God's Mercy

I was pondering what an amazing thing was God’s Favor, when my son asked me what the difference was between Mercy and Favor.

I started with the Dictionary Definition:
FAVOR- Overgenerous preferential treatment - a sign of liking - an act of kindness beyond what is due or usual
MERCY- Compassion or forgiveness shown towards someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm

I thought that the dictionary said it pretty well. Favor is unmerited preferential treatment and Mercy is compassion or forgiveness toward someone who has committed an act against you.

What awesome set of power twins. They work hand-in-hand but they aren’t the same. From the beginning we see God acting in Mercy and Favor when He sent His Son to redeem us. But it doesn’t end there. The Word says that if He would not spare His Son how much more will He give us All Things?

When we speak of God’s Will, His Mercy and His Favor in the same context of “asking, receiving” and the verse I just quoted which includes the words “all things” (Rom 8:32) people withdrawal and act “shy”. People say things like “That’s not what it really means.” or “’All things’ mean spiritual things.” or something similar.

But I encourage you not to hold yourself back by explaining away God’s favor, grace, mercy wrapped up in His blessings. Receive them and run with them.


Favor
2 Corinthians 6:2

Mercy
Mercy Heb 4:16

Principle of the Giver

Principle of the giver
This principle is crucial in achieving a truly successful life, full of accomplishment and meaning. A person may be able to achieve monetary success without it, but long-lasting happiness and fulfillment will never be achieved without accepting this principle and putting it to work.

As with all good principles, this one is simple, practical and easy to put into practice. It should, although, be reviewed every day and the practitioner should compare his or her actions against it's directive.

Too often the average person falls in the common misconseption that to advance in life one has to "take" what they can.this happens with everything they come in contact with. Their vocabulary is full of "I need, I want, I must have" punctuated with "I deserve", and "you owe me". This mentality keeps the person fighting for pocket change while true riches will always alude them.

The principle of the giver runs contrary to the "Taker" and more along the line of the farmer. The farmer looks at a handful of seeds and a parcel of land and sees what it will become. The farmer sows the seed and waters it with the faith that one day it will be harvested. So the giver does what he does with the faith that the actions they are sowing today will return in an abundant harvest.


Provide more return than what is expected.


-- Posted while on the move

Location:Av El Boulevard de Surco,,Peru

'The son! The son! Who'll take the son?'

--- A story from my inbox. Please re-post at will.---

A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art..

When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.

About a month later, just before Christmas,

There was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands...

He said, 'Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly... He often talked about you, and your love for art.' The young man held out this package. 'I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this..'

The father

Opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture.. 'Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift.'

The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.

The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection.

On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. 'We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?'

There was silence....

Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, 'We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one.'

But the auctioneer persisted. 'Will somebody bid for this painting? Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?'
Another voice angrily. 'We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Gogh's, the Rembrandts. Get on with the Real bids!'

But still the auctioneer continued. 'The son! The son! Who'll take the son?'

Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. 'I'll give $10 for the painting...' Being a poor man, it was all he could afford.

'We have $10, who will bid $20?'

'Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters.'

The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son.

They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections.

The auctioneer pounded the gavel.. 'Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!'

A man sitting on the second row shouted, 'Now let's get on with the collection!'

The auctioneer laid down his gavel. 'I'm sorry, the auction is over.'

'What about the paintings?'

'I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will... I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings.

The man who took the son gets everything!'

God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on the cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: 'The son, the son, who'll take the son?'

Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.


FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, WHO SO EVER BELIEVETH, SHALL HAVE ETERNAL LIFE...THAT'S LOVE

Stress

(This was sent to me by a friend and I found it worth posting...with some modifications)

A lecturer when explaining stress management to an audience, raised a glass of water and asked 'How heavy is this glass of water?'

Answers called out ranged from 20g to 500g.

The lecturer replied,

'The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it.

If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem.

If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.

If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance.

In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.'

He continued,

'And that's the way it is with stress management. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won't be able to carry on. '

'As with the glass of water, Life can hand us difficult situations and our jobs can be stressful but if we don't learn how to let them go, or place them down we won't be able to go on.'

'So, before you return home tonight, empty as much of your glass as you can.

Put the rest of your work down.

Don't carry it home.

Realize the following simple truths...

Some days you're the pigeon,

And some days you're the statue.

Keep your words soft and sweet,

You may have to eat them.

Do things that are pleasing and kind

Be, who you would want your child to be

Read that which will build you up and make you better

It's what's in our hearts that determine our words and our destiny

Drive carefully.

On the street you're surrounded by Moms, Dads, and people's Children

If you can't be kind,

Keep your mouth closed

If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again,

It was probably worth it.

Your sole purpose in life is to love others.

If put both feet in your mouth at the same time,

You won't have a leg to stand on.

It's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, so get a good night's rest.

Be wise and remember that it's the second mouse who gets the cheese.

Birthdays are good for you. (Don't fight them)

The more you have, the longer you live.

You may like you're only one person in the world,

But you may also be the world to one person.

Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.

Learn from crayons...

Some are sharp,

some are pretty

some are dull

Some have weird names,

But not one color is the same, yet they all have to live in the same box.

Be happy and enjoy the scenery on life's detours....

What do I do now?

Gift of a Giver
Originally uploaded by Pool Photo

This simple question runs through the mind of university grads, those laid off from their jobs, and even retiries. And the answer is so simple that it is often over looked and discarded.

"Do what you enjoy."

When you keep in mind the principle of "the giver", the answer to the question is to develop one's self in what they enjoy. In this way, as one enjoys themselves they are supporting the community and those around them.

This environment will produce success and fulfillment for the giver and the receiver, a like.

Whenever we live our life in a way to benefit others we will live satisfied, accomplished and blessed.

Vacation Oriented

I've lived in many countries and in the majority of them I have seen a disturbing work ethic. It is distructive, unhealthy and leads people in a sence of unsatisfaction all the while masked as a normal and acceptable practice. It is the vacation-oriented work ethic.

You can see it in a simple form as weekend-oriented work. You can hear it in the movies or on TV when the actor says somehing like "I can't wait for Saturday" or "It's Wednesday, it's 'hump' day." refering to the middle of the week.

The essence of this narsasistic "ethic" is to reduce work into the necessary stepping stones to a achieve a personal gratification in form of a vacation, in other words an escape from the work.

What this does is make work a chore or a series chores that need to be done for the promised pleasure at the end. The problem is two-fold. The pleasure is never as good as how we imagined it, causing us to feel unsatisfied and leading us to question if we are working in the right field or doing the right thing in order to get our prize. Secondly, since we are focused on the weekend or vacation, our work suffers, weakening our possibility for future success and not satisfying the needs of those who depend on us..

Our focus should be service oriented. This positive, outward force benefits all those around it. Our satisfaction in serving can never be destroyed, and those we serve will find satisfaction in working with us. This focus puts a principle taught by our teacher, Jesus, into practice. ~Give and it shall be given to you~

Check yourself. Are you vacation or service oriented?

-- Posted while on the move

Forgiveness is not an Option

Our future is tied to what you have done and are currently doing. Walk circumspectly (using a word my Dad uses all the time) so as not to fall into an emotional trap that may seem right at the time but will cause damaging repercussions.

It is unfortunate that, in our walk through life, we will have to face people that will want to do us harm. I’m not referring to those who accidentally hurt us. Although those events will no doubt bother us, they will not birth the same desire for revenge as those initiated out of the conscious effort to harm us.

You might be thinking that you don’t harbor a desire for revenge but simply believe that they (those who have harmed you) don’t deserve and will not get your forgiveness. This attitude will inflict self injury and future discomfort.

When we fail to forgive we set several things into motion. First of all we set the law of sowing and reaping into action, meaning that we will reap unforgiveness. And second, unforgiveness will bind that event to your future. You will not reach the success you desire. Unforgiveness acts as a weight and acts as a tether to your dreams.

Forgive, and cut yourself loose.