Growing Good Corn.....

There was a Nebraska farmer who grew award-winning corn. Each year he entered his corn in the state fair where it won a blue ribbon…

One year a newspaper reporter interviewed him and learned something interesting about how he grew it. The reporter discovered that the farmer shared his seed corn with his neighbors.

“How can you afford to share your best seed corn with your neighbors when they are entering corn in competition with yours each year?” the reporter asked.

“Why sir,” said the farmer, “didn’t you know? The wind picks up pollen from the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my neighbors grow inferior corn, cross-pollination will steadily degrade the quality of my corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must help my neighbors grow good corn.”

He is very much aware of the connectedness of life. His corn cannot improve unless his neighbor’s corn also improves.

So it is in other dimensions. Those who choose to be at peace must help their neighbors to be at peace. Those who choose to live well must help others to live well, for the value of a life is measured by the lives it touches. And those who choose to be happy must help others to find happiness for the welfare of each is bound up with the welfare of all.

The lesson for each of us is this: if we are to grow good corn, we must help our neighbors grow good corn.

God's Rosebud

A new minister was walking with an older,
more seasoned minister in the garden one day.

Feeling a bit insecure about what God had for him to do,
he was asking the older preacher for some advice.

The older preacher walked up to a rosebush and handed
the young preacher a rosebud and told him to open it
without tearing off any petals.

The young preacher looked in disbelief at the older
preacher and was trying to figure out what a
rosebud could possibly have to do with his wanting
to know the will of God for his life and ministry.

But because of his great respect for the older preacher,
he proceeded to try to unfold the rose,
while keeping every petal intact.

It wasn't long before he realized
how impossible this was to do.

Noticing the younger preacher's inability to unfold
the rosebud without tearing it,
the older preacher began to recite
the following poem...

"It is only a tiny rosebud,
A flower of God's design;
But I cannot unfold the petals
With these clumsy hands of mine."

"The secret of unfolding flowers
Is not known to such as I.
GOD opens this flower so easily,
But in my hands they die."

"If I cannot unfold a rosebud,
This flower of God's design,
Then how can I have the wisdom
To unfold this life of mine?"

"So I'll trust in God for leading
Each moment of my day.
I will look to God for guidance
In each step along the way."

"The path that lies before me,
Only my Lord and Savior knows.
I'll trust God to unfold the moments,
Just as He unfolds the rose."

How To Succeed At Anything

It doesn't matter whether you are trying to succeed at work, in your relationship or with your wealth the principles are the same. Accredited nutritionist and exercise physiologist Caitlin Reid provides you with the top six tips that will help you succeed no matter what.

1. Know what you want

You must have the desire to succeed. This means you need to know what you want in life and be able to identify the actions that you need to take to achieve your goals. Goals provide a guide to your destination in life and without them, others determine where you'll end up.

2. Never give up

Persistence is the number one thing for being successful. It's easy for people to become disheartened when they are criticised or encounter a hurdle while trying to achieve their goals, but to be a true success you must persist through the criticism, rejection, pressure and failure. A fighting spirit will make you succeed.

3. Believe in yourself

To be successful you need to have a positive outlook and believe that you can achieve your goals. When you feel good about yourself, you react more confidently to life's challenges. If you believe in yourself and push yourself through shyness and self-doubt you will succeed more far than you will fail. Believe and you will achieve.

4. Never stop learning

Successful people never stop learning. They learn from their mistakes, new experiences and other people. Learning at every opportunity increases your knowledge in old and new areas and keeps you ahead in your field. Read books, acquire new skills and seek additional training and it will definitely set you apart from the rest.

5. Do what you love

To do something well you must at least like it, but it helps to love it. Being passionate about the things you spend your time on is energising and motivates you to succeed. Do what you love, and success will come.

6. Avoid conditional happiness

Too many of us believe that if some problem resolved itself we would finally be happy. But striving for happiness without sitting back and finding happiness at this particular point in your life is no way to live. Successful people avoid delayed gratification and don't sit around waiting for problems to resolve. Successful people find happiness at every instance, rather than just when they think things are going right for them.

P U S H

A man was sleeping one night in his cabin when suddenly the room filled

with light, and God appeared. The Lord told the man He had work for him to

do, and showed him a large rock in front of his cabin. The Lord explained

that the man was to Push against the rock with all his might...

So, this the man did, day after day. For many years he toiled from

sun up to sundown, his shoulders set squarely against the cold, massive surface

of the unmoving rock, pushing with all his might!

Each night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling

that his whole day had been spent in vain. Since the man was showing

discouragement, the adversary (Satan) decided to enter the picture by placing

thoughts into the weary mind: (He will do it every time)!

'You have been pushing against that rock for a long time and it

hasn't moved.' Thus, he gave the man the impression that the task was

impossible and that he was a failure. These thoughts discouraged and

disheartened him.

Satan said, 'Why kill yourself over this? Just put in your time,

giving just the minimum effort; and that will be good enough.' That's what the

weary man planned to do, but decided to make it a matter of Prayer and to

take his troubled thoughts to the Lord.

'Lord,' he said, 'I have laboured long and hard in Your Service,

putting all my strength to do that which You have asked. Yet, after all this

time, I have not even budged that rock by half a millimeter. What is wrong?

Why am I failing?'

The Lord responded compassionately, 'My friend, when I asked you to

serve Me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the

rock with all of your strength, which you have done.

Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it. Your

task was to Push. Now you come to Me with your strength spent, thinking

that you have failed..

But, is that really so? Look at yourself. Your arms are strong and

muscled, your back is massive and brown; your hands are callused and,

your legs have become massive and hard.

Through opposition you have grown much, and your abilities now

surpass that which you used to have. True, you haven't moved the rock. But your

calling was to be Obedient and to Push and to exercise your Faith and Trust

in My Wisdom. That you have done. Now my friend, I will move the rock.'

At times, when we hear a word from God, we tend to use our own

intellect to decipher what He Wants, when actually what God wants is just simple

obedience and faith in Him.

By all means, exercise the Faith that moves mountains, but know that

it is still God Who moves the Mountain.

So!

When everything seems to go wrong...............................Just P.U.S.H.

When the job gets you down............................................Just P.U.S.H.

When people don't do as you think they should.............Just P.U.S.H.

When your money is 'gone' and the bills are due...........Just P.U.S.H.

When people don't understand you ........................Just P.U.S.H.

P = Pray

U = Until

S = Something

H = Happens

'Though no one can go back and make a brand new start,

anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending!