How to tap into God's power

In a seminary mission class, Herbert Jackson told how, as a new missionary, he was assigned a car that would not start without a push.

After pondering his problem, he devised a plan.

He went to the school near his home, got permission to take some children out of class, and had them push his car off.

As he made his rounds, he would either park on a hill or leave the engine running. He used this ingenious procedure for two years.

Ill health forced the Jackson family to leave, and a new missionary came to that station.

When Jackson proudly began to explain his arrangement for getting the car started, the new man began looking under the hood.

Before the explanation was complete, the new missionary interrupted, "Why, Dr. Jackson, I believe the only trouble is this loose cable."

He gave the cable a twist, stepped into the car, pushed the switch, and to Jackson's astonishment, the engine roared to life.

For two years needless trouble had become routine. The power was there all the time. Only a loose connection kept Jackson from putting that power to work.

J.B. Phillips paraphrases Ephesians l:19-20, "How tremendous is the power available to us who believe in God." When we make firm our connection with God, his life and power flow through us.

The best gift

There is a story of a man who visited an infirmed old lady who used to work for a very wealthy man.

As the visitor sat next to the lady's bed, a frame hanging on her wall caught his attention.

Looking closer, he exclaimed, "Do you know that this is actually the last will and testament of your employer? It names you as the sole beneficiary of all that he has!"

For 50 years--since the day her employer passed on--that poor lady had worked day and night eking out an existence for herself, when all of her previous employer's estate had been given to her to enjoy.

The story is a great reminder that you received the greatest gift of all - the Lord Jesus Christ.

So quit focusing on your failures, regrets, and fear of aging.
Focus on God by memorizing and meditating His words.

Life is short and might as well enjoy it.

Here's one of my favorite verse that you can memorize.

"Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be.
Remind me that my days are numbered--how fleeting my life is." - Psalm 39:4

This memory verse will help you to focus on what really matters in life.

Discovering the real fear

A Sultan decided to make a voyage with some of his best courtiers. They embarked at the port of Dubai and set out across the open seas.

As the ship sailed away from the land, one of his subjects, who had never seen the sea and had spent much of his life in the mountains, had a panic attack.

Everyone tried to calm him down, saying that the journey really wasn’t all that dangerous, but although their words reached his ears, they did not touch his heart.

The Sultan was ready to turn the ship around and head back to port, when one of his ministers, known for his wisdom, came over to him:
“Your Highness, with your permission, I will try to calm him down.”

The wise man ordered that the man be thrown into the sea. A group of crew members, pleased that the nightmare was about to end, dragged the struggling man up from the hold and hurled him into the ocean.

The courtier began to thrash about, he went under, swallowed salt water, came back up, shouted louder still, went down again, and again struggled to the surface.
At this point, the minister ordered that he be brought back on board the ship.

From that moment on, no one heard the slightest word of complaint from the man, who spent the rest of the voyage in silence.

Shortly before returning to port, the Sultan asked the minister:
“How did you know that you could calm the poor man down by throwing him into the sea?”

“Because of my own marriage,” replied the minister. “I was terrified of losing my wife, and I was so jealous that, like this man, I spent all my time weeping and wailing. One day, unable to stand it any longer, she left me, and I realized how awful life would be without her.

“She only came back when I promised that I would never again torture her with my fears. In the same way, this man had never tasted salt water and had never understood the agony of a man about to drown. Once he had known that experience, he understood perfectly how marvelous it is to feel the deck of a ship beneath one’s feet.”

“It is written in a book sacred to the Christians, the Bible: ‘Everything I most feared came to pass.’ Some people are only capable of valuing what they have once they have experienced its loss.”

Fake Coins

An old man was selling toys at the market in Bagdad. His buyers, knowing he had weak sight, would sometimes pay him with fake coins.

The old man noticed the trick but didn’t say anything.

In his prayers he asked God to forgive those who had tricked him.

‘Perhaps they don’t have much money and want to buy gifts for their children,’ he would say to himself.

Time passed by and the man died.

Standing before the portal of Paradise, he prayed once again.

‘Lord,’ he said, ‘I am a sinner.

‘I did many things wrong, I am no better than the fake coins I was given. Forgive me!’

On that moment the gate opened and a Voice said:

‘What should I forgive? How can I judge someone who has never judged anyone throughout his life?

The Best Dad

Years ago I heard a story of a dad named Paul who gave his young son a small chalkboard to practice writing on. One evening his son called out from the bedroom, "Dad, how do you spell best?"

Paul answered him. Moments later, the boy hollered, "How do you spell kid?"

Finally he asked, "How do you spell ever?"

When the boy showed him what he'd written on the chalkboard, Paul expected to see "I'm the best kid ever." Instead, the boy beamed as Paul read the message: "You're the best dad a kid can ever have."

Paul recalled that it was one of the best days of his life. In fact, he had to buy his son another chalkboard because he wanted to save this message forever and hang it on his wall. It's still there.

Feeling appreciated is enormously important to adults as well as children. So much so that we often don't think enough about what we'd most like to be appreciated for.
Being appreciated at work is a big deal. Who doesn't want approval and respect from one's boss and coworkers? Beyond the economic value of raises, promotions, and commendations, praise can be gratifying and motivating. That's why good employers look for opportunities to acknowledge and thank employees for their contributions.
Yet as meaningful as work recognition is, if you could choose between winning your child's "Best Mom/Dad A Kid Can Ever Have" award and being named "Best Employee," which would you choose?

The point is not to belittle the pursuit of approval in your business life but to remind you how much more meaningful it is to know you're important to and appreciated by the people who love and need you the most. Your most important job in life is to be worthy of that appreciation.
Being the "best ever" mom or dad, husband or wife, or friend - it doesn't get any better than that.

Michael Josephson
www.charactercounts.org

Scared to try

Many years ago a young lady who was attending a seminar shared an interesting story with Bob Proctor. Apparently she and two or three of her girlfriends went and tried out for a place in a stage play. She got the starring role while her girlfriends were not even picked for the supporting cast. Opening night she said she was really excited but afterwards became very disappointed when her girlfriends never came out and supported her. She was explaining the situation to an elderly friend of her fathers named Hap. He wrote her a letter and she gave me a copy with her permission to share it with others. Read it carefully and think.

Dear Ann,

Once upon a time there was a fellow by the name of Al Capp who wrote a comic strip called "L'll Abner." Many years ago he had some characters in his strip who lived in a town near Dogpatch. They were the town bums, the n'er do wells, the failures whose whole aim in life was to pass judgement on others. Their criticism and ridicule became so vehement that in time the rest of the people in the town became acutely conscious of it. "The boys down at the stable," as they were called because that's where they spent most of their time, soon set the social standards of the town. Nobody could do anything without their sanction.

Because they lived within the structure of their crummy little world, they would laugh and point their fingers at anyone and everyone who tried to be better than they were. As a result the people feared the ridicule of the boys down at the stable so much that they stopped trying. Soon everybody became bums and the town died.

In every social structure, Ann, whether it be family, town, county or state, there are "The boys down at the stable." They are the jealous ones. They are too scared to try something different. They show their ignorance by laughing at those who do. Learn to recognize them Ann, for what they are. Don't let them hurt you. It takes a certain amount of toughness to succeed. One has to rise above those who would tear you down so that they can laugh and say, "I told you so!"

There are too many of us who love you and want you to make it. I could put myself at the top of the list. You aren't going to fall flat on your face as they would have you. You are going to do a superb job. Remember this show is only a small step in the direction of greater things you will do, many of which are beyond your wildest dreams. All you have to do is want to. One of the things I like about you best is that you always give it hell for try.

The show will be a success because of you and others like you who try. There are only winners in the cast. The losers are gathered down at the stable laughing and hoping for your failure. If we could dig down deep inside them, I'm sure we'd find they want to win also, but are too scared to try, and they attempt to cover up their own failures as human beings by laughing at others. In a sense I'm sorry for them. Their guilt must make them very unhappy people.

Much love,

Hap

A Lesson Learnt From My Six Year Old

On Saturday mornings, my family and I stay in bed just a little bit longer. My two boys crawl into bed with my husband and I and we usually watch music videos all together cuddled up in bed.

A song came on called "If this was your last day" which I found intriguing and thought it posed an interesting question too, so I turned to my husband and asked him what he would do if it was his last day.

He thought for a while and then said that he would probably lie in bed all day just as we were doing right now, surrounded by all his favorite people, just savoring the time together.

I turned to my eight year old and asked him what he would do and he said that he would go to Canada's Wonderland and go on all the rides.
I then focused my attention on my six year old and posed the same question. He looked at me intently and asked "Is this my last day to live?", I said "yup".

He then answered the question quite matter of factly and said "I would go to the hospital".

Of course my husband and I thought his answer was genuinely funny, smart and pure (we are biased of course). However, I have been thinking about it for a few days now and I realize that my six year old has it all figured out.

He naturally thinks outside of the box, he does not accept a situation and assume a scenario just because it is posed to him.

In his mind, there was no reason why it should be his last day and he was going to find a way to ensure that it was not.

In a flash of a second, he realized that he has the capacity to ensure that it wouldn't be his last day and not only that, but he was going to take the requisite responsibility and the necessary action to ensure that it wasn't.

My son taught me that if you want to live then find a way to do it, don't give up, don't settle and don't just accept things for what they seem to be.

Don't assume and accept a situation just because it is presented to you as such. Rather make that situation your own, take responsibility for it and then decide to change it, my six year old did.

Now I know that I am his mother, but is this not the smartest six year old kid in the entire world?

Nicolle Kopping-Pavars

Nicolle Kopping-Pavars is a collaborative lawyer dedicated to using inspiration and motivation while guiding families through difficult transitions. You can view her website at: www.nkplaw.ca

How To Have A True Spiritual Revival

Once a man asked an evangelist "how can we have revival?"
The evangelist answered by asking "Do you have a place where you can pray?"

Yes the man replied.

Tell you what to do, go to that place and take a piece of chalk along.

Kneel down there, and with the chalk draw a complete circle around you and pray for God to send revival on everything inside that circle.

Stay there until He answers, and you will have your revival.
You see, God is ready for revival...always!

But the question is are you ready for revival?

Are you sincerely and consistently seeking His face? Do you discipline yourself to read, memorize, and meditate God's Word?

Revival in your finances, health, relationships, and spiritual life won't happen until you completely immerse your heart and mind to scriptures.

How to claim your inheritances?

A Michigan factory worker, earning less than ten thousand dollars a year, was an unknowing heir to a half-million dollars.

When located by an investigator some years after his benefactor's death, the worker explained that he had neither returned home nor kept in touch with his family for 24 years.

The investigator who located him estimates there is about 40 billion dollars in inheritances lying unclaimed in this country alone.

Are you as a Christian unaware of your status as "an heir of God through Christ"?

Like the prodigal factory worker, do you live in ignorance of your inheritance and at a spiritual poverty level because you have moved away and fail to keep in touch with our Father or his family?

If so, now is the time to rekindle your love and passion for God.

Make a commitment today to memorize a single Bible verse and meditate it throughout the day.

It's A FACT: Scripture memorization will help you grow stronger spiritually as you reflect on God's promises wherever and whenever you want, at any time... Without even needing to have your Bible in hand.

ACTS 2:38

An elderly lady was asleep in her bed one night, when she was awakened by a strange noise from the living room.

Cautiously, she walked in and discovered a burglar in the process of stealing the stereo. Overcome with fear, she whispered a desperate prayer, "Help me Jesus!" The burglar heard her and started towards her.

Without a thought she put up her hand and shouted a favorite scripture reference: ACTS 2:38! The burglar immediately froze.

The lady dialed 911, and within minutes, police were on the scene, and took the burglar to the police station.

As the police were questioning him, one of the detectives said,
"I'm curious, you could have ran and got away, why did you stay frozen in that one spot?"

The burglar answered, "Man, if you knew that old lady was packing an axe and two .38 revolvers, you would not have moved either!"

On a serious note, there's a tremendous power of having God's Word in your heart and mind.

So don't let age or your memory capacity stop you from memorizing and meditating God's Word.

Billy Graham Tells An Inspiring Story

Billy Graham tells the story about a little child was playing with a very valuable vase. He put his hand into it and could not withdraw it.

His father too, tried his best to get it out, to no avail.

They were thinking of breaking the vase when the father said, "Now my son, make one more try. Open your hand and hold your fingers out straight as you see me doing, and then pull."

To their astonishment the little fellow said, "O no, dad, I couldn't put my fingers out like that because if I did I would drop my dime."

Smile, if you will,  but thousands of us are like that little boy, so busy holding on to the world's worthless dimes that we cannot accept liberation.

Drop the trifles in your life. Surrender! Let go, and let God have His way in your life.

How To React To Those Who Hate Christians

I remember the old story of a young soldier boy who was a Christian. After the lights were out in the barracks he would slip down on his knees by his bunk in order to pray.

One night the sergeant, who had little use for anything religious or Christian, threw his very muddy boots at the boy, striking him on the side of the head.

The next morning the sergeant found his boots beside his bed all clean and polished to perfection.

He was so impressed by the actions of the young man that he was eventually reached for the Lord. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God."

Here's the moral of the story...

In life we sometimes experience unpleasant things we do not deserve. Events that we cannot control but what we can control is our reaction.

You can be bitter or better. You can hate or love.

Regardless of the situation, keep your faith in God and remain at peace with Him. Meditating your memory verse throughout the day is a good habit to keep your eyes and heart focused on God.

A Message to All Sinners

Imagine a sponge that has been used to wash the dishes. It's all full of dirt and food and old water. It needs to be filled with clean water!

But how can you do that? Easy.

You wring it out, rinse it off, and wring it out again. Only when you have done this can you fill it with clean water.

It's the same with the Spirit. Here we are, all full of sin and grime and filth. There is no room for Him. But once all the filth has been removed, and we have been emptied, the Spirit can come and fill us anew.

Empty yourself to God and allow the Holy Spirit to move in your life.

In your daily schedule, give room to God by starting your day with scripture memorization and meditation.

Fact is, only you can choose how intimate your relationship with God is.

How God answers prayer...

John Maxwell writes in his book, Partners in Prayer;

"In the summer of 1876, grasshoppers nearly destroyed the crops in Minnesota. So in the spring of 1877, farmers were worried. They believed that the dreadful plague would once again visit them and again destroy the rich wheat crop, bringing ruin to thousands of people.

The situation was so serious that Governor John S. Pillsbury proclaimed April 26 as a day of prayer and fasting He urged every man, woman and child to ask God to prevent the terrible scourge.

On that April day all schools, shops, stores and offices were closed. There was a reverent, quite hush over all the state.

The next day dawned bright and clear.

Temperature soared to what they ordinary were in midsummer, which was very unusual for April.

Minnesotans were devastated as they discovered billions of grasshopper larvae wiggling to life.

For 3 days the unusual heat persisted, and the larvae hatched. It appeared that it wouldn't be long before they started feeding and destroying the wheat crop.

On the fourth day, however the temperature suddenly dropped, and that night frost, covered the entire state.

Result - it killed every one of those creeping, crawling pests as surely as if poison or fire had been used, It went down in the history of Minnesota as the day God answered the prayers of the people."

That is an awesome story!

God surely answer prayers but unfortunately some Christians are not praying enough.

Ever wonder why?

That's because their minds and hearts are not completely in tune with God.

The BIG truth about fear...

Shohoiya Yokowai spent 28 years of his life in prison. It was not a prison of bars & locks & wardens, but a self-imposed prison of fear.

He was a Japanese soldier on the island of Guam during WW2.

And when the American forces landed, he fled into the jungle & found a cave in which he hid for 28 years because he was afraid of being captured by the Americans.

He learned that the war was over by reading one of the thousands of pamphlets dropped into the jungle. But he was afraid.

So for 28 years he lived in the cave, coming out only at night to look for roaches & rats & frogs & mangoes on which he survived.

Finally some natives found him & convinced him that it would be all right for him to come out of his jungle prison.

We think, "What a waste! Imagine, spending 28 years living as a prisoner of fear."

Yet, there are a lot of people who are prisoners of fear.

Fears like...

fear of failing
fear of succeeding
fear of disappointing people
fear of losing our child
fear of the unknown
fear of dying

Frankly, I can have a long list of different fears that people have.

They're not aware of it simply because they call "fear" with a different name.

How about you?

Do you have fear that's preventing God to fully bless your life?
Are you trying to control your life instead of letting God have His way?

Listen, the best way to overcome your fear is to have a strong faith in God and you do this by regularly meditating scripture.
In Romans 10:17 says, "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God."

No doubt, in developing your faith there's no better substitute to scripture memorization and meditation.

So I encourage you to take action, be bold, and make a decision now to start memorizing scriptures.

How to know if you're really saved...

"Let's say you have an appointment in another city, and you need to fly there. You purchase your ticket on the internet, you get your confirmation with times and flight and gate numbers.

But you are delayed enroute to the airport, and when you finally arrive, running through the airport you come to your gate only to be told that the plane you see rolling away outside the window is the one you were supposed to be on, and you've missed your flight.

You were very, very close.

But there's no such thing as being half on and half off a commercial flight.

You're either all the way on the plane and heading for your destination, or you're standing in the airport with your hands dangling at your side because you're helpless to change your circumstances.

This is the difference between children of light and children of darkness. There is no in between. You are light, or you are dark. You are heaven bound, or you are destined to an eternity without God. You are saved or you are lost.

The only way you're going to get on that plane; the only way you can ever hope to be made a child of light, is to go to Light Himself and on His terms."

That's why it's critical that you have a regular communication with God. Every time you read, memorize, and meditate scriptures, you're keeping yourself with the Light Himself.

With scripture memorization, you're deciding to stay with God, embrace Him, and love Him.

He read the Bible with his tongue...

A man in Kansas City was severely injured in an explosion.
Evangelist Robert L. Sumner tells about him in his book The Wonders of the Word of God.

The victim's face was badly disfigured, and he lost his eyesight as well as both hands.

He was just a new Christian, and one of his greatest disappointments was that he could no longer read the Bible.

Then he heard about a lady in England who read Braille with her lips. Hoping to do the same, he sent for some books of the Bible in Braille.

Much to his dismay, however, he discovered that the nerve endings in his lips had been destroyed by the explosion.

One day, as he brought one of the Braille pages to his lips, his tongue happened to touch a few of the raised characters and he could feel them.

Like a flash he thought, I can read the Bible using my tongue. At the time Robert Sumner wrote his book, the man had "read" through the entire Bible four times.

How many of you can say you've read through the Bible four times--with two good eyes? This man had a craving--and even losing his eyesight wouldn't prevent him from reading God's Word.

So don't let laziness or procrastination prevent you from reading and memorizing God's Word.

Be a "no-excuse" Christian and start memorizing scriptures starting today.

How does God measure success...

In Washington D.C. there is a building called the "National Institute of Standards & Technology." This facility is responsible for storing perfect samples of weights and measurements.

They have what are called "prototypes" of pound weights and kilograms. Measuring rods for feet, yards & metric measurements like meters.

For example, they have a "Meter Standard" a reinforced bar of platinum alloyed with exactly 10% iridium. When they want to know the exact measurement of a "meter" they cool this bar down to 0 degrees Celsius at a sea level of 45 degrees latitude then they know they will have the exact tip to tip measurement of a meter.

That bar is known as prototype #27, because the original is kept in a suburb of Paris at the International Bureau of Weights & Measures.

We Christians also have a measuring rod that never changes. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us:

"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God[a] may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."

Remember, there's no substitute having scripture in your heart and mind. Do not allow this world to dictate who you are and what to believe in.

Memorize scripture and let it be your life's standard.

It's your protection from devil's lies and deceptions.

The recipe to a victorious life...Biblically.

Roger Staubach who led the Dallas Cowboys to the World Championship in '71 admitted that his position as a quarterback who didn't call his own signals was a source of trial for him.

Coach Landry sent in every play. He told Roger when to pass, when to run and only in emergency situations could he change the play (and he had better be right!).

Even though Roger considered coach Landry to have a "genius mind" when it came to football strategy, pride said that he should be able to run his own team.

Roger later said, "I faced up to the issue of obedience. Once I learned to obey there was harmony, fulfillment, and victory."

The point of the story is simple.

And that is in our relationship with God it requires full submission and obedience.

If God is convicting you to do something or to get rid of sins or habits...just do it.

Like in our story, once you learned to obey that's the only time you'll experience harmony, fulfillment, and victory in your life.

When God doesn't make sense...

A little boy wanted $100 very badly. He prayed for weeks, but nothing happened. So, he decided to write a letter to God requesting $100.

When the postal authorities received the letter to "God, USA", they decided to send it to the President.

The President was so amused that he instructed his secretary to send the little boy a $5 bill. The President thought this would appear to be a lot of money to a little boy.

The little boy was delighted with the $5 bill, and sat down to write a thank-you note to God. The postal authorities forwarded this letter on to the President, too.
It read:

"Dear God, Thank you very much for sending the money. However, I noticed that for some reason you sent it through Washington, D.C., and those guys deducted $95 in taxes!"

It's a funny story but what we can learn from this is...
...sometimes when God answers your prayer it will not be exactly as you wanted it to be.

But you just have to trust. Trust that God's answer to your prayer is the best for you.

Yes, sometimes it seems that God doesn't make sense but remember in Isaiah 55:8-9 it says...His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. His ways are higher than our ways.

That's why it's important to keep His Word to your heart and mind through scripture memorization. Because through regular reading, memorization, and meditation of God's Word you develop your faith.