Monday, January 25, 2010

Creating Boundaries to Avoid Conflict in Friendships and Relationships (Men and Women).



What are boundaries? Boundaries are guidelines or limits you must set in order to live and love well. A relationship without God-honoring boundaries is a relationship destined for chaos, frustration, and disappointment. It's okay, and even good, to say no to some things. Jesus did it all the time. If parenting is a struggle for you, boundaries may be the key to help you bring respect and love back into your home. Do you have a controlling family member? How can you respond to this person(s) in a way that’s pleasing to God? When asked to help out in some way do you ... should you ... always say yes? The answers to these questions may surprise you. In this small group you’ll discover why you need boundaries, why you have trouble setting them, and where you need to set them. You’ll discover methods for dealing with abusive or controlling relationships. And you’ll explore how boundaries bring stability, love, and joy to your life.

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Prayers For Peace from Around The World (TO WHICH GOD DO YOU PRAY TO)

A collection of prayers for peace from different faiths - Hindu, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, Jainist, Jewish, Shinto, Native African, Native American, Muslim, Baha'i, Sikh, Christian.



THE GOD WHO ANSWER WILL BE THE ONLY GOD WHO ANSWERED PRAYER.

One day long ago, God's Word came to Jonah, Amittai's son: "Up on your feet and on your way to the big city of Nineveh! Preach to them. They're in a bad way and I can't ignore it any longer."

But Jonah , running away from God. He went down to the port of Joppa , joining those going to Tarshish—as far away from God as he could get. But God sent a huge storm at sea, the waves towering. The ship was about to break into pieces. The sailors were terrified. They called out in desperation to their gods.

Meanwhile, Jonah had gone down into the hold of the ship to take a nap. He was sound asleep. The captain came to him and said, "What's this? Sleeping! Get up! Pray to your god! Maybe your god will see we're in trouble and rescue us." Then the sailors said to one another, "Let's get to the bottom of this. Jonah got the short straw.

At that, the men were frightened, really frightened, and said, "What on earth have you done!" As Jonah talked, the sailors realized that he was running away from God. Jonah said, "Throw me overboard, into the sea. Then the storm will stop. It's all my fault. I'm the cause of the storm. Get rid of me and you'll get rid of the storm." They took Jonah and threw him overboard. Immediately the sea was quieted down.


Hindu Prayer for Peace
Oh God, lead us from the unreal to the Real.Oh God, lead us from darkness to light.Oh God, lead us from death to immortality.Shanti, Shanti, Shanti unto all.
O Lord God Almighty may there be peace in Celestial regions.May there be peace on earth.May the waters be appeasing.May herbs be wholesome, and may trees and plants bring peace to all.May all beneficent beings bring peace to us.May thy Vedic Law propagate peace all through the world.May all things be a source of peace to us.And may thy peace itself bestow peace on all.And may that peace come to me also.

Buddhist Prayer for Peace
May all beings everywhere plagued with sufferings of body and mind quickly be freed from their illnesses.May those frightened cease to be afraid and may those bound be free.May the powerless find power,and may people think of befriending one another.May those who find themselves in trackless,fearful wildernesses - the children, the aged, the unprotected - be guarded by beneficent celestials,and may they quickly attain Buddhahood.


Zoroastrian Prayer for Peace
We pray to God to eradicate all the misery in the world:that understanding triumph over ignorance,that generosity triumph over indifference,that trust triumph over contempt, and that truth triumph over falsehood.


Jainist Prayer for Peace
Peace and Universal Love is the essence of the Gospel preached by all the Enlightened Ones.The Lord has preached that equanimity is the Dharma.Forgive do I, creatures all,and let all creatures forgive me.
Unto all have I amity, and unto none enmity.Know that violence is the root cause of all miseries in the world.Violence in fact, is the knot of bondage."Do not injure any living being."This is the eternal, perennial, and unalterable way of spiritual life.A weapon, howsoever powerful it may be,can always be superseded by a superior one;but no weapon can, however,be superior to non-violence and love.


Jewish Prayer for Peace
Come let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, that we may walk the paths of the most high.And we shall beat our swords into ploughshares, and our spears into pruning hooks.Nations shall not lift up sword against nation - neither shall they learn war any more.And none shall be afraid, for the mouth of the Lord of Hosts has spoken.

Shinto Prayer for Peace
Although the people living across the ocean surrounding us, I believe, are all our brothers and sisters, why are there constant troubles in this world?
Why do winds and waves rise in the ocean surrounding us?
I only earnestly wish that the wind will soon puff away all the clouds which are hanging over the tops of the mountains.



Native African Prayer for Peace

Almighty God, the Great Thumb we cannot evade to tie any knot:The Roaring Thunder that splits mighty trees;the all-seeing Lord up on high who sees even the footprints of an antelope on a rock mass here on earth.You are the one who does not hesitate to respond to our call.You are the cornerstone of peace.



Native American Prayer for Peace

O Great spirit of our Ancestors, I raise my pipe to you;To your messengers in the four winds, and to Mother Earth who provides for your children.Give us the wisdom to teach our children to love, to respect, and to be kind to each other, so that they may grow with peace in mind.Let us learn to share all good things that you provide for us on this Earth.


Muslim Prayer for Peace
In the name of Allah the beneficent, the merciful. Praise be to the Lord of the Universe, who has created us and made us into tribes and nations that we may know each other, not that we may despise each other.If the enemy incline towards peace, do thou also incline towards peace, and trust God, for the Lord is the one that heareth and knoweth all things.And the servants of God, most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in Humility, and when we address them, we say "PEACE."


The Baha'i Prayer for Peace
Be generous in prosperity and thankful in adversity.Be fair in thy judgment, and guarded in thy speech.
Be a lamp unto those who walk in darkness, and a home to the stranger.Be eyes to the blind, and a guiding light unto the feet of the erring.Be a breath of life to the body of humankind, a dew upon the soil of the human heart,and a fruit upon the tree of humility.


Sikh prayer for Peace
God adjudges us according to our deeds, not the clothes that we wear;That truth is above everything, but higher still is truthful living.Know that we attain God when we love, and only that victory endures in consequences of which no one is defeated.


Christian Prayer for Peace
Blessed are the Peacemakers for they shall be known as the Children of God.But I say to you that hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.To those who strike you on the cheek offer the other also, and from those who take away your cloak, do not withhold your coat as well.Give to everyone who begs from you, and of those who take away your goods, do not aks them again.And as you wish that others would to do you,do so to them.



WHAT ISAIAH SAID ABOUT WHO JESUS WILL BE TO THE WORLD.

Isaiah 7:14-15,9:6.
Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.
Isaiah 9:6.
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, the everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.



ANGEL'S MESSAGE TO MARY MOTHER OF JESUS THE CHRIST (The Prince of Peace)

Luke1: 27-35
And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.

And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus.He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?

And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.



WHAT JESUS SAID ABOUT THE PEACE HE HAS AND TO GIVE.(We give What We have)

John 14:27-29
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.

Radical Thinking For Positive Change

"Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the dangers of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of 'crackpot' than the stigma of conformity. And on issues that seem important to you, stand up and be counted at any cost."

Friday, January 8, 2010

Observation

Conflict is the gadfly of thought. It stirs us to observation and memory. It instigates to invention. It shocks us out of sheeplike passivity, and sets us at noting and contriving.In the fields of observation chance favors only the prepared mind.All perceiving is also thinking, all reasoning is also intuition, all observation is also invention.
Nothing exists until or unless it is observed. An artist is making something exist by observing it. And his hope for other people is that they will also make it exist by observing it. I call it "creative observation." Creative viewing.You can observe a lot just by watching.