Eternity in our hearts...

"Forever and ever? That’s it? That’s the “good news”? And then we sigh and feel guilty that we are not more “spiritual.” We lose heart, and we turn once more to the present to find what life we can. Eternity ends up having no bearing on our search for life whatsoever. It feels like the end of the search. And since we’re not all that sure about what comes after, we search hard now.
Remember, we can only hope for what we desire. How can the church service that never ends be more desirable than the richest experiences of life here? It would be no small difference if you knew in your heart that the life you prize is just around the corner, that your deepest desires have been whispering to you all along about what’s coming. You see, Scripture tells us that God has “set eternity” in our hearts (Eccl. 3:11). Where in our hearts? In our desires.

The return of spring brings such relief and joy and anticipation. Life has returned, and with it sunshine, warmth, color, and the long summer days of adventure together. We break out the lawn chairs and the barbecue grill. We tend the garden and drink in all the beauty. We head off for vacations. Isn’t this what we most deeply long for? To leave the winter of the world behind, what Shakespeare called “the winter of our discontent,” and find ourselves suddenly in the open meadows of summer?
(The Journey of Desire , 111)

Nursing Fun

You believe every patient needs TLC: Thorazine, Lorazepam and Compazine.
You would like to meet the inventor of the call light in a dark alley one night.
You believe not all patients are annoying ... some are unconscious.
Your sense of humor seems to get more "warped" each year.
Almost everything can seem humorous ... eventually.
Every time you walk, you make a rattling noise because of all the stuff in your pockets.
You refuse to watch ER because it's too much like the real thing and triggers "flash backs."
You check the caller ID when the phone rings on your day off to see if someone from the office is trying to call to ask you to work.
You've been telling stories in a restaurant and had someone at another table throw up.
Every time someone asks you for a pen, you can find at least three of them on you.
You can intubate your friends at parties.
You don't get excited about blood loss ... unless it's your own.
You live by the motto, "To be right is only half the battle, to convince the physician is more difficult."
You've basted your Thanksgiving turkey with a Toomey syringe.
You've told a confused patient your name was that of your coworker and to HOLLER if they need help.
Eating microwave popcorn out a clean bedpan is perfectly natural.
Your bladder can expand to the same size as a Winnebago's water tank.
When checking the level of orientation of a patient, you aren't sure of the answer.
You find yourself checking out other customer's arm veins in grocery waiting lines.
You avoid unhealthy looking shoppers in the mall for fear that they'll drop near you and you'll have to do CPR on your day off.
You've sworn you're going to have "NO CODE" tattooed on your chest.

wine

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some
items in front of him.

When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up
a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with
golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed
that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and
poured them into the jar.

He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it
into the Jar.

Of course, the sand filled up everything else He asked once
more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two glasses of wine from under
the table and poured the entire contents into the jar,
effectively filling the empty space between the sand.
The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want
you to recognize that this jar represents your life.

The golf balls are the important things; your family, your children, your health,
your friends, and your favorite passions; things that if everything else was lost
and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car.

The sand is everything else; the small stuff.

If you put the sand into the jar first, he continued, there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.

>>>

The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,
you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.

Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner
out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.

Take care of the golf balls first; the things that really matter.

Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the wine represented.

The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that
no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple
of glasses of wine with a friend."

This story really calls me to wake up to what life is and to the reality that priorities need to be set in place. It is so easy to get caught up with the 'sand' in life - so much so until there is no time and no room for the important golf balls and rocks.
Stories like this always seem to come at the right time for me... just as I am filling my world with too much sand... I hear the call to 'be still and know'

I have found that I have allowed my life to get so busy at times that I have neglected relationships, family time, and time with the lover of my soul. People are what is going to last. Nobody is going to remember what I did on any given day... but people will remember who I was each day... am I loving, caring, compassionate, full of mercy and grace... have I laid down my life for another today? How did I show people that they were important, How did I affect the world? Am I becoming who I need to be?

surgery

A middle aged woman had a heart attack and was taken to the hospital.
Whileon the operating table, she had a near death experience.
Seeing God, she asked, "Is my time up?"
God said, "No, you have another 43 years, 2 months and 8 days to live."

Upon recovery, the woman decided to stay in the hospital and have a face-lift, brow lift, lip enhancement, boob job, liposuction, and a tummy tuck. Afterher last operation, she was released from the hospital.

While crossing the street on her way home, she was hit and killed by a car.
Arriving in front of God, she demanded, "I thought you said I had another 40 years? Why didn't you pull me out of the path of the car?"

God replied, "Girrrlllllll, I didn't even recognize you "

oh how this made me laugh... how often do we try to cheat life, to twist the things that God tells us so that they suit our lives?

photography - wow!

For all of my photo loving friends... check out these sites! My friend Casey is a photographer and has his sites up now - aren't they incredible!!! I must say I am definitely impressed! The sites are under construction and being revamped... but what is there- wow!

http://www.shiftimages.ca/

http://www.caseychuhaniuk.com/slide2.html

Auld Lang Syne

Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and days of auld lang syne?
For auld lang syne,
my dear, for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
and days of auld lang syne?
And here's a hand, my trusty friend
And gie's a hand o' thine
We'll tak' a cup o' kindness yet
For auld lang syne

my birthday card...

Once, before the foundation of the world,

Jesus and His Father had a conversation

about the great plan of redemption.

That conversation included you.

Jesus looked down the corridors

of time and knew that you would be born.

He saw your needs when He said

to His Father, "I will go."

At the Father's appointed time,

Jesus came to earth so that you would

never need to be far from Him.

What an incredible journey He made;

what an overwhelming expression

of love He made; wat an

aweseome purpose He had in mind.

You were on His heart.

When He left His home in

heaven, He saw you;

when He became a man on earth,

He was seeking you;

when He stretched out His hands

upon the cross, He was

reaching out to you;

when He returned to His Father,

He was preparing a place for you.

You are the sheep He has

come to shepherd, to guide, to feed,

to protect, to shelter, and to carry.

You are the one He calls His own.

~Roy Lessin~

God... you and I

Dancing With God

When I meditated on the word Guidance,

I kept seeing "dance" at the end of the word.

I remember reading that doing God's will is a lot like dancing.

When two people try to lead, nothing feels right.

The movement doesn't flow with the music,

and everything is quite uncomfortable and jerky.

When one person realizes that, and lets the other lead,

both bodies begin to flow with the music.

One gives gentle cues, perhaps with a nudge to the back

or by pressing lightly in one direction or another.

It's as if two become one body, moving beautifully.

The dance takes surrender, willingness,

and attentiveness from one person

and gentle guidance and skill from the other.

My eyes drew back to the word Guidance.

When I saw "G: I thought of God,

followed by "u" and "i". "God, "u" and "i" dance."

God, you, and I dance.

As I lowered my head, I became willing to trust

that I would get guidance about my life.

Once again, I became willing to let God lead.

this is beautiful... try not to cry!

She jumped up as soon as she saw the surgeon come out of the operating room. She said: "How is my little boy ? Is he going to be all right ? When can I see him ?" The surgeon said, "I'm sorry. We did all we could, but your boy didn't make it."
Sally said, "Why do little children get cancer ? Doesn't God care any more ? Where were you, God, when my son needed you ?"
The surgeon asked, "Would you like some time alone with your son ? One of the nurses will be out in a few minutes, before he's transported to the university." Sally asked the nurse to stay with her while she said good bye to her son. She ran her fingers lovingly through his thick red curly hair. "Would you like a lock of his hair ?" the nurse asked. Sally nodded yes. The nurse cut a lock of the boy's hair, put it in a plastic bag and handed it to Sally.

The mother said, "It was Jimmy's idea to donate his body to the University for Study. He said it might help somebody else. "I said no at first, but Jimmy said, 'Mom, I won't be using it after I die. Maybe it will help some other little boy spend one more day with his Mom." She went on, "My Jimmy had a heart of gold. Always thinking of someone else. Always wanting to help others if he could."

Sally walked out of Children's Mercy Hospital for the last time, after spending most of the last six months there. She put the bag with Jimmy's belongings on the seat beside her in the car. The drive home was difficult. It was even harder to enter the empty house. She carried Jimmy's belongings, and the plastic bag with the lock of his hair to her son's room. She started placing the model cars and other personal things back in his room exactly where he had always kept them. She laid down across his bed and, hugging his pillow, cried herself to sleep.

It was around midnight when Sally awoke. Laying beside her on the bed was a folded letter. The letter said :
"Dear Mom, I know you're going to miss me; but don't think that I will ever forget you, or stop loving you, just 'cause I'm not around to say "I Love You" . I will always love you, Mom, even more with each day. Someday we will see each other again. Until then, if you want to adopt a little boy so you won't be so lonely, that's okay with me. He can have my room and old stuff to play with. But, if you decide to get a girl instead, she probably wouldn't like the same things us boys do. You'll have to buy her dolls and stuff girls like, you know. Don't be sad thinking about me. This really is a neat place. Grandma and Grandpa met me as soon as I got here and showed me around some, but it will take a long time to see everything. The angels are so cool. I love to watch them fly. And, you know what? Jesus doesn't look like any of his pictures. Yet, when I saw Him, I knew it was Him. Jesus himself took me to see GOD ! And guess what, Mom ? I got to sit on God's knee and talk to Him, like I was somebody important. That's when I told Him that I wanted to write you a letter, to tell you good bye and everything. But I already knew that wasn't allowed. Well, you know what Mom ? God handed me some paper and His own personal pen to write you this letter. I think Gabriel is the name of the angel who is going to drop this letter off to you. God said for me to give you the answer to one of the questions you asked Him 'Where was He when I needed him ?' "God said He was in the same place with me, as when His son Jesus was on the cross. He was right there, as He always is with all His children. Oh, by the way, Mom, no one else can see what I've written except you. To everyone else this is just a blank piece of paper. Isn't that cool ? I have to give God His pen back now. He needs it to write some more names in the Book of Life. Tonight I get to sit at the table with Jesus for supper. I'm sure the food will be great. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. I don't hurt anymore. The cancer is all gone. I'm glad because I couldn't stand that pain anymore and God couldn't stand to see me hurt so much, either. That's when He sent The Angel of Mercy to come get me. The Angel said I was a Special Delivery ! How about that ?
Signed with Love from God, Jesus & Me.

Taming Time

By Dr. John C. Maxwell

Time is precious. Ask the coach whose team is behind in the final seconds of a game. Ask the air traffic controller in charge of scheduling takeoffs and landings at a major airport. Ask the news reporter who has just received a breaking story from the AP wire. Ask the cancer patient who has recently learned they have only two months left to live.
Time management is an oxymoron. Time is beyond our control, and the clock keeps ticking regardless of how we lead our lives. Priority management is the answer to maximizing the time we have. Our days are identical suitcases—all the same size—but some can pack more into them than others. No one has a magical ability to make time, but if our lives have direction, we can make the most of the moments we have been given.
Time is more valuable than money, because time is irreplaceable. “You don’t really pay for things with money,” says author Charles Spezzano in What to Do between Birth and Death. “You pay for them with time.” We exchange our time for dollars when we go to work and then trade our dollars for everything we purchase and accumulate. In essence, all we possess can be traced back to an investment of time. Time stewardship is perhaps a leader’s greatest responsibility. In the words of Peter Drucker, “Nothing else distinguishes effective executives as much as their tender loving care of time.”

Why God Allows Pain...

I just read this on someone else's journal... I though it was pretty incredible!

A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed. As the barber began to work, they began to have a good conversation. They talked about so many things and various subjects.
When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said: "Idon't believe that God exists."
"Why do you say that?" asked the customer.
"Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist. Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain. I can't imagine a loving God who would allow all of these things."
The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument. The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop.
Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed beard. He looked dirty and unkempt.
The customer turned back and entered the barber shop again and he said to the barber: "You know what? Barbers do not exist."
"How can you say that?" asked the surprised barber. "I am here, and I am a barber. And I just worked on you!"
"No!" the customer exclaimed. "Barbers don't exist because if they did,there would be no people with dirty long hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside."
"Ah, but barbers DO exist! What happens is that some people do not come to me."
"Exactly!"- affirmed the customer. "That's the point! God, too, DOES exist! What happens is that people don't go to Him and do not look for Him.That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the world."

the value of time...

To realize the value of a sister
Ask someone who doesn't have one.

To realize the value of ten years:
Ask a newly divorced couple.

To realize the value of four years:
Ask a graduate.

To realize the value of one year:
Ask a student who has failed a final exam.

To realize the value of nine months:
Ask a mother who gave birth to a stillborn.

To realizeThe value of one month:
Ask a mother who has given birth to a premature baby.

To realize the value of one week:
Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize the value of one minute:
Ask a person who has missed the train, bus or plane.

To realize the value of one-second:
Ask a person who has survived an accident.

Time waits for no one.
Treasure every moment you have.
You will treasure it even more when you can share it with someone special.

To realize the value of a friend or family member:
lose one...

Talk about an interesting way to look at things! A friend of mine from school sent me this in an email and I have to say - it certainly makes you look at time in a different manner!

Another interesting issue surrounding 'time' for me came from reading my cousin's blog...(she is a missionary in Northern Ontario on an Aboriginal Reserve). She has just finished reading a book called "flabbergasted" by Ray Blackston and this is a quote from there...

"I had always pictured myself living on the face of a huge clock, running just ahead of the second hand that would slam me in the butt every time I tried to slow down. But in Ecuador I felt like I was being pulled along by the minute hand, slow and steady, with enough leisure to enjoy circumference, the arc of a day. Now, finally, I understood the difference between tick and tock. Tick flips from the end of the tongue like something fast and hurried, as something instant, surfacy, and shallow. Tock comes from a deeper place; it's a bass note, or at least a tenor. Tocks moves more slowly. If there were a tocking time bomb, I would not run out of the building, but rather stroll through the lobby, order a cafe mocha, check the sports page for standings in the American League East, then hold the door open as a good Southerner should."

Time... to everything there is a season, a time for everything under heaven (Ecclesiastes 3:1) Everything in life is revolvant around time... we as humans measure time in second, minutes and hours... days, weeks, and years... Papa doesn't live in such a limited existence... he has eternity where years are seconds and seconds are decades - this is incredible to me!

So in essence, time is a gift to us - each second of our day is a gift to us from the author of our existence - we are stewards of our time and accountable for how we spend our days and for who we spend our time with... for me this causes me to take another look at procrastination... a huge fallout of mine, one that I will definitely have to continue to lay down... and so I say "My times are in your hands (Ps 31:15)"

I love how Laura ended her blog... "and life goes on... tock, tock, tock." I am going to try to live my life as more of a tocking kind of life as opposed to the fast paced ticking that I have been living... I'll settle for a slowdown...