Showing posts with label {meme} sunday inspirations. Show all posts

Not long ago, I heard a story about a five–year–old boy who loved the piano. Any time he got the chance, he would sit down and fiddle around on the keys. He never had lessons or formal training because he was told that he was too small or too young to play the piano. But in spite of those comments, he continued to practice and practice the only song he knew how to play, "Chopsticks."

One day, the boy's father surprised him with tickets to go to the symphony and hear a world–renowned Italian pianist. This man was one of the greatest pianists that had ever lived. The night of the concert arrived and as they walked to their seats, the little boy saw the beautiful grand piano on stage behind the curtain.

When no one was looking, he snuck over and sat down on the piano bench and began to play his elementary version of chopsticks. About that time, the curtain began to rise and the audience was prepared to see the world–famous, master pianist. Instead, they saw the little boy hunched over the keys playing "Chopsticks." The boy was so caught up in his world that he didn't even know anyone was watching. When he suddenly realized what was happening, he was petrified.

Just as he was about to get up and run for his life, two big arms reached around him and placed two big hands on the piano keys. It was the master pianist. He whispered in the little boy's ear, "Keep playing." As the little boy continued to play his simple rendition of "Chopsticks", this world–renown pianist began to play a Beethoven Symphony piece scored in the same cadence and key. Under the direction of the master, the rest of the orchestra came in.

First, he brought in the woodwinds, then the brass, then the percussion. The boy's father sat there with tears coming down his cheeks. He couldn't believe what he was experiencing. He never dreamed that simple tune he heard in his living room each day would become a beautifully orchestrated Beethoven symphony.

What was the difference? The master stepped in.

Sometimes in life, you may not feel like you have the talent, the wisdom, or the "know how." People may not see your desire or ability, but the good news is: God does. When you use what you have, the Master will step in. He'll put His hands on top of your hands. He'll take what you think is average–average gifts, average talent, average ability–and He'll turn your life into a masterpiece.

For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago (Ephesians 2:10, NLT.)

Source: Joel Osteen Ministries



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Ever try to explain to God to someone? I know that sometimes putting Him into words can be a difficult undertaking - because how do you explain Him? I often think that any attempt or the need to explain who God is, is a result of man having a god-complex. We can't explain, interpret, or predict God. All we can do is to have faith in His Word with the full recognition that HE IS who HE says HE IS. But, in knowing God - you certainly can describe what HE has done in your life and what HE IS like.

Perhaps after reading the list below, you will be able to add some of your own.

God is like...
BAYER ASPIRIN
He works miracles.

God is like...
a FORD
He's got a better idea.

God is like...
COKE
He's the real thing.

God is like...
HALLMARK CARDS
He cares enough to send His very best.

God is like...
TIDE
He gets the stains out that others leave behind.

God is like...
GENERAL ELECTRIC
He brings good things to life.

God is like...
SEARS
He has everything.

God is like...
ALKA-SELTZER
Try him, you’ll like Him.

God is like.
SCOTCH TAPE
You can’t see him, but you know He's there.

God is like...
DELTA
He's ready when you are.

God is like...
ALLSTATE
You're in good hands with Him.

God is like...
VO-5 HAIR SPRAY
He holds through all kinds of weather.

God is like...
DIAL SOAP
Aren't you glad you have Him? Don't you wish everybody did?

God is like...
the U.S. POST OFFICE
Neither rain, nor snow, nor will sleet nor ice keep Him from His appointed destination.

Sunday Inspirations, is the meme created in honor of my Mother for Mother's Day 2008 and is just one way to help get us through the week ahead, the trials we may face, and yes, to say Thank Ya and testify! I hope that you participate and share with us your Sunday Inspirations. Your weekly contribution may very well be the inspiration that someone else may need and has been looking for.




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Why don't they talk to me and share their inner-most secrets? They use to when they were younger? Now that they are older, they have their own lives to which I often attempt to pry in order to be a part. Seems, though, that no matter how much prying or gentle prodding I might do - their openness seems to close just at that very moment when I'm feeling a break through.

I look or think about them in wonderment sometimes, hoping and praying that I have given them all that they need to be successful and happy. I am amazed that when I look at them, I still see the babies whose diapers I changed, cheeks I squeezed, toes I counted, and coos I so loved to hear. And I worry about you each and every day no matter how old they get. I know they think they are grown - but, they will forever remain my babies and therefore, it is my prerogative to worry and even pry.

I sometimes long just to hear the words that I am special to you and that you love me. I sometimes long to hear you say "Mamma, lets just hang out today - just us". I wish I could see spend more time with them like we use to. Or just sit around and jaw-jerk. I miss those days...those times. But, I just need to let them know that I'm here, that I'll always be here.

I love them both as only a mother can.

Mamma, lets just hang out on Tuesday! We'll do lunch...do a little jaw-jerking... maybe see a movie or play a little. Just US! And, I'll even let you pry and prod ::smile::

Love, Bumma (aka SjP)

Sunday Inspirations, is the meme created in honor of my Mother for Mother's Day 2008 and is just one way to help get us through the week ahead, the trials we may face, and yes, to say Thank Ya and testify! I hope that you participate and share with us your Sunday Inspirations. Your weekly contribution may very well be the inspiration that someone else may need and has been looking for.



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We don't all think alike. We don't all view the world in the same manner. We don't all like the same things. Is that wrong? I, of course, think not. It is that diversity of thought - that diversity of who we are that gives us the foundation to become better. Diversity is not something to be feared; but rather embraced as we travel this road called life.

The following quotes and video pretty much say it all.

"It were not best that we should all think alike;it is difference of opinion that makes horse races." Mark Twain

"We have become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams." Jimmy Carter

"Variety is the spice of life." Proverb

"Life lies in diversity, not in monotony." M.K. Soni, from LIFE IS LIKE A MULTIFACETED PRISM

"If we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity." John F. Kennedy

"Diversity is not about how we differ. Diversity is about embracing one another's uniqueness." Ola Joseph

"At bottom every man knows well enough that he is a unique being, only once on this earth; and by no extraordinary chance will such a marvelously picturesque piece of diversity in unity as he is, ever be put together a second time." Friedrich Nietzsche

"If we are to achieve a richer culture, rich in contrasting values, we must recognize the whole gamut of human potentialities, and so weave a less arbitrary social fabric, one in which each diverse human gift will find a fitting place." Margaret Mead

Source

Sunday Inspirations, is the meme created in honor of my Mother for Mother's Day 2008 and is just one way to help get us through the week ahead, the trials we may face, and yes, to say Thank Ya and testify! I hope that you participate and share with us your Sunday Inspirations. Your weekly contribution may very well be the inspiration that someone else may need and has been looking for.



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I remember how happy and excited I would be when I'd get a chance to spend a Saturday night at my cousins' house because that meant I'd be going to church with them on Sunday morning. I couldn't wait and wanted to make sure that we got there early because I never wanted to miss the old man who would always be sitting right under the pulpit get up and start singing. He'd sing something - never could really understand what he was singing - and then the congregation would come in singing something else I generally could not understand. All I knew was that I loved the sombre melody and reverence of the singers. It was certainly a departure from the Lutheran church I attended. We just didn't sing or worship like this there. And I must admit, I always wondered why.

It would be years before I learned that what I was listening to was termed "call and response" or Dr. Watts hymns, often taken directly from passages in the Bible and most commonly the Psalms. I understood the "call and response" but didn't understand why they were called Dr. Watts. Now, I know the answer.

Dr Isaac WATTS was an English minister who published several books: Hymns and Spiritual Songs, in 1707, “The Psalms of David” in 1717. The various Protestant denominations adopted his hymns, which were included in several hymnals, at that time.

Missionaries reported on the “ecstatic delight” slaves took in singing the psalms and hymns of Dr Watts.

In his book “The Religious Instruction of the Negroes in the United States” (1842), the White minister Charles Colock Jones recommended highly some hymns of Dr Watts (“When I Can read My Title Clear”, etc.). He wrote: “One great advantage in teaching them (slaves) good psalms and hymns, is that they are thereby induced to lay aside the extravagant and nonsensical chants, and catches and hallelujah songs of their own composing”.

However, in the early 1800s, Black ministers took seriously the admonition of Dr Isaac Watts: “Ministers are to cultivate gifts of preaching and prayer through study and diligence; they ought also to cultivate the capacity of composing spiritual songs and exercise it along with the other parts of the worship, preaching and prayer”. So, homiletic spirituals were created by preachers and taught to the congregation by them or by deacons.

During the post-Civil War period and later, some congregation conducted services without hymnbooks. A deacon (or precentor) set the pitch and reminded the words in half-singing half-chanting stentorian tones. The people called their songs “long-meter hymns (because the tempo was very low) or “Dr Watts”, even if they have not been written by this gentleman.

The particular feature of this kind of singing was its surging, melismatic melody, punctuated after each praise by the leader’s intoning of the next line of the hymn. The male voices doubled the female voices an octave below and with the thirds and the fifths occurring when individuals left the melody to sing in a more comfortable range. The quality of the singing was distinctive for its hard, full-throated and/or nasal tones with frequent exploitation of falsetto, growling, and moaning.

The beats of Dr Watt’s songs were slow, while there are other types of spirituals. These beats are usually classed in three groups: the “call and response chant”; the slow, sustained, long-phrase melody; and the syncopated, segmented melody; “Call and response”. For a “call and response chant”, the preacher (leader) sings one verse and the congregation (chorus) answers him with another verse.

In preparing this morning's Sunday Inspriations post, I learned something even more fascinating than the fact that Dr. Watts was real and that he was white. I invite Sojourners to listen to the YouTube video downloaded from SoulsSurvivor below. I am sure you will find it fascinating as well.

Sunday Inspirations, is the meme created in honor of my Mother for Mother's Day 2008 and is just one way to help get us through the week ahead, the trials we may face, and yes, to say Thank Ya and testify! I hope that you participate and share with us your Sunday Inspirations. Your weekly contribution may very well be the inspiration that someone else may need and has been looking for.



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and now old SjP ain't got nothin' more to say...
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Lately, I haven't had much time to sojourn the blogosphere on a daily basis. So, Saturday evenings are typically set aside for catching up on news and dropping comments. Last night was no different, but with the exception of the Old School Friday picks, the "news" seemed to weigh me down.

With every click, I found myself tiring with the such depressing and tragic news. The young African American woman murdered by an alleged cyberspace stalker/hater over at VP's and WAOD. The suicide and taser deaths at EV. The young woman who asked on nationwide television if being on the receiving end of a carnal pleasure should be put to the 90 day rule over at Native Son.

Taking a break to go pick up the "Social Butterfly" from work, I realized I was becoming quite depressed at the news I'd just read. I thought to myself - what's the use? Nothing is going to change. I wondered if this is what the world looked like before the destruction of the Sodom and Gomorrah or Rome. I kept thinking just how tired I was becoming.

Then, taking one final sojourn, I returned to U's spot and read a brilliant recounting of two near death incidents he'd encountered when he was young. In this post, he asks the question why he was spared. In my opinion, U's life was spared because God was not - is not through with him yet.

God is STILL in control - no matter how bad things are or even appear to be. And while the news can be, and often is, depressing and tragic - I can't get tired or weighed down with or by it. Much obliged U for reminding me of that.

Sunday Inspirations, is the meme created in honor of my Mother for Mother's Day 2008 and is just one way to help get us through the week ahead, the trials we may face, and yes, to say Thank Ya and testify! I hope that you participate and share with us your Sunday Inspirations. Your weekly contribution may very well be the inspiration that someone else may need and has been looking for.



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First and foremost, Happy Easter to you all. May the Lord bless and keep you this day as we honor, revere, and worship the Risen King!

Saturday I was able to get the two young-SjPs to engage in some real house-cleaning almost to my liking. Why they don't see the same dust I do is beyond me - but after a couple of finger-tests they got it right.

Anyway, you can't clean without music and the oldest young SjP had the box blaring. A great mixture of songs that even I enjoyed. A little Jennifer, Beyonce', and even a little of some groups I couldn't even begin to name. Then came the 'country'! Oh Lawd have mercy! Not Country!

I have to admit that I liked the song very much. I'd heard it before - but it took on a whole new meaning for me as I continue my challenge of "keeping a guard over my mouth". So, on this Easter Sunday Inspirations, I'm simply asking the Savior to "Take the Wheel".

Sunday Inspirations, is the meme created in honor of my Mother for Mother's Day 2008 and is just one way to help get us through the week ahead, the trials we may face, and yes, to say Thank Ya and testify! I hope that you participate and share with us your Sunday Inspirations. Your weekly contribution may very well be the inspiration that someone else may need and has been looking for.

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God is not through with me, yet. Yes, we're still talking - and I must admit that I'm doing a whole lot more listening and a lot less arguing. It's amazing just how quickly the fog clears when you let go and let God. So, needless to say, I'm feeling better - and its not as hard to keep my mouth shut as I thought - especially when you have the Gatekeeper Psalm as a screensaver (lol).

In addition to working on the mouth, we're dealing with the mind. Ya'll know that devil tries to get you any way he can; and if he can control your mind and your thoughts then he will be successful in controling your life. So, my lesson for this week is, as taught by Bishop T.D. Jakes is to Free My Mind.

Psalm 118: 17-29

I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD. The LORD hath chastened me sore: but he hath not given me over unto death. Open to me the gates of righteousness: I will go into them, and I will praise the LORD: This gate of the LORD, into which the righteous shall enter. I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation. The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner. This is the LORD's doing; it is marvellous in our eyes. This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Save now, I beseech thee, O LORD: O LORD, I beseech thee, send now prosperity. Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the LORD: we have blessed you out of the house of the LORD. God is the LORD, which hath shewed us light: bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar. Thou art my God, and I will praise thee: thou art my God, I will exalt thee. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.


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Yesterday, I wrote about the trials I've been going through at work. In the post, I pointed a finger toward others rather than acknowledging the fingers pointing back at myself. But, much obliged to my virtual spiritual advisor, Revy Rev, who would not allow wallow in the self-pity. He, along with StraightTalk, made me confess to myself that "It Ain't About Me".

A hard confession? Yes. A necessary confession? Absolutely! So, it should come as no surprise that me and God have been having a real heart to heart conversation these past 24 hours. And He has surely reading me and telling me about myself. Ain't nothing I can say to defend myself because He knows all and besides my arms are just way too short to box with Him.

Needless to say, that I am currently in a state of self-reproval. Looking inward instead of outward. Acknowledging my short-comings, my deficiencies, and yes even my pride. I know that when I allow me to take over and not Him that no good can come. That I can not do His Will or the work that He has planned for me.

So, I going to keep praying asking God to be the Gatekeeper at my Lips and Order My Steps because I know that the Battle is Not Mine, It's the Lords.

Psalm 141
A psalm of David. LORD, I call to you; come quickly to help me; listen to my plea when I call. Let my prayer be incense before you; my uplifted hands an evening sacrifice. Set a guard, LORD, before my mouth, a gatekeeper at my lips. Do not let my heart incline to evil, or yield to any sin. I will never feast upon the fine food of evildoers. Let the just strike me; that is kindness; let them rebuke me; that is oil for my head. All this I shall not refuse, but will pray despite these trials. When their leaders are cast over the cliff, all will learn that my prayers were heard. As when a farmer plows a field into broken clods, so their bones will be strewn at the mouth of Sheol. My eyes are upon you, O GOD, my Lord; in you I take refuge; do not strip me of life. Guard me from the trap they have set for me, from the snares of evildoers. Into their own nets let all the wicked fall, while I make good my own escape.

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Downloaded from ReachingRecords on YouTube
Would be Much Obliged if ya'll keep old SjP in your prayers...

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Greed is an excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves, especially with respect to material wealth. Considered one of the seven deadly sins, greed is caused by a view that exaggerates the positive aspects of an object; that is, acquiring material objects has less impact than we imagine on our feelings of happiness. And as we have all seen, the greed of a few can create devastation for the masses.

As seen in the three stories presented here today, the cost of greed always includes consequences and repercussions.

The Dog and the Shadow
A dog, crossing a bridge over a stream with a piece of flesh in his mouth, saw his own shadow in the water and took it for that of another Dog, with a piece of meat double his own in size. He immediately let go of his own, and fiercely attacked the other Dog to get his larger piece from him. He thus lost both: that which he grasped at in the water, because it was a shadow; and his own, because the stream swept it away.
Author Unknown, Source

SjP's moral to this story: Thou shalt not covet...it can cost you everything you have.

The Boy and the Nuts
A little boy once found a jar of nuts on the table.

"I would like some of these nuts," he thought. "I'm sure Mother will give them to me if she were here. I'll take a big handful." So he reached into the jar and grabbed as many as he could hold.

But when he tried to pull his hand out, he found the neck of the jar was too small. His hand was held fast, but he did not want to drop any of the nuts.

He tried again and again, but he couldn't get the whole handful out. At last he began to cry.
Just then his mother came into the room. "What's the matter?" she asked.

"I can't take this handful of nuts out of the jar," sobbed the boy.

"Well, don't be so greedy," his mother replied. "Just take two or three, and you'll have no trouble getting your hand out."

"How easy that was," said the boy as he left the table. "I might have thought of that myself."
Aesop, The Book of Virtues, Source

SjP's moral to this story: Taking more than your fair share may very well cost you your freedom.

The Little Fly
There was a fly buzzing around a barn one day when he happened on a pile of fresh cow manure. Due to the fact that it had been hours since his last meal, he flew down and began to eat. He ate and ate and ate.

Finally, he decided he had eaten enough and tried to fly away. He had eaten too much though, and could not get off the ground. As he looked around wondering what to do now, he spotted a pitchfork leaning up against the wall.

He climbed to the top of the handle and jumped off, thinking that once he got airborne, he would be able to take flight. Unfortunately he was wrong and dropped like a rock, splatting when he hit the floor. Dead.
Author Unknown, Source Unknown, Source

SjP's moral to this story: Not recognizing when enough is enough can kill you.

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Once upon a time there was a man who strayed from his own country into the world known as the Land of Fools. He soon saw a number of people flying in terror from a field where they had been trying to reap wheat. "There is a monster in that field," they told him. He looked, and saw that the "monster" was merely a watermelon.

He offered to kill the "monster" for them. When he had cut the melon from its stalk, he took a slice and began to eat it. The people became even more terrified of him than they had been of the melon. They drove him away with pitchforks, crying, "He will kill us next, unless we get rid of him."

It so happened that shortly afterward another man also strayed into the Land of Fools. But instead of offering to help the people with the "monster," he agreed with them that it must be dangerous, and by tiptoeing away from it with them he gained their confidence. He spent a long time with them in their homes until he could teach them, little by little, the basic facts which would enable them not only to lose their fear of melons, but eventually to cultivate melons themselves.Source

...one of those things that just kind of make you go "hmmmm"

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Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods. They were discussing their hopes and dreams when the first tree said, "Someday I hope to be a treasure chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and precious gems. I could be decorated with intricate carving and everyone would see the beauty."

Then the second tree said, "Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will take kings and queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the world. Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength of my hull."

Finally the third tree said, "I want to grow to be the tallest and straightest tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the hill and look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree of all time and people will always remember me."

After a few years of praying that their dreams would come true, a group of woodsmen came upon the trees. When one came to the first tree he said, "This looks like a strong tree, I think I should be able to sell the wood to a carpenter" ... and he began cutting it down. The tree was happy, because he knew that the carpenter would make him into a treasure chest.

At the second tree a woodsman said, "This looks like a strong tree, I should be able to sell it to the shipyard." The second tree was happy because he knew he was on his way to becoming a mighty ship.

When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was frightened because he knew that if they cut him down his dreams would not come true. One of the woodsmen said, "I don't need anything special from my tree so I'll take this one", and he cut it down.

When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into a feed box for animals. He was then placed in a barn and filled with hay. This was not at all what he had prayed for. The second tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His dreams of being a mighty ship and carrying kings had come to an end. The third tree was cut into large pieces and left alone in the dark. The years went by, and the trees forgot about their dreams.

Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and they placed the baby in the hay in the feed box that was made from the first tree. The man wished that he could have made a crib for the baby, but this manger would have to do. The tree could feel the importance of this event and knew that it had held the greatest treasure of all time. Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from the second tree. One of them was tired and went to sleep. While they were out on the water, a great storm arose and the tree didn't think it was strong enough to keep the men safe. The men woke the sleeping man, and he stood and said "Peace" and the storm stopped. At this time, the tree knew that it had carried the King of Kings in its boat.

Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried through the streets as the people mocked the man who was carrying it. When they came to a stop, the man was nailed to the tree and raised in the air to die at the top of a hill. When Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it was strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had been crucified on it.

The moral of this story is that when things don't seem to be going your way, always know that God has a plan for you. If you place your trust in Him, He will give you great gifts. Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they had imagined. We don't always know what God's plans are for us. We just know that His ways are not our ways, but His ways are always best.

Source

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SjP is giving God MUCH praise and honor this morning. With the economy in the pits and more and more people losing their jobs, I am so thankful that two of my family members have just had employment breaks. My cousin begins training tomorrow for a job he's been trying to get for over a year and my brother was just moved to interim director were he works. As the saying goes, "God is Good All the Time. And All the Time God is Good"!

This morning, I am giving thanks to God for always making a way out of no way. So, it is more than fitting that today's Sunday Inspiration presents 11 Scriptural Principals of Giving Thanks to God because doing so honors Him.

1. Giving thanks Honors Him. Why is it so important that we express gratitude to God? Because He deserves the glory.When we bring hearts of thanksgiving to the Lord, we glorify and magnify His name.We act in obedience by giving the credit and praise to the One who should receive it. He is the author of every good thing, and should receive every honor

2. Giving thanks to God refocuses our attention. Expressing gratitude to the Lord sets our sights on Him.What better way to bring our attention back to God than to think of the many blessings He has given us.What happens when we rise in the morning? We hurry and focus on the world.We should begin each day by setting our minds on eternal things, and realizing the many awesome things about Him prepares us for the day.

3. Giving thanks to God releases us from anxiety. We live in an age of anxiety and worry. In Philippians 4:6-7, Paul urges us not to give in to worry. Instead, we should bring God our requests with thanksgiving. Then, the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds. Giving thanks to God is the best way to be at peace in a time that has so much fear
and anxiety.

4. Giving thanks to God refreshes our relationship with Him. Bringing our gratitude to the Lord has a wonderful effect on our personal relationship with Him. As we declare His loving kindness in the morning and His faithfulness at night, our spirits are rejuvenated. We feel closer and closer to Him, because He draws near to us when we thank Him and praise Him.
You can’t reflect on His blessings and continue to feel downhearted.

5. Giving thanks to God reinforces our faith. The Israelites remembered the mighty works of God.They recalled how He crushed the Egyptians at the Red Sea, and how He fed them on manna in the wilderness.When they kept these memories alive, their faith grew stronger. When you remember the things God has done for you, your faith is reinforced.

6. Giving thanks to God causes our spirit to rejoice. What else happens through thanking God? We get more joy out of life. Counting blessings can only make your heart soar. Do you sing when you’re alone? It doesn’t matter how your voice sounds, but only how your heart feels. Give Him thanks and praise by singing songs that express gratitude and worship.

7. We give thanks by expressing it in words. Giving thanks to God is one of the greatest possible ways we could use our time.Thank Him in words, even if all you can think of at first to say is,“Thank you, God.” Then begin saying thank you for every single blessing and fact about God that you can recall.

8. We give thanks by singing. Another way to thank God is by singing.There is music all around us, from the birds and from the streams that make their own melodies.There is power in song, and God made that power so that we could use it to bring Him our thanks and our praise.There are so many kinds of music today, and we can use them to sing with hearts of joy about the wonderful things God has done for us.

9. We give thanks by living obediently. We can however, express our gratitude without ever saying or singing a word. Nothing pleases God more than an obedient life, because that says,“Lord, you have done so much for me, now I will live for You.” Sincere gratitude will come from an obedient heart, and will lead to obedient actions.We can devote our entire lives to thanksgiving by serving Him and following His will every day.

10. We give thanks through public worship. One of the reasons we gather for worship is to express our thanks to God. Most people attend church to receive something, whether it is teaching, fellowship, or just enjoying the choir. God’s primary purpose for fellowship, however, is that we might worship and express adoration and thanksgiving. As we hear the gospel, God is giving us something; when we sing, we are giving something back.

11. We give thanks by giving generously. Finally, we offer our thanksgiving by giving our resources back to God.We owe every breath and everything we own to our Lord and Creator. When we understand this, we give naturally from hearts filled with joy and thanksgiving. He would not spare His only Son, so how can we be anything but generous in returning our gifts to Him?

Source

Sunday Inspirations, is the meme created in honor of my Mother for Mother's Day 2008 and is just one way to help get us through the week ahead, the trials we may face, and yes, to say Thank Ya and testify! I hope that you participate and share with us your Sunday Inspirations. Your weekly contribution may very well be the inspiration that someone else may need and has been looking for.

Obliged to you for hearing me,
and now old SjP ain't got nothin' more to say...
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
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So many people are confused with the difference between Religion and Christianity. In this message, Pastor Jacque' explains and enlightens you about the difference of a learned process virsus living a life that is Christ like.

Sunday Inspirations, is the meme created in honor of my Mother for Mother's Day 2008 and is just one way to help get us through the week ahead, the trials we may face, and yes, to say Thank Ya and testify! I hope that you participate and share with us your Sunday Inspirations. Your weekly contribution may very well be the inspiration that someone else may need and has been looking for.

Obliged to you for hearing me,
and now old SjP ain't got nothin' more to say...
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
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Join the International Campaign to

Fight Against these Effigies of Racial Hatred!

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A Prayer For Strength During Times Of Hardship

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Good morning! And what a wonderful Sunday morning it is. Today is the day that the Lord has made and let us be glad and rejoice in it.

In celebration of the rich and colorful history of African-American women, I present to you, this Sunday Inspiration Sunday the written and spoken words of author Ty Gray-EL:

In all of God’s Creation there is nothing more alluring, more appealing, or attractive; nothing more beautiful, more charismatic, more charming or captive; nothing more delightful, more elegant, or exquisite; nothing more fascinating, more gorgeous, more inspiring, or intoxicating; nothing more magnificent or lovely than a Black Woman’s Smile.

Do you know how strong you have to be to make a black woman smile?
Do you have any idea what an accomplishment that is?
She has borne the weight of this country on her back for 400 years.
She has suffered the agony of unassisted, husband-less child rearing since the 1600s.
Have you any idea how much strength it takes to put a smile on her face?
You need the strength of Sampson, the nerve of Joshua and the courage of David facing Goliath.
Cause she has cultivated in her womb the marvel of the universe, only to have her hopes and dreams aborted and her aspirations show up dead on arrival.
She has given birth to kings and queens and delivered on her majestic promise only to have her children kidnapped and sold to a criminal with no respect for her royalty.
If you can make a black woman smile, you are a miracle worker.
Imagine breastfeeding your child in Virginia and having snatched from your arms, branded; hijacked to Louisiana and publicly fondled on a New Orleans auction block.
If the memory of that pain was locked-bound in your DNA, would you be smiling?If you breast-fed someone else’s child only to watch her grow old enough to call you Darky, Pickaninny and Nappy-headed Jigaboo, you wouldn’t be smiling either.
If you can make a black woman smile you have DONE something.
If you can make her smile you are stronger than Atlas, cause God knows she has been.
She’s been raped and ravaged and scorned… and nearly annihilated.
She’s been pimped and pummeled and stoned… and deliberately depreciated.
She has cooked and cleaned and sewn… and never been compensated.
She’s been forced to watch the offspring of her loins mangled and maligned across centuries.
Her character has been continuously smeared, assassinated over and over and over; again and again and again.
You ever thought about how strong you have to be, just to BE a black woman?
She’s had to make brick without straw after being… stripped of all her customs, stripped of all her culture, stripped of all her traditions.
No other woman in the history of the civilized world has gone what she has gone through.
No other beings on the planet have endured what she has endured.
She’s been chastised, criticized, demonized and terrorized.
She’s had to stand when her man was bull-whipped for trying to stand.
She’s had to stand when her man was castrated for trying to stand.
She’s had to stand when her man was hung by his neck for trying to stand.
She’s had to carry her man, cause every time he tried to carry himself, he was murdered for trying to do so.
Ask Betty Shabazz about Malcolm; ask Corretta Scott King about Martin; ask Emmett Till’s mother.
If you can make a black woman smile you have achieved something.
Since 1619 when we (sic) came in chains, the entire world’s been messing wit her brain, disrespecting her, calling her out of her name, and she’s tired…just plan Fanny Lou Hamer, tired...
Tired of being called B-words, and H-words and N-words and other-words and everything except the child of God that she is.
But...the one thing in this world that will make a black woman smile…is her man…
A real man!
If you’re doing what you’re supposed to do…she will smile…she will smile regularly and gladly.
So… Man up my brother…
Man up and make your woman smile.
Treat her like the Queen that she is…
She deserves it…
And recognize this…

Poem by Ty Gray-EL, copyright © 2007




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The post below this one by the same title, provides the impetus for today's Sunday Inspiration. Sometimes when we are at our darkest hour, we must believe that God will always there for us. He will make a way out of no way. He will be there...we just - we must - believe that He will. The darkest hour is just before dawn, but JOY ALWAYS COMES IN THE MORNING!

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