Sunday, August 30, 2009

Broken

From Lifehouse.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZXHYItXWqE&feature=channel


The Broken clock is a comfort
It helps me sleep tonight
Maybe it can stop tomorrow
From stealing all my time
And I am here still waiting
Though I still have my doubts
I am damaged at best
Like You've already figured out

I'm falling apart
I'm barely breathing
With a broken heart
That's still beating
In the pain
There is healing
In Your name
I find meaning
So I'm holding on (I'm holding on)(I'm holding on)
I'm barely holding on to You

The broken locks were a warning
You got inside my head
I tried my best to be guarded
I'm an open book instead
And I still see Your reflection
Inside of my eyes
That are looking for purpose
They're still looking for life

I'm falling apart
I'm barely breathing
With a broken heart
That's still beating
In the pain (In the pain)
Is there healing
In Your name
I find meaning
So I'm holding on (I'm still holding)(I'm holding on)
(I'm still holding) (I'm holding on)
I'm barely holding on to you

I'm hanging on another day
Just to see what, You will throw my way
And I'm hanging on, to the words You say
You said that I will, will be okay
The broken lights on the freeway
Left me here alone
I may have lost my way now
Haven't forgotten my way home

I'm falling apart
I'm barely breathing
With a broken heart
That's still beating
In the pain (In the pain)
There is healing
In your name (In your name)
I find meaning
So I'm holding on (I'm still holding)(I'm holding on)(I'm still holding) (I'm holding on) (I'm still holding)
I’m barely holding on to you (I'm still holding on) )(I'm holding on)(I'm still holding) (I'm holding on) (I'm still holding) (I'm holding on)
Barely holding on to you

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

How's your Reception? From Girlfriends in God

August 25, 2009
How's Your Reception?
Sharon Jaynes

Today's Truth

"The seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop" (Luke 8:15 NIV).

Friend To Friend

Have you ever thought about how frustrated God must feel when He calls out to us and gets no response? The Lord taught me a little lesson in how to be a better listener through a gift from my son.

When Steven was thirteen, twelve years ago, he thought I was still living in the Dark Ages because I didn't have a cell phone. But I didn't want a cell phone. My car was one place where I could get away from the telephone's constant pull on my attention, so I settled for being a little archaic. Besides, he really just wanted me to have one so he could call into the radio station and win prizes on our drive to school each morning.

Boy, was I surprised that Christmas when I opened my lovely present from Steven to discover a flip-top cell phone purchased with his own money. How could I not appear grateful for a gift from my own child (that sly dog)? Of course he convinced my husband to pay the monthly fees. "After all," he argued, "it is much too dangerous for a woman to be driving around town without a cell phone."

"Thank you, Steven," I said. "Now whenever Dad and I are out and you are home alone, I can call you anytime, from anyplace, to see what you're doing." From the look on his face, I could tell that the thought had never crossed his mind.

A few weeks later I decided to try out my new toy.

"Steven, this is Mom. Dad and I are in the car. When I hang up, I want you to call this number and let's see if the phone works."

We waited about three minutes, but the phone never rang.

"Steven, this is Mom again. What happened?"

"I called the number," he explained, "but the operator said that your phone was turned off or that you were out of the calling area."

I decided to call the cell phone company to find out what had happened.

"Let me explain something," said the technical assistant. "A cellular phone works by sending out and receiving radio waves from a cell tower. You were at a point on the road that dips and forms a small valley, and the radio waves could not reach down into the dip for you to receive the signal. Another possibility is that your message was being blocked by a large building. And finally, Mrs. Jaynes, was your battery powered up? Have you charged it lately?"

"Yes," I answered. "I charged it today."

"And was the antenna up?" (This was when cell phones actually had antennae.)

"Yes," I said. "The antenna was up."

Finally I asked, "Why could I send a call, but I could not receive a call?"

"Because it takes more call strength to receive a call, than to send one," she explained.

I was more than frustrated with this two-by-six-inch piece of plastic, but it made me consider other transmissions that I had trouble receiving from time to time. John 10:27 says that the Lord speaks to His sheep and His sheep hear His voice. But why do I have so much trouble hearing from God? Could it be the same reasons that I have poor reception with my cell phone?

If I'm having trouble hearing from God, I have to ask myself the same questions that the technical assistant asked me. Am I in a dip in the road? Sometimes a valley of depression can clog my spiritual ears in such a way that I don't hear His gentle voice coaxing me to higher ground. Then, I need to start singing praises like David did in the Psalms and watch Him turn my valley into a level path.

Have I erected walls that are blocking God's signals: walls of materialism, selfish ambition, or religion? If so I need to tear them down. Is my battery pack powered up? If not, I need to plug into the Word and get recharged. Is my antenna raised or have I put it down like the Israelites who, because of fear, told Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us." (Exodus 20:19 NIV). If I want to hear from Him, I need to make sure my spiritual antenna is up and that I am expectantly waiting to hear His voice.

Finally, why is it that I can sometimes place a call but often have trouble receiving one? I can go before the Lord at any time and He hears me. Though it doesn't take more power to receive a message from Him, it does take more effort on my part to be receptive. In our fast-paced world, it takes more effort to be still and listen than it does to speak. But I need to realize that what God has to say to me is much more important than anything I have to say to Him.

I held my little flip-top phone in the palm of my hand and thanked God for showing me once again how to hear His voice. What I realized was that hearing from Him was more than just receiving; it was also about making sure I was receptive.

Let's Pray

Dear Lord, help me to hear Your voice when You speak. If there are walls that I have erected that are blocking me from hearing You, please show me what they are so that I can tear them down. Fill me afresh with the Holy Spirit today. Charge my spiritual battery! Thank You for giving me two ears and only one mouth, and teach me to use each one appropriately.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen.

Now It's Your Turn

I love this quote: "If you're talking, you're not learning anything." - Lolita B. West (Former elementary school teacher)

Journal about a time when you felt like you could not hear God's voice. What was this experience like? How did it make you feel not to be able to hear the Shepherd's voice leading you? Did you feel scared, anxious, or frustrated?

I challenge you to take a few minutes to be still before the Lord today. That's right. Do not talk. Do not move a muscle (but don't fall asleep!). Simply get still and quiet at His feet. Many times our biggest struggle is that we are so busy talking to Him that we aren't learning anything from Him. Just like a disruptive child in a classroom, when we do all the talking, the Teacher cannot teach us or anyone else!

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Shirley Goodnest and Marcy

from UpWords with Max Lucado
Week of August 14

God Never Sends You Out Alone
by Max Lucado

When you place your faith in Christ, Christ places his Spirit before, behind, and within you. Not a strange spirit, but the same Spirit: the parakletos. Everything Jesus did for his followers, his Spirit does for you. Jesus taught; the Spirit teaches. Jesus healed; the Spirit heals. Jesus comforted; his Spirit comforts. As Jesus sends you into new seasons, he sends his counselor to go with you.

God treats you the way one mother treated her young son, Timmy. She didn't like the thought of Timmy walking to his first-grade class unaccompanied. But he was too grown-up to be seen with his mother. "Besides," he explained, "I can walk with a friend." So she did her best to stay calm, quoting the Twenty-third Psalm to him every morning: "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life..."

One school day she came up with an idea. She asked a neighbor to follow Timmy to school in the mornings, staying at a distance, lest he notice her. The neighbor was happy to oblige. She took her toddler on morning walks anyway.

After several days Timmy's friend noticed the lady and the child.

"Do you know who that woman is who follows us to school?"

"Sure," Timmy answered. "That's Shirley Goodnest and her daughter Marcy."

"Who?"

"My mom reads about them every day in the Twenty-third Psalm. She says, 'Shirley Goodnest and Marcy shall follow me all the days of my life.' Guess I'll have to get used to them."

You will too. God never sends you out alone. Are you on the eve of change? Do you find yourself looking into a new chapter? Is the foliage of your world showing signs of a new season? Heaven's message for you is clear: when everything else changes, God presence never does. You journey in the company of the Holy Spirit, who "will teach you and will remind you of everything I have told you" (John 14:26 NLT).

Personnel

from Arcamax

The personnel office received an email requesting a listing of the department staff broken down by age and sex. The personnel office sent this reply...

"Attached is a list of our staff. We currently have no one broken down by age or sex. However, we have a few alcoholics."

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Marketing Strategems...

Advertising Terms Explained from Arcamax

NEW - Different color from previous design.

ALL NEW - Parts are not interchangeable with previous design.

EXCLUSIVE - Imported product.

UNMATCHED - Almost as good as the competition.

FOOLPROOF OPERATION - No provision for adjustments.

ADVANCED DESIGN - The advertising agency doesn't understand it.

IT'S HERE AT LAST - Rush job. Nobody knew it was coming.

FIELD TESTED - Manufacturer lacks test equipment.

HIGH ACCURACY - Unit on which all parts fit.

FUTURISTIC - No other reason why it looks the way it does.

REDESIGNED - Previous flaws fixed - we hope.

DIRECT SALES ONLY - Factory had a big argument with distributor.

YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT - We finally got one to work.

BREAKTHROUGH - We finally figured out a use for it.

MAINTENANCE FREE - Impossible to fix.

MEETS ALL STANDARDS - Ours, not yours.

SOLID-STATE - Heavy as anything!

HIGH RELIABILITY - We made it work long enough to ship it

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Perspective determines your Attitude

August 11, 2009
The Worker
Mary Southerland

Today's Truth
Colossians 3: 23 "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."

Friend To Friend
A woman was at work when the baby sitter called to tell her that her daughter was very sick. The woman quickly left work and she stopped by the pharmacy on her way home. When she came out of the pharmacy, the now frantic woman discovered that she had locked her keys in the car. Grabbing her phone, she called home only to hear that her daughter was worse. Looking around for help, she spotted an old, rusty coat hanger lying on the ground. She picked it up but had no idea how to use it. By this time, the woman was in a panic so she bowed her head and prayed for help. An old rusty car pulled up and out came a dirty, greasy, bearded man wearing an old biker skull rag on his head. The woman was desperate so she decided to be thankful for answered prayer. The man took the hanger and in less than a minute opened the car. She hugged the man and through tears of relief said, "Thank you so much! You are a very nice man!" The man replied, "Lady, I am not a nice man. I have been in prison for car theft and just got out an hour ago." The woman hugged the man again and sobbed, "Thank you, God, for sending me a professional!"

We all want to be successful in our work. Your office may be downtown or just inside your front door. Your work clothes may be a Casper suit or jeans and t-shirt. You may be paid in cash or with crayon drawings and sticky kisses. None of these things makes us successful in the work place. Success in the work place is not determined by where we work...but by how we work.

The Worker's 23rd Psalm

The Lord is my boss, and I shall not want.

He gives me peace, when chaos is all around me.

He reminds me to pray, before I speak in anger.

He restores my sanity.

He guides my decisions that I might honor Him in all I do.

Even though I face absurd amounts of e-mail, system failures, copier jams, back-ordered supplies, unrealistic deadlines, staff shortages, budget cutbacks, red tape, downsizing, gossiping co-workers and whining customers,

I won't give up, for You are with me.

Your presence, peace and power will see me through.

You raise me up, even when the boss fails to promote me.

You claim me as your own, even when the company threatens to let me go.

Your loyalty and love are better than a bonus check.

Your retirement plan beats any 401K, and when it's all said and done,

I'll be working for you a whole lot longer!

(Author unknown)

God is Lord of all -- or He is not Lord at all! Yet, we often fail to yield certain parts of life to His control. The reality is that 95% surrender is still 5% short. God wants everything we are or ever hope to be. Making Him Lord is the only way He can fully accomplish His plan and purpose in our lives. And until He is Lord, we will never be contented.

The workplace is a common area of life where we find it easy to live out our own agendas. For some reason, we seem to think that once we sit down at our desk, report for duty or clock in, we enter a "No God Allowed" zone. How sad -- when He stands ready and waiting to not only equip and empower us to be the best employee we can be, but desires to pour out His blessings upon our work.

An even greater opportunity and blessing comes when God uses us in the workplace to share Him and His message of love and restoration with those who are seeking Him. God strategically places us on a chosen mission field called "job". A fellow employee needs to see a godly response to unfair criticism. A boss needs to witness the quiet, gracious spirit of submission -- even in the face of a difficult job change. A fully devoted follower may be the only person who reaches out and ministers to someone in need. Make no mistake, friend. Everyone on the job is watching to see if we are "the real deal". It may be the most important "sermon" they ever hear.

I challenge you to do your work "unto Him" and see what He does in and through a life committed to making Him Lord of all!

Salt and Mensa

Mensa is an organization whose members have an IQ of 140 or higher.

A few years ago, there was a Mensa convention in San Francisco, and several members lunched at a local cafe. While dining, they discovered that their saltshaker contained pepper and their pepper shaker was full of salt. How could they swap the contents of the bottles without spilling, and using only the implements at hand?

Clearly this was a job for Mensa! The group debated and presented ideas, and finally came up with a brilliant solution involving a napkin, a straw, and an empty saucer. They called the waitress over to dazzle her with their solution.

"Ma'am," they said, "we couldn't help but notice that the pepper shaker contains salt and the salt shaker..."

"Oh," the waitress interrupted. "Sorry about that." She unscrewed the caps of both bottles and switched them.