Editor: Richard (Dick) Innes
Published by: ACTS International
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Vol. 12 â€" No. 0110 January 02, 2010
Thought for the week: "It's not where you startâ€"it's where you finish that counts." â€" Zig Ziglar
Today, as we pass from the Old Year into the New Year, may we accept the following advice for a worthy New Year resolution and remember to apply these principles every day of the year:
Smile at a stranger; listen to someone's heart;
hug a loved one.
Tell someone you're thinking of them. Drop a
coin where a child can find it. Learn something
new then teach it to someone else.
Look a child in the eye and tell them how great
they are.
Don't hold a grudge.
Don't be afraid to say, “I'm sorry.”
Look beyond the face of a person into their
heart.
Make a promise and keep it.
Call someone for no other reason than to
just say “hello.”
Show kindness to an animal. Stand up for
what you believe in.
Smell the rain, feel the breeze, listen to
the wind.
Use all your senses to their fullest. Cherish
all your todays.”1
People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do.
When someone is in your life for a reason, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed outwardly or inwardly. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally, or spiritually. They may seem like a Godsend, and they are. They are there for the reason you need them to be.
Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away. Sometimes they act up or out and force you to take a stand. What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled; their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered, and it is now time to move on.
When people come into your life for a season, it is because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn. They may bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe It! It is real! But, only for a season.
Lifetime relationships teach you lifetime lessons; those things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person/people (any way); and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life.
Mark Wellman gained national attention in the summer of 1989 by climbing the sheer face of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park.
The face that Mark climbed is not the remarkable part, but the fact that he did so being a paraplegic. Mark climbed for seven days with the help of his close friend, Mike Corbett. Mike would hold while Mark would pull himself up the granite face.
These two men shared a depth of friendship that is hard to find in our world today.
"As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend" (Proverbs 27:17).
Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end.
There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours, or days.
All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten, will pass to someone else.
Your wealth, fame, and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance.
It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed.
Your grudges, resentments, frustrations, and jealousies will finally disappear.
So too, your hopes, ambitions, plans, and to-do lists will expire.
The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.
It won't matter where you came from or what side of the tracks you lived on at the end.
It won’t matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant.
Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant.
So what will matter? How will the value of your days be measured?
What will matter is not what you bought but what you built; not what you got but what you gave.
What will matter is not your success but your significance.
What will matter is not what you learned but what you taught.
What will matter is every act of integrity, compassion, courage, or sacrifice that enriched, empowered, or encouraged others to emulate your example.
What will matter is not your competence but your character.
What will matter is not how many people you knew but how many will feel a lasting loss when you’re gone.
What will matter are not your memories but the memories that live in those who loved you.
What will matter is how long you will be remembered, by whom, and for what.
Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident.
It’s not a matter of circumstance but of choice.
Choose to live a life that matters.
This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.
It was Steven Covey, author of the popular book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, who coined the phrase, "Begin with the end in mind."
Most of us know that New Year Resolutions we make at the beginning of each New Year usually last until the next setback or challenge we face.
However, if we print a copy of "Steven Covey's Seven Habits" and tape them to the fridge or other prominent place and read them often, we have a much greater chance of finishing this New Year with a sense of achievement:
Steven Covey's Seven Habits:
Be proactive. Don't stand still. Take the initiative and be responsible.
Begin with the end in mind. Start any activity, a meeting, run, day, or life, with an end in mind. Work to that end and make sure your values are aligned with your goals.
Put first things first. Prioritize your life so you're working on the important stuff.
Think win/win. This is pretty obvious. You get what you put in.
Seek first to understand, then to be understood. Listen to emphasize, obtain information, and understand the other person's point of view.
Synergize. Work to create outcomes that are greater than the individual parts.
Sharpen the saw. Cultivate the essential elements of your character: physical, mental, social/emotional, and spiritual.1
And as Pastor Tod Bolsinger put it, "We need to live every day with the end in mindâ€"and most important of all, live with Jesus' end in mind."
"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad."2
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please help me every day this year to live, not only with the end of this year in mind but with the end of my life in mind so that, when I stand before you to give an account of my life, I will hear your welcome words, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord.' So help me God. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."
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