Value Every Minute!

To realize the value of one year: Ask a student who has failed a final exam.

To realize the value of one month: Ask a mother who has given birth to a premature baby.

To realize the value of one week: Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize the value of one hour: Ask the lovers who are waiting to meet.

To realize the value of one minute: Ask the person who has missed the train, bus or plane.

To realize the value of one second: Ask a person who has survived an accident.

To realize the value of one millisecond: Ask the person who has won a silver medal in the Olympics.

Time waits for no one.

Treasure every moment you have. You will treasure it even more when you can share it with someone special.

The Spirit’s Movement

~John 3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

What a wonderful example given by Jesus to explain what the Spirit is like. You can’t see the wind but you surely can hear it. You can see its movement in the trees but you cannot see the wind itself. The Spirit is the same. You cannot see the Spirit but you see the Spirit’s movement in the believer. He changes the damned soul into a life-everlasting soul. The Spirit lives within every born-again believer. The unsaved does not understand because he does not possess the Holy Spirit – the Spirit of truth.

If you were to buy a used car, you would want to know the truth about this car’s history … has it been involved in an accident? Does it have any hidden mechanical issues, etc. Don’t you want to know the truth about eternal life as well? Why would we want to know the truth about everything else in life but not about where we will spend eternity?  Do you really want to trust something as important as your eternity in the hands of a religious leader?

Don’t you want to have the Spirit of truth living within you? Don’t you want to have answers to questions you’ve been too afraid to ask? Don’t you want your soul to have life everlasting?

~John 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

Dear God…
Oh God, help me to understand
The truths within Your Word.
May Your Holy Spirit open my heart
And lead me continuously forward!

© Kate Plourde 2009

Truths to Live By

Maybe God wants us to meet a few wrong people before meeting the right one so that when we finally meet the right person, we will know how to be grateful for that gift.

When the door of happiness closes, another opens, but often times we look so long at the closed door that we don’t see the one which has been opened for us.

The best kind of friend is the kind you can sit on a porch and swing with, never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you’ve every had.

It’s true that we don’t know what we’ve got until we lose it, but it’s also true that we don’t know what we’ve been missing until it arrives.

Giving someone all your love is never an assurance that they’ll love you back! Don’t expect love in return; just wait for it to grow in their heart but if it doesn’t, be content it grew in yours.

It takes only a minute to get a crush on someone, an hour to like someone, and a day to love someone, but it takes a lifetime to forget someone.

Don’t go for looks; they can deceive. Don’t go for wealth; even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright. Find the one that makes your heart smile.

There are moments in life when you miss someone so much that you just want to pick them from your dreams and hug them for real!

Dream what you want to dream; go where you want to go; be what you want to be, because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you want to do.

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, enough hope to make you happy.

Always put yourself in others’ shoes. If you feel that it hurts you, it probably hurts the other person, too.

The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. Happiness lies for those who cry, those who hurt, those who have searched, and those who have tried, for only they can appreciate the importance of people who have touched their lives.

Love begins with a smile, grows with a kiss and ends with a tear.

The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past. You can’t go on well in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling. Live your life so that when you die, you’re the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.

A Beautiful Analogy

The trial of cancer can produce in us a heart that can help others along the way. I pray this is a blessing to you!

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One day a young man was standing in the middle of the town proclaiming that he had the most beautiful heart in the whole valley. A large crowd gathered and they all admired his heart for it was perfect. There was not a mark or a flaw in it. Yes, they all agreed it truly was the most beautiful heart they had ever seen. The young man was very proud and boasted more loudly about his beautiful heart.

Suddenly, an old man appeared at the front of the crowd and said “Why your heart is not nearly as beautiful as mine.” The crowd and the young man looked at the old man’s heart. It was beating strongly, but full of scars, it had places where pieces had been removed and other pieces put in, but they didn’t fit quite right and there were several jagged edges. In fact, in some places there were deep gouges where whole pieces were missing.

The people stared – how can he say his heart is more beautiful, they thought? The young man looked at the old man’s heart and saw its state and laughed. “You must be joking,” he said. “Compare your heart with mine, mine is perfect and yours is a mess of scars and tears.”

“Yes,” said the old man, “Yours is perfect looking but I would never trade with you. You see, every scar represents a person to whom I have given my love – I tear out a piece of my heart and give it to them, and often they give me a piece of their heart which fits into the empty place in my heart, but because the pieces aren’t exact, I have some rough edges, which I cherish, because they remind me of the love we shared. Sometimes I have given pieces of my heart away, and the other person hasn’t returned a piece of his heart to me. These are the empty gouges – – giving love is taking a chance. Although these gouges are painful, they stay open, reminding me of the love I have for these people too, and I hope someday they may return and fill the space I have waiting. So now do you see what true beauty is?”

The young man stood silently with tears running down his cheeks. He walked up to the old man, reached into his perfect young and beautiful heart, and ripped a piece out. He offered it to the old man with trembling hands. The old man took his offering, placed it in his heart and then took a piece from his old scarred heart and placed it in the wound in the young man’s heart. It fit, but not perfectly, as there were some jagged edges. The young man looked at his heart, not perfect anymore but more beautiful than ever, since love from the old man’s heart flowed into his. They embraced and walked away side by side. How sad it must be to go through life with a whole untouched heart.

~Author Unknown~

God Speaking

As you read today’s inspirational story, I ask that you stop and think of how many ways the Lord has spoken to you in the passed few days.

I was overwhelmed with what lay ahead for John with the surgery and temporary ileostomy. During mid-week services, the hymns that were sung spoke right to my heart. The words exhorted the believer to continue on even when the days are dark and it feels as though we are all alone! God reached down and hugged His child last night 🙂

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The man whispered,

God, speak to me!

And a meadowlark sang. But the man did not hear.

So the man yelled,

God, speak to me!

And the thunder & lightning rolled across the sky. But the man did not listen.

The man looked around and said,

God, let me see you!

And a star shined brightly. But the man did not see.

And, the man shouted,

God, show me a miracle!

And a life was born. But the man did not notice.

So, the man cried out in despair,

Touch me, God, and let me know you are here!

Whereupon, God reached down and touched the man. But the man brushed the butterfly away and walked on.

The Father is Never Wrong!

~John 3:7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

Jesus told Nicodemus “Don’t wonder that I’m saying, you have to be born again.” In other words, don’t try to put logic into it when it takes faith. Jesus was giving him the key here. Don’t try to put reason and logic into the plan of salvation. Why would Jesus say to receive the simple plan of salvation like a child?

~Luke 18:17 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.

Have you ever noticed how a child looks to his father and mother for answers? A father could give any answer at all and the child would believe him. The child trusts his father explicitly and believes with all his heart that his father will bring him no harm.

Do you believe like a child? Or do you allow deeply embedded doctrine from your past to cloud the simplicity of the Gospel? Ask God to remove any obstacles and to give you that child-like faith that is needed to be saved.

Dear God…
Oh Lord, I struggle to believe
What the Bible says I must do.
Help me to accept its words as
Final authority and truth!

© Kate Plourde 2009

Are You Blessed?

If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed than the million who will not survive this week.

If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.

If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of this world.

If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace, you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy.

If your parents are still alive and still married, you are very rare, even in the United States.

If you hold up your head with a smile on your face and are truly thankful, you are blessed because the majority can, but most do not.

If you prayed yesterday and today, you are in the minority because you believe God does hear and answer prayers.

If you can read now, you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world that cannot read at all.

~Author Unknown~

Nurturing …

Are you the caregiver for a cancer patient? I am. I don’t think anyone knows what the life of a caregiver is like until they go through it themselves.

A caregiver has to drive the cancer patient to appointments and treatments; be there to encourage the patient when he’s down emotionally; provide extra TLC like getting some warm socks because his feet seem to be cold all the time now; be an advocate for the patient when he can’t for himself; be on a constant vigil when he gets up in the middle of the night due to pain.

I could go on and on but I think you get my point. When the patient is your spouse, the emotional strain on the caregiver seems multiplied. Caregivers need to be encouraged, too. They need to be lifted up so that they can continue caring for their spouse. It’s not easy seeing your loved one suffering – in fact, it’s heart-wrenching! There have been quite a few nights where I have shed quiet tears on behalf of my beloved. I know that our Heavenly Father is there and I know that He collects each one of these tears and holds them near to Him. I know this because of the mini miracles I have seen in John’s life. I know that my Father has heard my cries because He has given me this special someone in a dear friend who lives locally. She calls me and emails me almost every day and always has an encouraging word for me! I dare say it would have been a lot harder on me had I not had her precious friendship!

I found this piece today and I thought it was really special. Won’t you encourage a caregiver today? Surely there is a friend or a relative in your life that could use a phone call filled with encouraging words. Won’t you do that for that special someone today?

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Plants grow best when we pay attention to them. That means watering, touching them, putting them in places where they will receive good light. They need people around them to notice if they are drooping at the edges or looking particularly happy in the sunlight. The more attention a plant receives, the better it will grow.

We need to be noticed in the same way. If we notice a family member or friend is drooping, perhaps we can pay some special attention to him or her. All of us need someone to care about how we are and to truly listen to us. We can share and double someone’s happiness by noticing and talking about it also. We help the people around us to grow by listening to their droopy edges as well as their bright days. People need this as much as plants need light and water.

~Author Unknown~

Born of the Spirit

~John 3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

What a simple sentence spoken by Jesus here. Yet, here Jesus was speaking to a Jewish religious leader, a Pharisee. It shows that even those who appear to have all the truth and answers must be given a simple message. The message was so simple that even a child could understand it.

~Luke 18:17 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.

Jesus knew that it would take child-like faith for Nicodemus to be saved. Nicodemus would have to let go of all the religious knowledge he had crammed in his brain. He would have to let go of everything he had been taught and rely on this simple message to speak to his heart. All the laws and rules Nicodemus had learned would have to be set aside and he would have to rely on the Word of God to speak to his heart.

It is not rocket science … flesh begets flesh … dogs have puppies, cats have kittens, and humans have babies. But, if we accept the simple plan of salvation, we receive the Holy Spirit and are now born of the Spirit. It really is not difficult at all when God reveals the truth to your heart.

~John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Dear God…
I pray that I will never be
So heavenly minded yet blind.
Open my eyes with Your Truth.
Remove those chains that bind!

© Kate Plourde 2009

Words to Live By

I thought some of these were pretty good!! Enjoy 🙂

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Accept that some days you’re the pigeon, and some days you’re the statue.

Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.

Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.

Drive carefully. It’s not only cars that can be recalled by their maker.

Eat a live toad in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you for the rest of the day.

If you can’t be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.

If you lend someone $20, and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.

Never buy a car you can’t push.

Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you don’t have a leg to stand on.

When everything’s coming your way, you’re in the wrong lane.

Birthdays are good for you; the more you have, the longer you live.

Ever notice that the people who are late are often much jollier than the people who have to wait for them?

If ignorance is bliss, why aren’t more people happy?

You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.

Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.

Don’t cry because it’s over; smile because it happened.

We could learn a lot from crayons: some are sharp, some are pretty, some are dull, some have weird names, and all are different colors but they all have to learn to live in the same box.

A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

Happiness comes through doors you didn’t even know you left open.

~Author Unknown~