Daily Inspiration

Trials

2010-02-16T19:46:00Z

What seem to us bitter trials are often blessings in disguise. Oscar Wilde.

Unity

2010-02-12T20:21:00Z

Unity is the one thing that helps bring about positive change. Are there problems you are facing - don't face them alone. Look for friends, make a call, together with others you can bring about change. Strive for change that promotes a better world for all and enriches your life at the same time.

Reality

2010-02-12T04:11:00Z

Reality is what we take to be true. What we take to be true is what we believe. Sometimes, we need to shape our reality to create the kind of world we would like to have. Based on being loving, kind, thoughtful and considerate. Each day, I hope you will spend some time thinking about what it is you have to be grateful in your life. Let hope come into where there is darkness and see the beauty of the world around you.

The new decade

2009-12-31T03:01:00Z

I hope that this new decade is the one you realize your highest and most magnificent vision of yourself..

I came that you may have and enjoy life and have it in abundance, until it overflows - John 10:10.

Follow the way of love - Corinthians 14:1.

If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to your mountain, "MOVE!" and it WILL move... and NOTHING will be impossible for YOU!- Matthew 17:20

For Abused Women

2009-12-29T22:41:00Z

I am not to blame for being beaten and abused. I am not the cause of another's violent behaviour. I do not like it or want it. I am an important human being. I am a worthwhile woman. I deserve to be treated with respect. I do have power over my own life. I can use my power to take good care of myself. I can decide what is best for me. I can make changes in my life if I want to. I am not alone. I can ask others to help me. I am worth working for and changing for. I deserve to make my own life safe and happy.

Rudolph - the true story

2009-12-29T06:22:00Z

The True Story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer A guy named Bob May, depressed and brokenhearted, stared out his drafty apartment window into the chilling December night. His 4-year-old daughter, Barbara, sat on his lap quietly sobbing. Bobs wife, Evelyn, was dying of cancer. Little Barbara couldn't understand why her mommy could never come home. Barbara looked up into her dads eyes and asked, "Why isn't Mommy just like everybody else's Mommy?" Bob's jaw tightened and his eyes welled with tears. Her question brought waves of grief, but also of anger. It had been the story of Bob's life. Life always had to be different for Bob. Being small when he was a kid, Bob was often bullied by other boys. He was too little at the time to compete in sports. He was often called names he'd rather not remember. From childhood, Bob was different and never seemed to fit in. Bob did complete college, married his loving wife and was grateful to get his job as a copywriter at Montgomery Ward during the Great Depression. Then he was blessed with his little girl. But it was all short-lived. Evelyn's bout with cancer stripped them of all their savings and now Bob and his daughter were forced to live in a two-room apartment in the Chicago slums. Evelyn died just days before Christmas in 1938. Bob struggled to give hope to his child, for whom he couldn't even afford to buy a Christmas gift. But if he couldn't buy a gift, he was determined a make one - a storybook! Bob had created an animal character in his own mind and told the animal's story to little Barbara to give her comfort and hope. Again and again Bob told the story, embellishing it more with each telling. Who was the character? What was the story all about? The story Bob May created was his own autobiography in fable form. The character he created was a misfit outcast like he was. The name of the character? A little reindeer named Rudolph, with a big shiny nose. Bob finished the book just in time to give it to his little girl on Christmas Day. But the story doesn't end there. The general manager of Montgomery Ward caught wind of the little storybook and offered Bob May a nominal fee to purchase the rights to print the book. Wards went on to print Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and distribute it to children visiting Santa Claus in their stores. By 1946 Wards had printed and distributed more than six million copies of Rudolph. That same year, a major publisher wanted to purchase the rights from Wards to print an updated version of the book. In an unprecedented gesture of kindness, the CEO of Wards returned all rights back to Bob May. The book became a best seller. Many toy and marketing deals followed and Bob May, now remarried with a growing family, became wealthy from the story he created to comfort his grieving daughter. But the story doesn't end there either. Bob's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, made a song adaptation to Rudolph. Though the song was turned down by such popular vocalists as Bing Crosby and Dinah Shore, it was recorded by the singing cowboy, Gene Autry. "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" was released in 1949 and became a phenomenal success, selling more records than any other Christmas song, with the exception of "White Christmas." The gift of love that Bob May created for his daughter so long ago kept on returning to bless him again and again. And Bob May learned the lesson, just like his dear friend Rudolph, that being different isn't so bad. In fact, being different can be a blessing!

Attaining goals

2009-11-18T19:38:00Z

"There are two ways of attaining an important end, force and perseverance; the silent power of the latter grows irresistible with time."

Anne Sophie Swetchine
1782-1857, Author

Words of faith

2009-11-17T01:19:00Z

Positive words of faith are important in prayer. Open your heart to God with thanks giving for all that you have and offer up your the desires of your heart. Sometimes the answer is no, or not now or not yet. Believe that God's love is there for you, whatever the answer might be. With loving thoughts, look for the beauty and gifts in you, in others, in life.

Just because you asked me to

2009-11-16T04:07:00Z

Great love songs touch our hearts and change our lives. They uplift and inspire us to belive in the eternal, the joy and the fun of being in love. Artists touch our lives in amazing ways. Take a listen to some love songs today that touch you and change your heart forever. Let them take you to that place where you can believe in the type of sweet love, that would move you, to acting out of love just because, the other half of you asked you to.

A Good Plan

2009-11-13T21:07:00Z

"A good plan is like a road map: it shows the final destination and usually the best way to get there."

H. Stanley Judd
Author

Phenomenal Woman

2009-11-10T20:45:00Z

Phenomenal Woman

by Maya Angelou

"Phenomenal Woman"
from AND STILL I RISE by Maya Angelou,
copyright © 1978 by Maya Angelou.
Used by permission of Random House, Inc.

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them,
They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed.
I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
The palm of my hand,
The need for my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

A single grateful thought

2009-11-08T22:13:00Z

A single grateful thought raised to heaven is the most perfect prayer. - Gotthold Lessing.

To the Person that fears being alone

2009-11-07T01:05:00Z

I let love cast out fear of being alone.
I love my life. I love the place that I call home. I love knowing that I am never alone, that God is always with me. I give love, and I feel surrounded and enfolded by the love of God.
I may be alone but I am never lonely. I think lovingly of my dear ones near and far. I pray with love for the people I feel close to and for the world. I feel a part of the great and wonderful family of God. Love makes me one with God and one with all God's children.

Taking things personally

2009-11-04T00:01:00Z

Women are repeatedly accused of taking things personally. I cannot see any other honest way of taking them. - Marya Mannes, b 1904.

Photo by jam343

Wisdom offerred by others

2009-10-26T15:52:00Z

You know your strengths and capabilities. You know your ability to hold on to an idea and make it work despite the odds. In the end believe in your own wisdom, first, and thank others for theirs. Wisdom offered by others may be absolutely right – but it doesn’t mean it’s right for you.