It's always tempting....

....to mull over mistakes. We do this sometimes because we feel we may be able to learn something - and sometimes, through some perverse desire to punish ourselves. Often though, our biggest mistakes are the ones we know nothing about. They may involve opportunities we do not realise we have missed or decisions that have led to a worse outcome than we yet realise.

 

 

 

And then, there are the moves we made which we thought were wrong, yet turned out not to be mistakes at all.

A different kind of blog....

...so that, as promised, you all know what is to happen on the 11th.

Just look again at my blog of 26 Jan, headed 'I know that....'  This will let you all know.

Since I wrote that, I have become much weaker.  (I've lost more than 8lbs in the last week.)  Unless God decrees otherwise, I cannot see how I am going to get thru this. I have not been granted a wholly supportive run-up to this date.

After this week, my friends, these blogs will have to stop.  If, only for a while, then you may well believe in miracles; and I will surely pick up my 'pen' where I leave off.  Keep an eye on my Twitter page from the 12th/13th.

I pray that you have enjoyed what I have posted.  If any of my blogs have been a source of help, that is truly wonderful.

I send this with every blessing to all of you around the world, and wish you all well.  Remember - Life is like a coin.  You can spend it how you like, but you can only spend it once.


C

When does bad news become good news?....

....When the implications contain unexpected advantages. And when does good news become bad news? When we choose to view it with a cynical eye. As soon as we start looking a gift horse in the mouth, we can take all the joy out of a happy situation. Some people seem to dedicate their lives to just such a purpose. As soon as they see a balloon of hope, they look for a way to let all the air out of it.

 

 

 

 

 

If we can ignore negativity, we can find a way to profit from virtually any apparent problem.

Rudolf the red-nosed reindeer,.....

....had a very shiny nose... Yes, yes, I know it's a few weeks late. But I just thought a little Christmas cheer might lift your mood over the next few days. You know, the one thing that really makes Christmas good is not the tradition, the feast or even the sense of celebration - it's the spirit of goodwill. The willingness to make extra allowances and to be emotionally generous.

 

 

 

 

Anyone can give a present. But it takes a lot to give of yourself.  Give all that you can.

It's been a while....

....my friends, hasn't it?  Aye, sorry about that. I'm afraid that my 'companion', AP, decided to put me out of commission for a couple of weeks.  Hopefully, soon, a kindly surgeon will cut it out for me. It would be so nice to be pain free for a while.  Oh, to have something of a life back........

 

Another year has arrived.  A year that I hope will soon bring with it enough for me to get a better car.  (Just something that isn't going to cause so much pain getting in and out of.)   A year where I hope that AP settles down enough for me to work tirelessly in the fulfilment of my destiny as I work more and more on behalf of The Boss.

 

 

 

 

Anyway, more importantly, I wish all of you a (belated) wonderfully beneficial 2013.  Let us work for the benefit of a friendly society, world-wide.  And let those less fortunate know that theirs is not a lost cause. We need to improve this world, and we cannot allow ourselves the luxury of being insular.  All of us can do something, and whatever we do won't ever be 'small'.  In all things - do as you would be done by.

 

 

 

 

To quote B Tracy - Make a commitment to be a master of change rather than a victim of circumstances.

 

I'm not going to post....

...a blog today, for you to read. You have not done enough to deserve it. It is not allowed. Instead, you can have a lecture about the need to behave better. And a reminder of various activities that are neither possible nor permissible. Consider yourself constrained, restricted and reprimanded. Now, how do you feel about that?

 

 

Well, that's exactly my point. Just as I have no right to give you a hard time, you have no right to give yourself one. Refuse to accept negativity, whatever shape it takes.

A different type of blog....

Many weeks ago I felt both honoured and humbled to be invited to lead the Harvest Festival celebrations at a church about 5 miles away.  The primary reason for the invitation was my work with Norwich foodbank and that church's support of it.  Nevertheless, they went out on a limb and specifically reqested that I lead - me, still a raw rookie.....still with the 'trainee' tag.  The date of this - 16 Sept.

On the way to the church, I glanced at a parting in a hedgerow and this poetic image of a freshly harvested field and horses in a paddock met my gaze on a bright autumnal morning.  It was the 'Hollywood impression' of our countryside.  At that singular point I realised that no matter the trials and tribulations we have to endure, we are truly blessed.  We just don't stop for a pregnant pause and count our blessings enough - and that is nobody's fault but our own.

After the church service I was told that 'Requesting you was an inspired decision'.  'Brilliant service.'  'One of the most memorable HF services I've attended.'    This just had to be God driven and God led.  If you who are reading this do not believe, then you do need to realise that it was driven and guided by an entity not of this world yet fully part of it.  

Me?  I left that church giving thanks to The Boss, and hit the 'Why me, why have I been chosen.....?' trail.  Still on it, as a matter of fact.  Oh, and I went back to those trials and tribulations - failed health, failing car, slow, failing computer, no funds, no family support for that which I do............

Someone once said - You will certainly carry out God’s purpose, but it makes a difference to you whether you serve like Judas or like John.  My fight, my daily fight, is to stop myself being the former.  And yet I know that for some reason that I will never fully understand, I am truly blessed.

Have a great day.