TRUE FRIENDSHIP

Seems like this question will always pop up. Who or what is a Friend? We will in some point of our life ask this question. I always tell people good friends are not many and true friend even less, but when you do find one value it.
Here is some interesting articles which I like to share.

Friendship is a gift of God. Some of us are blessed with good friends. But as it happens, these friendships are taken for granted in some cases and not valued. It is similar to a case of two couples. Say one has no child even after many years of marriage and the other has many children, more than they can manage. What do you think? Will the couple with many children value the children as much as the couple which has none? Everything is relative in life. We value what we don't have and give less valuable to what is freely available with us. Friendship is one such relationship.Why should we value friendships? What qualities does a good friend bring in our relationship that makes the friendship so valuable? Let us examine some of these. read the rest of the story here

In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem. One day one fellow met the great philosopher and said, "Do you know what I just heard about your friend?". "Hold on a minute," Socrates replied. "Before telling me anything I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test.". "Triple filter?". "That's right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you're going to say. That's why I call it the triple filter test. The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?" "No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and...". "All right," said Socrates. "So you don't know if it's true or not. Now let's try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?" . "No, on the contrary...". "So," Socrates continued, "you want to tell me something bad about him, but you're not certain it's true. You may still pass the test though, because there's one filter left: the filter of Usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?" "No, not really." "Well," concluded Socrates, "if what you want to tell me is neither true nor good nor even useful, why tell it to me at all?"

Lesson:
Well we can always participate in loose talks to curb our boredom. But when it comes to you friends its not worth it. Always avoid talking behind the back about your near and dear friends.

original post here


The Bible also has alot to says about friendship.
Proverbs is another good source of wisdom regarding friends. "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity" (Proverbs 17:17). "A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother" (Proverbs 18:24). The issue here is that in order have a friend, one must be a friend. "Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses" (Proverbs 27:6). " As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another" (Proverbs 27:17).


Refer here

LIFEBOOK 2009

Another interesting article which I receive in my email. Thanks Nixon for the below.










LIFEBOOK 2009
Health:

1. Drink plenty of water
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar
3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants, and eat less food that is manufactured in plants
4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy
5. Make time for prayer,
6.. Play more games
7. Read more books than you did in 2008
8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day
9. Sleep for 7 hours
10. Take a 10-30 minutes walk every day ---- and while you walk, smile


Personality:

11. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
13. Don't over do ; keep your limits
14. Don't take yourself so seriously ; no one else does
15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip
16. Dream more while you are awake
17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present
21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you
22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
23. Smile and laugh more
24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

Community:

25. Call your family often
26. Each day give something good to others
27. Forgive everyone for everything
28. Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6
29. Try to make at least three people smile each day
30. What other people think of you is none of your business
31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your family and friend! s will. Stay in touch.

Life:

32. Do the right things
33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful
34. GOD heals everything
35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change
36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up
37. The best is yet to come
38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it
39. Your Inner most is always happy. So, be happy



I like points no. 5, life is fragile, handle with prayer.
8( my preference meditation on God's word)
11- remember this one? I had the blues because I had no shoes,
Until upon the street, I met a man who had no feet"~Harold Abbott
also refer here

18 is a good reminder for those married couples and those in a relationship.
25- is so very important. value our family and see them or call them at oportunity you can. Dont live in regret .
Point 33 and I would like to add from Phil 4:8
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."

Have a nice day.

AN ATHEIST IN THE WOODS

This is another that email that make it's round again. Enjoy.


AN ATHEIST IN THE WOODS
An atheist was walking through the woods.

'What majestic trees!
'What powerful rivers!
'What beautiful animals!
He said to himself.

As he was walking alongside the river,he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. He turned to look. He saw a
7-foot grizzly bear charge towards him. He ran as fast as he could up the path. He looked over his shoulder & saw that the
bear was closing in on him.

He looked over his shoulder again, & the bear was even closer. He tripped & fell on the ground. He rolled over to pick
himself up but saw that the bear was right on top of him, reaching for him with his left paw & raising his right paw to strike him.
At that instant the Atheist cried out, 'Oh my God!'

Time Stopped.
The bear froze.
The forest was silent.

As a bright light shone upon the man, a voice came out of the sky.

'You deny my existence for all these years, teach others I don't exist and even credit creation to cosmic accident.'
'Do you expect me to help you out of this predicament?

Am I to count you as a believer?

The atheist looked directly into the light, 'It would be hypocritical of me to suddenly ask you to treat me as a Christian now,
but perhaps you could make the BEAR a Christian'?

'Very well,' said the voice.
The light went out. The sounds of the forest resumed. And the bear dropped his right paw, brought both paws
together, bowed his head & spoke:





'Lord bless this food, which I am about to receive from thy bounty
through Christ our Lord, Amen.'

DEATH : need not be scary if you know your maker

Got this in my email this morning. It is too good I have to share.

~.. DEATH~
WHAT A WONDERFUL WAY TO EXPLAIN IT

A sick man turned to his doctor as he was preparing to
leave the examination room and said,
"Doctor, I am afraid to die.
Tell me what lies on the other side."
Very quietly, the doctor said, "I don't know."
"You don't know? You, a Christian man,
do not know what is on the other side?"

The doctor was holding the handle of the door;
on the other side came a sound of scratching and whining,
and as he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room
and leaped on him with an eager show of gladness.
Turning to the patient, the doctor said,
"Did you notice my dog?
He's never been in this room before.
He didn't know what was inside.
He knew nothing except that his master was here,
and when the door opened, he sprang in without fear.
I know little of what is on the other side of death,
but I do know one thing...

I know my Master is there and that is enough."

Secret Ab Toning Exercises For a Flat Tummy and Slim Waistline, Exercise and Workout

Secret Ab Toning Exercises For a Flat Tummy and Slim Waistline, Exercise and Workout

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conquering my hill

I was all game when a friend of mine invited me during the weekend to climb the
Saga hill in cheras, little did I know what was in store for me.
We left klang around 6.30am and reached our destination at around 7.10 am and immediately started to climb Having been to Broga, I thought this should be a breeze
How wrong I was . It was quite a steep climb and more difficult than broga. I was grasping for breath half way and the thought that went through my head was what have I got myself in to.?
I stopped a couple of time to have my drink.and once to adjust my back pack and did not notice my friend have left without me. I thought I could catched up with him, (only latter did I learnt he had taken a different path. ) I could not see my friend, I tried to called him on the hand phone but there was no service so I went ahead and end up in a path that goes down hill instead of uphill . After a while I was convinced I was lost and deceide to double back as there was not way to catch up with my friend. As I was making my way up I met a small group and asked them for direction and was informed the path I took was indeed the correct way , even though it seems wrong to me.

One thing I notise was the people would greet one another even though they were total strangers Another thing that I observed was they would claps their hands. Maybe an indication to the group that they are ahead so that the rest could catch up in case they got lost ? Or was it to scare away wild animals? Maybe I should have inquired.
I stayed with the group and after about half an hour we reached the peak. What a relief.
I make it.! After a while I saw my friend who had taken another path and reached only minutes later.
We took a short break and then continue towards the water fall which took another half hour to reach.
Along the way I notice there were marker left by people who were there before. I suppose that was to help people incase they got lost. Going down the hill to the water fall was not easy even though there were rope tied on trees to aid those going down hill.
It was just a small water fall and after a while we make our way up to the peak again, rested awhile. My friend deceided to take a nap while I did some work up on some make shift” gym Equipment” By noon time we make our way down and head for home. We reached Klang around 1.30 pm and had a meal of bak kut .teh.


As I thought back of my hill experience, there is a lesson I could draw from this episode.There are also hills in our life, which we need to conquer.
My hill challenge was tough and I almost gave up half way. I even got separated along the way. It’s ok to be slow and we should not be afraid to ask for help when we are lost Had I gave up I would have missed reaching the peak. What motivate me? My goal, my ultimate destination which is the peak! We need to persevere and do not give up easily.
I like David’s attitude which is found in Psalm 121:1
I will lift up my eyes to the hills - from whence comes my help?"
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of Heaven and Earth.
He was able to look beyond the hill upward heaven towards God ,where his help lies.
To lift the gaze from the ground to a higher plain. Have you ever climbed a mountain? As you start the climb, you look up at the mountain and think of the challenges you will face on the way up. You contemplate the view from the summit. There's something solid and timeless about a mountain - it beckons the climber to stand on the summit The writer of Hebrew has this to say:-

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.(Heb 12:1)

The Marker along the way.helps hiker who may be lost or to confirm they are on the right track. We can be encourage and motivated by marks left by Christians for us to follow .Reading good Christian books help and learning from the experience of seasoned Christians will encourage in our quest to finish the race.
Just as the hikers greet one another which is an acknowledgement and encouragement to the other hikers especially those who are going downhill to those who are just coming up.

Paul always opens his letter with greetings . It is not uncommon whenever we have guest speakers from different churches ,they also bring greetings from their local churches. It is like telling us they have not forgotten us and are praying for us.

As I took stock after the event I reliased how important it is to have enough water. I brought two small bottle and finish it on the hill even before coming down hill. Big mistake.! I was not well equipped.
The Christian walk is never easy. We are bound to face problems, persecutions even.
Jesus gave us an insight
Jesus told His disciples, "In the world you will have tribulation. but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).
Discouragment are bound to come our way and spiritual attack from the enemy,
But we will be spare from the on slaughter of the enemy if we are fully geared. We need to put on the full armour of God described in Ephesians 6:10–18)