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Thursday, June 04, 2009

"Do you know how much God loves you?"

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It was a cool morning and I had the window open in my home office, writing everyday stories to help you and me listen to life and make a life, not just a living. A bird flew up and perched on the Japanese maple outside of the window and started singing. It was the most beautiful song! Any improv jazz player would have envied this solo. The melody was smooth, and woven into variations. It was so cool.

Well, just then, another bird started singing too. So I had a duet going now. I just closed up my laptop, put it down, closed my eyes, and listened. Those two were really something.  

Then another bird joined in. And pretty soon another, until there was an ensemble of singers playing for my own private concert. Now I know they didn’t know I was listening, but still it seemed to me like they were playing just for me. I was so happy listening to those birds. Their concert made my day!

You know, God made those birds to sing like that, and God created those birds to sing for our pleasure. So enjoy life today as you make a life, and not just a living.

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Got forgiveness and grace?


A friend who listens to life with us through our website at www.ListentoLife.org recently wrote to share with me a story about her college-aged daughter. It seems a friend of the daughter was struggling with life and searching for some answers.

He discovered that he has an obsessive-compulsive disorder and began treatment. And about this same time, he discovered how much God loves him and began a personal relationship with God. The mother of the daughter wrote me to say that the daughter had given her friend a copy of one of my books and that he was enjoying reading it.

But the part of that story that caught my attention was this—many of the people I’ve known that are OCD, try to make their worlds perfect, with everything in order and just so. Of course their pursuit of perfection is constantly frustrated by all of us imperfect people. Making a life requires a lot of forgiveness and grace. So for this young man to discover such a diagnosis and God’s forgiveness and grace about the same time makes sense, doesn’t it?

Listen to life and discover God’s forgiveness and grace for yourself today.

Tuesday, June 02, 2009

"You don’t have to plan it all, do you?"

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We didn’t know they were going to the concert. And they didn’t know we were going. But as soon as we walked up, we saw each other and decided to sit together. The wives sat next to each other and talked and had fun. We husbands sat together and enjoyed ourselves.

In fact, we had such a great time together, that after the show we went out for dessert. And that was a whole lot of fun, too.

Now, we didn’t know they were going to the concert and they didn’t we were going. None of us planned anything together. It just happened...  

…or did it? Sometimes good times just drop in your lap. Or do they?

God is so good to us, giving us a great time in life even when we don’t ask for it. Sure, we ask for a lot of things from God, usually in times of stress or distress, but sometimes God just wants to do something nice for us and works out a plan for our pleasure, and we don’t even know it’s coming.

Listen to life and make a life, not just a living today and know that God has plans for you, a plan for you to prosper and get a lot of pleasure out of your life.

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Monday, June 01, 2009

"Do you slow down much?"

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 A friend who listens to life with me through our website at www.listentolife.org emailed me to let me know that according to the charts, the hummingbirds were in my part of the world. My friend knows how much I love birds and that I put out feeders every year for them. She wanted to make sure I put those feeders out in time for the advance scouts to find them and tell the other birds about them.


 Well, I put the feeders out and watched for the hummingbirds. No hummingbirds. When I was out pruning rose bushes and planting new ones, I listened for those little squawks. No hummingbirds. When I spent the day putting out mulch, I looked at the feeders every time I passed by. No hummingbirds.


 And then I thought about how God puts out nourishment for us every day of our lives, wanting us to drink up the delicious pleasures of life provided for us, and we just fly on by. So today, slow down long enough to find the delightful delicacies God’s put out for you as you listen to life. (And yes, the hummingbirds finally showed up!)

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Sunday, May 31, 2009

"Things don’t always turn out like you plan, do they?"

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Charles found out he was going to inherit a fortune when his sickly, widower father died. So he decided he wanted a female companion to enjoy it with.

So one evening, he goes out, and sees the most beautiful woman he's ever seen before in his entire life. Her natural beauty takes his breath away.

He walks up to her, introduces himself, and after a few moments of casual conversation, says, “I may look just like an ordinary man, but in just a week or two, my father will die, and I'll inherit $20 million.”

“Really?” the beautiful woman said, “Tell me more.” So Charles did and the woman went home with him that evening, and the next day, she became his stepmother.

Things don’t always turn out like you plan, do they? I guess the problem is it’s your plan and not God’s. Let God do your planning for you. God knows far more about what’s good for you than you do. Listen to your life and make a life, not just a living, and follow God’s plan. Then you’ll really have it all!

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