Why is it so hard to be happy?

The reason that happiness is so hard to acquire is because it is found only when one is unselfish enough to earnestly work at making others happy.

“It is one of the most beautiful

compensations of this life

that no man can sincerely try

to help another without

helping himself”  Emerson

“There is a destiny that

makes us brothers,

none goes his way alone:

all that we send into the

lives of others

comes back into our own.”

     Edwin Markham

CONCLUSION:

“I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any fellow creature, LET ME DO IT NOW.  Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” 

Timeless Words

Theodore Roosevelt’s words are timeless:

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of good deeds could have done better.  THE CREDIT BELONGS TO THE MAN WHO IS ACTUALLY IN THE ARENA, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows THE GREAT ENTHUSIASMS, THE GREAT DEVOTIONS; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of HIGH ACHIEVEMENT, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”

Do you believe in luck?

Success is only a matter of luck…any failure can tell you that.

However, if we are willing to listen to those who have succeeded, we will hear statements like these:

“The only good luck many GREAT PEOPLE ever had was being born with the ability and the determination to overcome bad luck.”

“Bad luck is, in nine out of ten cases, the result of saying PLEASURE FIRST and DUTY SECOND, instead of DUTY FIRST and PLEASURE SECOND.”

“Shallow people believe in luck; wise and strong people in CAUSE AND EFFECT.”

“Luck is a very good word, if a person puts the letter “P” before it.” 

Have you fought the good fight?

The words of Grantland Rice,

a famous sportswriter,

apply to all phases of life:

“You’ll find the road is long and

rough, with soft spots far apart,

where only those can make the

grade who have an Uphill Heart.

And when they stop you with a

thud or jolt you with a crack,

let courage call the signals

as you keep coming back.

Keep coming back, and though the

world may romp across your spine,

let every game’s end find

you still upon the battle line:

For when the ONE GREAT SCORER

comes to mark against your name,

He writes…not that you won or lost…

but how you played the game.

“…the time has come for my departure.

I have fought a good fight…”

The Apostle Paul

Are you willing to deal with the question mark?

The question mark is the coat of arms of the human race.

FIVE QUESTIONS FOR EACH OF US TO ASK:

1.      When is the last time that I did a “random act of kindness?”

2.      Do I see difficulties in every opportunity or opportunities in every difficulty?

3.      Do I see good in others or simply their flaws?

4.      Do I attempt to work through a problem or do I simply try to get around it and consequently never get past it?

5.      What could I accomplish if I were absolutely focused on what I feel is most important in my life?

HOW COMFORTABLE AM I WITH MY ANSWERS?

Do you remember?

Remember how you sang as a child:

“My country, ‘tis of thee,

Sweet land of liberty,

Of thee I sing;

Land where my Fathers died,

Land of the pilgrim’s pride,

From every mountain side

Let freedom ring,

OUR FATHER’S GOD TO THEE,

Author of liberty,

To Thee we sing;

Long may our land be bright

With Freedom’s holy light;

Protect us by Thy might,

GREAT GOD, OUR KING.”

(Samuel Francis Smith)

It would be well for both of us to put these words into our hearts and heads TODAY!!

The Four Steps of Character Destruction

A lesson of history is that the more association with evil we have the less evil it appears.  The commonness of vice makes it seem harmless and respectable.  But neither ugliness gets pretty nor wrong gets right by association.

The Four Steps of Character Destruction

1.      Association with evil

2.      Condoning evil

3.      Embracing evil

4.      Addiction to evil

TO AVOID:

“Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.”

Romans 12:9