Do you remember when you were a kid and someone would either
read or tell you a good story?
Do you still remember some of those stories?
I’m sure you do.
I have no idea where this story originated or I would certainly
disclose the source.
Once upon a time there was a little boy named Charlie.
And everyday Charlie would walk to school in a big hurry.
He always seemed to be running behind…
And one of the things that Charlie would do on his way to
school is stop off at the church that was right beside the school.
He was only in there for about 10 seconds.
He would kneel down in the very last pew,
and he only said 5 words.
The 5 words Charlie would say were:
Hello Jesus, this is Charlie.
And off to school he went.
Well, because of this little habit, many times
Charlie would be late for school and would have
to stay after as a punishment for being tardy.
Charlie never seemed to mind.
Charlie did this even on days when he would
have been on time, had he not stopped at the church.
Yep, everyday… rain or shine Charlie insisted
on stopping in the church to say his 5 words…
Hello Jesus, this is Charlie.
Well one day when Charlie was again rushing to school
he made a bad decision when crossing the street and there
was a terrible accident.
The driver of the car didn’t mean to hit Charlie and
did everything he could to stop.
An ambulance was called but by the time they arrived Charlie
had already drawn his last breath.
And what do you suppose were the first words Charlie heard
after he passed away?
?
?
?
?
?
Hello Charlie, this is Jesus.
**********************************************************
I hope you enjoyed that story.
I know I was just a young boy when someone told it to me,
and I’ve never forgotten it.
Do you talk to yourself?
Go ahead… admit it!
You’re not crazy. We all do it.
I do it. You do it. And so does everyone else.
That little voice has been called many things. You can’t shut
it off. Believe me when I tell you I’ve tried many times.
Years ago I had heard of the many benefits of learning to
meditate. So day after day I would sit in my favorite chair,
wearing comfortable clothing and I would pay attention to my
breath.
I could hear the inhale, I could hear the exhale and the
little space in between the two that was like complete silence.
I had already been forewarned that my mind would wander.
It did. Over and over and over and over and over.
When that happens I was told (through whatever instructions
I was following) to just remain calm and redirect my focus
back to my breath.
It sounds simple, doesn’t it.
Simple, yes.
Easy, no.
I realize that to get good at something… to get good at
anything one has to do it repeatly.
Take golfers for example.
Golfers, in an effort to improve their swing will practice
by hitting hundreds of drives daily. You may have heard of
the term “driving range”.
It’s a place that golfers go to do just that.
They can’t play a round of golf there, but they can practice
this one aspect of their game.
It’s the same reason why baseball players take batting practice
and catch ground balls.
It’s same for musicians, dancers, actors and a bazillion
other professions.
Perhaps I didn’t stay with the meditation ritual long enough
to get really good at it. Although I will admit that I still
do it occasionally and feel I do get some benfits from it.
The difference is that I now take a slightly different
approach. I no longer place the pressure on myself of not
noticing that little voice in my mind.
Now I find myself listening to it and saying to myself
“Isn’t that interesting?”
… a technique I learned from Louise Hay (another one of
my favorite authors).
Many of the things we say to ourselves today are the same
things we said to ourself yesterday and the day before.
Some of those things may stem from things our parents told
us when we were very young. Start to pay attention to that
little voice and see if there might be a few things that you’d
like to change.
Do you make encouraging statements to yourself?
Do you make discouraging statements to yourself?
Are you hard on yourself? Do you call yourself names and criticize
your performance. Or…
Do you appreciate yourself, and recognize progress and effort.
The greatest conversation you will ever have is with yourself.
Think about it.
CD – 18 Ways to Re-Program Your Brain in Thirty Seconds or Less
I first heard this poem years ago on an audio tape by Denis Waitley.
My children were very young at the time and I’ve always tried to keep
its wisdom in mind as I raised them.
Perhaps you may want to do the same, realizing that we all
are examples for others.
***************************
I’d Rather Watch a Winner
I’d Rather Watch a Winner
Than Hear One Any Day
I’d Rather Have One Walk With Me
Than Merely Tell the Way
The Eye is a Better Student
And More Willing Than the Ear
Great Counsel is Confusing
But Example is Always Clearer
The Best of All the Preachers
Are the Ones Who Live Their Deeds
To See the Good in Action
Is What Every Person Needs.
I Can Soon Learn How to Do It
If You’ll Just Let Me See It Done
I Can Watch Your Hands in Action
But Your Tongue Too Fast May Run
And the Lectures You Deliver
May Be Very Wise And True
But I’d Rather Get My Lesson
By Observing What YOU Do… (Dad)
For I May Misunderstand you
And the High Advice You Give
But There’s No Misunderstanding
How You Act And How YOU Live
I’d Rather Watch a Winner
Than Hear One Any Day.
A Father’s Love
This is an incredible story. I use to think I was a pretty good father…
Actually I still do… but watch these two videos and you’ll see why I titled this post a father’s love.
Allow me to introduce you to Team Hoyt!
Here is an email I received that I had to include. I’m sure you’ll agree it’s a good one.
Don
*******
This is one of the kindest things you may ever see. It is not known who replied, but there is a beautiful soul working in the dead letter office of the US postal service.
Our 14 year old dog, Abbey, died last month. The day after she died, my 4 year old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could. So she dictated these words:
Dear God,
Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much. I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick.
I hope you will play with her. She likes to play with balls and to swim. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her You will know that she is my dog. I really miss her.
Love, Meredith
We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had.
Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, ‘To Meredith’ in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers called, ‘When a Pet Dies.’ Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey & Meredith and this note:
Dear Meredith,
Abbey arrived safely in heaven.
Having the picture was a big help. I recognized Abbey right away.
Abbey isn’t sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don’t need our bodies in heaven, I don’t have any pockets to keep your picture in , so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by..
Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you.
I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much.
By the way, I’m easy to find, I am wherever there is love.
Love,
God
Here’s another one of my favorite emails. Perhaps you’ve seen it inside your own inbox, but it is a very poignant story and makes a good point about the impact we can have on others, many of which we may not know. Enjoy!
His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about
ten feet away from him.
He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes.
My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him as he
crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear
in his eye.
As I handed him his glasses, I said, “Those guys are jerks.
They really should get lives.”
He looked at me and said, “Hey thanks!”
There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles
that showed real gratitude.
I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived.
As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had
never seen him before.
He said he had gone to private school before now. I would have
never hung out with a private school kid before.
We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books.
He turned out to be a pretty cool kid.
I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends
and he said yes.
We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more
I liked him, and my friends thought the same of him.
Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of
books again. I stopped him and said, “Boy, you are gonna really
build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!
He just laughed and handed me half the books. Over the next
four years, Kyle and I became best friends.
When we were seniors we began to think about college.
Kyle decided on Georgetown and I was going to Duke.
I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles
would never be a problem.
He was going to be a doctor and I was going for business
on a football scholarship.
Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the
time about being a nerd.
He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it
wasn’t me having to get up there and speak.
Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great.
He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school.
He filled out and actually looked good in glasses.
He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him.
Boy, sometimes I was jealous! Today was one of those days.
I could see that he was nervous about his speech.
So, I smacked him on the back and said, “Hey, big guy, you’ll be great!”
He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and
smiled. “Thanks” he said.
As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began:
“Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it
through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings,
maybe a coach… but mostly your friends…
I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone
is the best gift you can give them.
I am going to tell you a story.”
I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story
of the first day we met.
He had planned to kill himself over the weekend.
He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn’t
have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home.
He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile. “Thankfully, I was saved.
My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable.”
I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy
told us all about his weakest moment.
I saw his Mom and Dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile.
Not until that moment did I realize it’s depth.
Never underestimate the power of your actions.
With one small gesture you can change a person’s life.
For better or for worse.
God puts us all in each others lives to impact one another in some way.
Look for God in others.
THE LARGE MAYONNAISE JAR AND 2 COKES
When things in your life seem almost too much to handle,
when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise
jar and the 2 Cokes.
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items
in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly 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 an unanimous ‘yes.’
The professor then produced two Cokes 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—and 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 most important to you.
Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.
Spend time with your children.
Spend time with your parents.
Visit with grandparents.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your spouse 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 cokes
represented. The professor smiled and said, ‘I’m glad you asked.’
The Coke just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem,
there’s always room for a couple of Cokes with a friend.’
I use to hate country music.
It’s true. Perhaps it has something to do with my age or my
generation, but if you are from my generation you’ll have to
admit that today’s country music is not the same as it was
many years ago.
I was born in the mid 50’s and grew up idolizing the Beatles,
the Dave Clark 5, Herman’s Hermits and well… on and on it goes.
In fact, truth be known, I use to put Beatle records on my Hi Fi
Stereo and pretend I was Paul McCartney (my favorite Beatle) and
perform for an imaginary audience.
I don’t even remember my first exposure to country music.
Perhaps it was from watching the popular television show
called “Hee Haw” that featured Buck Owens and the Buckaroos
and of course, Roy Clark.
In any case, the music never appealed to me and certainly
didn’t compare to the Rock ‘n Roll music that we all cherished
in those days.
That steel guitar sound immediately turned me off. I don’t know
why, but it did. Perhaps I associated it with what I concluded
as an inferior type of music.
Ironically, Country music today is my favorite type of music.
In the 70’s my dreams of performing in front of live audiences
in a band came true. No… Country music had not yet taken a
hold of me.
I played in a top 40 band and I can assure you that country
music, if we played any at all, was probably done at the request
of someone very special.
Disco music was a favorite of many people back then and that
included me. I loved the Bee Gees and the transition they made
from their earlier music to the Saturday Night Fever style,
as well as most of the other artists who performed disco in
those days.
Donna Summer… Barry White… ahhh… don’t get me started.
Did I mention I love to dance? And let’s not forget Earth, Wind
and Fire! I’m not even sure we can classify their music as disco,
but what ever it was, I loved it and still do.
Well how did I go from a top 40 band and a disco lover to a
country music fan?
Here’s what happened. One night while I was watching the annual
American Music Awards show on TV, the host was showing up in the
audience and randomly asking people who their favorite artist was?
A number of the people said “Garth Brooks.” Well, I knew who he
was and I had heard that he put on one heck of a show in concert…
and I noticed that these people were about my age and seemed to
be at least of average intelligence.
So I got to thinkin’. What am I missing? Perhaps I should give
country music another chance and just see if there’s something
worth listening to. I knew that the steel guitar was still as
annoying as ever to me, but I decided that for the next two weeks,
no matter how annoyed I might get, that I would listen only to
country music.
Then after the two weeks were up, I would reassess the situation
and decide if I had wasted my time or not.
Well, what happened was, as each day past, some of the songs began
to grow on me and I started to recognize them, just as I did with
other music and/or radio channels. I recall one in particular was
by Collin Raye called “Love Me.” It’s a beautiful love song.
If you’ve never heard it, try to find a way to listen to that one.
That was when I first started to realize that country music lyrics
are the absolute best in any music genre (just my opinion of course).
By the time the two weeks were up, I had a few of my favorite songs
playing on that channel, and I’ve never looked back. Yes, I use to
hate country music and I still do not like most of the “old” country
songs. But things change. I changed and I feel that country music
has changed too.
Of course, I still love all of the stuff I always loved, and
from time to time there are still a few top 40 songs that I
take a liking to… but, my favorite channel now is 93.1 WPOC,
Baltimore’s country music channel.
Things to Say/Pray When You First Wake Up
Here are a few of my morning prayers. I thought perhaps some of you
might like to make them your own. Feel free to select the ones that
you like and adopt them. I’ll be posting some of my favorite scriptures
in the next few days, so if you like my prayers you may also like my
favorite scriptures. 
Here goes:
This is a day the Lord has made!
I shall rejoice and be glad in it!
~
God, whether I get anything else done today,
I want to make sure that I spend time loving You and loving other people –
Because that’s what life is all about.
~
This is going to be a great day!
Thank you Lord, for guiding and directing my steps.
Thank you Lord, for bestowing your favor upon me.
Thank you Lord, for having your goodness and mercy follow me.
I am excited about today!
Because of You, circumstances are changing in my favor.
Because of You, I am at the right place at the right time.
Because of You, doors of opportunity are opening for me.
Because of You, I am rising above life’s challenges.
Good things are coming my way.
I am a good person and I deserve the desires of my heart!
~
Divine Father, Holy Mother, move me.
Take me this day to my highest good.
Make me aware of all that will guide me
Toward my Heart’s Desires. Amen
~
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Good morning Lord.
I love You. I need You. And I believe in You.
I know that You are with me always.
Please help me with each and every situation that confronts me,
to always see your light and to always choose to follow it.
I’m sorry for what I have ever done wrong to hurt You or any others.
Please help me to do better.
Thank You for the many blessings that You have bestowed upon me and my loved ones.
Many of which we take for granted everyday.
Please help us all to recognize and appreciate them.
I would especially like to thank You for my health, my wealth, my wife, my children, all
other family members and all other relationships.
I’d also like to thank You for the health and wealth of my wife, my children and all other
family members and all others who use them wisely. Please help us all to do so.
Please surround me and all of my loved ones with your protection.
Keep us all safe from harm. I ask all this in the name of Your Son Jesus. Amen
~
I believe
I believe that this is going to be a wonderful day.
And that I can successfully handle all problems that will arise today.
I feel good physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
It is wonderful to be alive.
I am grateful for all that I have had…
for all that I now have…
and for all that I shall have.
Things are NOT going to fall apart.
God is here and He is with me and He will see me through.
I thank God for every good thing.
Through God I can do all good things
but without Him I am lost.
~
This post is about morning prayers.
