And the ones who deserve to die keep on living. - Expendables II

Watching Expendables II with the boys tonight. Okay, so I'm actually just sitting in the livingroom catching parts here and there. Heard a line that caught my attention so I jumped online to check it out.


In the most profound moment of the movie, Barney ponders the justice of God or cosmic karma or something when he buries one of his compatriots—a guy known as Billy the Kid. He wanted to live, Barney says, and yet he's dead. "And the ones who deserve to die keep on living. What's the message in that?"

Faults of Humankind

Remember that the faults of humankind are pretty evenly distributed among all of us. Why can we so easily overlook in ourselves the faults we are quick to spot in others? It is easy to be objective when it comes to criticizing our friends, family members, and business associates, but it is far more difficult to be honest about our own shortcomings. Only when we recognize that we are all human, with the same faults and failings, do we begin to develop that wonderful quality of tolerance that enables us to accept others as they are and ask nothing in return. Replacing faultfinding with “goodfinding” is never easy. But when you become one who always compliments instead of criticizes, you become the kind of friend we would all like to have. Permanent link to this post: Remember that the faults of humankind are pretty evenly distributed among all of us.

30 Challenges for 30 Days of Growth

So for the month of April, I have decided to try 30 Challenges for 30 Days of Growth from one of my favorite websites: Marc&Angel. I'm looking forward to see what type of challenges are the hardest for me and where I'll grow the most.

30 Challenges for 30 Days of Growth

 

 

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.
- Aristotle

Scientists have suggested that, with a little willpower, it takes roughly 30 days for a person to form a new habit. As with mastering anything new, the act of starting and getting beyond the preliminary stage where everything feels awkward is 80% of the battle. This is precisely why it’s important to make small, positive changes every day over the course of at least a 30 day period.

It’s like the old saying: “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.” The same philosophy holds true for making changes in your life. Trying to bite off more than you can chew will only make you choke. But taking smaller, manageable bites, one at a time – eating a little healthier, exercising a little, creating some simple productive habits, for example – is an amazing way to make positive changes and get excited about life.

And when you start small like this, you won’t need a lot of motivation either. The simple act of getting started and doing something will give you the momentum you need, and soon you’ll find yourself in a positive spiral of changes – one building on the other. When I started doing this in my life, I was so excited about it that I started this blog to share it with the world.

Below you will find 30 challenges to be accomplished over the course of 30 days. If carried out diligently each of them has the potential to create a new positive habit in your life. Yes, there is some slight overlap between a few of them. And no, you don’t have to attempt all at once. Pick 2 to 5 and commit the next 30 days, wholeheartedly, to successfully completing the challenge. Then once you feel comfortable with these habits, challenge yourself with a few more the following month.

SaraHHouse365 | Day 1: Use Words that Encourage Happiness
SaraHHouse365 | Day 2: Try one new thing everyday
SaraHHouse365 | Day 3: Perform one selfless act everyday
SaraHHouse365 | Day 4: Learn and practice a new skill every day
SaraHHouse365 | Day 5: Teach someone something new
SaraHHouse365 | Day 6: Dedicate an hour to something your passionate about
SaraHHouse365 | Day 7: Treat everyone nicely
SaraHHouse365 | Day 8: Concentrate on being positive
SaraHHouse365 | Day 9: Day 9: Don't forget the lesson!
SaraHHouse365 | Day 10: Enjoy Life as it Happens
SaraHHouse365 | Day 11: Get rid of one thing
SaraHHouse365 | Day 12: Do something new
SaraHHouse365 |30 Challenges for 30 Days of Growth

 

 

 

Credits: MarcandAngel's 30 Challenges for 30 Days of Growth

 

God Will Prepare Us

God Will Prepare Us

When it is God’s time to bring something into our lives,

He will often do it after HE has prepared us to receive it.

He may withhold a place of leadership until He has taught us how to serve.

He may withhold honor until He has taught us humility.

He may withhold possessions until He has taught us contentment.

He may withhold a relationship until He has taught us to be complete in Him.

He may withhold an overflow of finances until He has taught us how to give.

He may withhold guidance until He has taught us what is pleasing to Him.

He may withhold an active ministry until He taught us how to be still.


  - Unknown


SaraHHouse365 | Thank God for His Timing
SaraHHouse365 | Sarah's Book Recommendations - Feb. 2013

Credits: Hub Pages

ME: Five Years From Now

I bought this book at Barnes & Noble when I lived in Westlake. It's been a great book to whip out when I'm pondering about my future. I love any type of book that asks questions and this one definitely fits that category.

A few example questions:

I know this book will be with me in my library for....well, I hope forever. It doesn't matter if you're 21 or your 61, the questions still pertain to you.

Some of my other book recommendations: SaraHHouse365  | Book Recommendations Feb 2013

Day 30 | Shaped for Serving God

The Purpose Driven Life expanded edition
What on Earth Am I Here For?
Day 30 | Shaped for Serving God
Notes from 3/18/13
Women's Small Group Bible Study
pages 232-238

YOU WERE SHAPED TO SERVE GOD.

Before architects design any new building they first ask, “What will be its purpose? How will it be used?” The intended function always determines the form of the building. Before God created you, he decided what role he wanted you to play on earth.

“Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.” This means that nothing that happens in your life is insignificant. God uses all of it to mold you for your ministry to others and shape you for your service to him.

God never wastes anything. He would not give you abilities, interests, talents, gifts, personality, and life experiences unless he intended to use them for his glory.

“Each one should use whatever gift he’s received to serve others.” 1 Peter 4:10

Spiritual Gifts:
Heart
Abilities
Personality
Experience

SHAPE: Unwrapping your Spiritual Gifts

You can’t earn your spiritual gifts or deserve them – that’s why they are called gifts! Also, no individual receives all the gifts. If you had them all, you’d have no need of anyone else, and that would defeat one of God’s purposes – to teach us to love and depend on each other.

Your spiritual gifts were not given for your own benefit but for the benefit of others, just as other people were given gifts for your benefit.

When we use our gifts together, we all benefit. If others don’t use their gifts, you get cheated, and if you don’t use your gifts, they get cheated. This is why we’re commanded to disocver and develop our spiritual gifts. Have you taken the time to discover your spiritual gifts? An unopened gift is worthless.

Two common problems are “gift envy” and “gift-projection”.

Gift Envy: occurs when we compare our gifts with others, feel dissatisfied with what God gave us, and become resentful and jealous of how God uses others.

Gift-Projection: happens when we expect everyone else to have our gifts, do what we are called to do, and feel as passionate about it as we do.

 QUESTION TO CONSIDER: In what way can I see myself passionately serving others and loving it?

SHAPE: Listening to Your Heart

purposedriven.com/day30
SaraHHouse365 | Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For?

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Source: jeffbullas.com via Jean-Yves on Pinterest

10 Insanely Nice Things You Can Say to Anybody: #1

10 Insanely Nice Things You Can Say to Anybody

Columnist Leigh Newman weighs in on the tiny but enormously kind things you can say that may change a person's day—and (sometimes) even their way of looking at themselves.

By Leigh Newman

1: "Take your time. I'm not in a rush."

This one is great for the grocery store, the takeout burrito restaurant or anywhere else that involves really tired people trying their best, even as they fumble and flail. For example, the woman in front of you pays the cashier but then has to rifle through her overstuffed wallet to put away the change, then store the receipt, then mash the whole fat leather money accordion into her purse. She will usually complete this action with frantic fingers because she knows she's delaying the whole line; she knows everybody just wants to go home; and she knows she should not save old, mostly-used-up gift cards with 63 cents on them. Telling her to "Take your time. I'm not in rush" always sets off the same reaction: first, surprise (really? because everybody's in a rush...) and then a flash of sweet wide-open relief. You have just given somebody a three-minute holiday, not from the stress of life, but from the stress we put on ourselves.


Read more: http://www.oprah.com/relationships/Nice-Things-You-Can-Say-to-Anybody#ixzz2NIUbuGqY

Nick Vujicic

I first heard about this Nick Vujicic from one of our business friends, Scott Schilling. Scott was staying with us in Westlake Village for a few days and was fortunate enough to meet with Nick for lunch. When he got back, Scott was so enthusiastic when talking about this Nick guy. He even left Nick's number on a napkin, urging us to get in contact with him. I stumbled upon Nick's book, "No Limits" at the library at a few weeks later. Then it wasn't long before another great business friend, Bob Donnell came to stay with us. Bob had an extra ticket to go see a speaker and when he started describing the speaker, I couldn't believe it was thee Nick Vujicic! This guy was popping up all over! I jumped on the chance to go and have been a Nick V fan ever since! Seeing Nick speak in person was amazing! What a role model!

Here's Nick's story copied and pasted from his website: attitudeisaltitude.com

Hi Friend,
My name is Nick Vujicic and I am thankful to have been born 30 years ago with no arms and no legs. I won’t pretend my life is easy, but through the love of my parents, loved ones, and faith in God, I have overcome my adversity and my life is now filled with joy and purpose. I reside now in California with my wife, Kanae, and we both love seeing people’s lives changed for the better or touched in some way. It is my hope that your life is positively impacted by my story.
I was born and raised in Melbourne, Australia, and it was a shock to my parents that I arrived without limbs. There is no medical reason for it. My parents did their very best to keep me in the mainstream school system and give me every opportunity to live to the fullest. I was blessed to have a brother and a sister as my best friends too.

We later moved to Brisbane, Australia, where I lived for 14 years before I made the move to California. At age eight, I could not see a bright future ahead and I became depressed. When I was ten years old, I decided to end my life by drowning myself in a bathtub. After a couple attempts, I realized that I did not want to leave my loved ones with the burden and guilt that would result from my suicide. I could not do that to them.

I wasn’t depressed my entire childhood, but I did have ups and downs. At age thirteen I hurt my foot, which I use for many things like typing, writing and swimming. That injury made me realize that I need to be more thankful for my abilities and less focused on my disabilities.
When I was fifteen years old, I sealed my faith in God and from there it has been an amazing journey.
A janitor at my high school inspired me to start speaking about my faith and overcoming adversity when I was seventeen. I spoke only a dozen times to very small groups over the next two years. Then I found myself in front of three hundred sophomore (grade 10) students and I was very nervous. My knees were shaking. Within the first three minutes of my talk, half the girls were crying, and most of the boys were struggling to hold their emotions together. One girl in particular was sobbing very hard. We all looked at her and she put her hand up. She said, “I am so sorry to interrupt, but can I come up and hug you?”
She came hugged me in front of everyone, and whispered in my ear, “Thank you, thank you, thank you. No one has ever told me that they loved me and that I am beautiful the way I am.”
Her gratitude inspired me to go across 44 countries and speak 2,000 times. I realized that we all need love and hope and that I was in a unique position to share that with people around the world.

While majoring in both accounting and financial planning at a university, I also worked on developing my abilities as a speaker. I worked with a speaking coach who helped to cultivate me as a presenter. He especially worked on my body language as my hands flew everywhere at first!

I spoke on motivational topics after creating the company, attitude is altitude. I also launched a non-profit ministry, life without limbs, to spread my messages of faith and hope around the world.
Whoever you are, wherever you’re from and whatever you are dealing with, I hope that you will be inspired by my story and my message. Please enjoy browsing around this website where I share with you my thoughts on faith, hope and love to encourage you and to help you overcome your own challenges.

Dream big my friend and never give up. We all make mistakes, but none of us are mistakes. Take one day at a time. Embrace the positive attitudes, perspectives, principles and truths I share, and you too will overcome.

Sincerely,
Nick

What a story!
What an amazing way God is using Nick to reach out to others!

Successful People vs. Unsuccessful People

My good friend Andrew Zickur sent me this. Pretty good!!

People I Must Deal With, Like It or Not

A good read - only takes a few minutes and could end up saving a lot of time and energy if you know how to handle the situation correctly.
We're all going to have people we have to deal with, like it or not.

 

 

 

10 Lessons Everyone Learns In Their 20s

Ms. Jaclyn Sayre posted this on her Facebook. I enjoyed the truth behind the majority of these!
Ah, next week I will celebrate my golden birthday (26) - jumping into the 2nd half of my 20's!

10 Lessons Everyone Learns In Their 20s

Jan. 25, 2013

By Chelsea Fagan

Chelsea Fagan is a writer living in Paris. It's less pretentious than it sounds.

Read more »

Marina Montoya

1. Metabolism isn’t magic.

It’s hard not to get used to the grotesque Roman orgy of eating habits that is youth. You can live on an uninterrupted diet of Mountain Dew, Doritos, and the errant Toaster Strudel for when you’re feeling like doing a bit of kitchen work, never seeing an ounce of your folly go straight to your carefree hips. Then, at a certain point, you eat an Oreo and can actually watch that bad boy travel from your esophagus to your ass if you stand in front of a full-length mirror. And the energy you constantly felt, regardless of the day’s activities or the time you’d gotten up that morning? Now, if you’re not living on a diet of nothing but kale and Yoga For Self-Righteous People, you’re essentially comatose by 3 PM. It appears that being healthy requires work, and few things in life seem to suck more than that fact.

2. People evolve at different speeds.

Look in your phone contacts. Pick out any two random 25-year-olds. Tell me what they’re both doing with their lives. Chances are that one of them is spending most nights scrounging around on Facebook for a good electronica show where they can get in for less than five dollars and hopefully score some free molly from an acquaintance because they’ve been out of a job for about four months. And it’s likely that the other is currently married with a house purchased in a nice-but-still-kind-of-hip suburb and is excited at the prospect of zestily reproducing in the next few years. One of them is getting monogrammed kitchen towels and handmade soaps for the guest bathroom, while the other is posting seven statuses a day from the comfort of their living room whilst getting high and watching reruns of Maury and eating Gogurt. And neither of these are right or wrong.

3. Having kids isn’t (always) the end of the world.

While there are always going to be the friends who fall off the face of the planet in a jumble of sanctimonious Facebook comments over how much more fulfilled her life is now that she’s a mother, that is far from being the case for all who spawn. Outside of the ones whose lives become a blur of ultrasound photos and breast pumps, there are going to be many cool moms who are still totally interesting and who have just happened to push another person out of their body recently. And though it is undoubtedly terrifying the first time you see someone you used to hold beer bongs for announce that they’re bringing another human being into the world, you soon realize that it doesn’t always signal the death of a friendship.

4. Weddings are weird.

People lose their fucking minds over weddings. They just go completely insane, evacuate their bodies, and let the cavernous entity be filled with some kind of Viking trickster imp whose sole purpose in life is to complain about stress and pick out floral arrangements. I know people who recently got married and rode in on matching horses with rose petals all around them and the groom wearing a top hat. These are real people who otherwise do normal things, such as go to the movies, get a beer with friends, watch the news, and go to work on the subway instead of on MATCHING FUCKING HORSES. We must all learn to excuse these temporary lapses in judgment, as they have been brought on by Wedding Fever, and are not an accurate reflection of who this person is as a whole.

5. People are pretentious about jobs.

Essentially, when it comes to jobs, you can’t win. There is always going to be someone with something incredibly snarky and presumptuous to say about your life and your choices. If you’re working as an assistant somewhere, someone will tell you that you shouldn’t have picked such a “useless major” and that you deserve to be stuck in your coffee-fetching fate. If you’re in service, people will harangue you about when you’re planning on getting a “real job,” as though that isn’t somehow the most insulting thing a human being could say to you. If you’re working long hours at a hard-won corporate job, people are going to hold it against you when you can’t do coke until five in the morning and show up fresh-faced for the big meeting the next day. You just can’t win, so it’s best not to try.

6. The rental market is out to get you.

There will come a moment when you realize that so much of your life and the lives of your friend seem to center around where you’re all living. Who has a good apartment? Who’s in a good location? Who was forced to drag themselves out to the exterior suburbs with their tail between their legs? Whose parents are paying their rent for them? It’s the moment in life where it’s not at all unclassy to be like “Hey, how much do you pay for this place, if you don’t mind me asking” and either be sent into a blind rage or a feeling of smug victory at the response.

7. Credit is the devil.

At some point between looking at how much money you still owe a student loan organization for all of those misguided choices you were goaded into making by guidance counselors somewhere around junior year of high school, and having to cut up the one credit card you ever owned because you discovered that it was only a matter of time before that thing was going to be used to pay for drunken Taco Bell, you figured it out. Credit is just the worst, and our parents left us a financial world that is essentially one of those sets from old western movies where the building fronts are just propped up on stilts and could blow over with a particularly robust burst of wind. We must try not to recreate the same.

8. Partying must be done in moderation.

There will come the hangover that makes you understand this, and you never know exactly when it’s going to be. You’ll go balls-to-the-wall at some party because, hey, you’re young and beautiful and that terrible David Guetta song is playing and why not. And if this were your 19-year-old self, you would just wake up the next morning, brush the vomit off of your jacket, and go to an all-day music festival in the baking Tennessee sun. But you’re not, and so instead, you wake up feeling as though someone is standing over you with a jackhammer to your temple and a Quiet Riot record playing at top volume and double speed through the bedroom window. And it is at that moment where you swear to whatever being you pray to that, next time, you’re having a glass of water between every drink.

9. You will never please everyone.

Though this is a lesson that is undoubtedly learned at every stage of life, and through varying degrees of emotional pain, the 20s are a great example of people’s tendency to poo-poo your decisions even though no one fucking asked them. This is the time to be choosing your career path, living situation, geographical location, romantic goals, and every other direction you want to be heading in your young life. You don’t have it all down yet, but you’ve got some vague ideas. And it is at this point that Judgmental Judy and her friends Financially Feasible Fran and Smugly Superior Stanley are going to come over to your house and tell you how all about what you’re doing is not good or right, as though it involves them in any way. Get married, and friends will call you lame. Stay single, and your bitchy aunt will judge you over Thanksgiving dinner. Move away and people will miss you. Stay and they’ll be sick of you. No matter what you do, there will be at least a few people who think you’re an idiot for doing it.

10. Friends are not forever.

The people you grew up with are not going to universally be there at every milestone after college. They’re not going to be there, and many of them aren’t going to care. And though it’s hard to accept at first that you can go from getting high with someone in a Celica every day after school to never hearing from them until someone else mentions their pending nuptials on Facebook, it’s for the best to remember that they don’t really matter. We only have room for so many real friends in life, and if some are so fair-weather as to jump ship the second you move one county away, you didn’t need them anyway.

_____________________________________________
SaraHHouse365 | When my guy friends get married...
SaraHHouse365 | The Defining Decade, why your 20s matter
SaraHHouse365 | Purpose Driven Life: S.H.A.P.E.

Credits: Thought Catalog

Purpose Driven Life | DAY 29 | Accepting Your Assignment

The Purpose Driven Life expanded edition

What on Earth Am I Here For?

Day 29  |  Accepting Your Assignment

Notes from 3/13/13

Women's Small Group Bible Study
pages 225-231

YOU WERE PUT ON THIS EARTH TO MAKE A CONTRIBUTION.

You were created to add to life on earth, not just take from it.

If I have no love for others, no desire to serve others, I should question whether Christ is really in my life.

We are healed to help others.
We are blessed to be a blessing.
We are saved to serve, not to sit around and wait for heaven.

Regardless of your job or career, you are called to full-time Christian service.

DAY 29

Small or hidden ministries often make the biggest difference. In my home, the most important light is not the large chandelier in our dining room but the little night light that keeps me from stubbing my toe when I get up at night.

Today thousands of local churches are dying because of Christians who are unwilling to serve.

Impression without expression causes depression.
Most of the time we're more interested in "serve us" than service.

The mature follower of Jesus stops asking, "Who's going to meet my needs?" and starts asking, "Whose needs can I meet?" Do you ever ask that question?

Preparing for Eternity
At the end of your life on earth you will stand before God, and he is going to evaluate how well you served others with your life.
One day God will compare how much time and energy we spent on ourselves compared with what we invested in serving others.
At that point, all our excuses for self-centeredness will sound hollow: "I was too busy" or "I had my own goals" or "I was preoccupied with working, having fun, or preparing for retirement." To call excuses God will respond, "Sorry, wrong answer. I created, saved and called you and commanded you to live a life of service. What part did you not understand?"

We are only fully alive when we're helping others.

God wants you to learn to love and serve others unselfishly.

What matters is
 not the duration of your life, 
but the donation of it.
Not how long you lived,
but how you lived.




Day 30 | Shaped for Serving
Purpose Driven Life | Live Your Calling

Understanding their differences

self awareness

Values, morals and ethics

Explanations > Values> Values, morals and ethics

Values | Morals| Ethics | So what?

What are the differences between values, morals and ethics? They all provide behavioral rules, after all. It may seem like splitting hairs, but the differences can be important when persuading others.

Values

Values are the rules by which we make decisions about right and wrong, should and shouldn't, good and bad. They also tell us which are more or less important, which is useful when we have to trade off meeting one value over another.
Dictionary.com defines values as:

n : beliefs of a person or social group in which they have an emotional investment (either for or against something); "he has very conservatives values"

Morals

Morals have a greater social element to values and tend to have a very broad acceptance. Morals are far more about good and bad than other values. We thus judge others more strongly on morals than values. A person can be described as immoral, yet there is no word for them not following values.
Dictionary.com defines morals as:

n : motivation based on ideas of right and wrong

Ethics

You can have professional ethics, but you seldom hear about professional morals. Ethics tend to be codified into a formal system or set of rules which are explicitly adopted by a group of people. Thus you have medical ethics. Ethics are thus internally defined and adopted, whilst morals tend to be externally imposed on other people.
If you accuse someone of being unethical, it is equivalent of calling them unprofessional and may well be taken as a significant insult and perceived more personally than if you called them immoral (which of course they may also not like).
Dictionary.com defines ethics as:

A theory or a system of moral values: “An ethic of service is at war with a craving for gain"

The rules or standards governing the conduct of a person or the members of a profession.

Ethics of principled conviction asserts that intent is the most important factor. If you have good principles, then you will act ethically.
Ethics of responsibility challenges this, saying that you must understand the consequences of your decisions and actions and answer to these, not just your high-minded principles. The medical maxim 'do no harm', for example, is based in the outcome-oriented ethics of responsibility.

So what?

Understand the differences between the values, morals and ethics of the other person. If there is conflict between these, then they probably have it hidden from themselves and you may carefully use these as a lever.
Beware of transgressing the other person's morals, as this is particularly how they will judge you.
Talking about professional ethics puts you on a high moral platform and encourages the other person to either join you or look up to you.

See also

http://junior.apk.net/~qc/mind/value/
http://www.characterunlimited.com/character_ethics.htm

Daily Health Tips

Source: skinnygurltrappedinafatgirlsbody.tumblr.com via Nouf on Pinterest

I will give you rest...

Source: jupiterstarz.tumblr.com via Rachel on Pinterest

Me: Five Years From Now | Book Recommendation

 

 

24 Bible Verses on Being Quiet

 24 Bible Verses on

Being Quiet

Proverbs 11:12 ESV / 87 helpful votes

Whoever belittles his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding remains silent.

James 1:19 ESV / 83 helpful votes

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;

Proverbs 17:28 ESV / 81 helpful votes

Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.

Psalm 4:4 ESV / 59 helpful votes

Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent. Selah

Proverbs 10:8 ESV / 46 helpful votes

The wise of heart will receive commandments, but a babbling fool will come to ruin.

Job 6:24 ESV / 44 helpful votes

“Teach me, and I will be silent; make me understand how I have gone astray.

Proverbs 29:11 ESV / 43 helpful votes

A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back.

Marriage & Divorce: The Statistics

I found these interesting....

Marriage and Divorce: The Statistics

Learn what the 2003 data reveals about who is getting married, when they're getting married, and who is most likely to divorce.

The average age of a woman getting married in the United States is 27. " Bride's Magazine

The average age of a man getting married in the United States is 29. " Bride's Magazine

88 percent of American men and women between the ages of 20 and 29 believe that they have a soul mate who is waiting for them. " University Wire, Louisiana State University

59 percent of marriages for women under the age of 18 end in divorce within 15 years. The divorce rate drops to 36 percent for those married at age 20 or older. " "Cohabitation, Marriage, Divorce and Remarriage in the United States," M.D. Bramlett and W.D. Mosher

60 percent of marriages for couples between the ages of 20 and 25 end in divorce. " National Center for Health Statistics

50 percent of all marriages in which the brides are 25 or older result in a failed marriage. " National Center for Health Statistics

65 percent of altar-bound men and women live together before getting married. " Bride's Magazine

Research indicates that people who live together prior to getting married are more likely to have marriages that end in divorce. " The Boston Herald

A recent study on cohabitation concluded that after five to seven years, only 21 percent of unmarried couples were still living together. " The Boston Herald

55 percent of cohabitating couples get married within five years of moving in together. Forty percent of couples who live together break up within that same time period. " Annual Review of Sociology

Children of divorce have a higher risk of divorce when they marry, and an even higher risk if the person they marry comes from a divorced home. One study found that when the wife alone had experienced a parental divorce, her odds of divorce increased to 59 percent. When both spouses experienced parental divorce, the odds of divorce nearly tripled to 189 percent. " Journal of Marriage and the Family

The likelihood that a woman will eventually marry is significantly lower for those who first had a child out of wedlock. By age 35, only 70 percent of all unwed mothers are married in contrast to 88 percent of women who have not had a child out of wedlock. " "Finding a Mate? The Marital and Cohabitation Histories of Unwed Mothers," Lawrence L. Wu and Barbara Wolfe

Credits: Dr. Phil.com

Celebrate yourself - encouragement

Off Night, not content, impatient. Drive 17 miles to give someone a hug.

Wow, I had kinda an off night.

I’m usually very content, happy, just relaxed in the evening. Tonight I was not that.

I was annoyed. I wanted to shin kick everybody. I had a 2 sec. patience level. My dad told a story/lesson he thought of while driving home from the studio, however it took atleast 14 minutes to tell the story that I believe he could’ve finished in 1 min and 40 sec. and not only did I not have the patience for his story, I showed it. I showed him how annoyed I was. Almost as if I was tapping my foot as he was trying to tell the story. Who the heck am I to be so rude to others? And we’re not just talking others…..we’re talking about my parents, the ones who love me the most! It’s funny how we get most annoyed with those we live side by side with.

This might be a sign or a reminder that it’s time to get back in the saddle in the job field. I think this beautiful vacation is coming to an end.

I decided to give everybody a break from my short fuse so I took a drive. I called my great friend Steph and just ranted for about 20 min on her – bless her heart for taking it. Then the song “Home” came on by Phillip Phillips exactly as I was driving past Christina Lake Mountain – the perfect landmark. It was a good reminder that my time here is only temporary.

Two miles after that I almost hit 3 deer.

But the road kept going and I kept driving. Soon I was up in Battle Lake. Yesterday I found this beautiful poem from my friend Layna. She must’ve given it to me in the last 5 years for Valentine’s Day. I missed her so I decided to drive up to Stella’s Bistro and just give her a hug. Sometimes it’s nice to have an end destination to do something simple like that. Just drive 17+ miles to give someone a hug.

I’ll never forget when my Uncle Dan drove 2 ½ hours to drop off a basketball. He rang the doorbell, we were shocked, he gave the basketball to one of us and then simply walked back to his truck. I bet he was having the kind of day /night I am. He just needed some a lone drive time to think.

I just remembered Layna yelled out "It's your golden birthday this year!" right as I was exiting the building. It made me chuckle. It was random as we had talked nothing about my birthday during our short visit.

Oh and some nice dad pulled over in Battle Lake to tell me one of my taillights was out. I appreciated it. As I came out of Stella’s, a cop drove by. To my wonderful luck (sarcasm) he pulled over to his “hiding spot”, a spot that I would have to drive right past. After driving past him, he pulled out. I didn’t even have the effort. He was ¼ mile behind me and I just pulled over. He didn’t even need to put his lights on. I did the work for him. As he approached my car, I said “yeah yeah I know, a guy just told me 10 minutes ago my tail light is out.” He was actually very friendly (and cute!). We made small talk and parted ways. On the way home I thought of my dream (log) home, when and how my husband will come into my life and what I need to do (and make) in order for me to enjoy a comfortable life.

That’s all.

Bible Verses for Death

 

One of the most difficult things to deal with in life is the death of a loved one. Even for the Christian, death is a part of life. Unlike they that do not believe, the Christian has a blessed hope – that is the return of the Savior Jesus to catch up His Church and bring them to eternal life with Him and God the Father in Heaven. Here are some scripture quotes about death that I hope will comfort you .

Credit WhatChristiansWanttoKnow

As He Promised, He Will Do

John 14:1-4 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.”

Romans 8:16-17 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

2 Corinthians 5:6-8So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

1 Thessalonians 5:9-11For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

Because of Calvary, We Live

2 Samuel 12:23 But now he is dead. Why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me.” (King David speaking of his infant son who died)

John 11:23-26Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

1 Corinthians 15:54-57When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Philippians 3:20-21But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

In His Time, He Will Do

1 Corinthians 15:20-23But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.

Philippians 1:23-24 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.

1 Peter 1:3-5Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

1 John 3:1-2 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

Revelation 21:1-4Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

Safe In His Arms, Now and Forever

Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,

Psalm 116:15Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.

John 10:27-29 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.” (Jesus speaking)

Romans 8:38-39 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 14:8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.

Revelation 14:13And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”

Christian Quotes About Death

“They that love beyond the world cannot be separated by it. Death cannot kill what never dies.” ~ Williams Penn


”When the time comes for you to die, you need not be afraid, because death cannot separate you from God’s love.” ~ Charles H. Spurgeon

”It is better for me to die in behalf of Jesus Christ, than to reign over all the ends of the earth.” ~ Ignatius of Antioch

“He whose head is in heaven need not fear to put his feet into the grave.” ~ Matthew Henry

“Has this world been so kind to you that you should leave with regret? There are better things ahead than any we leave behind.” ~ C.S. Lewis


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SaraHHouse365 | Paradox in our History, George Carlin
SaraHHouse365 | You were made for a Mission


Credits: 20 Verses about Death

#2: 10 Insanely Nice Things You Can Say to Anybody

10 Insanely Nice Things You Can Say to Anybody
#2: 10 Insanely Nice Things You Can Say to Anybody

Columnist Leigh Newman weighs in on the tiny but enormously kind things you can say that may change a person's day—and (sometimes) even their way of looking at themselves.

By Leigh Newman

2: "Three different sources have confirmed that you're generous, nice to animals and funny."

It happens all the time during coffee dates or lunches at work—a friend's name comes up in conversation and everyone there suddenly begins to talk about how amazing this person is: for example, how whip-smart she was during the budget meeting, how kind she was to the obviously lonely woman in production, how she always smells a little like fresh vanilla cupcakes. Unfortunately, due to her absence, she'll never know about this avalanche of admiration—unless you inform her. Passing along the descriptions will not only make her feel quite special for possessing these characteristics, but it will also disable the compliment-deflecting shield that so many of us have, because by delivering this praise, you can't possibly just be trying to “cheer her up" or trying to “be sweet." You didn't actually say those things. Other people did.


Read more: http://www.oprah.com/relationships/Nice-Things-You-Can-Say-to-Anybody/2#ixzz2NIX0wcd1

Visualize a task before you do it

it's never too late...to think big

 It's Never Too Late . . . to think BIG!



It's Never Too Late...
by Patrick Lindsay

There's more of them!!
  It's Never Too Late...to push your boundaries.

It's Never Too Late...to take a trip!

It's Never Too Late...to find balance.

Truth: Never have to worry about your lousy memory.

  

 - A Father's Book of Wisdom

Attachment to People

Common sense is not so common.

The Click