WHERE WILL I FIND HELP?

In the most part of life and living, one goes through the deep valleys of trials and strife. We each get that ... our share which comes to us in different shapes, forms, intensity, degree or measure. And we respond to it just as diverse as those experiences. But when everything we do or try to do to ease the weight of the burden bearing down on our frail human shoulders does not work or does not seem to solve it ..... we frantically search elsewhere for that much desired help.

Some of us, if not most of us, look to God for help. We look up to the heavens in our weakness, helplessness, or desperation ... surrendering our burdens to Him. Sadly we seem to have made Him a God-of-last-resort. (But that would take another post; next time).

Have found this wonderful version of PSALM 121 from the Illustrated Family Bible Stories (WS Pacific Publications, Inc.) brought home by my youngest daughter one evening. I am no strict bible reader but I do have my favorite stories or verses in it which I take to heart for comfort, peace, consolation and inspiration. Or simply to get acquainted with God more, better and best.

This is PSALM 121 .....

WHERE WILL I FIND HELP?

I look up at the hills,
and wonder where I will find help.
My help comes from you, Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

You will not let me stumble,
you will not doze off while you shelter me;
you watch over Israel
and never doze off or fall asleep.

The Lord watches over you,
he is right there at your side giving you shade
so that the sun won't burn you during the day,
nor the moon harm you at night.

The Lord will save you from all trouble,
he will guard your whole life;
the Lord will watch over you as you go about all your business,
now and always..
(Unquote)

God is our help in all times. But we sometimes forget that, we forget that we are in the able hands of a Magnificent God. And this is what I'm trying to say. Believe....  with much faith, or a bit of faith, or none at all ... but learn to believe and have faith though it be the size of a mustard seed. Fact is, that is all that God needs to work the miracles you want to see in your life. It's just a heartbeat of belief and faith away.

Blessings to you all ... in more ways than one from the hands of a loving GOD.

OUR RESPONSES TO THE DAY DEFINES IT

Everyday comes to us with a story of its own. That's what mom would always say. The day has enough to provide us with surprises, love, anger, fear, anxiety, stress, loneliness, and other things contained in the emotional spectrum of life and living. God was right when he said that the day is sufficient in its own. It's packed with its required share (as Divinely orchestrated -- you gotta believe that) or allotment of joys, sorrows, problems, or challenges.... sufficient to engage our minds, hearts, and bodies. It's made so that we get the right measure or burden to carry on our frail human shoulders. No less, no more. Just right for the right amount of learning we are expected to gain.

Now we are to rethink our own responses to that. What are we going to do with it? Yup those things are not put there while we simply coast casually down life's journey day by day. We should or must take our day by day seriously, attend to what's on our plate whatever it may be in big or small measure which was laid out for us (again by Someone up there) when we get up mornings. We must learn what is there to learn ('twas guaranteed that we would never run out of lessons)... cry when we should (there's always a soft side inside somewhere)... even be mad at things that deserve righteous anger (oh yes, there is such a thing)... love and care when such is the order of the day (just care for something - someone)... be silly and funny when the opportunity presents itself (make that a mainstay on the day's menu)... and other situations more that fill up a day.

Be true to ourselves... that's the whole point of each day's story. It gives us all the tools for a story... we decide how we honestly want it to unfold and how it's going to end. We define our day by how we respond to it.
 
Someone once said that 'Yesterday's gone... tomorrow's still a dream.' ..... That being the case then all that we have is today --- live it! Make God smile everyday.

Blessings to you and your loved ones!

'DON'T QUIT - KEEP ON PLAYING'

I got this in my mail today. Oh yes, from my usual email friend consistent as ever ..... to quote ---

"They tell the following story about the famous Polish pianist Paderewski. A mother had a little boy who was learning to play the piano. In order to encourage him she took him to a concert by the famous Paderewski. Both of them arrived at the music hall a bit early and soon the mother got into a conversation with one of her lady friends. Meanwhile, the little boy wandered off....When it was eight o'clock, the spotlights came on and the stage curtain opened. And there was that little boy seated at the piano innocently playing that children's song, "Twinkle, twinkle, little star."

Paderewski came on stage and quickly moved over to the piano. "Don't quit. Just keep on playing," he whispered to the little boy. Then he leaned over the boy and put his hands onto the keyboard right alongside the little boy's. The little boy kept repeating and repeating "Twinkle, twinkle, little star" and meanwhile the genius was weaving all kinds of new melodies around it, a different one each time. The crowd was thrilled by this unprepared concert.

As we play our little melody in our daily life, God whispers to us, "Don't quit, --Keep on playing..." And He makes a masterpiece out of our simple music!

Unquote.


That's what I've been trying to say all of this time...... 'Don't quit, keep on playing'. Keep playing the little melody of your life. It may be rough, flawed, imperfect, insignificantly small (that's what you've been saying to yourself), ordinary, simple, boring, mundane, spark-less, hopeless (?), out of step and out of tune to the beating of the universal drum. But it's still your music.... uniquely your own. Just keep on playing your music..... keep living your life as best as you can manage it..... and leave the rest to God. Because without any doubt he, as Paderewski did, will be playing alongside you and will turn the music of your life into a masterpiece.

You say that you believe in miracles. Well then, believe in yourself. You are the miracle. And God who is right there beside you continually works to guarantee that.

Here's today's dose of God's Divine Hug....... Blessings to you and yours.

MAKE THE DIFFERENCE WHERE YOU ARE

"I think the purpose of life is

to be useful, to be responsible, to be honorable, to be compassionate.
It is, after all, to matter:
--- to count, to stand for something,
to have made some difference that you lived at all."
(Leo C. Rosten, American Writer)

This is how life should be, how we should conduct ourselves in the business of living as best as we can. Because we can't simply coast along enjoying the view or enjoying our privileges (God-given lest we forget) which we actually do. But I think there should be something more added to that. You see, He gave us our free will and I think with it we can work our proper response to the gift of life.

It may or may not be something of a grand or grander scale although some of us could with whatever resources available to them. What I'm looking at is just where we are at. Right there where God has planted us. In the small measure we can manage or afford to do. There's much that can be done there, significant much. These things cropping up i.e. --- environment protection, global warming, planting trees, protecting endangered species, recycling, intelligent disposal of garbage, anti-bullying online and offline, anti-graft and corruption in government, anti-poverty, anti-crime, energy and water saving, etc. --- they matter. But by itself or by a small number of people alone this do not stand a chance of moving forward. This is where we come in and do our part. It's the greater and collective number that pushes -- projects.... programs.... issues.... concerns.... beliefs.... campaigns.... and drives the bad eggs off the charts. This greater and collective number is composed of unique individuals each in his or her own turf who care.

Nobody is insignificant; no effort least important. Neither do we need a stage or applause or eyes to see it ..... because just knowing that what we do is true, good, and right is its own reward. The test of character is when nobody is watching.

As it has been said for the ____th time -- "Let's be the change we want to see in the world". Let's do this for ourselves..... and for our children.... and for the generations coming after us.... and take it even further for Mother Earth, the country, and the world. For what we do today will define the kind of future that will come.

Give it a thought.
Blessings to you and your loved ones.

YOU DEFINE YOUR WORK AND LIFE BY YOUR ATTITUDE

Oh but my friend never misses a day in sending me nuggets of wisdom in my email. Well, he does me a great service because I love quotes. And if some of you would wonder just why he does painstakingly send me quotes? I'll tell you why.... it's his way of nudging me to write! Makulit! :-)

Here's what he sent me this morning.......

"If it falls your lot to be a street sweeper,
sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures,
like Shakespeare wrote poetry,
like Beethoven composed music;
sweep streets so well
that all the hosts of heaven and earth
will have to pause and say,
'Here lived a great street sweeper, who swept his job well'."

Martin Luther King ---

The attitude to work is more important than the work itself!

Unquote.

I like that. Makes sense, doesn't it? Giving our best in whatever job we have or do is just what is expected of us. Anything less than that is mediocrity and mediocrity has no place in the language of successful people. A job done with divided attention, unfocused, sloppy, slipshod, irresponsible, unprepared, poorly thought out, skin-deep, or uncaring attitude won't make the mark I can assure you. Whether we be a -- clerk, mailman, busboy, saleslady, taxi driver, carpenter, telephone man, or a street sweeper ... but also includes positions of high rank -- it's not the job but the person who works it that matters.

What is our attitude towards work and moving that to the bigger realm of life itself? I have learned that --- Your attitude is you.... and you define life for yourself. Nobody can or will do that for you. You either fail or succeed, make it or break it. Enjoy or feel miserable. That's all up to you.

Why settle for less? Success, whether in huge or small measure, is within our control. All it takes is in having the right attitude ---- the attitude of being the best with what or who we are. Besides remember our moms telling us that 'work is prayer' too? :-)

Hope everyone's having a grand time with summer. Hot maybe but good old Sol is simply most welcome when thoughts are bent on vacations, right? :-) Blessings!

EASTER GREETINGS TO EVERYONE

TO ALL MY FRIENDS AND VISITORS IN THE BLOG

(VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE).....


A HAPPY AND BLESSED EASTER
TO YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES.



THREE WORDS TO REMEMBER.....
GOD LOVES YOU!

Also this is a good time to thank you for visiting my blog whenever you can. It's appreciated and thank you for leaving me your wonderful comments, messages and for sharing your wisdom and insights too. And those who simply are passing through, blessings to you all.

WE GROW OLD BY DESERTING OUR IDEALS

Two women were walking past my window and obviously engaged in lively loud chatter. Am amazed really with these ladies how they can talk so loud that you can hear them a mile away. Gosh, you can't keep secrets with that voice! Anyway the lady (let's call her lady#1) suddenly broke the chatter which apparently seemed not to go anywhere and slowing down her steps enough that I was able to catch what she said in Tagalog: .... 'ang bilis ng panahon noh?!'/'how fast time flies'. To which lady#2 replied: .... 'oo nga. eto tumatanda na tayo'/'yes and here we are growing older'.

Growing older. I have heard that said a hundred times by friends and strangers alike. Don't we say that too in our own circles. It has become a cliche -- a convenient local expression of resignation to the passing of time and of life.

Well, some years back I thought I was smart using that cliche to my friends. It sounded smart, like I knew much about 'growing older' or its mysteries and that when you get to be called 'old', it also means that you are wise or wiser. Now I know that's not necessarily so. Oh yes. It's like what Mom would say ... 'not everybody who goes to universities are truly educated in that sense where it matters most.'

Life, my biggest teacher, showed me that -- and to quote Samuel Ulman............

"Nobody grows old merely by living a number of years.
We grow old by deserting our ideals.
Years may wrinkle the skin,
but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul."

Yup that quote packs in such wisdom for both young and old.
May God bless your years with the greatest joys of discovery and wonder.

May your Monday be so blessed to start the week with.

PERSEVERE TO THAT END OF A NEW BEGINNING

Oh he never misses! I meant my online friend who always sends me quotes with special instructions that I write. But I tell him that stuff like this are open to interpretations as whatever experiences a person comes up with in his own life journey. Because only when one can see himself in it does he eventually take it for his own. And thus ...do I write. Thanks for this quote, buddy!

"People do not always make breakthroughs because they refused to quit. Sometimes they make them because they know when to quit. When they realize that enough is enough, that old patterns aren't serving them, that it's time to repack their bags."
(Richard J. Leider)

That's a good one. But are we really willing to let of old patterns? Even if we see how they serve more to block us from moving forward with our lives. Some do, some don't, and some take a wee bit longer to decide. We all fall in one or two of those categories. We each have our reasons I believe.

To make sense of our lives at whatever point we find ourselves in, we must learn to sit back and see it for what it is. Objective may be a hard word to use in this, I think, because one can't truly be objective when things are happening to self. But as a friend once said ... 'that's the point when you just have to push yourself harder to step back and reevaluate'.

Well, each of us has his or her own way of going about this. We each as an individual would know what would work for us and not. But it's wisdom to know and understand that change won't happen unless we make room for it. If we need and desire a breakthrough in our life, we need to give it some space to happen. And we can only do that if we learn to let go of old patterns that serve us no more. Of what use is holding on if it no longer is the blessing it's supposed to be?

Change may be slow but given time will eventually take us there to where we individually want to belong. That place where wonderful blessings can and will happen and where our joy is complete. Persevere to that end of a new beginning.

May God bless us all with increased faith, courage, and strength.... and the wisdom to use it.

THE SOUL ON ITS KNEES -- IS A BLESSING

A good friend sent this quote to me in email this morning. I liked it and thought of bringing it here for you to see.

"Certain thoughts are prayers.
There are moments when whatever be the attitude of the body,
the soul is on its knees."
--- Victor Hugo

True, isn't it? Happens in our daily grind. Everyday is replete with its own challenges, both the ordinary and the unique. We try as best as we can to cope, handle, or address it in ways we have learned. But there are moments when even that doesn't work. It then becomes a burden that sits heavy and heavier on our shoulders, more so in our minds and hearts. We soon succumb to its weight pulling us down tired and weary carrying its load.

It is at this very point Victor Hugo aptly describes the magnificence of the soul. --- 'The soul is on its knees' --- Beautiful lines. Have you felt your soul down on its knees? You know what, sometimes we know and sometimes we don't. We often miss it when it happens because we have our eyes set and fixed on other things in our search for immediate relief. Human relief, human effort.

But honestly our help is right there when the soul begins to pray. It's sad that often we forget that a heavenly presence resides within us. But the soul knows this and prays. When it does, be still and know that you are in the presence of the Divine. Stay connected with your soul.

Blessings to you all!

CREATE SPACE FOR MOMENTS OF JOY

"Having more joy does not necessarily
require a life overhaul --
you may just need to create
more space in your life for moments of joy."
-- Debrena Jackson Gandy

"Create space for moments of joy." --- Now isn't that simply beautiful. Or maybe you have forgotten what that means. C'mon, let's admit it most of us do or really have forgotten. This is what we know about life...... or so it seems 

 Life is survival. Survival means honing our talents or skills to survive. It also means being goal-centered. That also means making sure that we get there and won't let anything or anyone stand in the way of our journey. In the process we tend to be protective of our space, territory, function, plans. That also means being discerning of the who or what or when in our lives. Because we know that in this journey we often find out that what we think as friends are truly enemies and that what enemies we tend to see turn out to be friends. There's stiff competition and rivalry. This pushes us to learn to package our self to merit the highest adulation, attachment, favors, opportunity, preference. We seek that figure who would stand as that essential benefactor of those graces. We have learned to understand that because life is tough we would be needing a lot of help.... any help.... to make the journey seem easy and the goal attainable with possibly less or the least of risks. We aim to win.

That's life in the world out there, in huge or small measure, in every person's little corner of the world. And that robs our life of joy. Not much we can do about it really; it is what it is, like it or not.

But I can't live with that. Oh sure been through it all. Maybe that's why I insist on turning up high the spark of inner joy. Because I know it is the one thing that can and will hold you up when all else come falling down. It's there inside of us, maybe hidden for such a long time and maybe we have indeed forgotten how to experience it. Well then, learn again. Create room for it in your life. You need not look far, start right where you are... with the little things which make your weary heart smile. Create the space wherein it can flourish and grow and expand. Don't stifle it. Let it shine through and out. And most of all..... know your God --- the genuine one true foundation of joy. Joy which fills up our existence with blessings way beyond measure. Pure joy which only He can give.

Blessings to you all!