DUST ON THE BIBLE

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Today's readings:
   Isaiah 48:12-50:11
    Ephesians 4:17-32
    Psalm 69:1-18
    Proverbs 24:5,6

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Today's verse:

Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say
be good and helpful, so that your words will be an
encouragement to those who hear them.
Ephesians 4:29
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I need to comment on two completely different readings today
because I want to get them both into me head and can’t wait
till it rolls around to next year.

1. The standard that I have to live by in my relationships
is the same as how God lives with me. I don’t�?have any
excuse to live with my dirty laundry hanging out there. �?BR>Instead be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one
another just as God through Christ has forgiven you.�?
(Ephesians 4:32) The little phrase ‘just as�?is the key.
In all my dealings I deal just as Jesus. In all my
relationships, they should be just as the Lord’s. Anything
less is dishonoring and disobedient.

2. I just love the way David describes leadership tight
spots. “Save me O God, for the floodwater are up to my
neck. Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire; I can’t find
a foothold to stand on. I am in deep water, and the floods
overwhelm me. I am exhausted from crying for help . . . my
eyes are swollen with weeping, waiting for God to help me.�?
(Psalm 69:1-3)

If I’m not feeling that, maybe I’m not in the battlefield
enough.

Thankyou so much for sharing this wonderful message God bless you Love Pat

We are all created to be of equal worth. We

may be different sizes, different heights, dif-

ferent ages, different colors, we may have dif-

ferent beliefs and be of different cultures. In

the unseen world, we are all spirit formed into

different shapes and colors but we are all wor-

thy. For example, you can have water, you can

have steam, or you can have ice. Which of

these is not made up of H20?

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

There is always an answer! Spirit, the infinite intelligence of life itself, always knows the very best way to approach any difficulty, and to overcome any challenge. I know I can breathe easy, because this Spirit is my inspiration and my lifeblood. It's infinite, intelligent, powerful, and it's always at work for me.

It works by means of the beliefs, emotions, attitudes, and thinking I allow to go on in my mind and heart. I am always awake, noticing how I'm participating in creating my tomorrow today. If I decide I don't want to live out the way I'm thinking or feeling, I do whatever I must do to get clear, get free, or get released from whatever the burden appears to be. I flow with life with ease, and so every part of my experience flows.

This doesn't mean I never come up against a surprise, or against an experience that I'd rather never repeat! When I do, I always know how to proceed. I refuse to resist my life. I go with the flow of life, and when a rock appears in the river, I flow around it with grace, with the support of my community of friends, and with the eternal support of god itself. There's never anything to fear, nothing to worry about, no problem so big that spirit can't create the solution, right where I am. My emotions are known to me, I'm in touch and I'm current, and I'm totally ready here and now to be free of suffering. Spirit, do your stuff! And do it in me! And so it is.

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

We do not want riches, but we want to train our children right. Riches would do us no good. We could not take them with us to the other world.

We do not want riches, we want peace and love.

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

"Bright days and dark days were both

expressions of the Great Mystery, and the

Indian reveled in being close to the Great

Holiness."

The Great Spirit created a world of harmony,

a world of justice, a world that is intercon-

nected, a balanced world that has positive and

negative, this way and that way, up and down,

man and woman, boy and girl, honest and

dishonest, responsible and irresponsible, day

and night. In other words, He created a polar-

ity system. Both sides are to be respected. Both

sides of anything are sacred. We need to do

good and we need to learn from our mistakes.

We need to honor what takes place in the

daytime and we need to honor what takes

place in the nighttime. We learn what we need

to learn and we see what we are supposed to

see by staying close to the Great Spirit. We

need to be talking to Him all the time saying,

"Grandfather, what is it you want me to learn?"

Great Spirit,

let me learn

today that all

things are

sacred. Help

me stay close to

You, my

Creator.

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

I may never see tomorrow, there's no guarantee,
And things that happened yesterday belong to history.
I can't predict the future, I can't change the past,
I may have just the present memories to treat as my last.

I must use this moment wisely, for soon it will pass away,
And be lost forever as a part of yesterday.
I must exercise compassion, help the fallen to their feet,
Be a friend unto the friendless, make their life complete.

The unkind things I do today, may never be undone,
And friendships that I fail to win, may never more be won.
I may not have another chance on bended knees to pray,
And I thank God with a humble heart for giving me this day!

Sometimes in life, you find a special friend;
Someone who changes your life just by being part of it.
Someone who makes you laugh until you can't stop;
Someone who makes you believe that there really is good in the world.
Someone who convinces you that there really is an unlocked door just waiting for you to open it.
This is Forever Friendship.

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

This is my rock

And here I run

to steal the secret of the sun;

This is my rock

And here come I

Before the night has swept the sky;

This is my rock,

This is the place

I meet the evening face to face.

Beauty is seen

In the sunlight,

The trees, the birds,

Corn growing and people working

Or dancing for their harvest.

Beauty is heard

In the night,

Wind sighing, rain falling,

Or a singer chanting

Anything in earnest.

Beauty is in yourself.

Good deeds, happy thoughts

That repeat themselves

In your dreams,

In your work,

And even in your rest.

Life has loveliness to sell,

All beautiful and splended things,

Blue waves whitened on a cliff,

Soaring fire that sways and sings,

And children's faces looking up

Holding wonder like a cup.

Life has loveliness to sell,

Music like a curve of gold,

Scent of pine trees in the rain,

Eyes that love you, arms that hold,

And for your spirit's still delight

Holy thoughts that star the night.

Spend all you have for loveliness,

Buy it and never count the cost;

For one singing hour of peace

Count many a year of strife well lost,

And for a breath of ecstasy

Give all you have been, or could be.

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

To stand alone does not mean there is no one else around. It means we are u na tse li dv-u na to tiv hi.... we think for ourselves in an independent way, using our heads rather than our feet. We fit life to us instead of letting it press us into a mold that would not makes us happy. Letting the world dictate to us is being one of the herd that runs - not because it is the right thing to do, but because we think everyone else is doing it, and so must we. Is it the right direction? Refusing to be swept along with every trend is cultivating our inner awareness of right and wrong. Awareness is there within us, but we have to hear it and heed it. This is why we were given intelligence - to stand alone so that we may have something to offer when someone else needs us.

~ Too many misinterpretations have been made....too many misunderstandings.... ~

CHIEF JOSEPH

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

Little things heal our hurt. Sounds, scents, the spoken word, and music that may mean nothing to someone else can reach into our souls and do a work that ordinary methods cannot touch. Simple remedies can heal the deepest ills - a love that springs from inner wells, the sounds of birdsong and the laughter of children at play. Our work is to avoid the negative side - to think and speak only healing words, loving words. Choices are possible. Though we make many of them a day, we do it so unconsciously that we have not realized the effect - fretting about every little thing, letting the world steal our peace, and lying down when we should be up and doing. Choose to be well, to find contentment and to be a role model for those who watch. Listen for peace.

~ Listen! Or your tongue will make you deaf. ~

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

Let the person I serve express his thanks according to his own bringing up and his sense of humor."

"It is better to give than receive." But it doesn't really matter if we are giving or receiving. There is an identical feeling associated with both. We get this feeling every time we receive. We can't control when we receive gifts but we can control when we give gifts. Therefore, the more we give, the better we feel. When we are given gifts, or someone does something for us, it is the Indian way to honor this person.

Great Spirit, let me honor and be respectful to those who are good to me today.

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

"I can tell you that understanding begins with love and respect. It begins with respect for the Great Spirit. All things-and I mean ALL things-have their own will and their own way and their own purpose; this is what is to be respected."

Everything on earth has a purpose and is designed special. No two things are created identical. Sometimes in our minds we have a picture of how things should be, and often what we see is different from what they really are. When this happens we often want to control how things are, making them act or behave according to our picture. We need to leave things alone. God is running all things. How do we do this? In out minds we tell ourselves to love all things and respect all things just as they are. Accept what we cannot change.

Great Spirit, teach me the value of respect and help me to accept people, places and
things just as they are.

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

"I can tell you that understanding begins

with love and respect. It begins with

respect for the Great Spirit....All things -

and I mean all things - have their own

will and their own way and their own

purpose; this is what is to be respected."

Everything on earth has a purpose and is de-

signed special. No two things are created iden-

tical. Sometimes in our minds we have a pic-

ture of how things should be, and often what

we see is different from what they really are.

When this happens we often want to control

how things are, making them act or behave

according to our picture. We need to leave

things alone. God is running all things. How

do we do this? In our minds we tell ourselves

to love all things and respect all things just as

they are. Accept what we cannot change.

Great Spirit,

teach me the

value of respect

and help me to

accept people,

places, and

things just as

they are.

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

"It can be 100 degrees in the shade one

afternoon and suddenly there comes a

storm with hailstones as big as golf balls,

the prarie is all white and your teeth

chatter. That's good - a reminder that

you are just a small particle of nature, not

so powerful as you think."

No event, no relationship, no joy, no sadness,

no situation ever stays the same. Every setback

is only temporary. Even setbacks change. Why?

Because the Great Spirit designed the world

to be constantly changing. We are not the

center of the universe, we are but a small part.

The whole is constantly changing, and we as

humans are constantly participating in the

change. We have two choices, to resist change

or participate in the change. Every change

can be resisted, and every change can be made

in cooperation. What will I choose today, re-

sistance or cooperation?

Great Spirit,

teach me to

make coopera-

tive changes

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

Somewhere, sometime, your dream will come

true. Your dream, if you have shaped it and

given it substance, is sitting in a mental package,

ready to come forth. A dream is a vision given to

you to work with and to bring into being. If some

unfeeling person has told you that dreaming is a

waste of time, you waste your time listening to that

idea. Anything you can lay your hand on, anything

you can see, anything that comes into your head as

a good idea, was a dream before it ever happened.

As country children growing up, almost all our

activity involved dreams of what we were going to

be when we grew up. Those who had no dream let

the world decide for them what they would be. A

proverb tells us, where people have no vision--

they perish. Give gifts of vision to your children

by playing the game of "see yourself as...." Try it

yourself.

Treat all men alike...give them a chance to live and

grow,

My prayer has wings, it flies to the Heavens

on the wings of the Dove

Words tattle and turn strength into weakness.

Say you won't and you will. Say you will

and chances are that you won't. What you say you

will do falls short of the truth. Albert Schweitzer put

forth the idea that a person has to believe himself

capable of thinking truth or he becomes a skeptic.

Think deeply, meditate on meaning, look for truth

in everything--but watch those words. Many of

them have no real purpose and should not be spo-

ken at all.

May the hands of a friend always be near you

Important Announcement The MSN Groups service will close in February 2009. You can move your group to Multiply, MSN’s partner for online groups. Learn More
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