Change Begins With Choice... :) Shangy! >Here are the details on our Yahoo ShangyFunList: To Subscribe send a blank email to ShangyFunList-subscribe@yahoogroups.com To UnSubscribe send a blank email to ShangyFunList-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com Group home page: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ShangyFunList or Web Site: http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/ShangyFunList.html Group email address: ShangyFunList@yahoogroups.com or email me here: bcrsystems@earthlink.net ================ *~* Please Consider Giving To ShangralaFamilyFun.com The cost of the website has gone up dramatically due to the ever increasingly wonderful pages and photos being added each week to entertain you and our fellow Christian families. If every one would chip in $25 or more, we'd be good for the whole year! So Please - I need your help today! "We are each of us angels with but one wing, and can only fly by embracing each other" -Luciano Decrescenzo ~ CALLING ALL CARING ANGELS ~ *~* WE NEED CARING And SHARING Angels *~* >Do You Want To Be A Shangrala Angel? If you'd like to help and be counted as a Shangrala Angel, the easiest way to do that is through online giving. It is easy to use, and most of all, it is secure. Please visit the site, scroll down and click on the donate button. A Secure PAYPAL form page comes up. NOTE: Paypal will generate a 'Quantity 1' and 'Price per item' form. Just ignore the price per item and put whatever it is you desire to give in there. With Paypal, you will have your normal receipt for your 'payment' donation in USD (United States Dollars). You can put a memo in there if you'd like. Any amount is greatly appreciated and needed! PLEASE Visit Shangrala to Help: http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/index.html OR If you'd rather send us a donation, Please MAIL it here: Elrhea Bigham 502 S. Harrison Van Wert, OH 45891 *~* THANK YOU! MAY GOD BLESS YOU MOST ABUNDANTLY FOR YOUR GIFT! ================ _ _|_|_ ,|_| |_|_ || | | |_| || | | | | || | | | | _|| | | | | ||)\ ^ ^ ^ | || | | || | | || | | \\ | \\ / ejm )\ ( / \ \ / \ \ \ \ *~* May God bless and comfort all those affected by the recent devastating tornadoes and floods through Jesus Christ our Lord. -<>- >-->In The 'Shangy' News :) I am pleased to announced we have a new sponsor. Gabriel & Co. is one of the top jewelry designers on social media. Their website is viewed by millions of consumers a year. Gabriel & Co. has been featured in magazines such as: Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, In-Style, and The Knot. They have jewelry for every type of woman, whatever her style and personality. Gabriel & Co. Fine Jewelry https://tinyurl.com/y3fwn7vq What Do Women Want, Fine Jewelry Anytime you click through their ad and buy something, you will be not only purchasing an excellent keepsake item, but you will be benefiting our website ShangralaFamilyFun.com so that I may continue to provide you with fun and inspirational emails and pages to add a little variety and SMILES for your day. So, if you see an ad on my website, please click through and check them out knowing I have chosen them for their quality of service and items. Why? Because I care About you! :) -<>- >HOT Off The 'Shangy' Press :) This flaming hot new page is from our friend Linda. If you are like me, you'll find these photos to be thought provoking and often even mesmerizing as you become lost in them. I especially had fun with the video and had to keep playing it over and over and over again - An old time favorite. So have some fun and check this out here... ,--. ,--. ( O ) ( O ) `--' \ `--' \ _ >-. / /| `-.__.' Krogg The LOOK! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/thelook.html --- ...I do so Love this one! Thanks Linda! =========================================================== >-->From Heartwarmers: .----------. | ~ON~ | | ____ | | |.--.| | | || || | | ||__|| | | ||\ \| | | |\ \_\ | | |_\[_] | | | jgs | ~OFF~ | '----------' >THE OFF SWITCH I saw a story on the news the other day about an eaglet that somehow became separated from his mother. A turkey farmer found him and brought him back to his farm to see if the little bird could survive by bonding with the birds there. The eagle had done quite well, growing to powerful, handsome maturity. But there's a problem: the eagle has been living and acting and -- one can only assume -- thinking like a turkey for so long that he seems to believe that he IS one. According to the news story, the turkey farmer has been trying to teach the eagle to fly, but the majestic bird has been groveling for grain with the turkeys for so long he can't seem to grasp the concept. I've been thinking about that eagle lately -- a magnificent creature that has the potential to soar with... well, with eagles. But he's grounded just as surely as if his wings had been clipped because experience has taught him to focus his attention on the ground rather than the heavens. Of course, he's a bird. We humans would never allow ourselves to fall in to such a trap. Would we? A colleague was complaining about the explicit pictures that were coming into her home while watching a highly publicized "reality-based" program. "It's disgusting," she said. "Why do they have to go into such graphic detail?" "I thought this show was known for that sort of thing," I said. "What did you expect?" "I expect them to remember that there are children out there," she said. "I had to send my kids to their rooms." "Why don't you just turn the TV off," I wondered, "or change the channel?" "Are you kidding?" she replied. "This was the season finale! I couldn't miss that!" So it's come to this: voyeurism as must-see TV, with pseudo-documentaries and tawdry game shows parting closed curtains and inviting curious gawkers to see and hear what they've never seen or heard before -- whether or not it's any of their business. In a way, television is like that eagle. It is an incredible medium, capable of soaring to wondrous heights. That's why it's so frustrating when it expends so much energy on turkey stuff. But television isn't solely responsible for this trend toward indiscretion. My experience with the medium (including six years as a newspaper's television critic) leads me to believe that TV's decision- makers only give the public what they think it wishes to see. Unfortunately, they rarely underestimate the moral depths to which large numbers of television viewers are willing to sink. How else do you explain Jerry Springer, Howard Stern and "Blind Date"? Which, come to think of it, makes us a little like that eagle, too -- doesn't it? The more we devour the studied mindlessness and exploitation television feeds us, the less likely TV will be to invest the creative energy required to produce programs that help our minds expand and our souls soar. It's up to us to demand excellence from television through our viewing habits or else the quality options will disappear entirely, replaced by a steady diet of soap operas, leering talk shows and sensationalized perspectives on reality. Then it really will be turkey television. And maybe that will be enough to finally make us reach for the "off" switch. -- Joseph Walker ___________________________________________ Joseph Walker is a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist, and a Heartwarmer Gem. If you would like to read his weekly column in your hometown newspaper, email Joe directly for details. Obviously, it would make a tremendous addition to any newspaper. ========================================================== : _ _ : `v' `. ; .' ,~-. `. .-'''-. .',~') _ _ ( )~. ;' `; ( `-. ' V ` ,' )~. _ _ / ;-` ) ( __)' v ` | (_ )~./\ `~'--~'`~' _ '''''| (_ __ /##\ ,' )_ \ /( _HH_,~/#/\#\ ( c' `._ `. .' `~[____]/#/==\#\ ,-' -' (_c ) .' `-,,,-' `. |=_|/#/= _=\#\ `>o ~ '-. .' ; `. |-=/#/=____=\#\ ( ~ ,~.~.,`-'), _ _ : ` |=/#/=/,~~.\=\#\ ,' (\\||,' `-'), .' \/ `. : |/#/=(/_)(_\)=\#\ (`~ (_\`|)o ~ ) /#/_= |_\/_| _\#\ >( `~' ._,~ '-. /#/ _=[______]= _\#\(' `~, c ~. c) /#/=,---. _ = ___ =\#\`( ( ~ _.' <' /#/ /_____\ ==/,-.\ =\#\( c c___ ) ) `|=(/_|_|_\) //.-.\\=_|' `-.__,' //`-' `v@|==| : : |=(/:|_|:\)=| `,-\ `'/`,- `v@'~|= |_;_;_| =| | =| \ | _/\_/\_,(c`@'|=[_______]=| =()|==|_/\_/\_| |/\_ -||-||-@~'(_@|= _o@&8o_ =| | =|-||-||-( |||- _,@`v-@'~ c@._|_['%8o&8']_|_____|__| || || | )|| ,@C @,~' @,-v~' """""""`[_______] | | 'v-~,@,` (\-/) / / `*~ _.-' `-. ={ }= ~*'( ( `* `* ) ( \ `.~*' hjw _/ \_ `*~\ `. `* \ / \ `.`*' *' `-))' `*' \ `. *' (( `* \ `. \) >-->She Makes it a Home By Michael T. Smith I lifted Ginny's luggage from the trunk of our car and hugged her, "I'm going to miss you so much, Baby." She hugged me back. "I'll miss you too, Hun." I watched her roll her bag to the check-in. I sat in the car and watched her hand it to the porter. I drove away with tears in my eyes. Ginny was off to North Carolina for a month-long visit with her son and his family. I arrived home at 5 A.M. Our kitty came out and stared at me. "Where's Mom, Daddy?" That's what I imagined she asked. I sat in the same apartment we've lived in for five years, but it was different without her. Our apartment has two bedrooms and two bathrooms. We have a living room, a tiny kitchen and a nice master closet off the master bathroom. We'd like more room, but we get by with what we have. At sat there at 5 A.M. and looked around. On our kitchen table was Ginny's art supplies. Propped in various locations were pieces the art she creates. Our kitty stared at me. At my feet, beneath our coffee table, rested a couple pairs of Ginny's shoes. On the counter in the bathrooms were earrings and necklaces she left behind. I climb into bed at night and feel the emptiness. Our apartment is just a box made with wood and plaster. It's a shell we live in. I feel alone. I live here, but without Ginny, I'm in a hollow box. Ginny turns this box into a home. She brings color and love and turns a box into something I look forward to coming home to. She makes it a home. =========================================================== >-->From Our Friend Fran :) >Quotes: Our only security is our ability to change. --John Lilly The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention. --Oscar Wilde You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late. --Ralph Waldo Emerson -<>- .---------. _ |:: [-=-] | | | |_________| |~| |_| ,;;;;, I\ ,__ ,;;;, __, ///\\\\\ I |{ / . . \ } / " \\|| I | ) ( _ ) ( \_= _/// I |{___'-. .-'___}\___ )_\ I ||~/,'~~~~~,\~~|'---(( \ I \ // \\ | \ \ \ I \/ // | | /-/ I (/ (/ | |/||\ I | | | | I | | |____/ I :-----_o_-----: || | I | /~~|===|~~\ | (( | jgs I || |===| || ||_/ /^\ "~ '^^^' "" ((__| >Thanks, Dr. Mike! : I've been a maternal-child nurse for over fifteen years, and also worked in a pediatrician's office, so often my family comes to me for advice on children's health. My nephew, "Bill", his wife, "Deseray", and their daughters went to a general practitioner doctor who didn't believe in ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) as a legitimate diagnosis. Because my son has ADD and benefited from treatment, they asked if the doctor I work for would evaluate their older daughter's "classic" ADD symptoms. My boss suggested they instead see his colleague, Dr. Mike Blefeld, who specialized in ADD. They were pleased with his care for her, and Jessica was transferred to his practice. The rest of the family stayed with their first doctor. In September 2001, Bill and Deseray were concerned about their younger daughter. Ashley's energy level was low, she seemed pale, and one day she had a strange rash on her chest. Her parents thought she might have hives and followed telephone advice from their doctor. Her symptoms persisted and she had a fever, so they insisted on their daughter being seen in the doctor's office. Unfortunately, she was given only a very cursory exam, the rash wasn't looked at and the family left the doctor's office feeling as if they had been an annoyance to him. Concerned about Ashley, my nephew called Dr. Blefeld and asked if he would see her even though he had only seen her sister once and Ashley wasn't even his patient. Mike asked them to come in immediately, with no hesitation about the formalities that Ashley was not his patient, he barely knew the family, etc. He was immediately concerned that Ashley had tiny bruises (often mistaken for a rash and known as petechiae) on her chest and an enlarged spleen. He drew blood and sent Bill to the lab with the sample for analysis. With the results returned, he had to give the family the frightening news that Ashley had leukemia. He admitted Ashley to Yale-New Haven Hospital that very evening, and turned her over to "Dr. Joe", a personable, well-liked pediatric hematologist. Ashley started right in with tests and chemotherapy treatment. When all this happened, I was off work due to a car accident. Several months later I finally returned to work at the Newborn Nursery and Labor and Delivery unit. I immediately thanked Dr. Blefeld for recognizing the need for my great-niece to be properly evaluated, and for not using the excuse that she wasn't his responsibility because she wasn't his patient. Because of pressures from managed health insurance and a more litigious society, many medical practices today are run in a rigid, corporate manner. It's heartening to know that doctors like Dr. Blefeld continue to practice medicine as an art and a science, with compassion and flexibility, and not just as a business. Thank you, Dr. Mike! Ashley's treatment brought her into remission, where she remains today. by Nancy L. Middleton --- ...Such a heartwarming story! Thanks Fran! =========================================================== >-->From Archives InspiredBuffalo: . | . \ | / `. \ ' / .' `. .-*""*-. .' "*-._ /.*" "*.\ _.-*" : ; ____ """"': .. ; _.-*" \ `.__.' / "*-._ .' `-.__.-' `. bug .' / . \ `. / | \ ' | ` >Change Begins With Choice Any day we wish we can discipline ourselves to change it all. Any day we wish; we can open the book that will open our mind to new knowledge. Any day we wish; we can start a new activity. Any day we wish; we can start the process of life change. We can do it immediately, or next week, or next month, or next year. We can also do nothing. We can pretend rather than perform. And if the idea of having to change ourselves makes us uncomfortable, we can remain as we are. We can choose rest over labor, entertainment over education, delusion over truth, and doubt over confidence. The choices are ours to make. But while we curse the effect, we continue to nourish the cause. As Shakespeare uniquely observed, "The fault is not in the stars, but in ourselves." We created our circumstances by our past choices. We have both the ability and the responsibility to make better choices beginning today. Those who are in search of the good life do not need more answers or more time to think things over to reach better conclusions. They need the truth. They need the whole truth. And they need nothing but the truth. We cannot allow our errors in judgment, repeated every day, to lead us down the wrong path. We must keep coming back to those basics that make the biggest difference in how our life works out. And then we must make the very choices that will bring life, happiness and joy into our daily lives. And if I may be so bold to offer my last piece of advice for someone seeking and needing to make changes in their life - If you don't like how things are, change it! You're not a tree. You have the ability to totally transform every area in your life - and it all begins with your very own power of choice. To Your Success, Jim Rohn -<>- /:""| .@@@@@, |: 66|_ @@@@@@@@, C _) aa`@@@@@@ \ ._| (_ ?@@@@ ) / =' @@@@" /`\\ \(``` || |Y| //`\ ."~~~~~". || |#| / | || | .:. | || |#| \ | || A | /6 6\ | || |#| / | || |~|_|_\ e /_|_ .@@@@, :| |=: / | |\ |_|)___`"`___(8 aa`@@@, ||_|,| | |_| \ |~~~~~~~~~| = `@@@ \)))|| | ((( | \_________/ )_/`@' |~~~`-`~~~| `~\~~~~~~| |/ /_\ \| / || @ | | `\ / ()/___\() | || @ |_________| ( || ||~~~~~|| /~|| "` |_________| | || || || /__W_\ | || | || || || ||| |_||__ __|_|| ||_____|| _||| jgs (____)) (:;:;)) ||-----|| ((___) >FATHERHOOD By Hazel Stone Fatherhood is not dependent on biology or even on raising a child. Fatherhood is a matter of the heart. Ever wonder why we have a nationally proclaimed day designated for fathers? Sonora Dodd, of Washington, had the thought of the special day to honor her father, William Smart, in 1909. Mr. Smart was a Civil War veteran who was widowed when his wife died while giving birth to their sixth child. Mr. Smart reared his six children by himself on his rural farm in eastern Washington state. Sonora realized, many years later, that her father, as a single parent, had made many selfless sacrifices. Mr. Smart was born in June, so Sonora chose June for the first day in which to honor all days. Then on June 19, 1910, the first Father's Day was celebrated. President Calvin Coolidge, in 1924, supported the idea of a national Father's Day and in 1966, President Lyndon Johnson signed a presidential proclamation declaring the third Sunday in June as Father's Day. In the Broadway play, Fanny, a young girl becomes pregnant and the young man involved immediately ships out to sea. Another young man marries Fanny and takes care of her and the baby. Not too long later, the first man comes back from sea and learns what has happened. He is furious and asks his uncle who the real father is. He asks if the real father is the man who gave the baby life or the man who buys the baby the bibs. The uncle replies that it is the man who loves. (John 3:16) "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." The minister of a church in Belfast told the children a story about the grease band which farmers put around their apple trees. He told the children that each fall a little insect climbs up the apple tree looking for a place to spend the winter. When the sun warms the insect in the spring, it comes out and looks for a place to lay its egg. The insect sees the soft heart of an apple blossom, and there deposits the egg, with a little dab of glue to fix the egg firmly to the stamen. When the blossom falls off and the little apple begins to swell and grow, the egg in the fruit hatches and the codling moth is born. The apple becomes the pantry and home of the moth. On the outside, the fruit looks perfect, but when the fruit is cut, the heart has been ruined. So, farmers put a grease band around the trees to protect fruit before it is formed. Children whose parents put a protective band of discipline and ideals around the heart to keep the moth of sin-selfishness-and other character flaws from getting a start are the fortunate ones. Life is a little easier for those who have been used to discipline, and have made the transition easily from parents' discipline to self-discipline. We have a commandment which tells us to honor our father and mother and the book of Proverbs consuls us to "Listen to your father who begot you... The father of the righteous wise child will delight in him." Admiral Elmo Zumwalt Jr., in 1968, ordered waterways near Vietnam sprayed with the chemical, Agent Orange. One of the naval river patrol boats which went through this chemical was the Admirals' son, Lieutenant Elmo Zumwalt III. who died of cancer in 1988. Admiral Zumwalt believes that he caused the suffering and death of his own son. -<>- __ _.-~` `~-. _.--~~~---,.__ _.,;; . -=(@'`\ .-` ``~~~~--~~` ';;; ____) _.' '. ';;;;; '`_.' .-~;` `\ ' ';;;;;__.~` .' .' `'. | / /;'' \/ .---'''``) /'-._____.--'\ \ jgs _/| (` / /` `\ \__ ', `/- \ \ __/ (_ /-\-\-` `;'-..___) | `/-\-\-` `-. .' `~~~~`` >An Inspiring Urban Legend: In order to renovate the house, someone in Japan tore open the wall. Japanese houses normally have a hollow space between the wooden walls. When tearing down the walls, he found that there was a lizard stuck there because a nail from outside was hammered into one of its feet. He saw this, felt pity, and at the same time he was curious. When he checked the nail, turns out, it was nailed 10 years ago when the house was first built. What happened? The lizard had survived in such a position for 10 years! In a dark wall partition for 10 years without moving, it is impossible and mind boggling. Then he wondered how this lizard survived for 10 years without moving a single step--since its foot was nailed! So he stopped his work and observed the lizard, what it had been doing, and what and how it has been eating. Later, not knowing from where it came, appeared another lizard, with food in its mouth. Ahh! He was stunned and at the same time, touched deeply. Another lizard had been feeding the stuck one for the past 10 years... Such love, such a beautiful love! Such love happened with this tiny creature... What can love do? It can do wonders! Love can do miracles! Just think about it; one lizard had been feeding the other one untiringly for 10 long years, without giving up hope on its partner. If a small creature like a lizard can love like this... just imagine how we can love if we try. -<>- >Links for Your Enjoyment: Our Gifts And Callings! http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/BibleStudy/giftscallings.html God's Royal And Holy Priests! http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/BibleStudy/royalpriests.html Straying From The Light! http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/BibleStudy/straying.html Awesome Photos! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/awesome.html Awesome Bridge! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/awesomebridge.html Big Boy Toys! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/bigboytoys.html Uninvited Wedding Guests! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/weddingguests.html Camel Hair Art! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/camelhair.html Salvation Mountain! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/salvation.html Love Stories! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/lovestories.html Dreamy Ladies! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/dreamy.html All About Hugs! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/hugs.html Moms And Dads INDEX! https://tinyurl.com/y4xyz2w8 -<>- What does the Bible say about Marijuana? https://tinyurl.com/y2l42uth See me, see Jesus https://tinyurl.com/y27gc66o Duck Dynasty’s Phil Robertson UNLEASHES On Democrats He misses the America he once knew and we understand... http://trk.cp20.com/click/g6v6-13cm6t-jpcyvd-b61d11g9/ Ted Cruz SLAPS Ilhan Omar Down To Size He destroyed her so badly she even deleted... http://trk.cp20.com/click/g6v6-13cm6t-jpcyvg-b61d11g2/ BOMBSHELL: Robert Mueller REPORT Hidden Items Special counsel Robert Mueller has just ROCKED Washington. http://trk.cp20.com/click/g6v6-13cm6t-jpcyva-b61d11g6/ Sean Hannity 5/29/19 | Fox News Today May 29 2019 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzVJJ799HQ4 The Whitehouse: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ Westwing News: https://www.whitehouse.gov/westwingreads/ WhiteHouseNews: https://www.whitehouse.gov/1600daily/ Latest From 1600daily: http://1600daily.com/ Latest From AFA: http://tinyurl.com/j7lakqw Students For Life https://tinyurl.com/yd5nxmu6 Latest From OperationRescue: http://www.operationrescue.org/ Latest Product Alert: Coffee, Fish, Sleepwear http://www.emergencyemail.org/products/?fmt=text Latest Health Alert: Bacterial Contamination Found in Hair Products http://www.emergencyemail.org/health/?fmt=text Click For Free to Give: https://www.greatergood.com/emails/2019/reminder-052619-THS-w.html Survival Update Latest: http://survivalupdate.com/ -<>- Revisiting... If you don't know the story of Jonah you will after hearing this little one share it...without a script! http://vimeo.com/16404771 A French night club http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=5hIc2ODfRxQ -<>- >From Our Friend Fran :) She sent us one we have here... Let's Dance! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/dance.html --- ...A fun one! Thanks Fran! -<>- >From Our Friend LouiseAu :) She sent us one we have here... World's Coldest City! http://www.shangralafamilyfun.com/coldestcity.html A collection of training and behind the scenes clips that we shot over the past 15 years while working with Budweiser and their Clydesdales. Journey to the Super Bowl - Trainer Robin Wiltshire - Turtle Ranch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=si7p23Nex-g&feature=em-subs_digest-vrecs You would have to be over 60 to truly appreciate this Really great stuff of cars & music... Best of Times http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=sDc0ID6PJeg&feature=youtu.be --- ...Wowsers! Great ones! Thanks LouiseAu! -<>- >From Our Friend Melody :) How Smart Are You? http://www.mikescomputerinfo.com/inteltest.htm Letterman at Mcdonald's - YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtPGdOs7zOM&feature=related Ormie the Pig - YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=FrTbnczYAd4&feature=player_embedded The Life of flowers http://tinyurl.com/3gxmeze David Attenborough - Wonderful World - BBC - YouTube http://www.youtube.com/embed/B8WHKRzkCOY --- ...Most delightful! Good going! Love These! Thanks Melody! Visit Melissa's Online Store You can get anything you want (except for Melissa ) at the online store http://pdhomes.net/mall/babylissa/mySTORES/ISELL4.html ========================================================== >-->From Our Friend PatDeE :) ____ /(( )) ( )6 6( ) (_) l (_) \ <> ) ____) (_____ ( \____/ ) ) ( )( ) ( / / \ / \ \ / / \ / \ \ \ \ )==( / / \ \ / \ / / '\\/ \//' '|\` '|\` \ / \ / ) ( jgs/akg / \ / \ / \ / \ / \ / \ `-...., ,..-' `-..-' >7% Written by a 90 year old This is something we should all read at least once a week!!!!! Make sure you read to the end!!!!!! Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio .. To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more: 1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good. 2. When in doubt, just take the next small step. 3. Life is too short – enjoy it. 4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will. 5. Pay off your credit cards every month. 6. You don't have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself. 7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone. 8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it. 9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck. 10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile. 11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present. 12. It's OK to let your children see you cry. 13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about. 14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it. 15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye But don't worry; God never blinks. 16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind. 17. Get rid of anything which isn't useful. Clutter weighs you down in many ways. 18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger. 19. It's never too late to be happy. But it’s all up to you and no one else. 20, When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer. 21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, and wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special. 22. Over prepare, and then go with the flow. 23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple. 24. The most important sex organ is the brain. 25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you. 26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?' 27. Always choose life. 28. Forgive but don’t forget. 29. What other people think of you is none of your business. 30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time. 31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change. 32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does. 33. Believe in miracles. 34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do. 35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now. 36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young. 37. Your children get only one childhood. 38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved. 39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere. 40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back. 41. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have not what you need. 42. The best is yet to come... 43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up. 44. Yield. 45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift. Its estimated 93% won't forward this. If you are one of the 7% who will, forward this with the title '7%'. I'm in the 7%. Friends are the family we choose. --- ...So True! Thank You PatDeE! ========================================================== >-->From LaughAndLift: "A man can accept what Christ has done without knowing how it works; indeed he certainly won't know how it works until he's accepted it." - C. S. Lewis , , /////| ///// | ///// | |~~~| | | |===| |/| | B |/| | | I | | | | B | | | | L | / | E | / |===|/ jgs '---' >Belief and Understanding - Provided by Student Discipleship Ministries, TX (edited) An intelligent young gentleman told a group of friends one day that he would not believe anything that he could not understand. An old farmer overheard the remark and, turning to the young man, said: "As I was riding into town today, I passed a field in which some sheep were feeding. Not far from the sheep several calves were feeding, and not far from the calves some pigs and geese were doing the same. The grass that the sheep ate will turn to wool; the grass that the calves ate will turn to hair; the grass that the pigs ate will turn to bristles; and the grass that the geese ate will turn to feathers. Do you believe it?" The young gentleman answered, "Yes." "Do you understand it, though?," asked the farmer. "No," the young man replied. "Young man," the farmer said with a smile, "if you live long, you will find that there are a great many things you will believe without understanding." Some people say that they can't believe in God because they only believe in what they can see and understand. Yet, if God is God, He is beyond our understanding. Romans 11:33-36 (NIV) says: "Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen." The great truth of the Gospel is that even though we cannot understand God, we can know Him. He has revealed Himself to the world by way of His only begotten son, Jesus Christ and invites all who will to come into a relationship with Him. Do you understand Him? No. Nobody fully does. The question is, do you believe in Him? -<>- "The men who have done the most for God in this world have been early on their knees. He who fritters away the early morning, its opportunity and freshness, in other pursuits than seeking God will make poor headway seeking Him the rest of the day. If God is not first in our thoughts and efforts in the morning, He will be in the last place the remainder of the day." - E.M. Bounds , , /////| ///// | ///// | |~~~| | | |===| |/| | B |/| | | I | | | | B | | | | L | / | E | / |===|/ jgs '---' >When The Tapestry Is Unraveling (By Ron Hutchcraft) I hope I don't have to be an expert on a subject to talk about it - in this case, weaving a tapestry. Actually, Carol, our receptionist, is a very "crafty" type woman, and that includes making some beautiful tapestries. She taught me something about this kind of artwork the other day - that it likes to unravel. All those threads that she so skillfully weaves into a creative pattern have this natural tendency to unravel, thus destroying that design that she's worked so hard on. So how do you keep it together? Carol says you put this frame around the tapestry, and with everything held together by the frame, you can keep weaving the tapestry without it unraveling. Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "When The Tapestry Is Unraveling." God's been weaving you into one of His tapestries - your family, your church (that's the tapestries that HE does), maybe the people you minister with, your network of Christian relationships. The threads in God's masterpiece are His children, who like threads in any tapestry, are very different from one another. People who are mostly head, people who are mostly heart, soft people, rough people, outspoken people, soft- spoken people, compliant folks, controlling folks, race horses, plodders. In Ephesians, God describes His family as a healthy body, "joined and held together by every supporting ligament," a body that "grows and builds itself up in love" (Ephesians 4:16). We're supposed to be held together in love and harmony. But, like a tapestry, there's this tendency to unravel. Which may be what is happening with the tapestry you're part of. There's strain, tension, misunderstanding, negativity, criticism, maybe backbiting or backstabbing, there's unrest, trash talk, growing resentments, little cliques or power blocs, or walls developing between people. God knows we tend to unravel from each other. That's why He gives us a framework for keeping the tapestry together in our word for today from the Word of God in Ephesians 4:2-3. "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." That "make every effort" word is from the Greek verb from which we get our word energy - "put a lot of energy into staying unified." If the tapestry of believers around you seems to be unraveling some, would you be the one who does whatever it takes to stop that unraveling? You may need to be the peacemaker, or maybe the confronter of what's causing the problem, or it could be that you need to play the role of the forgiver who allows a healing process to begin. If you're harboring any anger or resentment, if you're nursing a grievance, if you're allowing distance or harshness to develop, then you are contributing to the unraveling of the tapestry that God has so carefully woven together. To keep the tapestry together, you need to be that person who is "completely humble and gentle ... patient, bearing with one another in love." Allow no walls to develop and no wounds to go untreated. Aggressively try to keep everyone's eyes on Jesus, the Frame Who holds us together forever. We've all been to the same cross to have our sins forgiven. We're all indwelt by the same holy spirit. We'll all be together in the same heaven forever. We all bow at the same name, the name of Jesus. Jesus has worked hard to weave the tapestry you're part of. He's spent an awful lot on it. Don't be a part of letting it unravel. [Copyright (c) 2003, Ron Hutchcraft. Permission to distribute this material via email, or individual copies, is automatically granted on the condition it will be used for non-commercial purposes, and will not be sold.] SUBSCRIBE INFO Want to receive a Christian inspirational item AND great clean humor in an email to you each day of the week? It's easy and FREE! Read all about Laugh & Lift at http://www.laughandlift.com ========================================================== ,-`"-=') =/////// ,== _,_(((((-`6\ ==.| /,,...\\\C _| .--. ((((\\\\\` _, /;_| )9 )))))./ `. / } _\,_ ,-'))) \ / /=-. ,-./ \/ '))) . /\_/ / \ (,-.%\ / /-' ') \/\ / ( \ (/ \ ' /( ' `-/ \( \ ,- / ( `-' \ . / / \ \ &_) /\ \ | ( /--.- \ \----,------=;% | _/ _); `. ` `-. .`\ ) +++/ \ ,," %&-. ; \\| `-` `-=.;_,.__.__\_,/ )_/___+_/_________\,"(_//_(__)______:-._) gpyy >-->Be a Friend BE a friend. You don't need money; Just a disposition sunny; Just the wish to help another Get along some way or other; Just a kindly hand extended Out to one who's unbefriended; Just the will to give or lend, This will make you someone's friend. Be a friend. You don't need glory. Friendship is a simple story. Pass by trifling errors blindly, Gaze on honest effort kindly, Cheer the youth who's bravely trying, Pity him who's sadly sighing; Just a little labor spend On the duties of a friend. Be a friend. The pay is bigger (Though not written by a figure) Than is earned by people clever In what's merely self-endeavor. You'll have friends instead of neighbors For the profits of your labors; You'll be richer in the end Than a prince, if you're a friend. ~ Edgar Guest >Updated FUN STUFF URLS - Oh Yeah Shangy! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/urls.html FUN URLS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -->ShangyFunList AD RATES: $20 will get your a message (of up to 40 words) out to all self-subscribed readers and $5 more will give you the same message also put up for all web site readers. Email me to secure dates. Ad Request ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -->FULL LENGTH - FREE On line AUDIO MP3 Christian Foundational Class http://www.truthortradition.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=61 NEW LIFE IN CHRIST! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -->This is for all you who love food and DARE to make it at home Yep. You guessed it - Recipes. These are Tried and True, Yummy to the Tummy, good old fashioned home cooking recipes that are EASY to do Visit Shangy's Easy-Does-It Home Recipes: http://www.ShangralaFamilyFun.com/easy.html Home Recipes >Got A good Recipe? SHARE IT HERE: Share A Recipe ********************************************************************** >TO SUBSCRIBE:Visit Here This Weeks regular Shangy emails OR For the Yahoo ShangyFunList: To Subscribe send a blank email to ShangyFunList-subscribe@yahoogroups.com **********************************************************************