NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPUNISHED!

                                                                          PART 1

        Listen carefully!

I'm well aware that your intentions were gallant:  to provide for your family all the things YOU never had, to spend quality time with them, and to help others like yourself grow & prosper.

And remember what happened next?

You were lied to; you were "leveraged"  The heavy hitters used you for batting practice.  You got thrown in the muck, untrained, unprepared.  Your checking account was drained.  Your credit cards were maxed out.  Friends & relative screened your phone calls.

Then you looked in the mirror, and called yourself "loser"

I know, I know.

It all started because you want the same things I wanted.

You want to be your own boss, answer to no one...and earn a good living doing it.  You want to go where you want, when you want.  You want to spend $200.00 for dinner without batting an eye.

You want precious time NOW with those you love.  You want the money and freedom to take a day off - or 2 weeks off- and maybe fly to some faraway island on a whim!.

You want to work and socialize with people you like & admire; who share your outlook on life, and your goals.   You want the self-satisfaction of achieving your goals; and the self-fulfillment of helping others reach theirs.  You want financial independence.

You don't want more rejection.  You don't want to have to sell anything to anyone.   And you SURE don't want another MLM

The above was take from CHAPTER 1 in Michael Dlouhy's book "SUCCESS IN 10 STEPS"

TO ERR IS HUMAN; TO FORGIVE DIVINE

    Of the four main types of human personality, one of them harbours the fault of being of a perfectionist mentality.  They get frustated as they can't seem to reach their  perfectionist strivings  The more they reach out for perfection, the more frustrated they become, as they come to realize more and more their imperfections.  "We find ourselves surprised at the ability that we have in failing in so many avenues and ways"  Samuel McChord Caruthers.  
   However, when we take into account our human frailty, weakness, and general ignorance, we came face to face with our need for utter dependence upon the God of the Bible who promises, "Call unto me, and I will answer thee; and shew thee Great and Mighty things that thou knowest not"  Jeremiah 33:3  KJV.

   So when we remember that making mistakes is Human:  But to forgive-this is God like.

BE CAREFUL HOW YOU BUILD!

    The Lord Jesus Christ, the Divine Son of God, gave us some instruction on how we should build our lives.  I will quote from Jesus' words as recorded in Matthew 7: 24-27, King James Version:

    "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of Mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man which built his house upon a rock.  And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not;  for it was founded upon a rock.  And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man which  built his house upon the sand;  and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house;  and it fell; and great was the fall of it."

Note Three things about what the Lord Jesus Christ was saying

1. Storms will come to all regardless of whether: we are wise or foolish; and whether we are prepared or not
2. How the Storm affects us will depend upon what sort of foundation we've built upon.  The character of our lives is not what people see, or what our reputation is, but what we our in reality when no body else is present;  what God knows us to be in our heart of hearts.  This is the foundation that we are building upon.
3. Christ here does not speak in terms of good and evil.  He speaks in terms of being wise, or being foolish, sensible or insensible; sane or insane;  and this hinges on whether or not we give heed, and obey his sayings.  This is what determines our destiny.  

WELCOME TO THE IDES OF MARCH

    Today is March 1st.  When I was growing up, we were taught a saying about the month of March.  It goes something like this:  If March comes in like a lamb, it will go out like a lion.  If March, on the other hand, comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb.  This is speaking about the weather.  However there are very tumultious things happening right now, which could be construed as March coming in like a lion: 

    What happens today will determine whether the Automatic Spending Cuts (Sequestration).  President Obama, and other people from his administration, have been trying to make it appear that if the Republicans don't cave and give in to new tax cuts that the Sequester cuts will take over and drive our society into oblivion.

    As I write this to you, the papal enclave has been gathering in Rome, as they make preparations to elect successor to Pope Benedict XVI

Petrus Romanus - The Final Pope!

     Today, at 2:00 pm Eastern Time on February 28, 2013,  Pope Benedict XVI retired.  He will be known as Pope Emeritus.  This is the first time in over 600 years that a sitting Pope has stepped down.  During the next two weeks a successor to Pope Benedict will be chosen by the College of Cardinals.  This may have implications for the end time events, and for the Revelation of Jesus Christ.

     I am not of the Catholic faith; nor do I have any confidence at all in the Pope of Rome,  however, I just read a book about something written 1251 ad by St Malachy called the Prophecy of the Popes.  This man St. Malachy is a seer and a mystic in the same mold as Nostradamus.  He wrote a prophecy where he names the popes, and makes a prediction about each of the popes right up to this day.

According to this prophecy, the Pope after Benedict, will be the Final Pope.  This Petrus Romanus will be who the book of Revelation calls the 'FALSE PROPHET', and introduce the man known as the AntiChrist, that man of sin who will fight against God, and His Christ.   

    So, whether or not you believe in the Popes, and the prophesies about them, this next two weeks will be very interesting, and could have very serve and grave implications for the end of time, and the situation bears watching.


   

EXCEPT YE BE CONVERTED AND BECOME AS LITTLE CHILDREN

       Jesus said, "Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of God"

   I once saw a poster for a blood driver which illustrates what Jesus was saying here.  I used to be a blood donor, while I still worked for the Federal Government.  The poster show a couple of new born babies.  Underneath, the caption read:  'These babies may not be yours, but they may be your type.'
But I was struck by the innocence of the children, and was struck  by the awareness that God wants us to become like Children.  We need to have simple child-like faith and trust in God, and in our fellow man.
    To often when we grow up to adulthood, we are stuck on ourselves.  We think we are the Cat's meow, and that we are going to take the world by storm.  However, most often we crash and burn, and fail miserably.   We don't know that We don't know.
    The only remedy, is that we stop ourselves, and humble ourselves and realize that the only things we really know in life is what God says to us, and what the Bible tells us.  Then we can have that faith in God as a child.  This will be pleasing to God and will honor him. 

SPRING IS COMING SOON!

    Ever since I can remember Spring has been my favorite season of the year.  Every year, I look forward to seeing my first Robin Redbreast which is a harbinger of spring;   I look forward to seeing Tulips, and Daffodils and Crocuses.

   On February 2, which was ground-hog day, Punxsutawney Phil, the groundhog from Eastern Pennsylvania, did not see his shadow.  This supposedly means an early spring.  If the ground hog had seen his shadow that would have meant 6 more weeks of winter.  But wait, 6 weeks from Feb. 02 brings us to March 21  which is  the first calendar day of spring.   

   But I've already noticed that the days are getting longer; the Sun's coming up earlier, and daylight last longer.  I've already purchased tulips.  So I am looking for Spring.  Regardless of the weather, whatever punches, winter still has left, and remember I live in Michigan, I am in the Spring mode.

Spring is Coming Soon!