Daily Positive Thread for Monday

gloriajean — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 20:10:47 GMT

Make peace with your imperfections and concentrate on your strengths.

Lord, teach me to become more aware of my goodness so that little by

little I will become even better.

Scripture for the day:

"I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the
sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if
somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have
already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on
to make it my own,
because Christ Jesus has made me his own." ~Philippians 3:10-12

Meditation for the day:

We need not dwell too much on the mistakes, faults and failures of the
past. We can be done with shame and remorse and contempt for
ourselves. With God's help, we can develop a new self-respect. Unless
we respect ourselves, others will not respect us. We ran a race, we
stumbled and fell, we have risen again and now we press on toward the
goal of a better life. We need not stay to examine the spot where we
fell, only feel sorry for the delay, the shortsightedness that
prevented us from
seeing the real goal sooner.

Prayer for the day:

I pray that I may not look back. I pray that I may keep picking
myself up and making a fresh start each day.

Hello my friends! Not much going on here – hope you all are having a wonderful day!! Linus says thank you to all who are praying for his feet because for two days in a row now, he was ok without pain – Praise the Lord for that!! Hope today will go well, too. Tonight we are invited to Lori’s for a barbeque – she’s invited about 20 people! and later the fireworks from her back yard. So I thought I’d get this thread out now already so I can be busy preparing my salad and things to get done for her – and not get this out late at night.

I see there are very few of you around today and all weekend!! A wonderful blessing is this beautiful day God gave us – and a beautiful Mass – they sang the America the Beautiful and My Country ‘Tis of Thee, today. But the best blessing right now is that Linus’ feet aren’t giving him so much pain as before!!! Thanks be to God!!

WINDSHIELD WIPER LESSON FROM A CHILD
Author Unknown

One rainy afternoon I was driving along one of the main streets of
town, taking those extra precautions necessary when the roads are wet
and slick.

Suddenly, my son Matthew spoke up from his relaxed position in the
front seat.

"Mom, I'm thinking of something."

This announcement usually meant he had been pondering some fact for a
while and was now ready to expound all that his seven-year-old mind
had discovered.

I was eager to hear. "What are you thinking?" I asked.

"The rain," he began, "is like sin and the windshield wipers are like
God, wiping our sins away."

After the chill bumps raced up my arms I was able to respond. "That's
really good, Matthew."

Then my curiosity broke in. How far would this little boy take this
revelation? So I asked... "Do you notice how the rain keeps on coming?
What does that tell you?"

Matthew didn't hesitate one moment with his answer: "We keep on
sinning, and God just keeps on forgiving us."

Who can drive in the rain again without thinking of this one???

HOLD MY HAND
Author Unknown

Little girl and her father were crossing a bridge.
The father was kind of scared so he asked his little daughter,
"Sweetheart, please hold my hand so that you don't fall into the
river."
The little girl said, "No, Dad. You hold my hand."
"What's the difference?" Asked the puzzled father.
"There's a big difference," replied the little girl.

"If I hold your hand and something happens to me,
chances are that I may let your hand go.
But if you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter what happens,
you will never let my hand go."

In any relationship, the essence of trust is not in its bind, but in
its bond.

So hold the hand of the person who loves you rather than expecting
them to hold yours...

The 4 Wives -- A parable

Once upon a time there was a rich King who had four wives. He
loved the 4th wife the most and adorned her with rich robes and
treated her to the finest of delicacies. He gave her nothing but
the best.

He also loved the 3rd wife very much and was always showing her
off to neighboring kingdoms. However, he feared that one day she
would leave him for another.

He also loved his 2nd wife. She was his confidant and was always
kind, considerate and patient with him. Whenever the King faced a
problem, he could confide in her, and she would help him get
through the difficult times.

The King's 1st wife was a very loyal partner and had made great
contributions in maintaining his wealth and kingdom.
However, he did not love the first wife. Although she loved him
deeply, he hardly took notice of her!

One day, the King fell ill and he knew his time was short. He
thought of his luxurious life and wondered, "I now have four wives
with me, but when I die, I'll be all alone."

Thus, he asked the 4th wife, "I have loved you the most, endowed
you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now
that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No way!",
replied the 4th wife, and she walked away without another
word. Her answer cut like a sharp knife right into his heart.

The sad King then asked the 3rd wife, "I have loved you all my
life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?"
"No!", replied the 3rd wife. "Life is too good! When you die, I'm
going to remarry!" His heart sank and turned cold.
He then asked the 2nd wife, "I have always turned to you for help
and you've always been there for me. When I die, will you follow
me and keep me company?" "I'm sorry, I can't help you out this
time!", replied the 2nd wife. "At the very most, I can only walk
with you to your grave." Her answer struck him like a bolt of
lightning, and the King was devastated.

Then a voice called out: "I'll go with you. I'll follow you no
matter where you go." The King looked up, and there was his first
wife. She was very skinny as she suffered from malnutrition and
neglect. Greatly grieved, the King said, "I should have taken much
better care of you when I had the chance!"

In truth, we all have the 4 wives in our lives:

Our 4th wife is our body. No matter how much time and effort we
lavish in making it look good, it will leave us when we die.

Our 3rd wife is our possessions, status and wealth.
When we die, it will all go to others.

Our 2nd wife is our family and friends. No matter how much they
have been there for us, the furthest they can stay by us is up to
the grave.

And our 1st wife is our Soul. Often neglected in pursuit of
wealth, power and pleasures of the world. However, our Soul is the
only thing that will follow us wher! ever we go.

Cultivate, strengthen and cherish it now, for it is the only part
of us that will follow us to the throne of God and continue with
us throughout Eternity.

Be Blessed Today!!!

HOW HEAVY IS YOUR BAG?
Author Unknown
July 3, 2011

One of my teachers had each one of us bring a clear plastic bag and a
sack of potatoes. For every person we'd refuse to forgive in our life,
we were told to choose a potato, write on it the name and date, and
put it in the plastic bag. Some of our bags, as you can imagine, were
quite
heavy.

We were then told to carry this bag with us everywhere for one week,
putting it beside our bed at night, on the car seat when driving, next
to our desk at work.

The hassle of lugging this around with us made it clear what a weight
we were carrying spiritually, and how we had to pay attention to it
all the time to not forget, and keep leaving it in embarrassing
places.

Naturally, the condition of the potatoes deteriorated to a nasty
slime. This was a great metaphor for the price we pay for keeping our
pain and heavy negativity!

Too often we think of forgiveness as a gift to the other person, and
while that's true, it clearly is also a gift for ourselves!

So the next time you decide you can't forgive someone, ask yourself...

Isn't MY bag heavy enough?

And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone,
forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.
- Mark 11:25

<h1>Trust in God</h1>

Into Thy Hands, O Lord, and into the hands of Thy holy Angels, I commit and entrust this day my soul, my relatives, my benefactors, my friends and enemies, and all Thy people. Keep us, O Lord, through the day, by the merits and intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of all Thy Saints, from all vicious and unruly desires, from all sins and temptations of the devil, and from sudden and unprovided death and the pains of h ell. Enlighten my heart with the grace of Thy Holy Spirit; grant that I may always be obedient to Thy commandments; suffer me not to be separated from Thee, O God, who livest and reignest with God the Father and the same Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.

St. Edmund

MOTHER'S PRAYER TO THE GUARDIAN ANGEL OF HER CHILDREN

I humbly salute you, O you faithful, heavenly Friends of my children! I give you heartfelt thanks for all the love and goodness you show them. At some future day I shall, with thanks more worthy than I can now give, repay your care for them, and before the whole heavenly court acknowledge their indebtedness to your guidance and protection. Continue to watch over them. Provide for all their needs of body and soul. Pray, likewise, for me, for my husband, and my whole family, that we may all one day rejoice in your blessed company. Amen.

Happy Fourth of July!!

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Daily Positive Thread for Monday