Be Thankful

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire ... if you did, what would there be to look forward to? 

Be thankful when you don't know something ... for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times ... during those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations ... they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for each new challenge... which will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes ... they will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you're tired and weary ... because it means you've given your all.

It's easy to be thankful for the 'good' things ... yet, a life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are thankful for the setbacks.

Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive ... find a way to be thankful for your troubles and they can become your blessings.

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Happiness

Everybody, everywhere

seeks happiness, it’s true,

But finding it and keeping it

seem difficult to do.

Difficult because we think

that happiness is found

Only in the places where

wealth and fame abound.

And so we go on searching

in palaces of pleasure

Seeking recognition

and monetary treasure,

Unaware that happiness

is just a state of mind

Within the reach of everyone

who takes time to be kind.

For in making others happy

we will be happy, too.

For the happiness you give away

returns to shine on you.

Broken Wings: Don't Judge a Book by Its Cover

Some people are just doomed to be failures. That's the way some adults look at troubled kids. Maybe you've heard the saying, "A bird with a broken wing will never fly as high." I'm sure that T. J. Ware was made to feel this way almost every day in school. By high school, T. J. was the most celebrated troublemaker in his town. Teachers literally cringed when they saw his name posted on their classroom lists for the next semester. He wasn't very talkative, didn't answer questions and got into lots of fights. He had flunked almost every class by the time he entered his senior year, yet was being passed on each year to a higher grade level. Teachers didn't want to have him again the following year. T. J. was moving on, but definitely not moving up. I met T. J. for the first time at a weekend leadership retreat. All the students at school had been invited to sign up for ACE training, a program designed to have students become more involved in their communities. T. J. was one of 405 students who signed up.mWhen I showed up to lead their first retreat, the community leaders gave me this overview of the attending students: "We have a total spectrum represented today, from the student body president to T. J. Ware, the boy with the longest arrest record in the history of town." Somehow, I knew that I wasn't the first to hear about T. J.'s darker side as the first words of introduction. At the start of the retreat, T. J. was literally standing outside the circle of students, against the back wall, with that "go ahead, impress me" look on his face. He didn't readily join the discussion groups, didn't seem to have much to say. But slowly, the interactive games drew him in. The ice really melted when the groups started building a list of positive and negative things that had occurred at school that year. T. J. had some definite thoughts on those situations. The other students in T. J.'s group welcomed his comments. All of a sudden T. J. felt like a part of the group, and before long he was being treated like a leader. He was saying things that made a lot of sense, and everyone was listening. T. J. was a smart guy, and he had some great ideas. The next day, T. J. was very active in all the sessions. By the end of the retreat, he had joined the Homeless Project team. He knew something about poverty, hunger and hopelessness. The other students on the team were impressed with his passionate concern and ideas. They elected T. J. co-chairman of the team. The student council president would be taking his instruction from T. J. Ware. When T. J. showed up at school on Monday morning, he arrived to a firestorm. A group of teachers were protesting to the school principal about his being elected co-chairman. The very first community wide service project was to be a giant food drive, organized by the Homeless Project team. These teachers couldn't believe that the principal would allow this crucial beginning to a prestigious, three-year action plan to stay in the incapable hands of T. J. Ware. They reminded the principal, "He has an arrest record as long as your arm. He'll probably steal half the food." Mr. Coggshall reminded them that the purpose of the ACE program was to uncover any positive passion that a student had and reinforce its practice until true change can take place. The teachers left the meeting shaking their heads in disgust, firmly convinced that failure was imminent.
Two weeks later, T. J. and his friends led a group of 70 students in a drive to collect food. They collected a school record: 2,854 cans of food in just two hours. It was enough to fill the empty shelves in two neighborhood centers, and the food took care of needy families in the area for 75 days.
The local newspaper covered the event with a full-page article the next day. That newspaper story was posted on the main bulletin board at school, where everyone could see it. T. J.'s picture was up there for doing something great, for leading a record-setting food drive. Every day he was reminded about what he did. He was being acknowledged as leadership material. T. J. started showing up at school every day and answered questions from teachers for the first time. He led a second project, collecting 300 blankets and 1,000 pairs of shoes for the homeless shelter. The event he started now yields 9,000 cans of food in one day, taking care of 70 percent of the need for food for one year.
T. J. reminds us that a bird with a broken wing only needs mending. But once it has healed, it can fly higher than the rest. T. J. got a job. He became productive. He is flying quite nicely these days.

By Jim Hullihan

Welcome Home Soldier

The other day I was walking into the local Wal-Mart store when I noticed an older man walking beside a younger man. The younger man was wearing army fatigues. I was curious so I stopped and asked, "Excuse me young man, but I was just wondering if you were in the service or are you just wearing fatigues?"

The young man stated that he was really in the army and then his Dad added in a strong voice that was filled with pride, "This is my son and he has just returned from his second tour in Iraq."

I told him how glad I was that he had returned home safely and then I said, "Young man, I would like to do something for you that no one outside of my family did for me when I returned home from serving in Viet Nam."

"What is that?" he asked.

"I'd be proud to welcome you home by shaking your hand if I might and say thank you for your service to our country," I said as I held out my hand. The young soldier and his Dad both stood a little taller as the young man stuck out his hand which I readily grasped and we just stood there, the three of us, with our right hands joined. We were three strangers drawn together by a common bond, we all understood, not needing to say anything more.

After nodding to each other, I started to break the grasp and walk away but the young soldier seemed to have something on his mind as he hesitated, and then he stopped me before I could move. He was quiet for a moment and then he looked me straight in the eye and then he ever so clearly uttered the words, "Thank you. . . and . . . Welcome Home". We then parted company as we went our separate ways. I finished buying the supplies I needed, walked on home, and oh yeah - I cried.

(Anonymous Viet Nam Veteran)

We often forget to be thankful to those who serve our country, protect us from terrorism, and preserve our freedom. We have veterans living today that have served us in WWII, Korea, Viet Nam, and The Persian Gulf. We have those on active duty who are serving our country right now in Iraq as well as other places around the world.

Today the average age of a WWII Veteran is 81; we are quickly losing them from the battlefield of life. They are now leaving us at the rate of 1500 per day. I see many of them carrying our flag in parades and participating in military funerals. They tell me the veteran's organizations need more veterans to help them with these duties now. This is due to the failing health and the deaths of most of the WWII veterans who have kept these organizations alive with their unswerving dedication and patriotism. Perhaps it's time we expressed appreciation with a card or a phone call to someone we know personally while there's still time. It shouldn't have to be Memorial Day or Veteran's Day for us to be appreciative toward all of our veterans no matter where they served. The point is that they served and gave of themselves that we might live in freedom.

We can also show our appreciation to those serving us right now by writing letters, sending e-mails, or sending packages to our soldiers. *Today is a good day to be grateful, there's no time like the present and it's the only time that we have for certain. When we see or hear of a soldier coming home from war, most important of all, let's remember to give them a heartfelt, "Thank you . . . and . . . Welcome Home!"

~ Pamela Perry Blaine ~

What's Your Attitude?

Attitude affects everything

Someone once told me, "You need to make me happy." After thinking about this for a while I decided it was not my job to make anyone happy except myself. I truly believe that happiness is a choice we must make for ourselves, and not just once, but every single day. When my father was ill with cancer he was placed on 24-hour hospice care. The nurses commented to me about how wonderful he was and that he was always so cheerful.

     Choose thankfulness

I asked him about this one night, and he said to me, "Every morning when I wake up I have a choice to make. I can be a crotchety old man and dwell on my pain and misfortune, making everyone around me miserable, or I can accept my life as it is and be glad that I woke up at all.

"I would rather be around happy people, so I choose the latter, but it is a choice I have to make every day, some days more than once." My father's words have stuck with me all these years. A good attitude is so much a part of success. Anything can be accomplished if you believe in yourself and have the courage to try.

     Take positive steps

But how do you get and maintain a good attitude? As fast-paced and stress-filled as our lives are, it can be difficult to find your "happy place." Following are some ideas to increase your happiness and present a good attitude to those around you.

• Make a choice: First, you have to make the choice to be happy. When you wake up do you leap out of bed or do you lie there desperately trying to find the snooze button on the alarm clock? While you don't actually have to leap out of bed, you should try to resolve to get up and get moving the first time the alarm goes off. Be thankful that you have the privilege of enjoying this brand new day. To have 365 new beginnings every single year is actually a pretty amazing thing.
• Find a reason to smile: Smiling, and all facial expressions, are actually physiological responses to emotions. Smiling not only makes you look happy, it can also relieve stress, boost your immune system, lower your blood pressure, and release endorphins (those wonderful little natural pain-killers and stress-reducers). Besides, smiling is contagious.
• Take care of yourself: Do this the same way you take care of others. We all know that working in sales is largely about customer service. Think of yourself as one of your own customers. Make sure to exercise, eat right and carve out some down time in each of your days. In other words, stop to smell the flowers.
• Have some fun. Too often we postpone fun activities for when we have more time. If you keep doing this, you may never get around to it. Even just a short walk in the park can be fun. Find something you love to do and set aside a little bit of time every day to do it.
• Act like a winner. Three other things that will help improve your attitude are: 1) Being optimistic - the glass really is half full. 2) Associating with happy people - their positivity will rub off on you. 3) Having faith in yourself - you really can do anything.

     Spread good news

Then decide, in your own way, to become a good news network for your own circle of family, friends, colleagues and customers. And watch your relationships transform. These are just a few tips to help you maintain a good attitude. The first step is yours. You have to make the choice. So what will it be?
                                                    The a Green Shert Online Edition

Pulling Weeds

This afternoon the sun shone for a few hours, so I took the opportunity to do some weeding in the garden. It had rained a lot over the past few weeks and the weeds had thrived. Some of the weeds came out easily as they had little roots, but others that I pulled out were well established and it took a lot of effort to remove them. At the end of the afternoon, it was satisfying to see the garden looking good and without weeds for now!

As I was thinking about this it got me to thinking about the Christian life. Our lives are like a garden and the weeds are the worldly influences and sins that take root in our lives. The weeds spring up, sometimes without us even realizing. For example, one bad word spoken against a person can lead to another and before we know it we have a problem with speaking unkindly about others. Just as the weeds have grown gradually in the garden, so sins can develop in our lives and before we know it they have become deep rooted.

The good news though is there is hope. Just as I took the time to remove the weeds from the garden we can remove the sins from our lives. It just takes time. Time spent examining our hearts (2 Corinthians 13:5), asking God to show us areas in our lives that we need to change and asking for His help to change. By seeking God daily and reading his word we can stop the weeds from growing and stop our lives from becoming entangled by sin.

"Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:23-24
By Lucy.x