The Wonderful World of Faith and Creativity

Very often we can be bogged down with a problem and really struggle to find a solution. The creative juices fail to flow and we become totally frustrated at our total lack of creativity.

So do we resign ourselves to the fact that we are obviously not the creative sort?

Or can we train ourselves to think with creative spirit?          

Firstly let's define creativity. Creativity is the ability to solve problems with new methods to accomplish daily tasks. This can also lead to new insights and visions to help achieve goals and obtain success.

So is creativity inherited?

If we look at children at play we can see tremendous examples of creativity. They can take every day objects and create totally new games to play. The playground is full of wild imagination and creativity.

So where did we loose it all?

Routine

As we have seen, children have an inexhaustible ability for creativity. But as we get older life becomes full of instruction. Restrictions are placed upon us and we lose a lot of the ability to think for ourselves. Creativity flies out of the window. Systems and repetitiveness stifle creativity. Strict time tables, daily routines, working in closed areas and desk jobs all hamper our imaginations.

Free time

It is virtually impossible to avoid all routine but what we do need is to develop some free time. Put aside one day per week where nothing is planned. Just let the day unfold and "go with the flow". Spend time going to places like the seaside or strolling through the woods; places of natural interest with open spaces. At work create a few minutes of free time. There are some people who spend their free time alone and then spend that time thinking of work. They even take that work to bed and dwell on work issues as they fall asleep. These people need to develop free time un-associated with work for the sake of creativity and also for the sake of their sanity.

Left brain – Right brain

Our brains are divided into two hemispheres- the left brain and the right brain. The left side deals with our logical and reasoning thought patterns. Our right side of the brain handles intuition and creativity. Much of our work life today asks us to use logic and reasoning and therefore our right side of the brain becomes somewhat redundant. Ideally we need to exercise both sides of the brain to get the most of our cerebral abilities.

How's best to develop creative thinking?

1. Understand that there is no exact solution to a problem, but there will always be more than one solution to that problem.

2. Don't give in to false beliefs. If we believe there is no solution to our problem then there won't be. Have faith.

3. Never restrict or dismiss thoughts. Two silly thoughts may well lead to a third good thought.

4. Break away from routine when thinking of solutions. This allows for a better flow of creative thoughts.

5. Brainstorm. Ask others. Again two ideas that may seem ridiculous may lead to a third, sensible idea.

6. Take time occasionally to do something not done before.

7. Put aside some time as free time.

8. Spend time with creative people. Creativity is infectious and we may be pleasantly surprised as to how creative we really are when we compare ourselves to these people.

We needn't be restricted to a path of logical thinking. We all have that wonderful ability to be creative. Breaking away from routine and giving ourselves time to think will stimulate creative thinking and then we will find that no problem will ever be without a solution.

How fantastic is that?

The Greatest Success of All

"Skipper, a special message just came in for you from the admiral," the sailor said to his captain as he saluted. "I have it right here."

 "Read it to me," the captain ordered.

The sailor read, "You are without a doubt, the most conceited, self-absorbed, EGO-MANIAC ever to command a ship in the Navy."

The skipper responded, "Have that communication decoded at once!"

For some people, it's all about them. For others, it's all about you. Like author Leil Lowndes says, "There are two kinds of people in this life. Those who walk into a room and say, 'Well, here I am.' And those who walk in and say, 'Ahh, there you are.'"

Which are you? Are you more focused on getting your own needs met, or on easing the burdens of others? Are you mostly trying to make yourself happy, or are you interested in the happiness of those around you?

Albert Einstein reminded us that "life isn't worth living, unless it is lived for someone else." And toward the end of his life, he removed the portraits of two scientists - Isaac Newton and James Maxwell - from his wall. He replaced them with portraits of Mahatma Gandhi and

Albert Schweitzer. Einstein explained that it was time to replace the image of success with the image of service.

Maybe the greatest success of all is when we realize that it's not all about us. And maybe the greatest happiness to be found is when we share the happiness of others.

The Path To Success Is Not Always A Straight Line

Have you ever felt as if you had taken a wrong turn somewhere because your plans didn't seem to be working as a youth? Everyday you lived with the nagging feeling that you were wasting so much time you would never find your way to success. And maybe you finally gave up and didn't. Or maybe you believed at one time that you were on the right path, and all seemed to be going well, but you had a bothersome feeling that something just wasn't quite right.

You wanted to fix how you felt, but if you did, you believed that you would end up wasting a great deal of time. So you continued on edge, feeling badly instead of satisfied until you lost your success out of fear or doubt that you were in the right place at the right time. We're supposed to enjoy our success right? Emphatically yes! Not only that, we're supposed to enjoy our path to success as well. We're supposed to be enjoying our lives, not lamenting every day that we've taken a wrong turn. But what if we did?

There are two steps to take for redirection. First we diagnose why things are going wrong or why we're not feeling right about things the way they are. Then we stop thinking about time and how we've wasted it. Doing that will only cause us to waste even more time. What one needs to do is understand how success is achieved beyond the hard work and determination to reach our goals in the fastest amount of time possible.

There are times when "time" must be taken out of the equation for attaining our goals. However what we should do quickly is to change the way we think about taking a wrong turn in our careers or goal setting. So you must not look at getting sidetracked as a waste of time, but a valuable lesson in your path to success. Everyone gets redirected that has had success. The greatest scientists and inventors have experienced hundreds of redirections that have all led them to the right path. And without taking what many call, "wrong turns" they may not have ever realized their goals that have helped humanity and the ! world in general.

I've always admired Thomas Edison and I've always looked to him to gain incites for success secrets unknown to many because he was a person who understood that the path to meeting his goals was not always a straight line. He never gave up and never saw failure as error; instead he saw a clearer path to his ultimate goal. To him mistakes were valuable lessons that always lead to the next step, allowing him to press on, while carrying the banner of triumph because he lived his successes one step at a time. We can see that very ideal in his famous quote which encourages us to keep an inner strength and press forward. "Be brave as your fathers before you.

Have faith and go forward." This is what we all need to do in the face of giving up our dreams. I read about Thomas Edison's stalwart determination to live his dreams over and over until I understood that success is not born out of a mere desire to create what we want, it's also a mix of wisdom, knowledge, and experience that all work together to create our dreams beyond a mediocre level. By not rushing to achieve quickly, we'll instead travel the path to our goals by taking little side trips, thereby gaining the development needed to fulfill them at their greatest level and to keep them alive.

Unleashing Your Creative Thinking

People seem to have the misconception that only a select few are able to unleash a steady flow of creative genius. That is not true at all. The fact is, creativity is very much like a muscle that needs to be exercised in order to consistently give out great results. If you don't practice harnessing creative thinking, this skill will very much atrophy into inexistence. But keep working and this skill will soon come to you in a snap.

So how do you unleash your creative thinking? Well, the first thing is to become a human leech. No, we're not talking about just sucking the blood out of every living being available, we're saying that you should take in as much knowledge and learning you can find. Read everything available -- good and bad, and keep your mind open to the infinite possibilities of the universe. The more you know, the more you'll want to know, and the more your faculty of wonder will be exercised. Prepare to be amazed at little facts that add a bit of color into your life. 

Focus on a creative activity everyday. Yes, it's an effort. Even doodling is a creative activity. Don't let anything hinder you. Mindlessness may be a creative activity, but for people who are just starting out to unleash a little bit of creative thinking in their lives, it is helpful and encouraging to have concrete evidence, that, "hey, what I'm doing is getting somewhere." So why don't you try it. Practice drawing for a couple of minutes each day. Bring out your old camera and start snapping photos like crazy.

Keep a journal and make a point to write in it religiously. Another cool idea is to write by describing something with your five senses. Try to avoid vague adjectives like "marvelous," "amazing," and "delicious." Before you know it, you'll have built yourself a tiny portfolio, and you'll be amazed at the growth you've undertaken after amassing all those works of art. Who knows, you might actually take to liking those things you do everyday. Pretty soon those things will become a part of you and you'll be addicted to these creative exercises.

Think out of the box -- or don't. Sometimes, constraints are actually a good thing. Limitations discipline you to work within your means. It enables you to be more resourceful. Creative freedom is great, but limitations enforce discipline.

Try something new everyday and let your experiences broaden your perspective. Explore a new district in your neighborhood. Spend an afternoon in a museum to which you've never been before. Chat up someone on the bus. Open up to the people around you. As you thrust yourself out of your comfort zone more and more each day, your sense of adventure grows and so does your zest for life. Think about it. When was the last time you did something for the first time? If it's been a while, I tell you, you've been missing out on a whole lot of experiences that could've added to your growth, emotionally, mentally, physically, or spiritually. Why don't you try bungee jumping today? Not only will you learn, but you will also have plenty of stories to share, enabling you to practice your storytelling skills and making you the life of the party.

Embrace insanity. No, not to the point of practically admitting yourself into the mental ward. As John Russell once said, "Sanity calms, but madness is more interesting." Exactly! Every creative thought was once deemed insanity by other "normal" people at one time or another. Luckily, that didn't stop the creative geniuses from standing by them. The thing is, sanity or being normal confines people to think... well, normally. Withink limits. Creativity is essentially breaking through barriers.

Yes, this includes the bizzarre and the downright strange. I'm not saying that you yourself should develop a creative personality. That might go haywire. An example of a creative personality would be George Washington, who often rode into battle naked, or James Joyce, who wrote "Dubliners" with beetle juice for an intense fear of ink, or Albert Einstein, who thought his cat was a spy sent by his rival (or in thinking creatively in this case, the term could probably be "archnemesis.") It's important that your creativity doesn't get you detached from the real world completely.

I hope this article has inspired you to start thinking beyond your "limits." If you follow these steps pretty soon you'll be living a life full of interesting adventures. Unleashing your creative thinking  will bring about a new zest for living life.

Dealing with Menstrual Migraines

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Migraines, Headaches, and Hormones

It has been estimated that 70% of migraine sufferers are female. Of these female migraine sufferers, 60%-70% report that their migraines are related to their menstrual cycles -- hence the name, menstrual migraines.

Surprising Headache Triggers

What Is the Relationship Between Hormones and Headaches?

Headaches in women, particularly migraines, have been related to changes in the levels of the female hormone estrogen during a woman's menstrual cycle. Estrogen levels drop immediately before the start of the menstrual flow.

Premenstrual migraines regularly occur during or after the time when the female hormones, estrogen and progesterone, decrease to their lowest levels.

Migraine attacks typically disappear during pregnancy. In one study, 64% of women who described a menstrual link to their headaches noted that their headaches disappeared during pregnancy. However, some women have reported the initial onset of migraines during the first trimester of pregnancy, with disappearance of their headaches after the third month of pregnancy.

What Triggers Hormonal Migraines in Women?

Birth control pills as well as hormone replacement therapy during menopause have been recognized as migraine triggers in some women. As early as 1966, investigators noted that migraines can become more severe in women taking birth control pills, especially those containing high doses of estrogen.

The frequency of side effects, such as headache, decreased in those who took birth control pills containing lower doses of estrogen and did not occur in those who took birth control pills containing progesterone.

What Are the Treatment Options for Menstrual Migraines?

The medications of choice to stop a menstrual migraine are nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs).

The NSAIDs most often used for menstrual migraines include:
Orudis

Advil and Motrin

Nalfon

Naprosyn

Relafen

NSAID treatment should be started two to three days before the menstrual period starts and continued until the period ends. Because the therapy is of short duration, the risk of gastrointestinal side effects is limited.

For people who have severe menstrual migraines or who want to continue taking their birth control pills, doctors recommend taking a NSAID, starting on the l9th day of the cycle and continuing through the second day of the next cycle.

Other drugs that may be used are given by prescription only. They include:

• Small doses of ergotamine drugs (including Bellergal-S, Cafergot, Migranal)
• Beta-blocker drugs such as propranolol Anticonvulsants such as valproate (Depakote)
• Calcium channel blockers such as verapamil

These drugs should also be started two to three days pre-menses, and continued throughout the menstrual flow.

Because fluid retention is often associated with a woman's period, diuretics have been used to prevent menstrual migraine. Some doctors may recommend limiting salt-intake immediately before the start of menses.

Lupron is a drug that affects hormone levels and is used only when all other treatment methods have been tried and have been unsuccessful.

10 Steps for Making a Major Life Change

As human beings, we're creatures of habit. No wonder making a major life change is so hard! But it can be done. Follow these steps to get your change in motion, one easy step at a time:

1. Identify the price of maintaining the status quo.

Not making the change you know you need to make is costing you. Do some soul searching; consult with trusted allies, or journal to yourself to uncover the payoffs you're receiving, and the prices you're paying for maintaining the status quo. When you get that the price of not making the change is greater than the payoff, you'll be more committed to moving forward.

2. Create a reserve of everything.

We don't always have to make a difficult change from where we are now. If we have issues with money, time, space, emotional support, skills, etc., make a plan now to get more than you need in these areas, creating a stronger foundation from which to launch in your new direction. Keep in mind that it's better to be over prepared and arrive at your destination than to fail because you were just a hair short of having what you needed to get there.

3. Forgive self-judgments.

Guilt is rampant in our culture. So is the vendetta against selfishness. Suffering is supported and nurtured by friends, family, religions, etc. So it's not surprising that many of us, deep down, don't feel we deserve to have what we want. For example, maybe you feel you're not good enough or deserving of the life you really want. Or maybe you feel that the change you're about to make will hurt someone close to you. Or you may feel that you're not smart enough, resourceful enough, bold enough, or just plain "enough" to make this change. Acknowledge these judgments then forgive yourself for holding these false perceptions about who you really are. Because the truth is, they are only ideas, many of which are irrational, and you will create yourself each moment based on the new idea you hold about who you are.

4. Stop complaining.

Are you complaining about being in the situation you're in? Are you blaming others? Or have you accepted full responsibility for your situation and just beat yourself up for not making the change? If any of the above are true, you are playing the victim and you're forfeiting your power to make the change you say you want. Even if you're blaming yourself for not being happy or for not having the courage to make the change, then part of you is beating up on another part of yourself, hence there's a victim in there somewhere. To the degree you play the role of victim, you lose power you could be using to move forward. So get behind yourself completely and own your full power to create the life you desire, no matter what.

5. Give up analysis that breeds paralysis.

We are so conditioned to figure things out before we leap, that sometimes we become paralyzed to take the actions our bodies are directed to take from the beginning. This is particularly true if you're an engineer, scientist, or other type of technical person who experiences the world more through analysis than through feeling. If you're stuck in a thinking pattern rehashing the same ideas over and over, trying to figure out what will happen if, then you're stuck in a mind-loop. It's time to quit thinking and start doing. Feel in your body what it wants to do, then just do it! The information you're seeking may only be available after you take action anyway. Wisdom often comes from experience, not from analysis.

6. Develop a compelling vision.

Leaving a longstanding relationship or a long time career can be very frightening. This is because if what we have is all we see, then to give it up means we'll have nothing left. This is a terrible illusion. New opportunities, relationships, resources, connections, and ideas always rush in to fill space in our lives. But first, you have to make the space for something new, and second, create a clear vision of what your life will look like once your change is complete. The vision of your new future eliminates the fear of the unknown--which can keep you stuck for a long time! Your vision will form the matrix on which you will create your new life and give you the inspiration and courage you need to move on.

7. Risk failure.

Does your fear of failing keep you stuck? If so, define what failure looks like to you. Imagine the worst possible thing happening. Can you live with that? Can you make course corrections before it happens or after it happens? The answer is almost always "yes." So, please, do yourself a favor, remove the word "failure" from your vocabulary. Realize that each action simply yields a result--one you want or one you don't want. Use this as feedback from the universe and take the next logical step. From this perspective, mistakes are just indications of a course correction and not to be taken personally. Pilots are checking their compass all the time and making course corrections based on this feedback. They'd never get anywhere if they took every off-course reading as a personal failure. Give up the concept of failure and take flight!

8. Recruit your inner warrior.

Within each of us there is an instinctual aspect built for bold, decisive action. It looks out, not only for our survival, but also for our soul's mission. It sends messages in the form of feelings in your body. They may come as "gut" feelings, or just a sense of "knowing" that has no rational foundation. If you're facing a difficult change, and have "contemplated" yourself into a corner, it may be time to let your inner warrior take over for a while. Just act “as if” you "know" what to do, then do it without thinking about it until after it's done.

9. Get support to help you through the change.

Big life changes can be overwhelming. There's no shame in asking for help from friends, relatives, or from a coach. In fact, enough of the right kind of support can make a seemingly difficult change, relatively easy. For me, being a former lone-ranger, asking for and accepting help from others was difficult at first, but really nice once I got used to it. Now I wouldn't think of starting a major project or making a big change without relying on my support system of close and loving friends, and my coach. Do whatever is necessary to make change easy on yourself. You're worth it!

10. Don't go to your deathbed wondering what would have happened if...

It's easy for us to forget how short our lives really are. Many of us live as if we'll never die. We waste away our hours and days working jobs we hate, living just for the weekends, or "putting in time" until retirement, living most of our lives like zombies. We may live in a relationship that is draining and disempowering thinking it might magically get better somehow, someday. We deny our feelings or make excuses for frittering our lives away. This is insane. Stop it now! Our lives are so precious and so short. I challenge you to project yourself forward to your death. It's real and it's coming for you! See yourself on your deathbed and ask yourself if the life you're living now is all you dreamt it to be. Write your own obituary today. How close are you to living your passion?

Let this vision be a motivator to get off your butt and follow your dreams!

A Girl Forgiveness: What Happened?

What would you do if a shark attacked you and swam away, the taste of your leg still fresh in its mouth after you were done screaming and someone had bandaged your wound?

Some folks never would swim in the ocean again. Others would try to hunt down the offending shark until its head was stuffed and hanging over the fireplace if shark’s heads can be stuffed, that is. However, 6-year-old Lucy Magnum of Durham, N.C., did something entirely different: She forgave the shark that bit her.

Lucy was playing around on her boogie board off the Ocracoke Island coast when a black-tipped shark grabbed onto her right leg and foot. She tried to swim away, but the shark was just too fast.  

The shark let go, but not before its teeth left Lucy’s leg torn, her tendons and muscles exposed. The girl’s mother, Jordan Magnum, pulled her out of the water; and Lucy’s father, emergency room physician Craig Magnum, wrapped her leg in a T-shirt until paramedics came. Lucy, meanwhile, remained pretty calm.

Am I going to die? she asked her parents. Am I going to have a wheelchair? Jordan says her daughter asked to pray. We said a prayer for her on the beach, Jordan says. Her faith and stoicism was a marvel to us.

Lucy already undergone two painful surgeries to correct the damage the shark did to her leg, and she’s still in a cast; but she’s expected to make a full recovery. As far as the shark goes, Lucy harbors no ill feelings. He didn’t mean to do it, she says.

Talk About It:

We all get hurt. Pain, physical, emotional and sometimes even spiritual pain is a part of life. Even though it’s human nature to blame someone or something for your pain, sometimes no ones at fault; and even if it is someone’s fault, sometimes there’s nothing anyone can do to make it better. We just have to hurt.

When someone hurts you breaks up with you, betrays you or hurts your feelings, how do you react? Do you get angry? Sad? Does it depend on the person and situation? Do you tend to blame the other person, or do you tend to blame yourself?

Have you gotten hurt and blamed someone else unfairly? Who? What happened? Did you eventually apologize? Has someone ever blamed you unfairly for some hurt he or she suffered? 

Do you ever find that getting over these hurts is hard to do? Do you ever find yourself reliving the tragic events again and again? Do you find yourself getting bitter or resentful? Do you find yourself scared of getting into similar relationships for fear of being hurt again?

 Do you try to forgive folks for hurting you even if they didn’t even really deserve your forgiveness? When? Was it hard? How did it feel afterward? Have you ever been forgiven?

What the Bible Says:

Choosing Forgiveness: Your Journey to Freedom
A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense (Prov. 19:11). And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins (Mark 11:25).

 But I tell you who here me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you (Luke 6:27-28).

Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits, who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion (Ps. 103:2-4).

Are you Hungry for Christ

Discipleship: Living for Christ in the Daily Grind

“But Jesus withdrew himself with his disciples to the sea: and a great multitude from Galilee followed him, and from Judaea, and from Jerusalem, and from Idumaea, and from beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what great things he did, came unto him. And he spake to his disciples, that a small ship should wait on him because of the multitude, lest they should throng him.  For he had healed man; insomuch that they pressed upon him for to touch him, as many as had plagues.  And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.  And he straitly charged them that they should not make him known.”  (Mark 3:7-12) 

Question of the hour for every born again believer: “Are you hungry for Christ?”  Almost every believer asked this question would immediately respond by answering “YES, ABSOLUTELY!  I’m hungry for The Lord and thirsty for His word.  But, let me ask the question again while you sincerely examine your heart, “Are YOU hungry for CHRIST?”  Is it Him whom you seek?  Is it He whom you truly desire?  Or, is your hunger for that which he can give?  Is it the gifts, or the gift giver that you desire?  If The Lord were to visit you this moment bearing NO tangible gifts; If he came to you empty handed having no miracle of “healing” for your sick body; or restoration for your failing marriage; If He came having no answer for your great financial debt; or fulfillment of your hearts desires; If He were to visit you this moment having NOTHING to offer you except His unfailing love, would you readily receive it?   Or, would you walk away in disappointment because your expectations were for something other than just His Love.   Throughout the Word of God there are countless of promises of such that as many as would believe, they would receive, but what if there were NO promises other than the promise of His love?  What if there were no promises of extra blessings, of healing, of restoration, of fulfillment of hearts desires, would His love be sufficient?  Would it be enough to sustain you?  For you, would you choose his love OVER the things you seek from him?  Is HE greater than your hearts desire?  In fact, is He a part of your hearts desire?  When you seek him, ARE YOU SEEKING HIM or something else? 

During the course of Jesus’ ministry here on earth, multitudes followed Him as demonstrated here in the book of Mark, Chapter 3.  Thousands upon thousands came if only to get as glimpse of Him, and to throng him that they may even touch his clothing.  What gave him such status that the multitudes followed everywhere he went?  Was it his great words of wisdom and most profound teachings?   Was it that they knew He was The Christ, The Son of God?  Was it because He was and IS the way, the truth and the life and just being in His presence had brought joy and peace to the follower?  Was it their hunger and thirst for righteousness, their desire to learn and know the things of God?  It should have been all these reasons that they sought after Him, but sadly their desire for Him was based upon what He could give, for they had HEARD of the great miracles which he’d done, and sought Him for the purpose of receiving such in their own lives.  The word of miracles and great blessings is what brought them out of their homes and into the presence of the Lord, NOT to see Him, but to receive some gift from Him.  Just as they sought out the Apostle Paul, and Peter, John and the other disciples when The Holy Spirit had given them power to lay hands on the sick in the Name of Jesus and such recovered, to cast out demonic spirits in the Name of Jesus and they fled at the mere mention of His Name and so on, the people’s hunger were for the things that were seen, and not the things that were unseen, for what they could receive outwardly and not the benefits of the blessings received INWARDLY! 

There is absolutely nothing wrong with a believer standing on the promises of God for his/her life, in fact it is a must for we cannot receive unless we FIRST BELIEVE!  However, oftentimes many get stuck on the promises of gifts and in the midst of it all, MISS the Lord.    They seek NOT the Lord, but the power of which he possess.  There is no desire to KNOW Him, but seem satisfied with obtaining only head knowledge of knowing OF Him.  Learning of his miracles, his power, his awesome abilities, but yet learning NOTHING OF HIM!  The Lord has given us the GREATEST GIFT in that he paid the penalty for our sins that we may be reconciled to our Father, and receive the gift of salvation and eternal life.  Yet, the Lord has other desires for we his children, the greatest being a personal, intimate relationship with each and every one of us.  Yes, he has other gifts to give but it is important to Him that we KNOW the gift giver PERSONALLY and INTIMATELY.  What if this was all that he had to offer, NO OTHER GIFTS except HIS LOVE?  It is like for example if you had a friend who was very wealthy and enjoy daily lavishing gifts on you.  And, every time you would come in contact with this friend, he would have something special which he purchased specifically for you.  You would receive it gladly and possibly have great expectations that when you come together as friends, you would receive a great gift from him.  Well, what if one day for whatever reason be it bad investments or the like, your friend suddenly became flat broke, had nothing, lost EVERYTHING but yet still had his character, his kind heart, and still possess great love for you, would his friendship be JUST as valuable to YOU as it was when he possessed great wealth?  Would you still desire his friendship, or would you begin making excuses for not being able to meet, to share, to fellowship together?  In all the time you would have known him, did you TRULY know his heart, what made him laugh and what made him cry.  His hearts desires, his likes and dislikes or did you only know him as a friend who ONCE possessed great wealth and showered you with many gifts?  The Lord wants to know us and desire that we should KNOW HIM as NOT just the one who lavishes the gifts, but as being THE GIFT ITSELF!   

Yes, there are many promises and many blessings the Lord desires to give to His Children, but SEEK HIM FIRST.  Don’t just see his hand with the gifts nestled in it, but see HIS HEART consumed with LOVE for YOU!  He will fulfill EVERY promise he made in His word, but “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness, and ALL these things shall be added unto you…” 

In closing I shall ask the question once again….. “Are YOU Hungry for CHRIST?”

I love you all so very much. Have a blessed moments in the Lord and remember: Whatever we do, do ALL for the GLORY of GOD, who ALONE is worthy of the GLORY and the PRAISE!