The parable of a 'pencil'

A PENCIL MAKER TOLD THE PENCIL FIVE IMPORTANT LESSONS JUST BEFORE PUTTING IT IN THE BOX :


1. EVERYTHING YOU DO WILL ALWAYS LEAVE A MARK .

2. YOU CAN ALWAYS CORRECT THE MISTAKES YOU MAKE.

3. WHAT IS IMPORTANT IS WHAT IS INSIDE OF YOU.

4. IN LIFE , YOU WILL UNDERGO PAINFUL SHARPENINGS,
WHICH WILL ONLY MAKE YOU BETTER.

5. TO BE THE BEST PENCIL, YOU MUST ALLOW YOURSELF
TO BE HELD AND GUIDED BY THE HAND THAT HOLDS YOU.

We all need to be constantly sharpened.This parable may encourage you to know that you are a special person, with unique God-given talents and abilities. Only you can fulfill the purpose which you were born to accomplish.

Never allow yourself to get discouraged and think that your life is insignificant and cannot be changed and, like the pencil, always remember that the most important part of who you are, is what's inside of you and then allow yourself to be guided by the hand of God.

(shared by Fiona)

Greece debt crisis

'They are dogs with mighty appetites; they never have enough...they all turn to their own way, each seeks their own gain..each one cries, let me get wine! Let us drink our fill of beer! And tomorrow will be like today, or even far better.'' (Isaiah 56:11-12)

The sovereign debt crisis continues to make headlines from time to time since it first hit Iceland in 2008. The rising government deficits and their debt levels created wild swings and alarm in financial markets. The final true cost of a euro zone default is hard to estimate because of the huge amount of CDS (credit default swaps) involved. Greece debt crisis was the first euro zone crisis since its inception in 1999.

The Greek economy was one of the fastest growing in the euro zone from 2000 to 2007. (Remember Greece held the Olympics in 2004). This enabled it to run large structural deficits debt to GDP above 100%. After the introduction of the euro in Jan 2001, Greece was initially able to borrow due to the lower interest rates government bonds prevailing at the time.To keep within the monetary union guidelines, it was reported that Greece had misreported the country's official economic statistics since 2001 by arranging transactions that hid the actual level of borrowing. The purpose was to enable them to continue spending while hiding the actual deficit from the EU. In 2009, the government revised its deficit from an estimated 6 to 12.7%. In May 2010 the Greek government debt was estimated at €216 billion. Though Greece represents only 2.5% of the euro zone economy, there is concern that a default by it can cause investors to lose faith in other euro zone countries as well.

There are glaring drawbacks in the economic integration model of EU. One of them is that though there is monetary union of some sort, there is no single common fiscal policy. As a result, weaker EU members can ride on the financial strength of the stronger members to enjoy advantages such as lower borrowing cost without having their fiscal policies been supervised. Cross border capital flows are also unregulated, creating problems such as asset bubbles and current account imbalances.

This debt crisis serves to remind us of our human sinful nature: GREED. The ‘attractiveness’ of engaging in ‘creative accounting’,manipulation of statistics using methods such as ‘massaging’ and derivatives, or ‘phony’ book-keeping by business entities (especially financial institutions) is always there because of potential financial gains. In US, the Fed by making the longer-dated bonds’ yield lower than the short-term bonds, the banks are finding hard to make money by borrowing short and lending over longer term. Banks may resort to creative ‘financial engineering’ to improve their profits instead. Such policy inadvertently encourages them to take unwarranted ‘risk-taking’, knowing that they will be bailed out by the taxpayers.

Humorous pieces (2)

A father was approached by his small son who told him proudly, "I know what the Bible means!"
His father smiled and replied, "What do you mean, you 'know' what the Bible means?
The son replied, "I do know!"
"Okay," said his father. "What does the Bible mean?"
"That's easy, Daddy..." the young boy replied excitedly," It stands for 'Basic Information Before Leaving Earth.”

A Sunday school teacher was telling her class the story of the Good Samaritan. She asked the class, 'If you saw a person lying on the roadside, all wounded and bleeding, what you would do?' A thoughtful little girl broke the hushed silence, 'I think I'd throw up.'

There was a very gracious lady who was mailing an old family bible to her brother in another part of the country.
"Is there anything breakable in here?" asked the postal clerk.
"Only the Ten Commandments," answered the lady.

A minister parked his car in a no-parking zone in a large city because he was short of time and couldn't find a space with a meter.
Then he put a note under the windshield wiper that read: "I have circled the block 10 times. If I don't park here, I'll miss my appointment. Forgive us our trespasses."
When he returned, he found a citation from a police officer along with this note "I've circled this block for 10 years. If I don't give you a ticket I'll lose my job. Lead us not into temptation."

A policeman was taking a vandalism report at an elementary school when he was interrupted by a six year old girl. She looked up and down at his uniform and asked, "Are you a policeman?"
"Yes, I am," he said.
"My mother told me that if I ever needed help I should ask a policeman. Is that right," the girl asked.
"Yes it is," said the policeman.
The girl extended her foot to the policeman and said, "OK, then, would you tie my shoe?"

Redemption from brokeness

‘Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?’ ( Job 2:10)

‘If we look at a beautiful sunrise, we decide God is good; if we look at a hurricane, we decide God is cruel’ – Matthew Slick

Recently I was truly inspired this book review by K Carrie on Lon Solomon’s ‘Brokenness-How God redeems pain and suffering’.

While in college, Lon Solomon made a relentless search for meaning and purpose. He sought to fill the void he felt on partying, gambling and developed a serious drinking problem. He also became deeply involved in drugs, both as a user and an infamous campus drug dealer. When all this failed to resolve his inner turmoil, he decided that suicide was the only way out. It was at this time that he met a street evangelist who began to talk to him about Christ. Lon sees his life as a marvellous example of God’s transforming power in action. He was able to quit the drug and alcohol abuse that had plagued his life for years.

The author demonstrates how God sometimes chooses to ‘break’ us in order to use us. He likens our “self” to the hard shell of a seed. Just as the shell of a seed must be broken in order for the plan to sprout, our ‘self’ must be broken in order for God’s power to flow through us to others. Lon speaks from his personal experience. He and his wife have spent the last twelve years caring for their severely disabled daughter, Jill. They will spend the rest of their lives doing so, unless God chooses to miraculously heal her. Through this process of being broken, God has transformed him into a man He can use.

Lon often wondered what decision he would have made if God offered him a choice at the time his daughter was born: perfect heath for Jill or brokenness for him. Now in the light of what God has done in his life, his family, and his ministry through his daughter’s illness, he honestly knows the right choice would be to say: “God, You make no mistakes. Let it happen just like You chose the first time. The products were worth the process.” He knows that being weak in flesh, just like everyone, if God gave him the chance, he would make the wrong choice. He would have chose his daughter’s perfect health and his service to God would be a mere shadow of what it has become now.

It is very easy for someone to pose this kind of question: Is it fair that Lon's daughter has to live a life of suffering so that he can be a great servant for the work of God? Lon offered his answer: “Jill doesn’t know she’s disabled. She’s content, happy, and knows that Brenda and I love her deeply. She understands that her brothers, her care givers, and hundreds of people who know her love her too. Jill’s every need is met and she wants for nothing. Were Jill able to speak, she would tell us that she doesn’t feel the unfairness about her life that we judge to be there. More importantly, I believe Jill’s illness is not an accident or a random act of fate but God’s perfect plan for her life and mine. And I believe God has a great reward awaiting Jill in heaven because she was willing to live the life He chose for her so His purposes could be realized on earth. In heaven, not only will Jill be healed and whole for all eternity, but she will enjoy heavenly reward, and those of us who served her on earth are going to be really glad we did when we get to heaven.”

This book challenges us to ask this question: “Am I willing to let God break me in order for Him to use me?” This is not only a difficult question to answer but also a terrifying question. I must say that most of us are not quite there yet.

Nutrition & physical activity for cancer patients

I learnt some interesting facts from the article entitled 'Nutrition and Physical Activity During and After Cancer Treatment: Answers to Common Questions' by the American cancer Society:

1. Antioxidants help to prevent damage to cells in the body from chemical reactions with oxygen. So far, studies of antioxidant vitamin or mineral supplements have not found that they reduce cancer risk. The best advice at this time is to get antioxidants through foods rather than supplements. Many cancer doctors advise against taking higher doses of antioxidant supplements during chemotherapy or radiation. There is a concern that the antioxidants might repair the damage to cancer cells that helps these cancer treatments work.

2. Soy foods are an excellent source of protein and can be a good option for meals without meat. For the breast cancer survivor, current research finds no special benefits or harmful effects when no more than 3 servings of soy are eaten per day as part of a healthy diet. But higher doses of soy may have estrogen-like effects, and higher levels of estrogens can cause certain breast cancers to grow and spread. For this reason, it is best for breast cancer survivors to avoid the high doses that are found in more concentrated sources such as soy powders and isoflavone supplements.

3. There is evidence that certain types of fat, such as saturated fats, may increase cancer risk. There is little evidence that other types of fat, such as mono-unsaturated fats (in canola and olive oil, olives, avocados, nuts and seeds) or polyunsaturated fats (including omega-3 fatty acids in fish and walnuts) reduce cancer risk.

4. Studies have linked eating large amounts of red meat and processed meats (like bacon, hot dogs, and deli meats) with increased risk of colorectal, prostate, and stomach cancers. Some research suggests that frying, broiling, or grilling meats at very high temperatures creates chemicals that might increase the risk of some types of cancer.

5. It is commonly thought that organic foods may be more healthful because they reduce exposure to certain chemicals. It has also been suggested that their nutrient makeup may be better than non-organic foods. Whether this means health benefits to those who eat organic foods is unknown.

6. During and after cancer treatment, there is a probable benefit of taking a standard multiple vitamin and mineral supplement that contains about 100% of the Daily Values because during these times it may be hard to eat a diet with enough of these nutrients. The use of very large doses of vitamins, minerals, and other supplements is not recommended because evidence exists that some high-dose supplements may increase cancer risk.

7. In most studies, eating more vegetables and fruits has been linked with a lower risk of lung, esophagus, stomach, and colon cancer. Cancer survivors should get at least 5 servings of a variety of vegetables and fruits each day.

8. Juicing can add variety to the diet and can be a good way to get vegetables and fruits, especially for those who have trouble chewing or swallowing. Juicing also helps the body absorb some of the nutrients in vegetables and fruits. But juices may be less filling than whole vegetables and fruits and contain less fiber. And drinking a lot of fruit juice can add extra calories to a person's diet. Buy juice products that are 100% vegetable or fruit juices and pasteurized to remove harmful germs.

'Friendship' in marriage

Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat. (Mother Teresa)

‘Now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.’ (I Corinthians 13:13)

God creates us as relational beings and for that, we are made for relationships. One of the greatest relationships we can have on this earth is friendship. Friendship can be exciting yet at times painful, exhausting. But it can also open up new possibilities, new adventures. We live deprived lives if we live without friends.

I am truly blessed with many close friends whom I can fall back anytime. They have been my ‘pillars’ especially during my down times in the past three years. There are times when my words or actions are misunderstood, but we stay with it when they happened. There is no perfection in any friendships. If our goal in life is to stay safe, then it is difficult to develop any meaningful friendships. Friendships demand that you leave your comfort zone and confront an unknown wilderness.

It is ironical that most married couples are not even ‘friend’ to each other. May be ‘familiarity’ breeds contempt. ‘Friendliness’ is undeniably lacking in some marital relationships. It is the art of appreciating others more than you appreciate yourself. It is really an attitude. More and more couples are not having meaningful communication with one another. It seems that the longer couples are together, the easier it is not only to see each other's flaws, but to mercilessly criticize them. This eventually leads to short tempers, less tolerance, minimal patience, and a lack of marital bliss.

We tend to be less ’polite’ and more ‘critical’ when we communicate with our spouses than to our friends. Instead of choosing words that build up, we become each other’s worst critics. Words have the power to build up or tear down in any relationship. Unfortunately, respect and admiration, the two powerful tools, are often forgotten in marriage over time. As for me, being a woman, I need to constantly remind myself to control my tongues and asked God to convict my heart when critical thoughts crept into my mind, avoid the temptation to say them out loud. Also, when I tell myself that how imperfect I am, it becomes easier for me to accommodate the other person’s annoying quirks and little habits.