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Archive for April, 2012

The Use of Intelligence

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 30, 2012| Leave a Comment »

 
It is your duty to God to run your life on intelligent lines. God gives us all as much intelligence as we can possibly need, but, unfortunately, in most cases we use very little of it.
 
Ask yourself today if you are really conducting your life intelligently. Are you eating and drinking intelligently? Do you select your reading intelligently? Do you spend your money intelligently? Do you consider intelligently the things that you hear, or do you just accept them uncritically? Do you exercise intelligence in carrying out your daily work? Do you seek to approach each new problem with intelligence instead or mere emotions?
 
Have you intelligent plans for the future? Do you know what you would really like to do or to be, and if not wouldn’t it be only intelligent to go to work and find out and then draw up an intelligent plan for gaining your desire?
 
The world needs more intelligence. There is plenty of will, but because people will not use enough intelligence, mankind everywhere is in difficulties. Your intelligence is the light of God in your soul.
 
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:5)
 
A friend of this author used to have a bumper sticker on his car that simply said, “THINK”. When asked why he displayed the sticker he replied that it’s because “most people don’t.” His point is addressed by today’s thought.
 
When we use our intelligence, we engage God’s greatest attribute given to humankind. Our intelligence is God’s intelligence manifesting itself through us. When we rationally work through the good and bad experiences we have, we give God the opportunity to reveal to us those thoughts and insights we need to make good decisions, regardless of emotional or personal reactions that might take us the wrong way.
 
Let us today use all of God’s gifts to guide our thoughts and the words and deeds they create. Then, ask God to guide and direct those thoughts so they reflect God’s love in every way. This will assure that our lives can become the garden God created them to be.
 
Thinking,
Z gardener

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Let God!

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 27, 2012| Leave a Comment »

 
People often say, “I try to do so-and-so, but I fail.” The explanation for their failure is contained within the words themselves. You should never “try”; you should “let” – let God. When you “try” to do things, you are working from the outside. When you let God do them through you, you are working from the inside and success must come.
 
If you will reread the creation chapter in the Bible you will notice that God creates by “letting.” God said “let,” at every act of creation, and it was done. Now God creates by means of you if you will let him, but you must let.  Someone said, “Let go and Let God,” and this is a wonderful recipe for overcoming fear or getting out of a tight place. In any case, the rule for creation is always to let.
 
Is any thing too hard for the Lord? (Genesis 18: 14).
 
This is one of the most important truths to be read in our daily devotional. It is when we become an expression of God’s will that God works through us. We must let go of the idea that we control things except ourselves. And it is when we relinquish  self-control to God that God turns power and potential into reality in the physical plane through us. We are to become instrumentalities of God if we are to express God’s existence in our reality here below. The first step is to empty ourselves in order that God may act in and through us. Then we must follow God’s will in all our ways. It is then that God lets our gardens grow into the Edens they were intended to be. It is then that God looks at our lives and says “it is very good!”
 
Letting go,
Z gardener

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Running Away From Life?

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 25, 2012| Leave a Comment »

 
In the spiritual teaching we are told not to dwell upon our troubles, but instead, to realize the Presence of God where the troubles seems to be. Critics have suggested that this policy is “running away from life.” Is it?
 
Suppose you found yourself in a house that was on fire; what would you do? You would leave the burning building as rapidly as possible. Would this be running away from life? Would it not rather be seeking life?
 
Sickness, sin, fear, and limitation – these things are not life – they are partial death; and they are to be overcome by turning toward life, which is divine harmony.
 
To turn away from evil and realize God instead is to liberate yourself, to help the world, and to glorify God.
 
Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth … (Isaiah 45:22).
 
How do we turn toward life when surrounded by life-threatening illness, fear and limitation. The Bible says we are to look for God within that which threatens us. If we direct our attention to God’s presence within our troubles, then our minds are open to the blessings that are hidden in our pain. Our pain or loss does not go away when we do this. However, we become empowered and strengthened to endure the challenge with the knowledge that God is with us. Further, if we continue to look for God in our troubles, even greater blessings will be revealed that provide comfort, hope and peace…even when facing the worst.
 
Running toward life,
Z gardener

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The Two Spirations

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 24, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Have you ever heard the old story of the two spirations? They are essential for every worthwhile achievement. If either is missing the enterprise is doomed to failure, and if you have not been making your life as successful as you would like, you must go to work and find which of them has been overlooked. I am sure it is hardly necessary to tell you that the two spirations in question are inspiration and perspiration.
 
First you need inspiration. Sheer hard work, blind plodding, or brutal hammering will not bring success. You must also have regular inspiration.
 
Second, perspiration. There is no success without persevering hard work in the direction of your goal. Recently I heard one of the greatest living musicians address a class of musical students. He said, “I know of no road to success except hard work. If there is such a road I have not heard of it.”
 
Contact God daily for inspiration; and then work hard.
 
Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain (Psalm 127:1).
 
This sums up the truth regarding our participation in God’s creation. We are to be active participants who seek God’s will, are inspired by it and who work to manifest it here below. When all these things come together, we can be assured that we are on the right path and will arrive at the garden created for us.
 
Sweating and seeking,
Z gardener

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The 13th Hour

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 19, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Some wonderful demonstrations come at the eleventh hour. Others come at the twelfth hour. And some of the deepest and most far-reaching demonstrations come at the thirteenth hour – if you maintain the right attitude. What, after all, is the right attitude? It is simply knowing the Truth of Being instead of accepting the error.
Many people are aware of this, and they work in the right way – for a while. If, however, the demonstration has not arrived a little before the eleventh hour, they give up in despair, and naturally their prayer is not answered. But, this can only mean that they do not really believe.
If your statements of Truth are true, they are true whether the victory comes at eleven or twelve or one o’clock. State the Truth of Being concerning the problem. Hold to it even after twelve o’clock has struck, and you will be surprised at the wonderful good that can come to you at the thirteenth hour.
The Lord’s hand is not shortened, that is cannot save, neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear (Isaiah 59:1).
What is it that causes us to give up on our prayers and our faith that God will answer them? Many times the root causes fall in the vanity, pride and ego issues. “It didn’t happen when I wanted it to, the way I wanted it to happen or how it would happen” are many of the reasons we abandon our faith and our prayers. Then, there is the refusal to take no for an answer to our prayers. Finally, we many times are misstating the truth we affirm or about which we pray. For instance, if we affirm that our prayers will be answered whether good for us or not, that is not the truth and it will not be affirmed by a loving God who will only grant that which is for our best good.
So, when we pray and affirm the truth, if we truly trust God, we should be ready for God’s answer, not ours. That answer, we can be sure, is the right one.
Listening for answers,
Z gardener

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The Secret of Successful Salesmanship

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 18, 2012| Leave a Comment »

True salesmanship means finding out what your customer really needs, and supplying him with it; or if you cannot furnish it yourself, advising him to go elsewhere. Such a policy will not mean loss of business. On the contrary, working in this way you may lose one order but you will get half a dozen in its place – and you will have peace of mind. Any one particular sale does not matter; it is the annual turnover that counts.
The policy, the Golden Rule, was taught by Jesus, the wisest and most practical teacher who ever lived. Salesman, treat your customer exactly as you would like him to treat you if the positions were reversed. Tell him exactly what you would like to be told about the merchandise, if you were the purchaser; and if you will do this the whole universe will cooperate to make your business career an outstanding success.
Teach me to do thy will, for thou art my God: thy spirit is good… (Psalm 143:10)
While the good guys may take a beating in the short term, they will always prevail in the long term if they keep doing good. The Golden Rule works in business as well as personal affairs. Live by it in all ways and God will ensure your best good.
Being golden,
Z gardener

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The Kaffir Didn’t Know It

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 17, 2012| Leave a Comment »

 
 
About the middle of the last century, a traveler was journeying along through what was then a remote part of South Africa. One day while smoking his pipe outside the hut in a native village, he noticed a group of little naked children playing what was evidently a native version of the time honored game of marbles. He watched the game idly for a while, and then something about the rough stones caught his attention. They were quite small pebbles, dull, but – here his pulse began to steeplechase. He spoke to the children’s father, with studied carelessness, and the Kaffir said, “Oh yes, the children like these little stones. They have some more in the hut, “and he brought forth a small basket containing several more.
 
Repressing his excitement, the traveler took out a large plug of tobacco, worth perhaps twenty or thirty cents in our money, and said, “I would like to take the stones home for my children. I will give you this tobacco for them. Are you willing?” The Kaffir laughed and said, “I am robbing you but if you insist, all right,” and the bargain was sealed – which not only enriched the stranger but led in time to the great discovery of the South African diamond fields.
 
The fate of the Kaffir is really the fate of most human beings. Man holds a fabulous treasure in his possession – the power of the Spoken Word – and yet, in most cases, he does not know it.
 
The Lord shall open unto thee his good treasure … to bless all the work of thine hand… (Deuteronomy 28:12).
How many plugs of tobacco have we traded our precious jewels to receive? God’s gifts are the most valuable things we can inherit, yet we often trade them for plugs of vanity, pride and ego (and the other human weaknesses). Love, patience, tolerance, forgiveness and our manifestation of those gifts are priceless, yet too often, we quietly let them slip through our fingers as we grasp for gratification, attention, praise and position.
 
We must hold fast to the priceless gifts from the Father as if our lives depend on it…because they do.
 
Treasuring the gifts,
Z gardener

 

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Brains or Excelsior?

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 16, 2012| Leave a Comment »

You all know the Great Law. One way of stating it is to say: Like produces like. What we sow in thought we reap in experience.
People know that these things are true, and yet in spite of this transcendent knowledge they constantly use the Great Law for their own destruction. They would not dream of pouring water in the gas tank of their car, or sand into their watch, or broken glass into their food; but they do something just as foolish every time they think, speak, or act negatively. One cannot help wondering what such people have inside their heads – brains or excelsior.
In the future, when you catch yourself thinking negatively, say to your self severely, “Brains or excelsior?” and immediately switch to what you know to be the Truth of Being.
Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord… (Ephesians 6:8).
Its just this simple. Negative thinking creates negative outcomes. Now, we will never completely eliminate negative thoughts, however, keep in mind that they will always produce bitter fruits. Let us ask ourselves today, how much bitter fruit are we willing to tolerate in our gardens. As for me and mine, less is better.
Sewing positive seeds,
Z gardener

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The Good God

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 12, 2012| Leave a Comment »

 
God knows everything, at all times. The Bible sometimes speaks of God as having changed His mind or being disappointed. God is supposed to have tested Abraham’s obedience in the matter of Isaac. God is supposed to have had His plans upset by the misconduct of Adam and Eve, by the general wickedness of humanity before the flood, and, in fact, He is frequently represented as being disappointed and even frustrated by the conduct of mankind. In orthodox theology, the devil was continually upsetting God’s arrangements and bringing his plans to naught. Indeed, to listen to some preachers, one would have supposed that the devil was a good deal more powerful than God.
 
Of course, all this is nonsense. Such things could not be really true of God. It was Abraham’s idea of God that led him to prepare to kill Isaac. It was the wickedness of mankind in the antediluvian world that brought on the flood as a natural consequence, just as the fears, hatreds, jealousies, and greed of mankind over many years have brought on war.
 
We make an idolatrous image of ourselves and call it God. Let us destroy this image today and worship the true God who is infinite and unchanging Good.
 
God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent … (Number 23:19).
 
One day we will know that all our troubles emanate from our separation from God and God’s children. When we choose to put ourselves before God, we separate ourselves from God. This causes us to live in the world we created instead of the Eden God created for us. The world we create exposes us to every form of human weakness such as vanity, pride and ego. When we allow these weaknesses into our garden we subject ourselves to those things we experience as doubt, fear, anxiety and every other form of human weakness. When we indulge these weakness it causes the words, thoughts and deeds that hurt us and hurt others.
 
The source of our problems is not God, it is separation form God. When we put God first, then we become one with God and can live each day in the joy and gladness of the garden he created for us. In this world we have access to peace and the love of the Good God, and we rise above the negative experiences and obstacles of this world.
 
In communion,
Z gardener

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Theoretical Centipede

Posted in Good Morning, tagged , on April 11, 2012| Leave a Comment »

 
Do not dissect things too much. By the time you have dissected a living thing you have killed it, and you no longer have the thing that you began with. Take a rose out of the bowl, pull its petal apart, count them, weigh them, measure them, and then, while you will have certain interesting information, you no longer have a rose.
 
There is a place for analysis, but it is apt to be quite fatal in prayer and meditation. Do not dissect the love of God, but feel it. Do not dissect divine intelligence, but realize it. Do not wonder how God can possibly solve this problem, but just watch Him do it in His own way – and He will if you will give Him a chance.
 
You know that God is Love. So go ahead on that, and do not get theoretical about it.
 
Do you remember the old verse that says:
 
A centipede was happy quite,
Until a frog in fun
Said, “Pray, which leg comes after which?”
This raised her mind to such a pitch,
She lay distracted in the ditch,
Considering how to run.
 
The righteous shall be glad in the Lord, and shall trust in him: and all the upright in heart shall glory (Psalm 64:10).
 
We have all heard the phrase “thinking something to death”. While our reasoning ability is God given and is to be used for our best good, it can interfere with our spiritual progress if we let it. This happens when we let our rational side override our spiritual side with doubt, fear or resignation. Then it becomes a foothold for anxiety, cynicism and resistance to God’s will and capability.
 
Remember the Bible says, “their wisdom will make them foolish and our foolishness will make us wise”. This means our intellect can blind us to the truth that our spirit and faith reveal. This will not happen if we listen to our spirit, trust God and follow his will regardless of our intellectual resistance.
 
Keeping the rose,
Z gardener

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