“Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:21

Have you ever thought about exactly what is evil? Webster’s Dictionary says a few things that would spark our interest:
1. Morally reprehensible. In other words, they are guilty or blameworthy.
2. Sinful, Wicked
3. Arising from actual or imputed bad character or conduct ( a man of ~ reputation)
4. A archaic: Inferior
5. Causing discomfort or repulsion: OFFENSIVE (an~ odor)
6. Disagreeable (woke up late and in an ~ temper)
7. Causing harm : PERNICIOUS (the institution of slavery)
8. Marked by misfortune: UNLUCKY.
9. Lastly ~ the fact of suffering, misfortune and wrongdoing, a cosmic evil force, something that brings sorrow, distress or calamity.

We can be enslaved by evil in so many ways that are too numerous to list here in this writing, but we all have a choice to overcome evil with good. Have you ever thought about how to do this?
I personally believe there are three wise ways to overcome evil with good. The first way is to:

1. Begin to train your mind to think good.

In the last chapter of Philippians 4:6-9 we are told what to think upon. In the New Jerusalem Bible it says “Never worry about anything; but tell God all your desires of every kind in prayer and petition shot through with gratitude, and the peace of God which is beyond our understanding will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, let your minds be filled with everything that is true, everything that is honorable, everything that is upright and pure, everything that we love and admire with whatever is good and praiseworthy. St.Paul continues to say: Keep doing everything you learned from me and were told by me and have heard or seen me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.“

We worry in our minds about all of the “what if’s” and most of the time these things never come about. When we worry we invite doubt and unbelief into our life and reap the wages of unrest and lack of peace. Today we call it stress. Stress can bring on high blood pressure and that can bring on dis-ease. It isn’t God that brings these things around in our lives, it is our own seeds we’ve planted in our minds that we've allow to fertilize and grow and produce into fruit that is so unsettling.

St Paul goes further to instruct us to tell God about it. Tell him about our weaknesses and desires. Petition our prayers up coupled with gratitude. If we have gratitude and thanksgiving in our heart; God will always hear your prayers because he sees the sincerity and hears your cry. We have no reason not to believe in the promises of a loving God, all He asks is to communicate to Him from our hearts. If you are struggling in your mind thinking about things you shouldn’t be thinking about; we are told what to think about. If you cannot even think of one thing that is true, good or praiseworthy, then; you need to read about God’s great love for you in the book of John and then think and meditate about it afterward. Begin a new habit, a good habit; but it will take time. The more you retrain mind, the better you will feel about yourself inside. Ask God to help, there are some things that we need help with.
Something to remember is what happens in our minds when we look at something, for example; if you are trying to lose weight and you see a pizza. Then, we begin to think about wanting it. If we know we are going to see this on TV, turn it off; so we won’t think about the temptation, whatever your temptation. Everyone has them.
If you are having a pity party in your mind about how you messed up your life or made the wrong decision, have your party for about 15 minutes and then start to think about how it will all work for you, not against you. Can you really believe that all things work for the good to them that love the Lord and are called according to his purpose? Give it all to God and just let it go and trust in Him. We have a choice to think negative or positive thoughts. We have a positive God who cares for your best interests, but you have to believe that too.

2. Do Good. We always feel better about ourselves if we do something good for someone else. The world says you are number one, take care of yourself first; because if you don’t, no one else is going to do it. And, there is some truth to that. We have to keep ourselves healthy by eating, drinking and exercising right. What good would we be to those we love, if we just let ourselves go? But aren’t you glad that Jesus didn’t put his self first? What if he would have backed away from the cross and said no way and called those angels to help him? Instead, he put the wishes of his father over his own and obediently laid down his life for you and me, so we would have forgiveness from our sins. Giving is where it is at in our lives if you want to really feel good about yourself. Give yourself to your neighbor, feed the poor, volunteer, babysit for a single mother who never gets out, Give an encouraging good word and become an ear to someone who needs you to listen to their heart and most important do not judge when they open up to you. There are so many things you can “do good” at. Use your imagination. You will discover that every time you do good, you will feel good inside.

A spiritual cleaning seems to take place inside.

If you walk around the block to help keep off your weight, that is a good thing and you will feel good. If you resist that drink or second helping of food, you will feel good because you’ve done good. Make a small list in the mornings of the things you’d like to accomplish and check them off as you do them. Accomplishing good things will make you feel good inside. See how many good things you can do a day. Smile at others. Smiles are good.

My mother once worked in a nursing home and would come home and tell me about the patients in there. There was one particular woman who used to be a teacher but was now an invalid. She couldn’t move any part of her body, but she had the sweetest and kindest disposition for such a person who was suffering her life out until her end. Her gentle words ministered to my mother who would come home in total awe over her godly character and share them to me. She chose to do good right up to the end and she could smile at the ones who came into her room.

3. Look Good. Even if you are overweight, there are certain things you can wear to help you feel slimmer that will give your moral a boost. Put on some makeup and make sure your nails are painted when you leave the house and stand up straight when you walk. Get a new hairstyle, one that makes you look younger and slimmer. You will develop a bounce in your step and be more cheerful because your confidence will go up a few knots. Looking your best no matter your age will give you a high rating and will help combat and overcome any depressive thoughts that you’ve fought against in the past.

We are all like fruit bearing trees, some of us aren’t ready to be picked yet. In the meantime, we strive to learn to become that perfect round apple or orange that we are meant to be. Others of us have become ripe, and are in the prime of our season, still learning and want to be the best fruit for others to enjoy. Then others have become over ripe and ready to fall to the ground because they have refused to be used or to use the knowledge that was given to them. It could be like someone giving you the key to freedom from evil (where all worms gather); but instead of accepting the key, you just sort of hang on to the branch while all the time rotting your life away.
What can you lose by trying to:
Think Good
Do Good
and
Look Good?
Little by little your life can change for the good!

Only a Mother Understands

Only a mother’s heart would understand how others feel when their grown sons of 18 years enlist in the military and then go off to fight an unjust war. Do you know what a mother sees during this time? She sees the baby that suckled at her breast in the middle of night and remembers him smiling at her when he was full. She sees him splashing in a bath, the one she nurtured, loved and sang songs with together. It doesn’t matter how old the children become, the emotions and feelings in her heart are quite alive and sometimes the world can see them on her sleeve because there isn’t anything quite so deep as a mother’s love.
Think about it. When a young girl finds herself without her husband and is forced to raise her sons alone, the whole process becomes more than an adrenalin rush, it becomes a calling; a holy ministry. She realizes that there isn’t anything in this life as precious as another life, a prized gift from God Himself. We then discover the power to mold this life into a powerful, confident individual filled with his love. Is there really anything so powerful or important? Not in a mother’s eyes.
My Pastor jokingly once said that mother’s believe that their son’s can walk on water. Well, he was right. He was right because mothers know their children’s weaknesses and strengths and have an unconditional love for them anyway. They automatically know that their strength will over power their weakness because their power is in God’s Spirit and they know the one who has the power to forgive our sins.
It has been said that the most powerful love on earth is the love of a mother bear that protects her cubs. She can smell you hiking miles away and if you get too close she will instruct her cubs to climb a tree while she wards off that “evil” smell that could cause them harm. A mother hen covers her chicks protectively under her wings and would give her life to protect them.
A mockingbird will dive bomb you or any animal that unknowingly gets too close to her nest.
A mother eagle will nurture their young and bring them fresh food every day as her young birds begin to sprout their silly looking down feathers, then when it is time for them to leave the nest the mother begins to make them uncomfortable by taking out the nesting’s feathers and the brush that it was built with. Then, all of a sudden one of the brave eaglets starts flapping his wings; flip flap, flip flap and begins to jump all around the area. He’s got stars in his eyes and a surge of ambition that was long ago bred inside of him. The other siblings watch him in wonder. He looks out into the broad heavens and sees all those mountains that he yearns to glide over and then, one early morning right before the sun breaks, he looks back at his mother and his siblings and leaps into space. He stretches his wings wide and soars ever so graceful, over those mountains, over the cliffs, over the rivers, the waterfalls and over the treetops of forests. Oh, the delight of it. He then tests his drive by tilting to the left a little and then to the right, he’s a young eagle and wonders if “he can really walk on water.” He discovers how to dive in a smooth rocket fashion that would barely break water, after a few clumsily attempts.
The mother eagle watching, knows he can “walk on water” and while being wrapped up in emotions she knows, this is his time. He has a mission and a purpose that was given before he was even born. The father eagle looks on admiringly and having a wing span of 72 to 85 inches himself, knows that his eaglet will rule over the earth by diving for fish, snatching rabbits in a split second, vermin and rats, court a female, help build a nest and keep predators away. He will be the king of the sky and his eyes will see it all and know everything that goes on in his territory and it is with this fact that the father knows that his son will be full of confidence as he fly’s towards the new horizons that are waiting for him to conquer. He carries an inheritance and the power of the Spirit with every flap towards the Son.

Gotta Vision?

Have you been thinking about what you’d like to do but that day is always “someday” or “maybe next year?” Don’t wait too long to follow your heart’s desire because it may not be here. I would like to encourage you that if it is a farm you’ve been thinking about and now you feel you are not as young as you used to be and wonder if you’d be able to do all of the exercise farm life requires. Do not fear. Of course you can do it! First of all exercise is where it is at, if you want to stay healthy. Yes, you will have the occasional sprain and pulls in your back and other places, but you do not have to lift, use a dolly and push those things around. Use crow bars instead of trying to pry up things with your arms and hands. Always find a tool to use because there are ways to do everything easier. Instead of bringing in all those bags at once, take the time to walk back and forth from your vehicle caring one at a time. Remember, anyway you can get more walking in is good for you, no matter your age.
Maybe you have a dream of traveling and never had the time or money. Why not just sell everything you have and go? We cannot take our homes or things with us when we pass over and if you have your heart set on seeing new things and have that adventurous heart, why not! Besides, if you get rid of a lot of your things now, it will be that much easier for your children when you do go to glory. If you refuse to give up the homestead, maybe you could aggressively begin to save up more money through garage sales, bake sales, baby sitting or pet sitting. You have heard the phrase “if someone wants it bad enough, they are going to get it.” Well that is true. If you think about something long enough, you are going to get it.
Maybe you want to go back to school. Excellent idea! Why not! We have to keep our brains alive and working; remember it is a muscle too. What would our brains look like if we went to a gym that made us work out with your brains? Fit brains or mushy brains. Today you can go back to school online and get your Doctorate in anything as long as you are willing to study your “brains” out.
Everyone has something that they want to do, now is the time to get going on that idea you’ve been stewing about for so long. Maybe it is a business idea. If so, do your homework and research it all out legally. Get everything in writing. Ask the pros to help you out. By this time next year, you could be a multi-millionaire and finance everyone’s trip abroad.
Want to help those less fortunate than you? There are so many organizations that are just waiting for your help. Again, do your research with a fine toothed comb and then, get to work.
The more you think about your dream, the closer your adventure comes to you and brought into reality. Then, you will see it all in the physical realm. Write it all down and take plenty of pictures along the way.

Friends

There are those who say that loneliness is simply a state of mind and I think that could be an important contributing factor. If we are not reaching out and meeting people, we will be lonely. If we are not people oriented, then you might have to push yourself to get out there and smile and make a few friends. No one is going to knock on our door or call you if they do not know that you exist, right? So, if you are finding yourself sitting home and having a pity party you will find that you are the only one coming to your party. Hey, we’ve all been there a few times, so you really aren’t alone. I personally do not like crowds and tend to be an enigma to those who do not know me, because I do not care for small talk or negativity and won’t stay around anyone who whines or talks about the weather for too long, unless it was about that tornado or hurricane that made everyone’s heart skip a few beats.
They say that if you can count a true friend on one finger, you’ve found a gem and that you will never need a counselor or therapy because a true friend won’t judge or reject you when you confide in your deepest secrets. She knows that she is loaded with them herself. A true friend is someone who will drop everything she is doing and be by your side through thick or thin. If you have done something wrong, she will take your side; accepting you in your wrong. She will listen to your whining and complaining until you have a cauliflower ear over the phone. She will give you unsolicited advice about whether your hair is attractive or if you are wearing too little or too much makeup and you will hear about the extra weight you put on because she wants you to be around for awhile longer, maybe she will just accept you just the way you are, because in truth; none of those things are really important in your friendship. Are these friend’s angels or devils? I think they are just what we need at the right time to help us pass through our journey. There is nothing like a good friend to come in and smash our own righteous self image from time to time and bring us back to reality and where we should be in the first place. That can be a humbling experience. More than ever, you don’t want to hurt your friend in anyway, but we do. We end up taking them for granted, thinking they will be around forever and that is a big mistake, because we might not be here tomorrow to tell them how important they really are to us.
Every woman needs another woman to talk to from time to time. Although you may be married and feel he’s your best buddy, you still need a crony who will cry with you and laugh hysterically over your yesterdays, today’s and we hope your tomorrows.

Friends

Friends
There are those who say that loneliness is simply a state of mind and I think that could be an important contributing factor. If we are not reaching out and meeting people, we will be lonely. If we are not people oriented, then you might have to push yourself to get out there and smile and make a few friends. No one is going to knock on our door or call you if they do not know that you exist, right? So, if you are finding yourself sitting home and having a pity party you will find that you are the only one coming to your party. Hey, we’ve all been there a few times, so you really aren’t alone. I personally do not like crowds and tend to be an enigma to those who do not know me, because I do not care for small talk or negativity and won’t stay around anyone who whines or talks about the weather for too long, unless it was about that tornado or hurricane that made everyone’s heart skip a few beats.
They say that if you can count a true friend on one finger, you’ve found a gem and that you will never need a counselor or therapy because a true friend won’t judge or reject you when you confide in your deepest secrets. She knows that she is loaded with them herself. A true friend is someone who will drop everything she is doing and be by your side through thick or thin. If you have done something wrong, she will take your side; accepting you in your wrong. She will listen to your whining and complaining until you have a cauliflower ear over the phone. She will give you unsolicited advice about whether your hair is attractive or if you are wearing too little or too much makeup and you will hear about the extra weight you put on because she wants you to be around for awhile longer, maybe she will just accept you just the way you are, because in truth; none of those things are really important in your friendship. Are these friend’s angels or devils? I think they are just what we need at the right time to help us pass through our journey. There is nothing like a good friend to come in and smash our own righteous self image from time to time and bring us back to reality and where we should be in the first place. That can be a humbling experience. More than ever, you don’t want to hurt your friend in anyway, but we do. We end up taking them for granted, thinking they will be around forever and that is a big mistake, because we might not be here tomorrow to tell them how important they really are to us.
Every woman needs another woman to talk to from time to time. Although you may be married and feel he’s your best buddy, you still need a crony who will cry with you and laugh hysterically over your yesterdays, today’s and we hope your tomorrows.

A Melody of Angels

A Melody of Angels
You know that area of sleep where you are still asleep but getting ready to wake up? They say this is the area where we get our brainstorms and if we can remember what we heard, we should be definitely writing them down.
Sometimes I hear heavenly songs. That is the only way I can describe it. What a wonderful way to begin a day, but to hear these lush words sing: “You have become the master of rainbows. You have become the guardian of rain.” The singing was incredible, so I certainly knew it wasn’t me, but I am sure I was humming it.
Since this morning I have thought about those words, especially the word become. Jesus learned obedience through suffering, like we do. That is in the book of Hebrews the 5th chapter.
He listened to the Holy Spirit while he walked the earth back then, this is how he heard God’s voice. He didn’t want to die upon that cross and prayed not his will but God’s will. So He followed it through for the great love of His father and us.
No I do not understand it all. Yes, I do have lots of questions. But I do know this, that there isn’t any greater love than when someone lays their life down for another person. Could you do that for those whom you haven’t even met, like Jesus did?

The 2010 Oil Leak that Kills Millions

The 2010 Oil Leak that Kills Millions
When doesn’t an oil leak kill, when it keeps pumping thousands of gallons a day into pure salt water? Those that are afraid of their beaches need to be concerned about the marine life that depends upon that water. Why can we take a man to the moon but not stop up a leak? Why do we deem controlling the world so important, yet not take care of our own doorsteps? Why are we are so belligerent, yet are so weak? What is wrong with this picture?
Millions of people are weeping over the 2010 oil spill into our beautiful gulf water where dolphins play and fish are abundant. Some weep for themselves in fear of their businesses, not caring about the innocent life that swims in the sea and had nothing to do with this atrocity.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/29/us/29spill.html
Is this a judgment by God or is it a unthinking slip of shoddiness from man’s greed? It doesn’t matter what it is, the important thing is to get the oil leak fixed as fast as possible from anyone and as of this writing it is pumping out many more thousands of gallons a day or more.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/24/us/24spillweb.html?src=me
So what can we working people do to fight against this? Remember one thing, when BP commences with bankruptcy it will come back as another name. Be wise, be informed and know!
Fight back! Fight against any drilling in the gulf ever again! It could be too late for our marine life to be saved, maybe in 15-20 years without the interference of man things could be turned back to normalcy. If you believe in miracles, God could intervene; He knows there has been an zillion amounts of prayers to Him.
But have we repented, in order to unleash His rescue?