Good morning said a woman as she walked up to the man sitting on ground. The man slowly looked up.  This was a woman clearly accustomed to the finer things of life. Her coat was new... She looked like she had never missed a meal in her life.  His first thought was that she wanted to make fun of him, like so many others had done before..  "Leave me alone," he growled....  To his amazement, the woman continued standing.  She was smiling -- her even white teeth displayed in dazzling rows. "Are you hungry?" she asked.  "No," he answered sarcastically. "I've just come from dining with the president. Now go away."  The woman's smile became even broader. Suddenly the man felt a gentle hand under his arm.  "What are you doing, lady?" the man asked angrily. "I said to leave me alone.  Just then a policeman came up. "Is there any problem, ma'am?" he asked..  "No problem here, officer," the woman answered. "I'm just trying to get this man to his feet. Will you help me?"  The officer scratched his head.  "That's old Jack. He's been a fixture around here for a couple of years. What do you want with him?"  "See that cafeteria over there?" she asked. "I'm going to get him something to eat and get him out of the cold for awhile."  "Are you crazy, lady?" the homeless man resisted. "I don't want to go in there!"  Then he felt strong hands grab his other arm and lift him up.  "Let me go, officer. I didn't do anything." " This is a good deal for you, Jack" the officer answered. "Don't blow it.."  Finally, and with some difficulty, the woman and the police officer got Jack into the cafeteria and sat him at a table in a remote corner.  It was the middle of the morning, so most of the breakfast crowd had already left and the lunch bunch had not yet arrived...  The manager strode across the cafeteria and stood by his table.  "What's going on here, officer?" he asked.  "What is all this, is this man in trouble?"  "This lady brought this man in here to be fed," the policeman answered.  "Not in here!" the manager replied angrily. "Having a person like that here is bad for business.."  Old Jack smiled a toothless grin.  "See, lady. I told you so. Now if you'll let me go. I didn't want to come here in the first place."  The woman turned to the cafeteria manager and smiled..... "Sir, are you familiar with Eddy and Associates, the banking firm down the street?"  "Of course I am," the manager answered impatiently. "They hold their weekly meetings in one of my banquet rooms."  "And do you make a goodly amount of money providing food at these weekly meetings?"  "What business is that of yours?"  I, sir, am Penelope Eddy, president and CEO of the company."  "Oh."  The woman smiled again. "I thought that might make a difference."  She glanced at the cop who was busy stifling a giggle. "Would you like to join us in a cup of coffee and a meal, officer?"  "No thanks, ma'am," the officer replied. "I'm on duty."  "Then, perhaps, a cup of coffee to go?""Yes, mam. That would be very nice."  The cafeteria manager turned on his heel, "I'll get your coffee for you right away, officer."  The officer watched him walk away. "You certainly put him in his place," he said. "That was not my intent. Believe it or not, I have a reason for all this."  She sat down at the table across from her amazed dinner guest. She stared at him intently...  "Jack, do you remember me?"  Old Jack searched her face with his old, rheumy eyes.  "I think so -- I mean you do look familiar."  "I'm a little older perhaps," she said. "Maybe I've even filled out more than in my younger days when you worked here, and I came through that very door, cold and hungry."  "Ma'am?" the officer said questioningly.  He couldn't believe that such a magnificently turned out woman could ever have been hungry.  "I was just out of college," the woman began.. "I had come to the city looking for a job, but I couldn't find anything.  Finally I was down to my last few cents and had been kicked out of my apartment. I walked the streets for days.  It was February and I was cold and nearly starving. I saw this place and walked in on the off chance that I could get something to eat."  Jack lit up with a smile.  "Now I remember," he said..  "I was behind the serving counter.  You came up and asked me if you could work for something to eat. I said that it was against company policy."  "I know," the woman continued. "Then you made me the biggest roast beef sandwich that I had ever seen, gave me a cup of coffee, and told me to go over to a corner table and enjoy it.  I was afraid that you would get into trouble... Then, when I looked over and saw you put the price of my food in the cash register, I knew then that everything would be all right."  "So you started your own business?" Old Jack said.  "I got a job that very afternoon. I worked my way up.  Eventually I started my own business that, with the help of God, prospered." She opened her purse and pulled out a business card.. "When you are finished here, I want you to pay a visit to a Mr. Lyons...He's the personnel director of my company. I'll go talk to him now and I'm certain he'll find something for you to do around the office."  She smiled.  "I think he might even find the funds to give you a little advance so that you can buy some clothes and get a place to live until you get on your feet... If you ever need anything, my door is always opened to you."  There were tears in the old man's eyes. "How can I ever thank you?" he said."Don't thank me," the woman answered. "To God goes the glory. Thank Jesus..... He led me to you."  Outside the cafeteria, the officer and the woman paused at the entrance before going their separate ways....  "Thank you for all your help, officer," she said.  "On the contrary, Ms. Eddy," he answered. "Thank you. I saw a miracle today, something that I will never forget. And..And thank you for the coffee."  If you have missed knowing me, you have missed nothing.  If you have missed some of my emails, you might have missed a laugh..  But, if you have missed knowing my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, you have missed everything in the world.  Have a Wonderful Day. May God Bless You Always and don't forget that when you "cast your bread upon the waters," you never know how it will be returned to you..God is so big He can cover the whole world with his Love and so small He can curl up inside your heart..  When God leads you to the edge of the cliff, trust Him fully and let go.  Only 1 of 2 things will happen, either He'll catch you when you fall, or He'll teach you how to fly!  The  power of one sentence!  God is going to shift things around for you today and  let things work in your favor.  If you believe, send it.  If you don't believe, delete it.  God closes doors no man can open & God opens doors no man can close..  If you need God to open some doors for you...send this on. Have a blessed day and remember to be a blessing...  

Long time ago, there was an Emperor who told his chief horseman that if he could ride on his horse and cover as much area as he liked, then the Emperor would give him the area of land as much as he had covered. Sure enough the horsemean quickly jumped onto his horse and rode as fast as possible to cover as much area as he could. He kept on riding and riding, beating the horse to go as fast as possible. When he was hungry or tired, he did not stop because he wanted to cover as much area as possible. It came to a point he had covered a very substantial area but he got very tired and was dying. Then he said to himself, "Why did I push myself so hard to cover so much area? Now I am dying from exhaustion and fatigue and I only need a very small area to bury myself". The above "story" is similar with the journey of our life. We push very hard everyday to make more money, power and recognition. We neglect our health, time with family and appreciating the surrounding beauty and the hobbies we want to do. One day when we think back, we will say we don't really need that much but then we cannot turn back the clock for what we have missed. So take it easy, do what you want to do and appreciate the beauty of things around you. Life is fragile, do not take life for granted. Live a balanced lifestyle. Enjoy the life that GOD gave us!!

Once upon a time there was an island where all the feelings lived: Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all of the others including Love. One day it was announced to the feelings that the island would sink, so all repaired their boats and left. Love wanted to perservere until the last possible moment. When the island was almost sinking, Love decided to ask for help.Richness was passing by Love in a grand boat. Love said, "Richness, can you take me with you?" Richness answered, "No, I can't. There is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no place here for you." Love decided to ask Vanity who was also passing by in a beautiful vessel, "Vanity, please help me!" "I can't help you Love. You are all wet and might damage my boat," Vanity answered. Sadness was close by so Love asked for help. "Sadness, let me go with you." "Oh...Love, I am so sad that I need to be by myself!"Happiness passed by Love too, but she was so happy that she did not even hear when Love called her!Suddenly, there was a voice, "Come Love, I will take you." It was an elder. Love felt so blessed and overjoyed that he even forgot to ask the elder his name. When they arrived at dry land, the elder went his own way. Love, realizing how much he owed the elder asked Knowledge, another elder, "Who helped me?" "It was Time," Knowledge answered. "Time?" asked Love. "But why did Time help me?" Knowledge smiled with deep wisdom and answered, "Because, only Time is capable of understanding how great Love is"

A group of frogs were traveling through the woods, and two of them fellinto a deep pit. All the other frogs gathered around the pit. When they sawhow deep the pit was, they told the two frogs that they were as good as dead.The two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump out of the pitwith all of their might. The group of frogs kept telling them to stop because theywere as good as dead. Finally, one of the frogs took heed to what theotherfrogs were saying and gave up. He fell down and died.The second frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Once again, thecrowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just die. He jumped evenharder and finally made it out.You see this frog was deaf, unable to hear what the others were saying.He thought they were encouraging him the entire time.This story teaches a lesson...There is the power of life and death in the tongue. An encouraging wordto someone who is down can lift them up and help them make it through theday. A destructive word to someone who is down can be what it takes to killthem. Be careful of what you say. Speak life to those who cross your path. Thepower of words... an encouraging word can go such a long way

Two travelling angels stopped to spend the night in the home of a wealthy family. The family was rude and refused to let the angels stay in the mansion's guestroom. Instead the angels were given a small space in the cold basement. As they made their bed on the hard floor, the older angel saw a hole in the wall and repaired it. When the younger angel asked why, the older angel replied, "Things aren't always what they seem."   The next night the pair came to rest at the house of a very poor, but very hospitable farmer and his wife. After sharing what little food they had the couple let the angels sleep in their bed where they could have a good night's rest. When the sun came up the next morning the angels found the farmer and his wife in tears.  Their only cow, whose milk had been their sole income, lay dead in the field. The younger angel was infuriated and asked the older angel how could you have let this happen? The first man had everything, yet you helped him, she accused. The second family had little but was willing to share everything, and you let the cow die.   "Things aren't always what they seem," the older angel replied. "When we stayed in the basement of the mansion, I noticed there was gold stored in that hole in the wall. Since the owner was so obsessed with greed and unwilling to share his good fortune, I sealed the wall so he wouldn’t find it."   "Then last night as we slept in the farmers bed, the angel of death came for his wife. I gave him the cow instead. Things aren't always what they seem."   Sometimes that is exactly what happens when things don't turn out the way they should. If you have faith, you just need to trust that every outcome is always to your advantage. You might not know it until some time later...   Some people come into our lives and quickly go…                            oooO                            (    )     Some people        \  (        become friends      \_)        and stay awhile... leaving beautiful footprints on our    hearts...       oooO (     )     and we are never quite the same because we have made a good friend!!  \  (   \_)       Yesterday is history. Tomorrow a mystery. Today is a gift. That's why it's called the present!   I think this life is special...live and savour every moment...                       This is not a dress rehearsal!                      (\        /)                   (  \ __ /   )                    (  \( )/   )                     (   /  \   )               TAKE THIS LITTLE ANGEL                     ( / \/ \ )                AND KEEP HER CLOSE TO YOU                      /      \                   SHE IS YOUR GUARDIAN ANGEL                     (        )                  SENT TO WATCH OVER YOU                      ____   THIS IS A SPECIAL GUARDIAN ANGEL... YOU MUST PASS THIS ON TO 5 PEOPLE  WITHIN THE HOUR OF RECEIVING HER..AFTER YOU DO MAKE A WISH....IF YOU HAVE PASSED HER ON, YOUR WISH WILL BE GRANTED AND SHE WATCH OVER YOU FOREVER....IF NOT..HER TEARS WILL FLOW AND NO WISHES WILL BE GRANTED....  < ><-->

One day I decided to quit...I quit my job, my relationship, my spirituality.... I wanted to quit my life. I went to the forest to have one last talk with God. "God", I said. "Can you give me one good reason not to quit? "His answer surprised me. "Look around", He s aid. "Do you see the fern and the bamboo?" "Yes", I replied. "When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of them.   I gave them light. I gave them water. The fern quickly grew from the earth. Its brilliant green covered the floor. Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo. In the second year the fern grew more vibrant and plentiful. And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo. "In year three there was still nothing from the baMboo seed. But I would not quit. The same in year four. "Then in the fifth year, a tiny sprout emerged from the earth.   Compared to the fern, it was seemingly small and insignificant. But just six months later, the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall. It had spent the five years growing roots. Those roots made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive.   I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle. "Did you know, My child, that all this time you have been struggling, You have actually been growing roots? I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you. "Don't compare yourself to others." He said. "The bamboo had a different purpose than the fern. Yet they both make the forest beautiful. "Your time will come", God said to me. "You will rise high" "How high should I rise?" I asked. "How high will the bamboo rise?" He asked in return. "As high as it can?" I questioned "Yes." He said, "Give me glory by rising as high as you can." I left the forest, realizing that God will never give up on me. And He will never give up on you. Never regret a day in your life. Good days give you happiness; Bad days give you experiences; Both are essential to life.  

Dear Friend,   As you got up this morning, I watched you and hoped you would talk to me even if it was just a few words, asking my opinion or thanking me for something good that happened in your life yesterday, but I noticed you were too busy trying to find the right outfit to put on and wear to work. I waited again. When you ran around the house getting ready I knew there would be a few minutes for you to stop and say hello, but you were too busy. At one point you had to wait fifteen minutes with nothing to do except sit in a chair. Then I saw you spring to your feet. I thought you wanted to talk to me but you ran to the phone and called a friend to get the latest gossip. I watched as you went to work and I waited patiently all day long. I guess you were too busy to say anything to me with all your activities.  I noticed that before lunch you looked around. Maybe you felt embarrassed to talk to me, that is why you didn’t bow your head. You glanced three or four tables over and you noticed some of your friends talking to me briefly before they ate, but you didn’t. That’s okay. There is still more time left, And I have hope that you will talk to me even yet you went home and it seems as if you had lots of things to do.  After a few of them were done you turned on the TV I don’t know if I like TV or not, just about anything goes there & you spend a lot of time each day in front of it not thinking about anything-just enjoying the show. I waited patiently again as you watched TV and ate your meal but again you didn’t talk to me. As you did your bills I waited again—you did what you had to do. At bedtime I guess you felt too tired. After you said goodnight to your family, you plopped into bed and fell asleep in no time. That’s okay because you may not realize that I am always there for you. I’ve got patience more than you will ever know. I even want to teach you how to be patient with others as well. Because I love you so much, a long time ago I left a wonderful place called Heaven and came to Earth. I gave it up so that I could be made fun of and ridiculed. I even died so you wouldn’t have to take my place. I love you so much that I wait everyday for a nod, prayers, a thought, or a thankful part of your heart. It is hard to have a one-sided conversation. Well, you are getting up again and once again I will wait with nothing but love for you hoping that today you will give me some time. Have a nice day!   Your friend, God

Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods. They were discussing their hopes and dreams when the first tree said, "Someday I hope to be a treasure chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and precious gems. I could be decorated with intricate carving and everyone would see the beauty."   Then the second tree said, "Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will take kings and queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the world. Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength of my hull."   Finally the third tree said, "I want to grow to be the tallest and straightest tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the hill and look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree of all time and  people will always remember me."   After a few years of praying that their dreams would come true, a group of woodsmen came upon the trees. When one came to the first tree he said, "This looks like a strong tree, I think I should be able to sell the wood to a carpenter" ... and he began cutting it down. The tree was happy, because he knew that the carpenter would make him into a treasure chest.   At the second tree a woodsman said, "This looks like a strong tree, I should be able to sell it to the shipyard." The second tree was happy because he knew he was on his way to becoming a mighty ship.   When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was frightened because he knew that if they cut him down his dreams would not come true.   One of the woodsmen said, "I don't need anything special from my tree so I'll take this one," and he cut it down."   When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into a feed box for animals. He was then placed in a barn and filled with hay. This was not at all what he had prayed for. The second tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His dreams of being a mighty ship and carrying kings had come to an end. The third tree was cut into large pieces and left alone in the dark.   The years went by, and the trees forgot about their dreams. Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and they placed the baby in the hay in the feed box that was made from the first tree.   The man wished that he could have made a crib for the baby, but this manger would have to do. The tree could feel the importance of this event and knew that it had held the greatest treasure of all time.   Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from the second tree. One of them was tired and went to sleep. While they were out on the water, a great storm arose and the tree didn't think it was strong enough to keep the men safe.   The men woke the sleeping man, and he stood and said "Peace" and the storm stopped. At this time, the tree knew that it had carried the King of Kings in its boat.   Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried through the streets as the people mocked the man who was carrying it. When they came to a stop, the man was nailed to the tree and raised in the air to die at the top of a hill.   When Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it was strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had been crucified on it.   When things don't seem to be going your way, always know that God has a plan for you. If you place your trust in Him, He will give you great gifts. Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they had imagined. We don't always know what God's plans are for us. We just know that His ways are not our ways, but His ways are always the best.

The man whispered, "God, speak to me" and a meadowlark sang. But, the man did not hear. So the man yelled "God, speak to me" And, the thunder rolled across the sky. But, the man did not listen. The man looked around and said, "God let me see you." And a star shined brightly. But the man did not notice. And, the man shouted, "God show me a miracle" And, a life was born. But, the man did not know. So, the man cried out in despair, "Touch me God, and let me know you are here". Whereupon, God reached down and touched the man. But, the man brushed the butterfly away and walked on. Don't miss out on a blessing because it isn't packaged the way that you expect. My instructions were to send this to four people that I wanted God to bless and I picked you. Please pass this to four people you want to be blessed.   I asked for Strength....... And God gave me Difficulties to make me strong. I asked for Wisdom......... And God gave me Problems to solve. I asked for Prosperity......... And God gave me Brain and Brawn to work. I asked for Courage......... And God gave me Danger to overcome. I asked for Love......... And God gave me Troubled people to help. I asked for Favours......... And God gave me Opportunities. I received nothing I wanted ...... I received everything I needed!   May God Bless you with unspeakable joy, not only in the world to come, but in this world also. May your path be bright and full of light everywhere you go. May God tell darkness that it must flee at your command. And, I pray your feet will never stumble out of God's plan. May the desires of your heart come true, And may you experience Peace in everything you do. May Goodness, Kindness, and Mercy come your way. And, may you gain Wisdom and grow spiritually everyday.  

Once upon a time, a big monk and a little monk were travelling together. They came to the bank of a river, the bridge was damaged.  They had to wade across the river. There was a pretty lady who was stuck at the damaged bridge and couldn't cross the river. The big monk offered to carry the pretty across the river on his back. The lady accepted.  The little monk was shocked by the move of the big monk. "How can big disciple brother carry a lady when we are supposed to avoid all intimacy with females," thought the little monk. But he kept quiet. The big monk carried the lady across the river and the small monk followed unhappily. When they crossed the river, the big monk let the lady down and they parted with her. All along the way for several miles, the little monk was very unhappy with the act of the big monk. He was making up all kinds of accusations about the big monk in his head. This got him madder and madder. But he still kept quiet. And the big monk had no inclination to explain his situation. Finally, at rest-point many hours later, the little monk could not stand it any further, he burst out angrily at the big monk. "How can  you claim yourself a devout monk, when you seize the first opportunity to touch a female, especially when she is very pretty. All your teachings to me make you a big hypocrite." The big monk looked surprised and said, "I had put down the pretty lady at the river bank many hours ago, how come you are still carrying her along?" This is a very old Chinese zen story but it still reflects the thinking of many people today. We encounter many unpleasant things in our life, they irritate us and they make us angry. Sometimes, they cause us a lot of hurt, sometimes they cause us to be bitter or jealous. But like the little monk, we are not willing to let them go away. We keep on carrying the baggage of the "pretty lady" with us. We let themkeep on coming back to hurt us, make us angry, make us bitter and cause a lot ofagony. Why? Simply because we are not willing to put down the baggage of the "pretty lady". We should just put down the pretty lady immediately after crossing the river, immediately after the unpleasant event is over. This will immediately remove all our agonies. There is no need to be further hurt by the unpleasant event after it is over. It is just that simple.