There was a man that was known for the miracles he performed.
Millions came to see him, they came from wide and from far.
He gave sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, cured the lame, healed the sick, and raised the dead.
"But, what is more important" he said.
"To give sight to the blind, or to give wisdom instead?"
"What does it matter what a man can see, if he knows not the difference between wrong and right?
"What does it profit a man what he hears, if he hates many things in his life?"
"Is it so important to walk tall on two legs, if you are not known to be upright?"
"Where is the value in being free from disease, when your true illness is hidden just out of sight?"
The crowd screamed, "This is not why we came here, to philosophise!" "We are here for a miracle, so do one right here, right now, before our very eyes!"
The man's head sank, they had not understood.
The miracles they wanted could never fix them and never would.
With new ears they might hear, but they would never understand.
With new eyes they might see, but forever miss God's plan.
They wanted assurance, they wanted cheers and praise.
They wanted healing and flowery words, they wanted a parade.
But the man had not come to do great tricks,
He had come to tell the truth, not to heal the literally sick.
He stood before them and made his intensions clear.
Knowing his words would be lost on some, but that others would draw near.
"I have given SIGHT to those who could not SEE that there is more to life than what they live."
"I have given HEARING to those that could not HEAR the great truth that I give."
"I've healed the sick hearts of those who hate, worry, and fear."
"I've straightened the walk of those who were lost and made their conscience clear."
"I'm not a magician, a wizard, or your puppet fool.
I have come to tell you only the truth
Not to make you think that I am cool.
You are lost in a world filled with smoke and mirrors.
But if you take a look again and try to find the truth of these rumors.
You will see the only man that I have ever raised from the dead,
Is one who did not believe he was the child of God, but believed he was a mere mortal instead."
Jacob
(Click on Next Title for something to remember in times of trouble)
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
It Bears Repeating
Where would the flowers be, without the manure heaped on top of it?
Could a seed ever grow, if it wasn't first placed into a deep, dark, horrible hole?
Would the wine taste as wonderful, if the grapes had not been smashed, scrapped, and left to sit in what had been squeezed out of them to begin with?
Can a sunrise be as beautiful, if there was never a dark night to rise above?
If not for the suffering of the oyster, would there ever be an expensive pearl left behind?
Can passing a test ever be as precious, if first you have never failed?
Would laughter be as wonderful, if tears never came to your eyes?
Can their ever be victory, if there isn't something to overcome?
Can anyone truly start over, if they haven't lost a thing to begin with?
Like the flower you may not understand why it is that you have to put up with so much manure this world dumps on you. But the manure makes you all the more beautiful when you rise above it.
Like the seed you may feel like there will never be an escape from the dark place you are in. But the dirt keeps you grounded when you finally break through and reach for the sky.
Like the grape, you may be beat down, and pushed and pulled and left to stew in your own pain. But the longer you endure the more sweet and powerful you become.
Like the sun, you may wonder if it will ever be your time to shine. But without your dark days, why would anyone come to you to help light their way?
Like the oyster you may wonder if there is a point to your suffering at all. But when you give up your struggle and open your heart for the world to see, they will find a pearl of great wisdom left behind.
You may have failed, you may have cried, and you may have lost it all.
But without these experience would you ever appreciate what you have at all? And could you ever learn, that sometimes even the worst things that happen to us, are the very things that make us greatest of all.
Jacob
(Click on next title - Poem to encourage people suffering)
Could a seed ever grow, if it wasn't first placed into a deep, dark, horrible hole?
Would the wine taste as wonderful, if the grapes had not been smashed, scrapped, and left to sit in what had been squeezed out of them to begin with?
Can a sunrise be as beautiful, if there was never a dark night to rise above?
If not for the suffering of the oyster, would there ever be an expensive pearl left behind?
Can passing a test ever be as precious, if first you have never failed?
Would laughter be as wonderful, if tears never came to your eyes?
Can their ever be victory, if there isn't something to overcome?
Can anyone truly start over, if they haven't lost a thing to begin with?
Like the flower you may not understand why it is that you have to put up with so much manure this world dumps on you. But the manure makes you all the more beautiful when you rise above it.
Like the seed you may feel like there will never be an escape from the dark place you are in. But the dirt keeps you grounded when you finally break through and reach for the sky.
Like the grape, you may be beat down, and pushed and pulled and left to stew in your own pain. But the longer you endure the more sweet and powerful you become.
Like the sun, you may wonder if it will ever be your time to shine. But without your dark days, why would anyone come to you to help light their way?
Like the oyster you may wonder if there is a point to your suffering at all. But when you give up your struggle and open your heart for the world to see, they will find a pearl of great wisdom left behind.
You may have failed, you may have cried, and you may have lost it all.
But without these experience would you ever appreciate what you have at all? And could you ever learn, that sometimes even the worst things that happen to us, are the very things that make us greatest of all.
Jacob
(Click on next title - Poem to encourage people suffering)
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Breathe and Push
Change was taking place, something bright, something new.
A life was taking shape, but what is was, no one knew.
No one expected, no one prepared, just another day in another life.
Business as usual it seemed, until something wasn't right.
Sickness in the morning, a great hunger in the afternoon,
A change was taking place, that much, to her, unfortunately was true.
"What is going on with me? Why do I look and feel this way?"
"Life was better before this happened," that, she would always say.
"I'm tired, I'm angry, my feet and back hurt too."
"I can't sleep, I'm always moody and I don't know what to do."
"When will this nightmare end? Please God tell me, what did I ever do to you?"
"I'm not a bad person, so why should I suffer this way?"
"The only advice I seem to hear, is breathe and push when pain attacks my back and legs."
"I do not want this, I would rather die than live like this another day."
"Why should I push and prepare myself for anything that makes me feel this way?"
"I can't take it! I hate it! So one kill me, I mean it, the pain is too great!"
"Nothing is worth this torture I feel, this is all a big mistake!"
Then, in one breath, in one push, in one moment in time.
The pain was gone, the fight was over and then a babies cry.
"Oh my God, she's so beautiful," the mother said with grateful tears in her eyes.
She couldn't believe that after all that pain everything finally felt right.
Wrapped in a blanket, the baby slept as the Mother held her tight.
Her past forgotten, her anger gone, replaced by the joy and hope of having a new life.
We all go through difficult times. We all feel like our suffering will never end. We all wonder why it is we hurt the way we do. But when the pains of life come and you feel like you want to give up, just remember, you never know what may be waiting for you on the other side if you don't. So, hold on, take a breath, and push through. If you do this, you may just find that your present suffering is nothing compared to what God is about to reveal in you.
Jacob
A life was taking shape, but what is was, no one knew.
No one expected, no one prepared, just another day in another life.
Business as usual it seemed, until something wasn't right.
Sickness in the morning, a great hunger in the afternoon,
A change was taking place, that much, to her, unfortunately was true.
"What is going on with me? Why do I look and feel this way?"
"Life was better before this happened," that, she would always say.
"I'm tired, I'm angry, my feet and back hurt too."
"I can't sleep, I'm always moody and I don't know what to do."
"When will this nightmare end? Please God tell me, what did I ever do to you?"
"I'm not a bad person, so why should I suffer this way?"
"The only advice I seem to hear, is breathe and push when pain attacks my back and legs."
"I do not want this, I would rather die than live like this another day."
"Why should I push and prepare myself for anything that makes me feel this way?"
"I can't take it! I hate it! So one kill me, I mean it, the pain is too great!"
"Nothing is worth this torture I feel, this is all a big mistake!"
Then, in one breath, in one push, in one moment in time.
The pain was gone, the fight was over and then a babies cry.
"Oh my God, she's so beautiful," the mother said with grateful tears in her eyes.
She couldn't believe that after all that pain everything finally felt right.
Wrapped in a blanket, the baby slept as the Mother held her tight.
Her past forgotten, her anger gone, replaced by the joy and hope of having a new life.
We all go through difficult times. We all feel like our suffering will never end. We all wonder why it is we hurt the way we do. But when the pains of life come and you feel like you want to give up, just remember, you never know what may be waiting for you on the other side if you don't. So, hold on, take a breath, and push through. If you do this, you may just find that your present suffering is nothing compared to what God is about to reveal in you.
Jacob
Thursday, April 17, 2008
The Great Treasure and Uriah Shares
THE GREAT TREASURE
After three long years, the Wise Master came to his student to say.
"From the moment I met you, I wanted to show you a treasure so great, that even the difficult journey it takes to get there you'll appreciate."
The wide eyes of the student were glossy with excited, and joy filled, tears.
This is what he had been waiting to find for all those three years.
"How great a treasure?" the impetuous student asked without fear.
The old teacher laughed, "If you're ready to find it there is nothing as precious, there is nothing as profound, as treasures go it could be one of the greatest treasures around."
The student's smile grew on his face.
He followed his master always trying to pick up the pace.
The journey was hard. There were valleys to descend and mountains to climb.
There was great pain and heartache but this didn't make the student cry.
There was a point to his suffering, he knew his Master would not lie.
"What can it be?" the student asked with a twinkle in his eyes.
"Will it be gold? Will it be diamonds, rubies or a priceless pearl?
Will it be the fountain of youth, or a potion to cure the ills of the world?"
For two and a half days, these wonderful thoughts flooded the young man's mind.
Every step he took brought him closer to the great treasure he wanted to find.
On the third day, the Master stopped. "We're here," he said with a stern look on his face.
"Where is it? Where is it?" the student screamed. "Is it buried? Is this right place?"
The Master bent over and picked up a withered dandelion from the ground.
"Here," he said, "This is what I wanted to show you. Isn't it great what we've found?"
"THIS IS IT?" the ungrateful student stomped his feet. "You made me hike for three days with no food to eat. I was hurt, I was sore, I bled, I got no sleep. You made me go through all of that for a weed by your feet?"
"For three days, my student, you were happier than ever before.
You pressed on happily no matter what we endured.
Because every moment you were excited for what was in store...
I'm sorry now that you are at the end of your journey that you want the end to mean more."
"WAIT!" the student yelled happily. "I understand, I understand now!"
"The greatest thing there is to find, is not what you find but how."
"It is not the end of the journey that is valuable, it is the journey itself. The greatest treasure is living for the NOW"
J
www.JacobIsrael.org
"The Truth Will Change You"
"Of all the thoughts that can be... "A thinker thinking thoughts," is my favorite." Uriah 2007
"Preference so often ruins the moment to moment. Unless of course, that is your preference." Uriah 2007
"River flowing fast to reach the destination it is already at." Uriah 2007
After three long years, the Wise Master came to his student to say.
"From the moment I met you, I wanted to show you a treasure so great, that even the difficult journey it takes to get there you'll appreciate."
The wide eyes of the student were glossy with excited, and joy filled, tears.
This is what he had been waiting to find for all those three years.
"How great a treasure?" the impetuous student asked without fear.
The old teacher laughed, "If you're ready to find it there is nothing as precious, there is nothing as profound, as treasures go it could be one of the greatest treasures around."
The student's smile grew on his face.
He followed his master always trying to pick up the pace.
The journey was hard. There were valleys to descend and mountains to climb.
There was great pain and heartache but this didn't make the student cry.
There was a point to his suffering, he knew his Master would not lie.
"What can it be?" the student asked with a twinkle in his eyes.
"Will it be gold? Will it be diamonds, rubies or a priceless pearl?
Will it be the fountain of youth, or a potion to cure the ills of the world?"
For two and a half days, these wonderful thoughts flooded the young man's mind.
Every step he took brought him closer to the great treasure he wanted to find.
On the third day, the Master stopped. "We're here," he said with a stern look on his face.
"Where is it? Where is it?" the student screamed. "Is it buried? Is this right place?"
The Master bent over and picked up a withered dandelion from the ground.
"Here," he said, "This is what I wanted to show you. Isn't it great what we've found?"
"THIS IS IT?" the ungrateful student stomped his feet. "You made me hike for three days with no food to eat. I was hurt, I was sore, I bled, I got no sleep. You made me go through all of that for a weed by your feet?"
"For three days, my student, you were happier than ever before.
You pressed on happily no matter what we endured.
Because every moment you were excited for what was in store...
I'm sorry now that you are at the end of your journey that you want the end to mean more."
"WAIT!" the student yelled happily. "I understand, I understand now!"
"The greatest thing there is to find, is not what you find but how."
"It is not the end of the journey that is valuable, it is the journey itself. The greatest treasure is living for the NOW"
J
www.JacobIsrael.org
"The Truth Will Change You"
"Of all the thoughts that can be... "A thinker thinking thoughts," is my favorite." Uriah 2007
"Preference so often ruins the moment to moment. Unless of course, that is your preference." Uriah 2007
"River flowing fast to reach the destination it is already at." Uriah 2007
Monday, April 14, 2008
To Have and To Have Not
The Master left his mansion angrier than a hornet shook from it's hive.
The Servant smiled as he waved his Master Goodbye.
"I have, and you have not," the Master screamed to the servant tending his yard. "Why are you always smiling, when I know your life must be very hard?"
The servant turned and shook his head.
The Master got angrier and forced him to listen instead.
"I have a home, one hundred times the size of your shack.
I have cars, wealth, fashionable clothes and I give you just enough to keep you coming back."
The servant tried to hide the pitiful look in his eyes.
However, the Master saw this and it fueled his anger inside.
"I have the best physicians in the world, I have the most wonderful food to eat and I belong to many important clubs.
You don't have insurance, your food is scrap and you look at me as if I'm corrupt?"
The servant raised his gaze from the ground below.
As the Master continued to speak, the servants smile began to grow.
"I am a man of importance, one who travels and hunts...
I vacation where my heart desires and I do whatever I want...
But you, you are just the help, no one respects you and never will.
You're the one who cleans the dishes, not the one who pays the bill.
Your back is breaking, while mine is being rubbed.
Your hands are blistering, while mine are washed up.
What is so good about your life that I never see you cry,
Why is it you always smile, when I believe you should want to die?
The servant rolled his shoulders back as if he was going to speak.
He laid his rake to the ground and took off the boots from his feet.
"You may have a mansion, but I have a warm home.
You may have wealth, clothes and status, but I have a peace you will never know.
While you are fighting to have more, I have all I will ever need.
You see, I want nothing, but your belly hurts from the flames of your greed.
You say this is your grass, but I am the one that helps it grow.
You call this your land, but there are parts of it you don't even know.
I stock the fish for your pond, but you never watch one swim around.
I plant your flowers and you never smell them or pick them from the ground.
You're always worrying you will lose what you have, but I can never lose the amazing life I have found.
You tear down and I build up.
You are ungrateful, but I know the fullness of my cup.
You eat and drink more than you should, and because of it you pay the price,
You are overweight and sick, but I always feel all right.
You measure yourself against others, but I love who I am.
You can't see past your wallet, but I see a magnificent plan.
So, you want to know why it is a smile and I'm always so nice?
It's because I have found more than you have in this short wonderful life.
When I look back I see those things I have nourished and helped to grow. I see those I have served and all those I have been blessed to know.
What is it you see Master, when your life stares you in the face?
Is it those you've abused and taken advantage of? It must be a darker place.
You've taken without asking and never given, even to a few.
And now you want to know why it is I smile when you never do?
It is because I have something you don't and that much is very true.
And no matter what you think you have, until you change, I will always be greater than you.
We each have a part to play, but I understand the greater plot.
And to store up treasure in this world, it most surely is not.
It is to love and serve others and find joy and purpose in your lot.
When you do this, you will HAVE as I HAVE, but right now Master, you absolutely HAVE NOT!
The Servant smiled as he waved his Master Goodbye.
"I have, and you have not," the Master screamed to the servant tending his yard. "Why are you always smiling, when I know your life must be very hard?"
The servant turned and shook his head.
The Master got angrier and forced him to listen instead.
"I have a home, one hundred times the size of your shack.
I have cars, wealth, fashionable clothes and I give you just enough to keep you coming back."
The servant tried to hide the pitiful look in his eyes.
However, the Master saw this and it fueled his anger inside.
"I have the best physicians in the world, I have the most wonderful food to eat and I belong to many important clubs.
You don't have insurance, your food is scrap and you look at me as if I'm corrupt?"
The servant raised his gaze from the ground below.
As the Master continued to speak, the servants smile began to grow.
"I am a man of importance, one who travels and hunts...
I vacation where my heart desires and I do whatever I want...
But you, you are just the help, no one respects you and never will.
You're the one who cleans the dishes, not the one who pays the bill.
Your back is breaking, while mine is being rubbed.
Your hands are blistering, while mine are washed up.
What is so good about your life that I never see you cry,
Why is it you always smile, when I believe you should want to die?
The servant rolled his shoulders back as if he was going to speak.
He laid his rake to the ground and took off the boots from his feet.
"You may have a mansion, but I have a warm home.
You may have wealth, clothes and status, but I have a peace you will never know.
While you are fighting to have more, I have all I will ever need.
You see, I want nothing, but your belly hurts from the flames of your greed.
You say this is your grass, but I am the one that helps it grow.
You call this your land, but there are parts of it you don't even know.
I stock the fish for your pond, but you never watch one swim around.
I plant your flowers and you never smell them or pick them from the ground.
You're always worrying you will lose what you have, but I can never lose the amazing life I have found.
You tear down and I build up.
You are ungrateful, but I know the fullness of my cup.
You eat and drink more than you should, and because of it you pay the price,
You are overweight and sick, but I always feel all right.
You measure yourself against others, but I love who I am.
You can't see past your wallet, but I see a magnificent plan.
So, you want to know why it is a smile and I'm always so nice?
It's because I have found more than you have in this short wonderful life.
When I look back I see those things I have nourished and helped to grow. I see those I have served and all those I have been blessed to know.
What is it you see Master, when your life stares you in the face?
Is it those you've abused and taken advantage of? It must be a darker place.
You've taken without asking and never given, even to a few.
And now you want to know why it is I smile when you never do?
It is because I have something you don't and that much is very true.
And no matter what you think you have, until you change, I will always be greater than you.
We each have a part to play, but I understand the greater plot.
And to store up treasure in this world, it most surely is not.
It is to love and serve others and find joy and purpose in your lot.
When you do this, you will HAVE as I HAVE, but right now Master, you absolutely HAVE NOT!
Jacob
(Click on Next Title to find the treasure of who you are.)
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Like The Butterfly
The sun rose above the garden today,
The birds are singing and the children are at play.
I sit alone with a sad look on my face,
How I wish my life was different in this place.
I am the smallest of small and the slowest of slow,
I never get ahead and this everyone knows.
I have no friends, no family and no purpose it seems,
They point, they stare, and some even scream.
Oh how I wish someone could tell me what my life means.
I am not a worm, but I'm almost always on the ground.
I haven't traveled far, but I know there is more to this world than I have found.
Everyone is out to get me, and no one wants me around,
When I fall for once, I would love to have someone to pick me up from the ground.
Then I saw something to take me away from that sad place.
It was a butterfly floating with such beauty and grace.
Not a care in the world, not a worry in sight,
The color of it's wings, rubies, pearl and jade, seemed to dance in the light.
That could never be me, because with the Butterfly, everything in the world seemed right.
It was high and I was low,
It was beautiful and I, no one wanted to know.
What is the point of life if where the Butterfly went, I could never go?
Then it happened, in that very day.
I became tired, so in my bed did I lay.
My heart pounded and in my chest there was great pain,
"Could this be it?" I wondered, "Is this the end of my days?"
"It can't be!" I worried, "With my life, all I've done was complain."
Everything got quiet and all I could do was pray.
"If I can't be like the butterfly God, at least let me live to learn to love myself one more day."
I woke up in a prison of death, in a place tighter than any rope tied tight.
I could not move, I could not be heard, but I refused to give up without a fight.
I tossed and turned to reclaim what was once mine.
"My life matters!" I screamed, "I'm going to do it right this time!"
"I don't care how I look, I don't care what I do,
I know who I am on the inside, that much is true."
"I am kind, I am patient, I am friend to anyone in need.
I have nothing to lose and because of it I have no greed."
Please just give me the strength to succeed!"
Then it happened, I finally broke free.
But now, there was something very different about me.
I went to crawl but I began to fly,
I looked at the garden below me and all I could do was cry.
I never thought it was possible but who I wanted to be, I always was on the inside.
Who knew a lowly caterpillar would someday become a beautiful butterfly?
Jacob
(Click on Title below and read yesterday's post)
The birds are singing and the children are at play.
I sit alone with a sad look on my face,
How I wish my life was different in this place.
I am the smallest of small and the slowest of slow,
I never get ahead and this everyone knows.
I have no friends, no family and no purpose it seems,
They point, they stare, and some even scream.
Oh how I wish someone could tell me what my life means.
I am not a worm, but I'm almost always on the ground.
I haven't traveled far, but I know there is more to this world than I have found.
Everyone is out to get me, and no one wants me around,
When I fall for once, I would love to have someone to pick me up from the ground.
Then I saw something to take me away from that sad place.
It was a butterfly floating with such beauty and grace.
Not a care in the world, not a worry in sight,
The color of it's wings, rubies, pearl and jade, seemed to dance in the light.
That could never be me, because with the Butterfly, everything in the world seemed right.
It was high and I was low,
It was beautiful and I, no one wanted to know.
What is the point of life if where the Butterfly went, I could never go?
Then it happened, in that very day.
I became tired, so in my bed did I lay.
My heart pounded and in my chest there was great pain,
"Could this be it?" I wondered, "Is this the end of my days?"
"It can't be!" I worried, "With my life, all I've done was complain."
Everything got quiet and all I could do was pray.
"If I can't be like the butterfly God, at least let me live to learn to love myself one more day."
I woke up in a prison of death, in a place tighter than any rope tied tight.
I could not move, I could not be heard, but I refused to give up without a fight.
I tossed and turned to reclaim what was once mine.
"My life matters!" I screamed, "I'm going to do it right this time!"
"I don't care how I look, I don't care what I do,
I know who I am on the inside, that much is true."
"I am kind, I am patient, I am friend to anyone in need.
I have nothing to lose and because of it I have no greed."
Please just give me the strength to succeed!"
Then it happened, I finally broke free.
But now, there was something very different about me.
I went to crawl but I began to fly,
I looked at the garden below me and all I could do was cry.
I never thought it was possible but who I wanted to be, I always was on the inside.
Who knew a lowly caterpillar would someday become a beautiful butterfly?
Jacob
(Click on Title below and read yesterday's post)
Monday, April 7, 2008
The Greatest Treasure There Is
After three long years of teaching his brightest student, the Master comes to the young man's room...
"From the moment I laid my eyes upon you, there was something I wanted desperately to show you... When you see what it is I have waited three years for you to see, you will understand why I had to be sure you were ready to see it... There is nothing in this world that is as precious. There is nothing as important, as finding this hidden treasure for yourself. I can only lead you to it. But if you find what it is I have to show you, your life will never be the same," the Master said mysteriously and pointed the student to his back pack. "Now get ready, because today our journey begins."
With great enthusiasm the student packed his hiking bag. "The greatest treasure there is? Finally, I am going to find what I have been waiting my whole life to find," he said to himself with a smile that could not be hid.
The Master waited for him at the foot of a great mountain with a stern look on his face. "This journey will be hard. There will be ups and downs. There will be joy and great sorrow. There will be mountains to climb and valleys to descend. At times you will want to give up, but if you do, you will never find what it is I have to show you.
"I'm ready," the student says with a twinkle in his eyes. "What can it be?" he wondered as their journey began. "Will it be gold? Will it be diamonds, or rubies? Will it be the fountain of youth, or a potion to cure all ills?"
For two and a half days, these and many other wonderful thoughts flooded the young man's mind.
"I can't wait to see what it will be," the student declared with the same smile that inched toward his ears the day his journey began.
For two and a half days they climbed, they rested and ran. They endured the rain, the cold of night and the heat of the afternoon sun. But with every step the student took, he was hopeful. He knew, every step took him closer to his goal. Whether it was a sluggish step in the mud, or a soft step on the green grass, it was a step toward the greatest treasure there is.
On the third day, at the top of a large mountain, the Master suddenly stopped.
"Where is it? Where is it?" the student screamed and scanned every inch of the mountain top in a panic. "Is it buried? Is this right place? WHERE IS THIS TREASURE?"
The Master bent over and picked up a tiny pebble next to his feet. He held the small rock in his hand. He wiped the dirt covering it away. "Here," the Master said with a smile. "This is what I wanted to show you." He placed the pebble in the students hand and turned his back.
"THIS IS IT?" In anger the student stomped his feet. "You made me hike for three days with only the food we found along the way to eat. You made me hike for three days, with only the water that rained on our head to drink! I was hurt, I got no sleep, I fell, I bled... FOR A PEBBLE? ALL THAT FOR A WORTHLESS PIECE OF ROCK?" The Student threw the pebble as far as he could and tears filled his eyes for the first time in three days.
The Master turned to him with a pitiful look, "For three days you were happier than I have ever seen you. No matter what we endured, you pressed on happily. Every moment brought you joy, because you had hope there was a great point to what you were going through. You had faith... I'm sorry now that you are at the end of your journey that it is not everything you wanted it to be." The Master turned again and began to walk back home.
"WAIT!" the student screamed. "I understand now, I understand!" He jumped to his feet and danced around. "The greatest thing there is to find, is never found at the end of a journey. It is the journey itself that is great. It doesn't matter what is waiting for us at the end, what matters is how we get there to begin with."
The Master smiled, "You are a good student... Now carry an old man back home."
For those that question: The point of this parable is NOT to say, at the end of our lives we are left with a worthless pebble. Our lives are filled with many journeys and sometimes at their end we are disappointed... The point is, every moment of our life should be lived to the fullest. Our days can be filled with great hope and joy, if we have faith there is a point to it all. We may climb many mountains and cross many muddy fields, but we get where we are meant to go and if we're smart, we learn a thing or two... Focus on each moment and consider the possibilities of a life filled with faith. Live each day as if it were your last. Taste your food, stretch, breathe in fresh air, relax, kiss your wife or husband, hug your children and smell their hair, gaze at the stars, roll down a hill of grass and never forget to laugh.
Jacob - (Click on How We Grow)
"From the moment I laid my eyes upon you, there was something I wanted desperately to show you... When you see what it is I have waited three years for you to see, you will understand why I had to be sure you were ready to see it... There is nothing in this world that is as precious. There is nothing as important, as finding this hidden treasure for yourself. I can only lead you to it. But if you find what it is I have to show you, your life will never be the same," the Master said mysteriously and pointed the student to his back pack. "Now get ready, because today our journey begins."
With great enthusiasm the student packed his hiking bag. "The greatest treasure there is? Finally, I am going to find what I have been waiting my whole life to find," he said to himself with a smile that could not be hid.
The Master waited for him at the foot of a great mountain with a stern look on his face. "This journey will be hard. There will be ups and downs. There will be joy and great sorrow. There will be mountains to climb and valleys to descend. At times you will want to give up, but if you do, you will never find what it is I have to show you.
"I'm ready," the student says with a twinkle in his eyes. "What can it be?" he wondered as their journey began. "Will it be gold? Will it be diamonds, or rubies? Will it be the fountain of youth, or a potion to cure all ills?"
For two and a half days, these and many other wonderful thoughts flooded the young man's mind.
"I can't wait to see what it will be," the student declared with the same smile that inched toward his ears the day his journey began.
For two and a half days they climbed, they rested and ran. They endured the rain, the cold of night and the heat of the afternoon sun. But with every step the student took, he was hopeful. He knew, every step took him closer to his goal. Whether it was a sluggish step in the mud, or a soft step on the green grass, it was a step toward the greatest treasure there is.
On the third day, at the top of a large mountain, the Master suddenly stopped.
"Where is it? Where is it?" the student screamed and scanned every inch of the mountain top in a panic. "Is it buried? Is this right place? WHERE IS THIS TREASURE?"
The Master bent over and picked up a tiny pebble next to his feet. He held the small rock in his hand. He wiped the dirt covering it away. "Here," the Master said with a smile. "This is what I wanted to show you." He placed the pebble in the students hand and turned his back.
"THIS IS IT?" In anger the student stomped his feet. "You made me hike for three days with only the food we found along the way to eat. You made me hike for three days, with only the water that rained on our head to drink! I was hurt, I got no sleep, I fell, I bled... FOR A PEBBLE? ALL THAT FOR A WORTHLESS PIECE OF ROCK?" The Student threw the pebble as far as he could and tears filled his eyes for the first time in three days.
The Master turned to him with a pitiful look, "For three days you were happier than I have ever seen you. No matter what we endured, you pressed on happily. Every moment brought you joy, because you had hope there was a great point to what you were going through. You had faith... I'm sorry now that you are at the end of your journey that it is not everything you wanted it to be." The Master turned again and began to walk back home.
"WAIT!" the student screamed. "I understand now, I understand!" He jumped to his feet and danced around. "The greatest thing there is to find, is never found at the end of a journey. It is the journey itself that is great. It doesn't matter what is waiting for us at the end, what matters is how we get there to begin with."
The Master smiled, "You are a good student... Now carry an old man back home."
For those that question: The point of this parable is NOT to say, at the end of our lives we are left with a worthless pebble. Our lives are filled with many journeys and sometimes at their end we are disappointed... The point is, every moment of our life should be lived to the fullest. Our days can be filled with great hope and joy, if we have faith there is a point to it all. We may climb many mountains and cross many muddy fields, but we get where we are meant to go and if we're smart, we learn a thing or two... Focus on each moment and consider the possibilities of a life filled with faith. Live each day as if it were your last. Taste your food, stretch, breathe in fresh air, relax, kiss your wife or husband, hug your children and smell their hair, gaze at the stars, roll down a hill of grass and never forget to laugh.
Jacob - (Click on How We Grow)
Friday, April 4, 2008
The Power of Words
When you plant a seed into the ground. You can always expect that whatever you plant will take root and grow.
If you plant a tomato seed... you will not reap lettuce.
The same is true for the words we speak. Whatever we plant into the hearts of those around us, will be the very thing we can expect in return.
"You never listen! Why are you such a bad boy?" the mother yells and storms away.
Tears fill the six year old's eyes,"I am a bad boy," he says to himself allowing a frown to steal his smile away.
What ever predictions we make will most likely come true.
"You care about only yourself and you'll never be happy with me because you're selfish," the husband screams in the middle of yet another fight.
"I'll show you selfish," the wife fires back and storms out of her house to head for the bed of another man.
If you believe something about yourself and your circumstances, how can you, or your situation, ever be different than what you have decided them to be?
"I'll never get out of debt. Why do bad things always happen to me? My life sucks!" the young man cries and walks outside to find an eviction notice on his front door. "Figures!"
If you fill your cup with poison, how will you ever grow strong and get well?
"I'm never going to get healthy. I'm going be sick forever. What's the point of life if I'm always in pain?" the elderly woman declares.
Her nurse smiles sweetly and tilts her head, "Let's take a walk outside, it will do you some good."
"There's nothing that can help me," she yells pointing her nurse to the door.
Words are indeed like seeds planted in the ground. Our heart is the ground, the good, or bad, earth that when all words planted there, grow.
Whatever you nourish in your heart, whether it be the Weeds of Insecurity, Hate, Envy, Fear, Self loathing or the Flowers of Joy, Peace, Encouragement, or even the Trees of Love, Hope, Forgiveness and Compassion... these will be the plants that grow inside you and spring up around you.
We've been tricked into believing that by telling others of our hardship, we will be loved and cared for more. We've been blinded to believe, that if we curse others, it will make us feel better about ourselves.
The truth is, however, those who care for and encourage others are the ones that are loved and respected the most. Those who uplift and forgive, are the ones that truly feel better about themselves.
As a healthy tree produces good fruit, so an unhealthy and diseased tree produces that which makes others sick. Out of the heart can proceed every hate filled, arrogant, fearful, prideful, and terrible word. The cure is to have each and every one of these seeds/words/thoughts cast into the fire of love, so it can be destroyed and you can be set free. If we eat from the Tree of Life we will live but if we eat the words of death we will surely die.
Our words have power. Our words are like a sword that can kill or protect. Our words can be an elixir to the sick, or a poison to the healthy.
Our words can inspire change in the world, or hurl it into the pits of despair.
If you want peace, if you want success, if you want joy and love and to be content with all things in every situation, change!
Change your thoughts and your words to reflect your wants. Change your worry to hope. Change your fear to faith. Change your doubt to absolute certainty, and all will be well.
Change your words and change your life. Change your thoughts and change the world.
Jacob
(Click on next blog for those going through hard times.)
If you plant a tomato seed... you will not reap lettuce.
The same is true for the words we speak. Whatever we plant into the hearts of those around us, will be the very thing we can expect in return.
"You never listen! Why are you such a bad boy?" the mother yells and storms away.
Tears fill the six year old's eyes,"I am a bad boy," he says to himself allowing a frown to steal his smile away.
What ever predictions we make will most likely come true.
"You care about only yourself and you'll never be happy with me because you're selfish," the husband screams in the middle of yet another fight.
"I'll show you selfish," the wife fires back and storms out of her house to head for the bed of another man.
If you believe something about yourself and your circumstances, how can you, or your situation, ever be different than what you have decided them to be?
"I'll never get out of debt. Why do bad things always happen to me? My life sucks!" the young man cries and walks outside to find an eviction notice on his front door. "Figures!"
If you fill your cup with poison, how will you ever grow strong and get well?
"I'm never going to get healthy. I'm going be sick forever. What's the point of life if I'm always in pain?" the elderly woman declares.
Her nurse smiles sweetly and tilts her head, "Let's take a walk outside, it will do you some good."
"There's nothing that can help me," she yells pointing her nurse to the door.
Words are indeed like seeds planted in the ground. Our heart is the ground, the good, or bad, earth that when all words planted there, grow.
Whatever you nourish in your heart, whether it be the Weeds of Insecurity, Hate, Envy, Fear, Self loathing or the Flowers of Joy, Peace, Encouragement, or even the Trees of Love, Hope, Forgiveness and Compassion... these will be the plants that grow inside you and spring up around you.
We've been tricked into believing that by telling others of our hardship, we will be loved and cared for more. We've been blinded to believe, that if we curse others, it will make us feel better about ourselves.
The truth is, however, those who care for and encourage others are the ones that are loved and respected the most. Those who uplift and forgive, are the ones that truly feel better about themselves.
As a healthy tree produces good fruit, so an unhealthy and diseased tree produces that which makes others sick. Out of the heart can proceed every hate filled, arrogant, fearful, prideful, and terrible word. The cure is to have each and every one of these seeds/words/thoughts cast into the fire of love, so it can be destroyed and you can be set free. If we eat from the Tree of Life we will live but if we eat the words of death we will surely die.
Our words have power. Our words are like a sword that can kill or protect. Our words can be an elixir to the sick, or a poison to the healthy.
Our words can inspire change in the world, or hurl it into the pits of despair.
If you want peace, if you want success, if you want joy and love and to be content with all things in every situation, change!
Change your thoughts and your words to reflect your wants. Change your worry to hope. Change your fear to faith. Change your doubt to absolute certainty, and all will be well.
Change your words and change your life. Change your thoughts and change the world.
Jacob
(Click on next blog for those going through hard times.)
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
How We Grow
Where would the flowers be, without the manure heaped on top of it?
Could a seed ever grow, if it wasn't first placed into a deep, dark, horrible hole?
Would the wine taste as wonderful, if the grapes had not been smashed, scrapped, and left to sit in what had been squeezed out of them to begin with?
Can a sunrise be as beautiful, if there was never a dark night to rise above?
If not for the irritation of the oyster, would there ever be an expensive pearl left behind?
Can passing a test ever be as precious, if first you have never failed?
Would laughter be as wonderful, if tears never came to your eyes?
Can their ever be victory, if there isn't something to overcome?
Can anyone truly start over, if they haven't lost a thing to begin with?
Like the flower you may not understand why it is that you have to put up with so much manure.
But the manure makes you all the more beautiful when you rise above it.
Like the seed you may feel like there will never be an escape from the dark place you are in.
But the dirt keeps you grounded when you finally break through and reach for the sky.
Like the grape, you may be beat down, and pushed and pulled and left to stew in your own pain.
But the longer you endure the more sweet and powerful you become.
Like the sun, you may wonder if it will ever be your time to shine.
But without your dark days, why would anyone come to you to help light their way?
Like the oyster you may wonder if there is a point to your suffering at all.
But when you give up your struggle and open your heart for the world to see, they will find a pearl of great wisdom left behind.
You may have failed, you may have cried, and you may have lost it all.
But without these experience would you ever appreciate what you have at all?
And could you ever learn, that sometimes even the worst things that happen to us, are the very things that make us greatest of all.
Jacob
Could a seed ever grow, if it wasn't first placed into a deep, dark, horrible hole?
Would the wine taste as wonderful, if the grapes had not been smashed, scrapped, and left to sit in what had been squeezed out of them to begin with?
Can a sunrise be as beautiful, if there was never a dark night to rise above?
If not for the irritation of the oyster, would there ever be an expensive pearl left behind?
Can passing a test ever be as precious, if first you have never failed?
Would laughter be as wonderful, if tears never came to your eyes?
Can their ever be victory, if there isn't something to overcome?
Can anyone truly start over, if they haven't lost a thing to begin with?
Like the flower you may not understand why it is that you have to put up with so much manure.
But the manure makes you all the more beautiful when you rise above it.
Like the seed you may feel like there will never be an escape from the dark place you are in.
But the dirt keeps you grounded when you finally break through and reach for the sky.
Like the grape, you may be beat down, and pushed and pulled and left to stew in your own pain.
But the longer you endure the more sweet and powerful you become.
Like the sun, you may wonder if it will ever be your time to shine.
But without your dark days, why would anyone come to you to help light their way?
Like the oyster you may wonder if there is a point to your suffering at all.
But when you give up your struggle and open your heart for the world to see, they will find a pearl of great wisdom left behind.
You may have failed, you may have cried, and you may have lost it all.
But without these experience would you ever appreciate what you have at all?
And could you ever learn, that sometimes even the worst things that happen to us, are the very things that make us greatest of all.
Jacob
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
For God and Country
An old deaf man watched sadly as the few, the proud and the brave prayed “God grant us victory” while marching off to war one day.
This was a prayer the old man knew too well.
Like those young heroes he once cheered, “For God and country” as well…
But after sixty long years war remains,
After sixty long years it still leaves behind it great and terrible pain.
Father and Mothers lose Sons and Daughters;
Daughters and Sons lose Fathers and Mothers,
And many friends are lost in between.
So the old man thought long and hard for whom he should pray.
He lived on the border of both countries, he’s a native of both he could say.
To pray for one means defeat for the other. And to pray for the other surely means the same.
How could he wish death and destruction on one or the other?
When to pray for victory for one, most surely means death to his other brother.
The old man glanced up from his bible at the darkening sky,
“How should I pray Lord?” the old man cried… as the drums and the screams of war were shouted on high.
“I am brother to both how can I ever choose a side?”
Just then the wind blew the pages of his bible to a truth that brought tears to the old man’s eye.
Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those that curse you, and pray for those who hurt you…”
The bible fell from his hands and the old man forgot his fear.
When the bombs and gun fire of his past made deaf his ears,
These were words he could not see very clear.
But after sixty long years he now understands how true victory is found.
So he walked to the border and he stood his ground.
If any army was to fight, it would be his life that would first be laid down.
“He’s our country men the soldier from one side said,”
“Hold your fire, hold your fire,” a soldier from the other shouted, “We don’t want our brother dead”
It was then both armies saw the one thing they had in common,
It was a love for their brother, which was something they had forgotten.
Jacob
This was a prayer the old man knew too well.
Like those young heroes he once cheered, “For God and country” as well…
But after sixty long years war remains,
After sixty long years it still leaves behind it great and terrible pain.
Father and Mothers lose Sons and Daughters;
Daughters and Sons lose Fathers and Mothers,
And many friends are lost in between.
So the old man thought long and hard for whom he should pray.
He lived on the border of both countries, he’s a native of both he could say.
To pray for one means defeat for the other. And to pray for the other surely means the same.
How could he wish death and destruction on one or the other?
When to pray for victory for one, most surely means death to his other brother.
The old man glanced up from his bible at the darkening sky,
“How should I pray Lord?” the old man cried… as the drums and the screams of war were shouted on high.
“I am brother to both how can I ever choose a side?”
Just then the wind blew the pages of his bible to a truth that brought tears to the old man’s eye.
Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those that curse you, and pray for those who hurt you…”
The bible fell from his hands and the old man forgot his fear.
When the bombs and gun fire of his past made deaf his ears,
These were words he could not see very clear.
But after sixty long years he now understands how true victory is found.
So he walked to the border and he stood his ground.
If any army was to fight, it would be his life that would first be laid down.
“He’s our country men the soldier from one side said,”
“Hold your fire, hold your fire,” a soldier from the other shouted, “We don’t want our brother dead”
It was then both armies saw the one thing they had in common,
It was a love for their brother, which was something they had forgotten.
Jacob
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