Live Positive Way

Once Buddha was walking from one town to another town with a few of his followers. This was in the initial days. While they were travelling, they happened to pass a lake. They stopped there and Buddha told one of his disciples, I am thirsty. Do get me some water from that lake there.

The disciple walked up to the lake. When he reached it, he noticed that some people were washing clothes in the water and, right at that moment, a bullock cart started crossing through the lake. As a result, the water became very muddy, very turbid. The disciple thought, How can I give this muddy water to Buddha to drink! So he came back and told Buddha, The water in there is very muddy. I dont think it is fit to drink.

After about half an hour, again Buddha asked the same disciple to go back to the lake and get him some water to drink. The disciple obediently went back to the lake. This time he found that the lake had absolutely clear water in it. The mud had settled down and the water above it looked fit to be had. So he collected some water in a pot and brought it to Buddha.

Buddha looked at the water, and then he looked up at the disciple and said, See what you did to make the water clean. You let it be ... and the mud settled down on its own and you got clear water... Your mind is also like that. When it is disturbed, just let it be. Give it a little time. It will settle down on its own. You dont have to put in any effort to calm it down. It will happen. It is effortless.

What did Buddha emphasize here? He said, It is effortless. Having 'peace of mind' is not a strenuous job; it is an effortless process. When there is peace inside you, that peace permeates to the outside. It spreads around you and in the environment, such that people around start feeling that peace and grace.

Live Positive Way

All powers and all purity and all greatness – everything is in the soul.

No great work can be done without sacrifice.

The best guide in life is strength.

Each soul is potentially divine.

All wisdom and all purity are in the soul already.

You are omnipotent.

The remedy for weakness is not brooding over weakness, but thinking of strength.

This is the great fact, strength is life, weakness is death.

It is the greatest privilege in our life that we are allowed to serve the Lord in all these shapes.

It is the greatest of all lies that we are mere men, we are the God of the universe.

We are what our thoughts have made us so take care of what you think.

What we think we tend to become.

It is truth alone that gives strength.

The greatest truths are the simplest things in the world, simple as your own existence.

Today or tomorrow or ages after, truth will conquer.

If I am unhappy, it has been of my own making and that very thing shows that I can be happy if I will.

- Swami Vivekananda

Live Positive Way

Three beautiful thoughts from Mr. Ratan Tata

1. None can destroy iron, but its own rust can!
Likewise, none can destroy a person, but his own mindset can.

2. Ups and downs in life are very important to keep us going, 

because a straight line even in an E.C.G. means we are not alive.

3. F-E-A-R : has two meanings :

  1. Forgot Everything And Run
  2. Face Everything And Rise

Live Positive Way

~Just Checking In~

A minister passing through his church in the middle of the day,
Decided to pause by the altar and see who had come to pray.

Just then the back door opened, a man came down the aisle,
The minister frowned as he saw the man hadn't shaved in a while.

His shirt was kinda shabby and his coat was worn and frayed.
The man knelt, he bowed his head, then rose and walked away.

In the days that followed, each noon time - came this chap,
Each time he knelt just for a moment, a lunch pail in his lap.

Well, the minister's suspicions grew, with robbery a main fear,
He decided to stop the man and ask him, "What are you doing here?"

The old man said, he worked down the road - Lunch was half an hour.
Lunchtime was his prayer time, for finding faith, strength and power.

"I stay only moments, see, the factory is so far away;
As I kneel here talking to the Lord, this is kinda what I say:

"I just came again to tell you Lord, how happy I have been,
Since we found each other's friendship and you took away my sin.

Don't know much of how to pray, but I think about you everyday.
So, Jesus, this is Jim - just checking in."

The minister feeling foolish, told Jim that was fine.
He told the man he was welcome to come and pray anytime.

"Time to go", Jim smiled, and said "thanks" as he hurried to the door.
The minister knelt at the alter, he'd never done that before.

His cold heart melted, warmed with love, and met with Jesus there.
As the tears flowed, in his heart, he repeated old Jim's prayer:

"I just came again to tell you Lord, how happy I have been,
Since we found each other's friendship and you took away my sin.

Don't know much of how to pray, but I think about you everyday.
So, Jesus, This is me - just checking in."

Past noon one day, the minister noticed that old Jim had not come.
As more days passed with no sign of Jim, he began to worry some.

At the factory, he asked about him, learning he was ill.
The hospital staff was worried, but Jim had given them a thrill.

The week that Jim was with them, he brought changes in the ward.
His smiles, a joy contagious - changed people, were his reward.

The head nurse couldn't understand why Jim was so glad,
When no flowers, calls or cards came, not a visitor he had.

The minister stayed by Jim's bed, he voiced the nurse's concern.
No friends came to show they cared, he had nowhere to turn.

Looking surprised, old Jim spoke up and with a winsome smile -
"The nurse is wrong, she couldn't know, that in here all the while,

Everyday at noon - He's here, a dear friend of mine, you see,
He sits right down, takes my hand, leans over and says to me:

"I JUST CAME AGAIN TO TELL YOU, JIM,
HOW HAPPY I HAVE BEEN,
SINCE WE FOUND THIS WONDERFUL FRIENDSHIP,
AND I TOOK AWAY YOUR SIN.
I ALWAYS LOVE TO HEAR YOU PRAY,
AND I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERY DAY,
AND SO JIM, THIS IS JESUS ... CHECKING IN."

Live Positive Way

An old woman cried everyday under the tree. People did not know why.

One day, a monk passed by and asked her why she cried so sadly. The old woman said, "I have two daughters, the elder selling umbrella and the younger selling dried food. On sunny days, I cry because my elder daughter cannot make a living as nobody buys umbrellas. On rainy days, I cry because my younger daughter cannot make or sell dried food."

The monk then told the old woman, "I can make you happy! Oh dear, you should think of your elder daughter on rainy days. You will be happy because people buy umbrellas from her. On sunny days, you should think of your younger daughter because she can earn a lot of money by selling dried food."

The old woman was suddenly enlightened. Since then, she laughed everyday under the tree.

Just choose to stay happy....!!!!

Live Positive Way

Live Positive Way

Yesterday and tomorrow

Two days which should be kept free from fear and apprehension.

One of these days is yesterday with its mistakes and cares,

Its faults and blunders, Its aches and pains.

Yesterday has passed forever beyond our control.

All the money in the world cannot bring back yesterday.

We cannot undo a single act we performed.

We cannot erase a single word we said. Yesterday is gone.

The other day we should not worry about is tomorrow.

With its possible adversities, Its burdens, 

Its large promise and poor performance.

Tomorrow is also beyond our immediate control.

Tomorrow's Sun will rise, either in splendor or behind a mask of clouds, 

but it will rise.

Until it does, we have no stake in tomorrow, for it is yet unborn.

This just leaves only one day . . . Today.

Any person can fight the battles of just one day.

It is only when you and I add the burdens of those two awful eternity's -

yesterday and tomorrow that we break down.

It is not the experience of today that drives people mad.

It is the remorse or bitterness for something which happened yesterday 

and the dread of what tomorrow may bring.

Let us therefore live but one day at a time.

Live Positive Way

All power is within you, you can do anything and everything.

There is no help for you outside of yourself, you are the creator of the universe.

That society is the greatest, where the highest truths become practical.

The great task is to revive the whole man, as it were, in order to make him the complete master of himself.

We are weak because we are ignorant.

Life is short, but the soul is immortal and eternal.

You can’t help anyone, you can only serve.

The greatest sin is to think yourself weak.

Blessed are they those bodies get destroyed in the service of others.

If there is any sin in the world, it is weakness.’

The kingdom of heaven is within us.

You make and mould your own life.

- Swami Vivekananda

Live Positive Way

A true life story.......Juggle Balls

Written by the CEO of Coca-Cola:

"Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. You name them - work, family, health, friends and spirit and you're keeping all of these in the air. You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls - family, health, friends and spirit are made of glass. If you drop one of these, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged or even shattered. They will never be the same. You must understand that and strive for balance in your life.

How?

Don't undermine your worth by comparing yourself with others. It is because we are different that each of us is special.

Don't set your goals by what other people deem important. Only you know what is best for you.

Don't take for granted the things closest to your heart. Cling to them as you would your life, for without them, life is meaningless.

Don't let your life slip through your fingers by living in the past or for the future. By living your life one day at a time, you live ALL the days of your life.

Don't give up when you still have something to give. Nothing is really over until the moment you stop trying.

Don't be afraid to admit that you are less than perfect. It is this fragile thread that binds us each together.

Don't be afraid to encounter risks. It is by taking chances that we learn how to be brave.

Don't shut love out of your life by saying it's impossible to find. The quickest way to receive love is to give; the fastest way to lose love is to hold it too tightly; and the best way to keep love is to give it wings.

Don't run through life so fast that you forget not only where you've been, but also where you are going.

Don't forget that a person's greatest emotional need is to feel appreciated.

Don't be afraid to learn. Knowledge is weightless, a treasure you can always carry easily.

Don't use time or words carelessly. Neither can be retrieved. Life is not a race, but a journey to be savored each step of the way.

Live Positive Way - Table Cloth

Everything happens for a reason...a very interesting read.....

 

A TRUE STORY...... makes you understand why ... things always happen for a reason.

 

The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry, to reopen a church in suburban Brooklyn , arrived in early October excited about their opportunities. When they saw their church, it was very run down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.

 

They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc, and on December 18, were ahead of schedule and just about finished. On December 19 a terrible tempest - a driving rainstorm - hit the area and lasted for two days. On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church. His heart sank when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 20 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high. The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home. On the way he noticed that a local business was having a flea market type sale for charity, so he stopped in.

 

One of the items was a beautiful, handmade, ivory colored, crocheted tablecloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a Cross embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover the hole in the front wall. He bought it and headed back to the church. By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the opposite direction was trying to catch the bus. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later. She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers, etc., to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry. The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and it covered up the entire problem area. Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet. "Pastor," she asked, "where did you get that tablecloth?"

 

The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials 'EBG' were crocheted into it there. They were. These were the initials of the woman, and she had made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria . The woman could hardly believe it as the pastor told how he had just gotten "The Tablecloth".

The woman explained that before the war she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria . When the Nazis came, she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next week. He was captured, sent to prison and she never saw her husband or her home again.

The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she made the pastor keep it for the church. The pastor insisted on driving her home. That was the least he could do. She lived on the other side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job.

 

What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return. One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood, continued to sit in one of the pews and stare, and the pastor wondered why he wasn't leaving. The man asked him where he got the tablecloth on the front wall because it was identical to one that his wife had made years ago when they lived in Austria before the war and how could there be two tablecloths so much alike? He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety and he was supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a prison. He never saw his wife or his home again in all the 35 years between.

 

The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. They drove to Staten Island and to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier. He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman's apartment, knocked on the door and he saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.

 

A true story - submitted by Pastor Rob Reid who says God does work in mysterious ways. I asked the Lord to bless you as I prayed for you today, to guide you and protect you as you go along your way. His love is always with you. His promises are true, and when we give Him all our cares we know He will see us through. So when the road you're travelling seems difficult at best, just remember I'm here praying and God will do the rest!

Live Positive Way

Live Positive Way

Be Thankful

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire ... if you did, what would there be to look forward to? 

Be thankful when you don't know something ... for it gives you the opportunity to learn. 

Be thankful for the difficult times ... during those times you grow. 

Be thankful for your limitations ... they give you opportunities for improvement. 

Be thankful for each new challenge... which will build your strength and character. 

Be thankful for your mistakes ... they will teach you valuable lessons. 

Be thankful when you're tired and weary ... because it means you've given your all.

It's easy to be thankful for the 'good' things ... yet, a life of rich fulfilment comes to those who are thankful for the setbacks. 

Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive ... find a way to be thankful for your troubles and they can become your blessings.

- Unknown author

Live Positive Way

Know that service to those (poor, illiterate, ignorant and afflicted) alone is the highest religion.

Religion is the manifestation of the divinity already in man.

The first sign that you are becoming religious is that you are becoming cheerful.

Each one will have to save himself, each one to do his own work.

It is not the receiver that is blessed, but it is the giver.

Great convictions are the mothers of great deeds.

You can’t believe in god until you believe in yourself.

In no other scripture in the world is this adjective (fearless) applied either to god or to man.

The great thing is to have faith in oneself, even before faith in god.

 - Swami Vivekananda