®   Volume 23, # 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . March, 2008

©

Plant these "seeds" well and water often. Enjoy!

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A Morning Prayer . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ella Wheeler Wilcox, A New Day, Salesian Missions, 1981, p. 18

    "Let me today do something that will take a little sadness from the world’s vast store, and may I be so favored as to make of joys too scanty sum a little more.

    Let me not hurt, by any selfish deed or thoughtless word, the heart of foe or friend. Nor would I pass unseeing worthy need, or sin by silence when I should defend.

    However meager by my worldly wealth, let me give something that shall aid my kind—a word of courage, or a thought of health dropped as I pass for troubled hearts to find.

    Let me tonight look back across the span twixt dawn and dark, and to my conscience say—because of some good act to beast or man—‘The world is better that I lived today.’"

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Obstacles to Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Carmody, The Progressive Pilgrim

    "The primary obstacles in the way of good study and teaching are sloth, fear, doubt, pretense, and self-love."

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The Present . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . St. Catherine of Siena

    "You no longer have the time that is past. Nor are you sure of the time that is to come. Hence, all you do have is this present point in time and nothing more."

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Flashes of Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Eric Hoffer

    "That which is unique and worthwhile in us makes itself felt only in flashes. If we do not know how to catch and savor these flashes, we are without growth and without exhilaration."

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Enlarge Your Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Arthur Ward

"Focus on your goals; Concentrate on your opportunities; Unleash your enthusiasm and Free your imagination; push your horizons and Enlarge your vision."

March 9, 2008

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Genuine Wisdom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Napoleon Hill, Think & Grow Rich, p. 159

"Genuine wisdom is usually conspicuous through modesty and silence."

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On Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Richard Wright, The Prairie Rambler, April 1993

    …"I concluded the book with the conviction that I had somehow overlooked something terribly important in life. I had once tried to write, had once reveled in feeling, had let my crude imagination roam, but the impulse to dream had been slowly beaten out of me by experience. Now it surged up again and I hungered for books, new ways of looking and seeing."

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Gospel Witness . . . . . . . . . . . Doug Sherman & Wm. Hendricks, "Keeping Your Ethical Edge," 1990

    "Too many Christians have given the Gospel a bad reputation by their crude insensitive, soapbox approach to evangelism. What’s worse, many do it without a lifestyle and workstyle to back it up. The order is terribly important! If you want to win a hearing for the Gospel, start by being the best worker you can be, and gain the respect of your peers. Match that work-style with a lifestyle so unique and distinctive that your co-workers will have plenty of opportunities to discuss your faith."

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World’s Greatest Need . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Source Unknown

    "Probably the greatest need of the world today is for reconciliation. In order to establish a good relationship with others one must first admit his full share of responsibility; and if one has been wronged then he must be willing to forgive unconditionally—for partial forgiveness is not forgiveness at all."

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Celtic Spirituality . . . . . . .  . . Esther de Waal, "Extraordinary in the Ordinary," Weavings, Vol. II, # 3, p. 8

"The Celtic approach to God opens up a world in which nothing is too common to be exalted and nothing is so exalted that it cannot be made common.…     As we read these words we can glimpse that experience of the presence of God which has been the reality of…people’s lives ever since the start of the day. It is a gift which they have, and which they bring to us, of taking this moment, this place, this happening as the time and place for an encounter with God. So God meets us where we are, at home, at work, in the daily, in the ordinary."

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What is Difficult . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Al Batt

"It is easy to sit up and take notice. What is difficult is getting up and taking action."

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On Enthusiasm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Coleman Cox, www.PowerQuotes.net

    "When enthusiasm is inspired by reason, controlled by caution, sound in theory, practical in application, reflects confidence, spreads good cheer, raises morale, inspires associates, arouses loyalty, and laughs at adversity, it is beyond price."

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Life’s Instructions–II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . H. Jackson Brown, Life’s Little Instruction Book–II

#513: "Never laugh at anyone’s dreams."

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Light Travels Faster… . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Anonymous

    "Light travels faster than sound. That’s why some people appear bright until you hear them speak."

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On Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Will Rogers

    "Personally I think the camera has done more harm for politics than any other one faction. Everybody would rather get their picture than their ideas in the paper."

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Educate Your Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ben Franklin

    "Educate your children to self-control, to the habit of holding passion and prejudice and evil tendencies subject to an upright and reasoning will, and you have done much to abolish misery from their future and crimes from society."

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The Clay of Opportunity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Source Unknown

    Even when we’re overwhelmed by conditions we need not lose control, it’s important to not lose heart and keep trying. We need to keep an open mind and sometimes make major changes or take risks.

    The Irish Potato Famine (1846-51) resulted in a 30% drop in the population of the west of Ireland. The prolonged suffering of the Irish peasantry had broken the survivors in body and spirit.

    John Bloomfield, the owner of the Castle Caldwell in County Fermanagh, was working on the recovery of his estate when he noticed that the exteriors of his tenant farmers’ small cottages had a vivid white finish. After inquiring, he was informed that there was a clay deposit on his property of unusual fine quality.

    To generate revenue and provide employment on his estate, Bloomfield built a pottery factory at the village of Belleek in 1857. The unusually fine clay produced a porcelain china that was translucent with a glass-like finish. It was worked into traditional Irish designs and was an immediate success.

    Today, Belleek’s delicate strength and its iridescent pearlized glaze is enthusiastically purchased the world over. This multi-million dollar industry arose from innovative thinking during times of crisis and adversity.

    Each of us probably walk past similar opportunities each day.

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Root System Is Trust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elaine M. Prevallet, S.L.

    The tree can be an apt image of our spiritual life, our journey to God. Every growth upward and outward necessitates a deepening and widening of the roots.

    Some species of deciduous trees have one root, the tap root, which extends downward to stabilize the tree at the center and to reach the deepest source of water. The root system branches outward to provide balance and to draw nourishment from the soil. Since the work of setting the roots takes time and energy, these trees often grow slowly. But this slowly developed root system is what secures their endurance as sturdy, hardy trees.

    In our spiritual lives, the root system is trust in Jesus, the Word of God.

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