up close, all through my recovery, there has been a big change within me, new awareness, change of outlook, spiritual enlightenment and experiences, and just a feeling of joy when I saw one. It was the monarch that symbolized transformation for me, but I do enoy the little yellow and white ones I see. They remind me to be grateful and to be open to God's many gracious gifts.

http://www.123gifs.eu/free-gifs/bugsbunny/bugsbunny-0017.gif

[MajestyJo]

You are reading from the book Touchstones

I feel the more I know God, that He would sooner we did wrong in loving than never love for fear we should do wrong.

—Father Andrew

Love has often been called the first rule of a spiritual life. As we awaken to our new life in this program, we learn that all of God's creation is full of objects for us to love. A sunset repeats the creative energy at work in our world today. It appears briefly, invites our love, and slowly fades away, only to be repeated in a new form the next day. The color and markings on a little bug may inspire our love, as may the smell of moist earth, the excitement of a Broadway musical, the craftsmanship of a well-made tool, or the look of warmth on a friend's face. These are all opportunities for us to let go and feel our love.

We men often feel awkward in expressing love. Perhaps we're so self-conscious and guarded that we brace ourselves against saying or doing anything that wouldn't look good. We're learning through our spiritual development to be more fervent lovers and less perfectionistic in love.

I will be renewed today each time I appreciate something near me.

From another site 2011

Like this concept. Love comes in many forms. One love for another goes a long way to a healthy way of thinking and living.

http://rs271.pbsrc.com/albums/jj140/99alongway/Happy%20Birthday%20Animations/Have%20A%20Nice%20Day%20Animations/ItsAnotherBeautifulDay.gif~c200

[MajestyJo]

LITTLE THINGS

It’s the little things we do and say
That mean so much as we go our way.
A kindly deed can lift a load
From weary shoulders on the road,
Or a gentle word, like summer rain,
May sooth some heart and banish pain.
What joy or sadness often springs
From just the simple little things!

— Unknown

As the slogan says, "Keep it simple, stupid." It spells K.I.S.S., but I prefer, "Keep it Simple Sweetheart." We are not stupid people. We may have done some stupid things in our life and made some choices that were not in our best interest, but we are intelligent beings. We can talk ourselves into or out of anything.

http://www.gifs.net/Animation11/Animals/Rabbits/Bunny_behind.gif

[MajestyJo]

Food For Thought

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll319/angier44/GLITTERSUCCESS.gif

Sometimes we whine
Gripe and complain
Singing the victim’s
Familiar refrain

Blaming the world
For all that’s wrong
Each new day
The same old song

It’s a trap we crawl into
A place where we hide
Keeping our spirit
Stuffed deep inside

Somehow forgetting
We determine our fate
That the life which we lead
We chose to create

Each decision we make
Each thought we embrace
Affects the complexion
Of the world we face

If our food for thought
Is a negative meal
That is what
We will taste as real

If we dwell on anger
Injustice and pain
We’ll tend to attract
More of the same

If we suffer, hopeless
At the mercy of all
We are the ones
Keeping us small

Placing the blame
On somebody else
Puts the solution
Outside of ourselves

Recognizing
We are Source
Awakens the captain
To master his course.

Dan Coppersmith

[MajestyJo]

Always a good reminder for me. I once heard, "We are what we feed our body, mind, and spirit."

http://www.angelwinks.ca/images/specbeingbestcard.jpg

[MajestyJo]

"When we became alcoholics, crushed by a self-imposed crisis we could not postpone or evade, we had to fearlessly face the proposition that either God is everything or else He is nothing. God either is or He isn't."

Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, We Agnostics, pg. 53

https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS6IcMJVGFgpzkQ94r-yYs5TujrDYRuuIL0YaBQZn1119dK1nxkMw

This reminds me of the phrase, "Are you an alcoholic?" "I think I might be just a little bit." The both statements are the same as saying I think I am a little bit pregnant. Either you are or you are not. I had to find my own truth, and although I was in denial, there was something within me that kept me coming to the rooms of recovery for two years until I had reach total acceptance, and I know it wasn't me.

When I looked back over my life, some force was working in my life keeping me alive and to the doors of recovery, because I qualified twenty years before I got here. Some are sicker than others. When I took an honest look at my life I realized God didn't go away, I did!

God works in my life today. He utilizes people, places and things to show me a better way of living and to help me on my journey.

[MajestyJo]

"He's Got The Whole World In His Hands"

He's got the whole world in his hands he's got the whole wild world in his hands

He's got the whole wild world in his hands he's got the whole world in his hands

He's got the little bitty baby in his hands he's got the little bitty baby in his hands

He's got the little bitty baby in his hands he's got the whole world in his hands

He's got the whole world in his hands...

He's got you and me brother in his hands he's got you and me sister in his hands

He's got you and me brother in his hands he's got the whole world in his hands

He's got the whole world in his hands...

He's got everybody here in his hands he's got everybody here in his hands

He's got everybody here in his hands he's got the whole world in his hands

He's got the whole world in his hands...

He's got you and me brother...

He's got the whole world in his hands...

Glen Campbell

[MajestyJo]

Just For Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

Just for yesterday, may I remember the lessons of the past.
So that I may have a better today
Just for yesterday may I let go of the past
so that I can be free to live more fully today

Just for Tomorrow may I plan
So that today I will have direction in life
Just for Tomorrow, may I look upon it with excitement, and joy...
So that I will live happy today

Just for today may I remember the good, and profit from the losses of yesterday
So that today I live with peace and serenity
Just for today may I do the tasks that ensure tomorrow will be bright, and today fulfilling

Just for Today May I have the wisdom to know that Today is
yesterday’s tomorrow, the willingness to accept the gift that
God has given me today, and the courage to live it, by being
the best me there is....

Amen


Carlo John Palmieri

[MajestyJo]

Ten Choices You Will Regret in 10 Years

“If only…” These two words paired together create one of the saddest phrases in the English language.

Depressed

Here are ten choices that ultimately lead to this phrase of regret, and how to elude them:

1. Wearing a mask to impress others. – If the face you always show the world is a mask, someday there will be nothing beneath it. Because when you spend too much time concentrating on everyone else’s perception of you, or who everyone else wants you to be, you eventually forget who you really are. So don’t fear the judgments of others; you know in your heart who you are and what’s true to you. You don’t have to be perfect to impress and inspire people. Let them be impressed and inspired by how you deal with your imperfections.

2. Letting someone else create your dreams for you. – The greatest challenge in life is discovering who you are; the second greatest is being happy with what you find. A big part of this is your decision to stay true toyour own goals and dreams. Do you have people who disagree with you? Good. It means you’re standing your ground and walking your own path. Sometimes you’ll do things considered crazy by others, but when you catch yourself excitedly losing track of time, that’s when you’ll know you’re doing the right thing. Read The 4-Hour Workweek.

3. Keeping negative company. – Don’t let someone who has a bad attitude give it to you. Don’t let them get to you. They can’t pull the trigger if you don’t hand them the gun. When you remember that keeping the company of negative people is a choice, instead of an obligation, you free yourself to keep the company of compassion instead of anger, generosity instead of greed, and patience instead of anxiety.

4. Being selfish and egotistical. – A life filled with loving deeds and good character is the best tombstone. Those who you inspired and shared your love with will remember how you made them feel long after your time has expired. So carve your name on hearts, not stone. What you have done for yourself alone dies with you; what you have done for others and the world remains.

5. Avoiding change and growth. – If you want to know your past look into your present conditions. If you want to know your future look into your present actions. You must let go of the old to make way for the new; the old way is gone, never to come back. If you acknowledge this right now and take steps to address it, you will position yourself for lasting success. Read The Power of Habit.

6. Giving up when the going gets tough. – There are no failures, just results. Even if things don’t unfold the way you had expected, don’t be disheartened or give up. Learn what you can and move on. The one who continues to advance one step at a time will win in the end. Because the battle is always won far away and long before the final victory. It’s a process that occurs with small steps, decisions, and actions that gradually build upon each other and eventually lead to that glorious moment of triumph.

7. Trying to micromanage every little thing. – Life should be touched, not strangled. Sometimes you’ve got to relax and let life happen without incessant worry and micromanagement. Learn to let go a little before you squeeze too tight. Take a deep breath. When the dust settles and you can once again see the forest for the trees, take the next step forward. You don’t have to know exactly where you’re going to be headed somewhere great. Everything in life is in perfect order whether you understand it yet or not. It just takes some time to connect all the dots.

8. Settling for less than you deserve. – Be strong enough to let go and wise enough to wait for what you deserve. Sometimes you have to get knocked down lower than you have ever been to stand up taller than you ever were before. Sometimes your eyes need to be washed by your tears so you can see the possibilities in front of you with a clearer vision again. Don’t settle.

9. Endlessly waiting until tomorrow. – The trouble is, you always think you have more time than you do. But one day you will wake up and there won’t be any more time to work on the things you’ve always wanted to do. And at that point you either will have achieved the goals you set for yourself, or you will have a list of excuses for why you haven’t. Read The Last Lecture.

10. Being lazy and wishy-washy. – The world doesn’t owe you anything, you owe the world something. So stop daydreaming and start DOING. Develop a backbone, not a wishbone. Take full responsibility for your life – take control. You are important and you are needed. It’s too late to sit around and wait for somebody to do something someday. Someday is now; the somebody the world needs is YOU.

http://angelwinks.ca/images/iq/qcteddy411.jpg

[MajestyJo]

http://angelwinks.net/images/versepod/versepod1033.jpg

[MajestyJo]

Where your mind is

What do you think about your current situation? What do you think about the possibilities that are available to you at this moment?
What you think has a direct and undeniable connection to what you do. So it pays to keep your mind focused on the highest and the best.

Where your mind is right now is where your life will soon be. The thousands of thoughts that you think each day provide the stage upon which you perform.

The outer performance is driven by the inner thoughts. Thoughts of confidence, effectiveness, strength and positive achievement will lead to truly great performances.

Consider all the things you say to yourself as every day goes along. Each one is an opportunity for you to direct your mind in precisely the way you choose.

Use all your thoughts, the little ones, the big ones, and all the rest, to put your mind in a positive, empowering place. Enjoy the journey as your great thoughts lead you surely and steadily to greatness.

-- Ralph Marston

A good reminder. I use to discount those little thoughts, not realizing that for the most part it was Good Order Direction from my God and/or me waring with myself, trying to play God with my life, not willing to be patient and wait on my God. I was told, when the time is right you will know. I had to wait until I knew and stop second guessing myself.

[MajestyJo]

https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTADQlW6rwKSbaJKwGabO4dWIFoE-ReyLjV8Pi4kCLfZ2Ssoi0D4Q

[MajestyJo]

God Calling

Hello?...
Deep in the dark, one rainy night the God of the universe called me
I was awake and thoughts were aplenty, I just couldn’t let it be
The caller ID showed:
G-O-D-H-E-R-E
as I hesitantly picked it up

“Hello my dear...” He said, “With Me...please come sup...
“Yes…It is Me and I AM here…I see you, I love you, I care
“I want you near Me always…I have so much to share
“I know your heart has been broken for many years and times
“With no more I love you’s - sad words and songs and rhymes
“I want to change that for you now…I alone know the way
“No more looking to men for joy…I’ll brighten your every day
“Think only of Me…for I AM peace and beauty and love
“My love for you is out of this world…astoundingly high above
“Way beyond the stars it soars…far reaching and out of reach
“You may not be able to see it…but you feel it now, my peach!
“For I do know you and I love you…I’ve given my all in all
“Listen and believe Me…draw near and you will never fall

I sat there stunned as I listened to every and all of this
Was this really happening...now really!? It seemed like such true bliss!
Yet I heard His very voice so clear as it came by phone into my ear
The Father above took time out for me…He called me His dear!?

“Don’t let others distract you, just listen to my call
“For you live in a world of evil, so to protect you I put up a wall
“I hedge you into my very body…please smile and stand so tall
“You are my firstborn so special, you’re the apple of my eye
“Never ever let go of Me…soon you’ll soar, you’ll fly!
“Learn from Me and you’ll soon teach your brothers and sisters anew
“New things! Delightful things! My very words so true!
“I am a Father and you’re all my children
“A brighter day is coming…my Family Kingdom…my gem
“Look to Me and no one else for your happiness and peace
“I will protect you and lighten your burdens…I will make you feast
“Now…you call Me and talk a while, I’ll always be right there
“To listen as you share your heart, to show you how much I care
“I’ve got to go for now, but I’ve enjoyed every minute
“Remember Me and don’t forget…I’m close and I AM infinite
“My love for you will never die…I’ve got big plans for you
“So give me a call and talk to Me daily, for I AM yours so ever true”

http://angelwinks.ca/images/generalpod/generalpod1094.jpg

[MajestyJo]

How is my own life-work serving to end these tyrannies, the corrosions of sacred possibility?

- June Jordan

Sometimes, when we stop and reflect, we need to believe that the work we are doing has a meaning beyond the tedium of the everyday. In fact, if we cannot see some larger connection in what we are doing, we often experience a feeling of loss or emptiness.

We know, somewhere deep inside us, that even if what we are doing doesn't exactly have a great cosmic meaning, they way we go about it and the interactions we have with others around our work can give it meaning beyond itself. Regardless of what we do, we do have an opportunity to make it sacred work.

I always have the freedom for a sacred possibility.


Freedom is a word I love and I didn't know that I was in bondage to so many things. I didn't know that by a spiritual connection to my outlook on life, that I could be free of those old patterns, tapes and beliefs.

- I no longer had to people please.

- It was okay to be me.

- I was not stupid.

- I was an intelligent human being.

- I did not have to go outside of myself for affirmation.

- I didn't have to find my worth by going outside of myself to find something to make me happy.

- I didn't always have to be busy, it was okay to just be!

- I didn't always have to be doing.

- I could take time for myself.

As I look at this, I can see all the "I" and realized that although my disease brought me to a place where I was selfish and self-centered, I had no concept of self-care and self-worth, and completely lacking in self-esteem. So many times, I followed the direction of other people and what they thought I should be doing in my recovery, only to suffer pain and a sense of failure and self-worth. I was trying to live up to other peoples expectations and judgments, instead of listening to what my Higher Power was directing me toward.

The greatest freedom I have been given has been my sense of self, and my sense of well being. I no longer have to live my life through others and my life is built on a new spiritual awareness of the God of my understanding.

[MajestyJo]

Freedom from the bondage of Self. I was just sharing with a member of my group today, before I share, I try to say the Serenity Prayer, the Third Step Prayer, and the Seventh Step Prayer to get me out of the way, so my God can work through me and hopefully, what comes out, is divinely inspired, not I-centered. All I can do is share what happened and worked for me, with the hope, that it will one day help others.

Just thinking of the fact that this was posted in 2004 and here it is 2017, who would ever have thought it, certainly not me!!!

The freedom of recovery, that first AA Promise, that is all I wanted. You will know a new freedom and a new happiness.

https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.wQeEHUdEauejEGGFO_5_BAD8Es&pid=15.1&P=0&w=300&h=300

[MajestyJo]

Listen To Your Heart

http://www.angelwinks.ca/images/love3.gif

I said a prayer for you today,
So listen to your heart.
God will be speaking to you,
And words He will impart.
I have not a single doubt,
That He will come unto you.
I know He keeps His promises,
And shares your burdens too.
He knows about your worries,
And decisions you must make.
Knows you are undecided as to,
Pathways you should take.
So when you hear Him whisper,
Listen and take heed.
He wants to lead and guide you,
And help you in your need.
It's not always easy to take the right path,
It takes courage and determination.
But God will direct your thoughts and steps,
Grant blessings beyond expectation.
So watch and listen through the day,
Stand tall and look around.
You are one of God's children and,
He will never let you down.
Remember always I'm praying for you,
And when we are apart,
I promise things will work for good,
If you listen to your heart.

--Southbreeze

[MajestyJo]

"We measure our progress in AA by two words, 'humility' and 'responsibility.' May I ever keep my eye on these yardsticks as I continue to seek only knowledge of his will for me."
Spiritual Awakenings Vol. 1
Tulsa, Okla., July 1978
"The Power of the Program,"
Heard a long timer say, "If you hear someone say they have humility, you know they haven't got it. Yet when you see someone practicing humility, you know he/she is working the program. As the saying goes, "Principles before personalities." If you are in Al-Anon, it reads "Principles above personalities."

What ever way you look at it, it is practicing the principles in all our affairs.

http://angelwinks.ca/images/iq/qcanhearts300.gif

[MajestyJo]

https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Inspirational-Images/Exodus_33-22.jpg

https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Inspirational-Images/Job_22-21.jpg

https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Inspirational-Images/Genesis_28-15.jpg

https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Inspirational-Images/Exodus_33-14.jpg