When Jesus was 33 He gave His life so that others might live
He was totally obedient to God
He had no worldly possessions
He spent His last year preaching, teaching, forgiving, healing, helping, saving
He set an example for the rest of us to follow
He suffered, He hurt, He cried…
He was tempted
He was hungry
He knew how to have a good time with friends
He cared more about others than Himself
He was kind, gentle and patient with everyone around Him
He was passionate, He got angry when He saw people defiling God’s temple
His motives were always pure and not self-serving
He loved kids: (Matthew 18:1-4, Matthew 18:10, Matthew 19:14, Mark 9:42)
He was humble
He liked hanging out with the forgotten more than the fortunate
He was wise
He was God on earth for a little while

THOSE born 1920-1979

TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED the 1930′s, 40′s, 50′s, 60′s and 70′s!!

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they were pregnant.

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn’t get tested for diabetes.

Then after that trauma we were put to sleep on our tummies in baby cribs covered with bright colored lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking.

As infants & children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, booster seats, seat belts or air bags.

Riding in the back of a pickup on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank Kool-aid made with sugar, but we weren’t overweight because,

WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on.

No one was able to reach us all day. And we were O. K.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes! After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo’s, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 150 channels on cable, no video movies or DVD’s, no surround-sound or CD’s, no cell phones, no personal computers, no Internet or chat rooms…

WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

We ate worms and mud pies made from dirt, and the worms did not live in us forever.

We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls and, although we were told i t would happen, we did not poke out very many eyes.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend’s house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!

Little League had tryout and not everyone made the team. Those who didn’t had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!

These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever!

The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!

If YOU are one them, CONGRATULATIONS!

I raced outside to capture this. A bunch of my neighbor friends were there too.

Luke 6:45
For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.

So this got me thinking…how can I change what I “accidentally” say…

I have to change the way I think. That’s hard.

How about changing the stuff I think about? That sounds pretty easy.

I’m going to try it. I’m going to try to think of only good things, the stuff I’m grateful for, the people I appreciate, etc.

I’m going to try to think about these things in abundance instead of why I’m frustrated or who’s let me down.

Then maybe, just maybe, if all I think about or those things, the overflow of my heart will be pure and sweet.

The best defense is a good offense, right?

Think about it, if from now on, when I’m in front of another soul, if all I have on my mind is gratitude to God for that person, then I’ll naturally want to speak life into them. My heart will naturally want to guard them and protect them from negative thoughts.

I think it boils down to caring more about the person who’s standing in front of you than you do about yourself in that moment. But even more than that, when you walk away and you’re alone, continuing to guard your thoughts, so that the next person you encounter gets the overflow of all the positive thoughts that were just floating around upstairs.

Maybe I’ll have to create a little mantra in my head every time I’m with someone “I care more about YOU than what I’m currently pissed about.”

Yep, that’s right I used that vulgar term to express my true emotions…bring it on grammar police.

Positive Thinking = Positive Speaking____Positive Thinking = Positive Speaking

Yesterday, after I got home from having my car towed to a repair shop, I ran into some friends and told them about my adventure. After I told them my car trouble story, I said “maybe it’s just a spark plug that needs replacing or something.” My friend said “That’s what you call wishful thinking” with a laugh.

Someone must have been saying a prayer for me.

I got the call this afternoon from the repair shop. Spark plugs need replacing. However, my little car also needed a major overhaul. About $2,000 worth. I calmly explained my situation (need car to get to work – car repair budget iz non-existent). He said let me figure something out and put me on hold. He came back with a figure about 1/3 as much. Basically the most expensive stuff was now the towing and the diagnostic tests.

Praise God!

seriously…anyone know?

[ht: pikaland]