Using Time

You can spend your time, invest your time or even waste your time. It's your choice.

We all have exactly 24 hours a day. No more; no less. No one else is forcing you to do anything. You only commit to things because you choose to; so, your schedule reveals your priorities. Examine your schedule, and you might be surprised when you discover what your priorities turn out to be.

Instead of scheduling your priorities around your life, you ought to schedule your life around your priorities.

What should those priorities be? In Matthew 6:33, Jesus says, "Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Of the Ten Commandments, the very first commandment God gave was: "You shall have no other gods before me." The Bible is clear: God should be our number one -- most important -- priority.

In John 15:1-4, Jesus talks about pruning off things that produce no fruit. That is, he tells us to cut off anything that does not have meaningful, eternal value, which means that we are to get rid of anything that doesn't further our relationship with God. Clearly, God doesn't want to be number ten on a list of top ten priorities. In fact, God really doesn't even want to be number one on a list of ten; God wants to be number one on a list of one!

You could spend or waste your time doing meaningless things; or you could invest your time in order to achieve maximum eternal impact.

When you seek God as the only thing you need, he will take care of everything else (see Matthew 6:33). In Luke 10:38-42, we learn the story of Mary and Martha. As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." That's what it means to seek the only meaningful, eternal thing -- God.

Therefore, prune your life. List practical ways that you can cut out the junk in your life in order to focus on knowing God better, seeking him and knowing his word and his truth. That's the only thing needed -- that's how you invest your time wisely.

-from Christ notes

Should You Be Nice To People You Can't Stand?

published from Cebu Daily News, April 24, 2008

There are literally dozens of ways that people get under each other's skin. Greed, laziness, or just plaid rudeness are all character traits that cause people lots of problems in their personal and professional relationships. It may seem like a struggle to put on your best face when confronted by those who bring us grief. But there are some really significant reasons why it's preferable to treat even the most aggravating people with kindness and respect. In fact, you just may be surprised how the age-old adage about "catching more flies with honey than vinegar" holds a lot of validity. The next time someone you know or (don't know personally) displays his/her worst side, you might want to rethink how you react.

What goes around comes around......
You needn't be an overly religious person to understand that in life, very often the behaviours you exhibit in the world, you ultimately experience yourself at one time or another. Since this goes for both the good and the bad, it would behoove anyone to take the "higher ground" as often as possible. The bottom line is that as much as we'd like to seek revenge upon those who cause us harm, we frequently end up harming ourselves more by doing so. One reason is because it usually requires more effort to do something negative than positive. In addition to that, negative responses typically beget negative results -- even if the other person happens to have been in the wrong first. Consequently, it's fairly difficult to "retaliate" against someone whose intentions are pleasant.

Chain reaction
Being kind to those who profoundly bother us has some other benefits. Studies have shown that human behavior itself has "contagious" effects. Think of the rubbernecking that usually goes on after a terrible highway accident. Most of the time, the wreckage has already been cast to the side; but even after the roads become passable, onlookers will continue to clog the area. It's understandable for a hideous spectacle to attract lots of attention. But in most cases, the wreckage isn't terribly extraordinary. In many cases, people choose to slow down and gawk because they see other drivers doing so. Believe it or not, the same principles apply to their behaviors. For example, let's say that a person on your job consistently brings you grief. By treating him/her with kindness, he/she may have the epiphany that his/her actions were ultimately uncalled for. Furthermore, others who see you deflecting the negative behavior may catch on, thus reducing the amount of negativity around. You may also be pleasantly surprised by the way your actions set an example for others. Remember, positive energy is often just as contagious as negative energy.

Personal peace
Perhaps the most important thing you can do for yourself in the face of adversaries is maintain your own sense of peace. On many occasions, people are simply pleased by watching your feathers get ruffled. It brings malicious people a feeling of empowerment to believe that they are capable of altering someone's good nature. By refusing to allow someone to disturb your "inner sanctum" you have just won a major battle. Responding in kind to someone's flip remarks give you the silent upper hand. And it just may prevent that person from attempting to thwart your good mood (or that of others) in the future.

The human factor
It's incredibly difficult sometimes to adjust your mode of thinking where it regards ill-mannered people. But perhaps the most crucial thing to remember about those individuals that cause us distress is that they are still human beings. Believe it or not, there are reasons why people seemingly go out their way to make other's miserable. You need to put someone under a psychological microscope to conclude that certain aspects of their life circumstance figure into their poor attitudes. Nonetheless, everyone has something positive about them than can be acknowledged by others. By seeking out and highlighting their strengths or achievements (instead of stooping to their level) you just may find your "enemies" more tolerable. Sometimes people need to be reminded of the good parts of themselves in order for them to be relieved of their own negative feelings. Mind you, this doesn't mean that you need to go out of your way to analyze and "cure" others. But the mere act of deflecting poor behavior with kindness has, quite an undeniable and irresistible power.

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Changing your life

"You'll never change your life until you change choices."

If you want something in your life to change, then you'll have to change your choices and actions. That is because doing the same thing will never get you different results. In other words, what you do - the choices you make, the way you treat people, the attitudes you have - all impact your life. If, by your actions, you're sowing bad seeds, then you'll reap a harvest of those things." (weekly wisdom from christ notes)

I have always been praying and pleading to God to change my life - the current situation I have in now. I thought God does not listen to my prayers that's why answers never came. Almost everyday as I wake up, I hope that He could magically change everything. Until I stumble upon this article which enlightened me that I could never change my life if I still have the same attitude, the same actions, the same choices.

If I want to change my life completely and free me out of this situation, then I should make the right decision, the right choices so I can never be out of the path I want to take. What we are now is because the choices we make. We can never put the blame to anybody else but to ourselves. We reap what we sow.