THE GLORY OF SOLITUDE IN LIFE

Golden apple tree - “You can't just sit there and wait for people to give you that golden dream. You've got to get out there and make it happen for yourself.”

We've all been lonely. You may understand how one weary traveler felt as he sat alone on the edge of the bed in his motel room. He reached for the Gideon Bible in the drawer and opened it. Inside was a page that said, "If you are lonely and restless, read Psalm 23 and Psalm 27, Old Testament." Just below this reference, somebody wrote by hand: "If you are still lonesome, call Mandy at 235-2827."

Not all aloneness is lonely, however. Theologian Paul Tillich put it this way: "Language... has created the word 'loneliness' to express the pain of being alone. And it has created the word 'solitude' to express the glory of being alone."

Can you be alone without being lonely? Can you spend time by yourself without craving noise and stimulation? There is glory in solitude. And it brings with it gifts that come from nowhere else.

Ardath Rodale has said, "We can find quiet places of solitude among the trees. In a grove of pine trees where the ground is covered by soft needles, I sometimes lie down and look up through the branches to see the blue sky. The tips of new pine growth shine in the sunlight. The smell of pine needles fills the air. As a soft wind blows, I realize that the whole branch sways in the breeze, but the needles shiver independently like one of Bertoia's musical chimes. I listen, but all is quiet. Trees say to each of us, 'Give yourself time to listen to who you are.'"

Have you noticed that, in English, the word "listen" contains the same letters as the word "silent"? In order to truly listen to who we are, we must be silent. And in solitude, we will hear what can be heard no other way.

Have you discovered the glory of solitude?

From Lifesupport.

Lifesigns Life Quotes

YOUR GREAT BODY FOR LIFE

Hard protective shell crabs - “Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding.”

Did anyone ever tell you that you have a great body?

One man tells of visiting a lumberyard to buy posts for a new hammock. "How long will the posts last once they are sunk in the ground?" he asked the clerk.

"Longer than you will," the sales clerk responded.

Another customer who was standing nearby grinned and asked, "Did it ever occur to you that he might be saying that you're not looking all that well?"

Whether you look or feel all that well, you DO have a great body. Did you know that...

Today --

Your heart will likely beat over 100,000 times?
Your blood will travel about 168,000 miles?
You will breathe about 23,000 times?
You will eat over three pounds of food?
You will drink three pounds of liquids?
You will turn in your sleep 25-30 times?
You may speak about 48,000 words?
You will use some 7,000,000 brain cells?

You see? You have a GREAT body! It is a miraculous machine. It runs on peanuts and even regenerates itself. With good care, your great body can serve you for years to come.

But, it will occasionally get sick or run down. Especially if you neglect it. So it pays to take care of this marvelous machine. Repairs are expensive and used parts are hard to come by.

Today... what will you do for yourself? Will you pick up that exercise regimen you may have put off? Will you choose sensible foods and get enough rest? Will you treat your body as the friend it really is?

Do it today -- for a great future!

From Lifesupport.

Lifesigns Life Quotes

HOW YOU'RE LIKE A PENCIL IN LIFE

Cold fizzy soft drinks - “The most important things to do in the world are to get something to eat, something to drink and somebody to love you.”

Did you know that you are like a pencil? Here's how:

1. Like a pencil, you can correct your mistakes. You can't change the past, but you can rectify it. And though you can't erase history, you can erase guilt and anger with forgiveness.
2. Like a pencil, painful sharpening can serve to make you better. Your difficult times can actually sharpen your skills or shape you into the person you were meant to be.
3. Like a pencil, you can do great things when you allow yourself to be held in Someone's hand.
4. Like a pencil, you can leave your mark whenever possible.
That is what you're here for -- to leave your mark. It may be in small ways, it may be in the lives of people you have touched or nurtured, but you must leave something good behind whenever you can.
5. Like a pencil, it is what is on the inside that matters. Whether it is understanding or intolerance, love or bitterness, peace or unrest, kindness or self-centeredness, hope or despair, courage or fear, what is on the inside matters most.

Next time you use a pencil, pause and think about that little writing tool. It teaches some great lessons about living.

From Lifesupport.

Lifesigns Life Quotes

NOTHING WILL GROW THERE IN LIFE!

Arcade video games - “Polygons are fashionable at the moment - particularly in the arcades.”

Brian Cavanaugh, T.O.R. tells about a magnificent harvest in his book "MORE SOWER'S SEEDS: Second Planting." One spring, he and two seminary friends sought permission to plant a garden. He says, "Our house of studies was located in the downtown area of a large metropolitan city. There wasn't much of a backyard. Actually, it was a stone-covered dirt parking lot with no extra space. However, we carefully planned our garden, taking into account the area that received optimal sunshine.

"The three of us approached the superior with our plan for a small area to plant some squash, tomatoes and cucumbers. The only real cost involved was to rent a rake, a pickax and a hoe. However, getting the superior's permission would still be difficult. None of us who were involved with this garden project will ever forget his response to our request. With a slightly bored, tilting of his head he glanced at us and abjectly replied, 'You're wasting your time. Nothing will ever grow there! But, go ahead if you still want to.'

"We had received permission from on high! So what if it wasn't enthusiastic. We rented tools; raked four inches of stones into neat walls outlining the garden; hoisted the pickax and struck what must have been a former refuse area. A gardener's dream -- dark, composted, fertile soil just sitting there waiting to be discovered. We looked at each other with broad grins and repeated in unison, 'Ah, nothing will grow there.' As you might have surmised by now, things did grow there, in our garden. In fact, twice we re-staked the tomatoes, topping them off, finally, when they were seven feet tall."

Have you ever felt that way about your life -- "Nothing will grow there..."? Have you felt discouraged about your life's progress? Worried about crop failure? Disappointed that nothing good ever seems to come up?

What do you want to grow? Understanding? Faith? Courage? Optimism? Joy? Love? Or are you nurturing a new project or small business?

Don't believe that "nothing will grow there." I like the observation of writer George Eliot, "It's never too late to be who you might have been." You may not always see the potential for growth, but it is there. All the rich compost you need may be hidden just beneath the surface, but can only be discovered after you begin digging.

Ralph Waldo Emerson proclaimed, "Oh man! There is no planet sun or star could hold you, if you but knew what you are." You are capable of doing and becoming more than you might imagine!

With careful nurture, something WILL grow there. And it will be magnificent.

From Lifesupport.

Lifesigns Life Quotes

GETTING THE LAST WORD IN FOR LIFE

Furry flower bud - “You ever noticed how people who believe in Creationism look really unevolved? You ever noticed that? Eyes real close together, eyebrow ridges, big furry hands and feet. "I believe God created me in one day" Yeah, looks like He rushed it.”

Listen to this letter of apology:

"Dear Dog,

I am so sorry about you being sent to the dog pound for the broken lamp which you did not break; the fish you did not spill; and the carpet that you did not wet; or the wall that you did not dirty with red paint...

Things here at the house are calmer now, and just to show you that I have no hard feelings towards you, I am sending you a picture, so you will always remember me.

Best regards,

The Cat"

The Old French root of the word "repent" is "repentir," which actually means to be sorry. The cat may have said he was sorry, but there is no sorrow here. It reminds of me of the story of a woman with fourteen children, ages one through fourteen, who decided to sue her husband for divorce on grounds of desertion.

"When did he desert you?" the judge asked.

"Thirteen years ago," she replied.

"If he left 13 years ago? Where did all the children come from?"

"Well," said the woman, "he kept coming back to say he was sorry."

Again, no sorrow here, for if he'd been truly sorry, he'd have stayed. Sincere repentance always leads to change.

Are you in error? Apologize. But apologize well. Never ruin your apology with an excuse, for only sincere repentance can lead to change. Apologize with words, then back those words up with actions. Decide to act differently next time.

Apologize -- it's a great way to get the last word in.

From Lifesupport.

Lifesigns Life Quotes