FAITH:
"Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear." Matthew 13:43 (NIV)
Last week my seven-year-old son and I were waiting for his sister to get her hair cut. As we sat in the waiting area, we had no choice but to listen to the radio that played in the background. The forecast came on and the announcer said that it was going to be partly cloudy. My son, who was playing with LEGOs® on the floor, stopped playing and looked up with an indignant look on his face. "Mom," he said, "That man said it's partly cloudy but it's not. It's partly sunny." Then he went back to playing.
Oh, to see the world the way my son did in that moment. He taught me a huge lesson on perspective that day and I have been mulling it over ever since.
Do I see my days as partly sunny or partly cloudy? Do I marvel at the wonders or get caught up in the mess? Do I consciously choose to alter my "glass half empty" mentality and choose to see it as half full? Do I rejoice in what I have or focus on what's missing?
Just for today, let's focus on the good things that happen, so they don't get lost in the shuffle of life. I hope that you will join me in seeking to see our days as partly sunny. Sure, a few clouds may enter our horizon, but that doesn't mean our outlook has to be altered.
Partly cloudy or partly sunny? My son taught me it's all in how I look at it. by Marybeth Whalen
Applying it: Look outside your window. Is the weather partly sunny or partly cloudy? Even if it's pouring down rain, praise God for what you see and where you are. Every time something happens today, determine that you are going to look for the "partly sunny" element. Do you have a tendency to see things from a "glass half empty" perspective? How can you change your thought process to intentionally see things in a more positive light?
Exploring it: Philippians 2:14-15, "Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe. (NIV)
Daniel 12:3, "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." (NIV)
FRIENDS:
Dear Lord, when life starts looking cloudy, help me to remember that the sun is still shining. Help me to take my negative, defeating thoughts captive and shift my perspective. Most of all, help me to remember that as one of Your children, I will someday shine like the sun in Your kingdom. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
DAILY BIBLE CHALLENGE
5. LUKE 21:29-38; HEBREWS 3; PROVERBS 20:16-30; ISAIAH 11-13
6. LUKE 22:1-13; HEBREWS 4:1-11; PROVERBS 21:1-16; ISAIAH 14-16
Some facts about the Bible.....
* The word Bible comes for the Greek word Biblia, which literally means "books." So, reading the Bible is like reading 66 books. Think about it...the Bible was written by over 40 different authors.
* The Bible contains about 773, 692 words! It would take you approximately 70 hours to read the whole Bible out loud.
* The Old Testament was written in Hebrew. The New Testament was written in Greek. Now the Bible has been written in over 6,000 different languages around the world!
* The Star of Bethlehem was reported by Matthew, but at the same time Chinese astronomers recorded it, too. To the Chinese it was a bright, unknown star.
* A shepherd boy discovered old clay jars in a cave by the Dead Sea. The old jars contained dusty scrolls, which turned out to be ancient copies of the Old Testament.
* The shortest Old Testament book is Obadiah. It has 1 chapter with 21 verses.
* The shortest verse in the Old Testament is 1 Chronicles 1:25.
* The oldest parable in the Bible is in Judges 9:8-15.
* The Old Testament has more than 60 references to Jesus.
* The New Testament contains more than 260 Old Testament quotations.
* The shortest book in the New Testament is 2 John with 13 verses.
* The longest book in the New Testament is Acts. It has 28 chapters. Matthew also has 28 chapters, but it is shorter.
* The New Testament has 7,959 verses.
* Paul four of his letters in the Bible while in prison. They are Ephesians 3:1, Philippians 1:7, Colossians 4:3, and Philemon.
* The word Christian is first mentioned in the Bible in Acts 11:26. The word Christian is found in only two other places in the Bible: Acts 26:28 and 1 Peter 4:16.
* The oldest person in the Bible was Methuselah. He died when he was 969 years old.
* Isaiah prophesied most about the coming of Jesus. Isaiah 52:13-53:12 lists more than 20 things about Jesus, all of which are true.
* The strongest man in the Bible is Samson.
* The wisest man in the Bible is Solomon.
* The greatest warrior in the Bible is Gideon. With 300 men, 300 trumpets, and God, He defeated 135,000 Midianites.
* King Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines.
* The biggest and tallest villain in the Bible is Goliath at over 9-1/2 feet tall.
* The number 7 appears many times in the Bible. It is often linked to perfection or completion.
* There were 12 tribes of Israel and 12 disciples.
* The number 40 is used many times in the Bible. It often means God is about to usher in a new event or era. For instances, rain during the flood lasted 40 days, spies explored Canaan for 40 days, Jonah warned Nineveh for 40 days, and Jesus fasted in the wilderness for 40 days.
* The first book of the Bible tells of a serpent tempting Eve. The last book of the Bible calls Satan "that serpent of old, who is the Devil." (Genesis 3; Revelation 20:2).
* "Do not be afraid" appears 365 times in the Bible. Hmm, same amount of days in a year!
* A raven was the first animal out of the ark.
FOOD:
Snickers Peanut Butter Cookie
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
20 fun size Snickers candy bars
Cream together the butter, peanut butter, and sugars. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, bakins soda and salt. Mix well.
Chill the resulting dough for 1 to 2 hours.
Take about 1/3 cup (about one ice cream scoop) of the dough and wrap it around a Snickers bar. Repeat, using the rest of the dough and Snickers bars.
Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 350 F (175 C) for 15 minutes. Makes 20 cookies.
FUN:
For Sale: must see to appreciate. 4 doorless sedan, one horsepower, air conditioned, No gas worries, burns oats. Act quickly, priced to sell.,
