Creativity

Because of their courage, their lack of fear, they (creative people) are willing to make silly mistakes. The truly creative person is one who can think crazy; such a person knows full well that many of his great ideas will prove to be worthless.
The creative person is flexible - able to change as the situation changes, to break habits, to face indecision and changes in conditions without undue stress. They are not threatened by the unexpected as rigid, inflexible people are.

- Frank Goble

Not in a good way

The Emperor Nero was discussing finances with one of his administrators in the Amphitheatre in Rome.
"We aren't making much money from this building" said Nero. "Any idea why?"
"Yes," replied the administrator. "The lions are eating up all the prophets."

C S Lewis on Hymns

When I first became a Christian, about fourteen years ago, I thought that I could do it on my own, by retiring to my rooms and reading theology, and wouldn't go to the churches and Gospel Halls; . . . . I disliked very much their hymns which I considered to be fifth-rate poems set to sixth-rate music. But as I went on I saw the merit of it. I came up against different people of quite different outlooks and different education, and then gradually my conceit just began peeling off. I realized that the hymns (which were just sixth-rate music) were, nevertheless, being sung with devotion and benefit by an old saint in elastic-side boots in the opposite pew, and then you realize that you aren't fit to clean those boots. It gets you out of your solitary conceit. - C.S. Lewis

How to make a sermon come alive

Value

A well-known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill.
In the room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $20 bill?" Hands started going up. He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this."
He proceeded to crumple the dollar bill up. He then asked, "Who still wants it?" Still the hands were up in the air. "Well," he replied, "what if I do this?" And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe.
He picked it up, now all crumpled and dirty.
"Now who still wants it?" Still the hands went into the air. "My friends, you have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20. Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value in God's eyes. To Him, dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to Him.
Psalm 17:8 states that God will keep us, "as the apple of His eye."
THOUGHT: The worth of our lives comes not in what we do or who we are but by WHOSE WE ARE!

Life Balance

Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air .... work, family, health, friends and spirit .... and you're keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls -- family, health, friends and spirit -- are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged or even shattered. They will never be the same. You must understand that and strive for balance in your life.

A Thirst So Great...

I have never known a thirst like this – a longing to know and be known
A longing to understand and be understood.
Not just at a human level, but somewhere deep within me
There is a stirring that nothing seems to satisfy.
The routines of each day cover them over…
Eating, drinking, sleeping, working, driving…
They seem more to distract me from this urging to find my place, understand the reason for it all.
Everything seems so meaningless, like I am chasing the wind.
One task is completed, another begins, with so little sense of connection.
Connection!
Is that what this thirst is about? Finding connection with myself, with creation, with God?
Living water is what you promised, Lord, to all who trust in you…
give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty.

And God said ‘No’

I asked God to take away my pride,
And God said, "No." He said it was not for Him to take away,
But for me to give up.
I asked God to make my handicapped child whole,
and God said "No." He said her spirit is whole,
Her body is only temporary.
I asked God to grant me patience,
And God said "No." He said that patience is a byproduct of tribulation,
It isn't granted, it's earned.
I asked God to give me happiness,
And God said "No." He said He gives blessings,
Happiness is up to me.
I asked God to spare me pain,
And God said, "No." He said "Suffering draws you apart from worldly cares and brings you closer to Me."
I asked God to make my spirit grow
And God said, "No." He said I must grow on my own.
But he will prune me to make me fruitful.
I asked God to help me love others,
As much as He loves me,
And God said "Ah, finally, you have the idea."

By Claudia Miden Weisz

Our Deepest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.  Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.  It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous?  Actually, who are you not to be?  You are a child of God.  Your playing small doesn't serve the world.  There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We are born to make manifest the Glory of God that is within us.  It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone, and as we let our own light shine, we consciously give other people permission to do the same.  As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

- Nelson Mandela

Love... and Marriage

In a constructive marriage...the partners must regularly, routinely, and predictably, attend to each other and their relationship no matter how they feel. As has been mentioned, couples sooner or later always fall out of love, and it is at the moment when the mating instinct has run its course that the opportunity for genuine love begins.... - M Scott Peck, The Road Less Travelled

All I Really Need to Know I Learned From Noah's Ark:

1. Don't miss the boat.
2. Don't forget that we're all in the same boat.
3. Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the ark.
4. Stay fit. When you're 600 years old, someone might ask you to do something REALLY big.
5. Don't listen to critics, just get on with what has to be done.
6. Build your future on high ground.
7. For safety's sake, travel in pairs.
8. Two heads are better than one.
9. Speed isn't always an advantage; the snails were on board with the cheetahs.
10. When you're stressed, float awhile.
11. Remember that the ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic was built by professionals.
12. Remember that woodpeckers inside are a larger threat than the storm outside.
13. No matter the storm, when God is with you there's a rainbow waiting.

The Making of Fire - An Arabian Folk Tale

Once there was a man who discovered how to make fire.
This man, named Nour, travelled from one community to another teaching his discovery. Some received the knowledge gladly; others drove him away thinking he must be dangerous before they could learn how valuable fire could be; finally a tribe became so panic-stricken by the fire that they killed him, fearing that he was a demon.
Centuries passed, and a wise man and his disciples passing through the lands discovered that one tribe reserved the secret fire for their priests, who were warm and wealthy while the people froze; another tribe had forgotten the art but worshiped the instruments and the ashes; a third worshiped the image of Nour, who once made the fire, but had forgotten the secret; a fourth retained the story and the method in their legends but noone believed or tried it; a fifth used the fire to cook, to give warmth, and to manufacture all kinds of useful goods, even bronze and iron.
The disciples were amazed at the variety of rituals and said, "But all these procedures are in fact related to the making of fire, nothing else. We should reform these people." The teacher said, "Very well, then. We shall retrace our journey. By the end of it, those who survive will know the real problems in teaching people and how to suggest change."
So the teacher and the disciples attempted to teach as Nour had taught. They too were scorned, abused, driven away. At the end of their journey, the master said, "One must learn how to teach, for no one wants to be taught. First you must teach people that there is still something to be learned. Then you must teach them how to learn. Then you must wait until they are ready to learn. Then you will find that they learn what they imagine is to be learned, not what they really must learn. When you have learned all this, then you can devise a way to teach."

from David Augsburger, Pastoral Counseling Across Cultures

A Shot at Life

A tough old cowboy once counseled his grandson that if he wanted to live a long life, the secret was to sprinkle a little gunpowder on his oatmeal every morning.
The grandson did this faithfully and he lived to the age of 93. When he died, he left 14 children, 28 grandchildren, 35 great grandchildren and a fifteen foot hole in the wall of the crematorium.

Powerful Candy

A lady was taking two of her Grandsons on their very first train ride. A vendor came down the corridor selling Pop Rocks, something neither had ever seen before; she bought each one a bag. The first one eagerly tore open the bag and popped one into his mouth just as the train went into a tunnel. When the train emerged from the tunnel, he looked across to his brother and said: "I wouldn't eat that if I were you."
"Why not?" replied the curious brother.
"I took one bite and went blind for half a minute."

Valuing One Another

At one time Andrew Carnegie was the wealthiest man in America. He came to America from his native Scotland when he was a small boy, did a variety of odd jobs, and eventually ended up as the largest steel manufacturer in the United States. At one time he had forty-three millionaires working for him. In those days a millionaire was a rare person; conservatively speaking, a million dollars in his day would be equivalent to at least twenty million dollars today.
A reporter asked Carnegie how he had managed to hire forty- three millionaires. Carnegie responded that those men had not been millionaires when they started working for him but had become millionaires as a result.
The reporter's next question was, "How did you develop these men to become so valuable to you that you have paid them this much money?" Carnegie replied that men (people) are developed the same way gold is mined. When gold is mined, several tons of dirt must be moved to get an ounce of gold; but one doesn't go into the mine looking for dirt - one goes in looking for the gold.

All I Need to know about Life I Learned from Trees

It's important to have roots.
In today's complex world, it pays to branch out.
Don't pine away over old flames.
If you really believe in something, don't be afraid to go out on a limb.
Be flexible so you don't break when a harsh wind blows.
Sometimes you have to shed your old bark in order to grow.
If you want to maintain accurate records, keep a log.
To be politically correct, don't wear firs.
Grow where you're planted.
It's perfectly okay to be a late bloomer.
Avoid people who would like to cut you down.
Get all spruced up when you are meeting friends.
If the party gets boring, just leaf.
You can't hide your true colours as you approach the autumn of your life.
It's more important to be honest than poplar.

(author unknown)

Letting Go

To let go is not to care for, but to care about,
To let go is not fix, but to be supportive.
To let go is not to judge, but to allow another to be a human being.
To let go is not to be protective, it is to permit another to face reality.
To let go is not to deny but to accept.
To let go is not to adjust everything to my desires but to take each day as it comes and to cherish the moment.
To let go is not to regret the past but to grow and live for the future.
To let go is to fear less and love more.

Mergers

You might remember the failed merger between Yahoo and Netscape - Net'n'yahoo. It didn't work out because they were afraid they would have to relocate the headquarters - Intel Aviv. There is a new merger in the works involving Polygraph Records, Warner Brothers, and Arnotts. It will be called Poly-Warner-Cracker.

WHO DID IT?

This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody.
There was an important job to be done and Everybody was asked to do it. Everybody was sure Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that, because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.

Words with new meanings

The Washington Post has published the winning submissions to its yearly contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternate meanings for common words.
The winners are:
1. Coffee (n.) the person upon whom one coughs.
2. Flabbergasted (adj.) appalled over how much weight you have gained.
3. Abdicate (v.) to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.
4. Esplanade (v.) to attempt an explanation while drunk.
5. Willy-nilly (adj.) impotent.
6. Negligent (adj.) describes a condition in which you absent-mindedly answer the door in your nightgown.
7. Lymph (v.) to walk with a lisp.
8. Gargoyle (n.) olive-flavored mouthwash.
9. Flatulence (n.) emergency vehicle that picks you up after you are run over by a steamroller.
10. Balderdash (n.) a rapidly receding hairline.
11. Testicle (n.) a humorous question on an exam.
12. Rectitude (n.) the formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists.
13. Pokemon (n) a Rastafarian proctologist.
14. Oyster (n.)a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms.
15. Frisbeetarianism (n.) (back by popular demand): The belief that, when you die, your Soul flies up onto the roofand gets stuck there.
16. Circumvent (n.) an opening in the front of boxer shorts worn by Jewish men.
The Washington Post's Style Invitational once again asked readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition. Here are this year's winners:
1. Bozone (n.) The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.
2. Cashtration (n.) The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.
3. Giraffiti (n) Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.
4. Sarchasm (n) The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.
5. Inoculatte (v) To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.
6. Hipatitis (n) Terminal coolness.
7. Osteopornosis (n) A degenerate disease. (This one got extra credit.)
8. Karmageddon (n) It's like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it's like, a serious bummer.
9. Decafalon (n.) The grueling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good for you.
10. Glibido (v) All talk and no action.
11. Dopeler effect (n) The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.
12. Arachnoleptic fit (n.) The frantic dance performed just after you've accidentally walked through a spider web.
13. Beelzebug (n.) Satan in the form of a mosquito that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.
14. Caterpallor (n.) The color you turn after finding half a grub in the fruit you're eating.
And the pick of the literature:
Ignoranus (n): A person who's both stupid and an asshole

Attitude

The longer I live, the more I realise the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company...a church...a home. The remarkable thing is you have a choice every day regarding the attitude you will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is ten percent what happens to me and ninety percent how I react to it. And so it is with you. You are in charge of your attitude

- Charles R. Swindoll

Inner Strength

If you can start the day without caffeine or pep pills,
If you can be cheerful, ignoring aches and pains,
If you can resist complaining and boring people with your troubles,
If you can eat the same food everyday and be grateful for it,
If you can understand when loved ones are too busy to give you time,
If you can overlook when people take things out on you when,
through no fault of yours, something goes wrong,
If you can take criticism and blame without resentment,
If you can face the world without lies and deceit,
If you can conquer tension without medical help, If you can relax without liquor,
If you can sleep without the aid of drugs,
If you can do all these things,
Then you are probably the family dog.

The Wounded Healer

I have long appreciated the writings of Henri Nouwen. The Wounded Healer was perhaps the first of his I read. In a wounded world (at many levels), I find his thoughts compelling still.

Nobody escapes being wounded. We all are wounded people, whether physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually. The main question is not "How can we hide our wounds?" so we don't have to be embarrassed, but "How can we put our woundedness in the service of others?" When our wounds cease to be a source of shame, and become a source of healing, we have become wounded healers.
Jesus is God's wounded healer: through his wounds we are healed. Jesus' suffering and death brought joy and life. His humiliation brought glory; his rejection brought a community of love. As followers of Jesus we can also allow our wounds to bring healing to others.

Patient Living

A waiting person is a patient person. The word patience means the willingness to stay where we are and live out the situation to the full in the belief that something hidden there will manifest itself to us... Patient people dare to stay where they are. Patient living means to live actively in the present and wait there... nurturing the moment.

Henri Nouwen
in an article titled "A Spirituality of Waiting"

"Gestalt Prayer"

I do my thing and you do your thing
I am not in this world to live up to your expectations
And you are not in this world to live up to mine.
You are you, and I am I
And if by chance, we find each other, it's beautiful.
If not, it can't be helped.

by Frederick Perls (gestalt therapist)

!!!!!?

Study the Horse

With only two days to the running of the Melbourne Cup, I thought this a salient post..
Ancient wisdom says that when you discover you are riding a dead horse, the best strategy is to dismount. However in organisations we often try many other strategies, including the following:
1. Changing riders
2. Buying a stronger whip
3. Appointing a committee to study the horse
4. Arranging a visit to other sites to see how they ride dead horses
5. Increasing the standards for riding dead horses
6. Creating training sessions to improve riding skills
7. Comparing the state of dead horses in today's environment
8. Changing the requirements so that the horse no longer meets the standards of death
9. Hiring an outside consultant to show how dead horses can be ridden
10. Increasing funding to improve the horses performance
11. Declaring that no horse is too dead to beat.

When straight translation isn't enough

I wonder if you can work out what a more accurate paraphrase might have been...
Actual English Subtitles Used in Films from Hong Kong
* Who gave you the nerve to get killed here?
* I'll fire aimlessly if you don't come out!
* I will surround their house by myself.
* I am darn unsatisfied to be killed in this way.
* Fatty, you with your thick face have hurt my instep.
* Gun wounds again?
* A normal person wouldn't steal pituitaries.
* I'll burn you into a BBQ chicken.
* Take my advice, or I'll spank you a lot.
* You daring lousy guy.
* Beat him out of recognizable shape!
* I have been scared silly too much lately.
* The bullets inside are very hot. Why do I feel so cold?
* The Americans will not save you for Christmas.
* Both of you will die when the sun hits the bell.
* You always use violence. I should've ordered glutinous rice chicken.
* I got knife scars more than the number of your leg's hair!
* Beware! Your bones are going to be disconnected.

Old Age, I Decided, is a Gift

I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I sometime despair over my body ... the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt.
And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror, but I don't agonize over those things for long.
I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. As I've aged, I've become more kind to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend. I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to overeat, to be messy, to be extravagant. I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.
Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 a.m., and sleep until noon?
I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love... I will.
I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the bikini set.
They, too, will get old.
I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten . and I eventually remember the important things.
Sure, over the years my heart has been broken.
How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when a beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.
I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turn gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver. I can say "no", and mean it. I can say "yes", and mean it.
As you get older, it is easier to be positive.
You care less about what other people think.
I don't question myself anymore.
I've even earned the right to be wrong.
So, to answer your question, I like being old.
It has set me free.
I like the person I have become.
I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here,
I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day.

Author unknown!

The 12 Absolutely Unbreakable Laws Of Leadership

Not sure I agree with all of these... what do you think??

1. The law of integrity: Great business leadership is characterized by honesty, truthfulness and straight dealing with every person, under all circumstances.
2. The law of courage: The ability to make decisions and act boldly in the face of setbacks and adversity is the key to greatness in leadership.
3. The law of realism: Leaders deal with the world as it is, not as they wish it would be.
4. The law of power: Power gravitates to the person who can use it most effectively to get the desired results.
5. The Law of Ambition: Leaders have an intense desire to lead; they have a clear vision of a better future, which they are determined to realize.
6. The Law of Optimism: The true leader radiates the confidence that all difficulties can be overcome and all goals can be attained.
7. The Law of Empathy: Leaders are sensitive to and aware of the needs, feelings and motivations of their people.
8. The Law of Resilience: Leaders bounce back from the inevitable setbacks, disappointments and temporary failures experienced in the attainment of any worthwhile goal.
9. The Law of Independence: Leaders know who they are, what they believe in and they think for themselves.
10. The Law of Emotional Maturity: Leaders are calm, cool and controlled in the face of problems, difficulties and adversity.
11. The Law of Excellence: Leaders are committed to excellent performance of the business task and to continuous improvement.
12. The Law of Foresight: Leaders have the ability to predict and anticipate the future.

by Brian Tracy

Hard-Learned Lessons

The rules at a particular university were such that if the professor were not present in the classroom by 15 minutes past the hour, the class was considered a "walk" and the students were free to leave - with no penalties for missing a class. The rooms were equipped with the type wall clocks which "jumped" ahead each minute, in a very noticeable fashion. As it were, these clocks were also not of the most sophisticated construction. Some enterprising student discovered that if one were to hit the clock with chalkboard erasers, it would cause the clock to "jump" ahead 1 minute.
So, it became almost daily practice for these students to take target practice at the clock (as it would have it, this particular professor was not the most punctual, and the students considered him severely "absent-minded"). A few well aimed erasers, and lo, 15 minutes were passed, and class dismissed itself.
Well, when the day for the next exam rolled around, the professor strolled into the room, passed out the exams, and told them "You have 1 hour to complete the exam".
The professor then proceeded to collect the erasers from around the room, gleefully took aim at the clock. When he had successfully "jumped" the clock forward 1 hour, he declared that the exam was over and collected all the papers.
Life does teach some lessons the hard way.