Powerful Words To Live By

In her book entitled "Magic", Rhonda Byrne opined that one word can turn your life around -- gratitude. Being thankful and counting your blessings would certainly change your feelings and the way you look at things.

But, the real power is not head knowledge but the application of knowledge which leads to experiences being gained, translating into heart knowledge. You gotta make "thankfulness", "gratefulness" and saying "thank you" second nature.

"Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings." -- William Arthur Ward

"Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul." -- Henry Ward Beecher

Speaking on the vocabulary of success in his book "Notes From A Friend", Anthony Robbins illustrated that the choice of words can change the way we feel and react.

For example, "peeved" would be much more less intense than "furious", "angry" or "pissed off". 

You can control your words and therefore your feelings; keep your cool and feel good all the same. Hey, nobody going to thumb you down or ruffle your feathers, unless you let loose words that are detrimental to your good self.

Then, there is "love", which I would say is the greatest of all. Yes, you may have heard it at weddings or in church, but it still rings true. 

Here then is 1 Corinthians 13 from the New Testament of the Holy Bible (NKJV version) for your rumination:_-

"Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.

When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love."

Remember, words make us strong not in themselves, but only when we live by them and make them part and parcel of our way of life. Stay fresh and be refreshed.

The 5 Languages of Love by Dr Gary Chapman

In case you are still clueless when it comes to love, fret not, as you get attuned to the 5 languages of love profferred by Dr Gary Chapman.

According to Dr Chapman, the 5 love languages are as follows:

1. Words of Affirmation;

2. Quality Time;

3. Receiving Gifts;

4. Acts of Service; and

5. Physical Touch.

If you are interested to know more, please look up http://www.5lovelanguages.com/ and explore how you can discover your primary and secondary love languages. Get your significant other to do so, as well, so that you could learn to speak each other's love languages and, thereby, help to foster your relationship with each other.

Be sure to check out the Free Tools, and also look up the FAQs at the aforesaid web site which answers queries such as:

What if I cannot discover my primary love language?

What if I cannot discover my spouse’s love language?

Why do you think The 5 Love Languages has been so successful?

What if I speak my spouse’s love language and they don’t respond?

Can emotional love return when it has been gone for thirty years?

Love is a powerful emotion that can either energize us when we are full and deplete us when we are running empty. It is thus imperative to keep the flame of love burning bright in our heart and find all the help we can get to keep on loving ourselves, the people in our lives, our community and our planet.

"Immature love says: 'I love you because I need you.' Mature love says 'I need you because I love you.' " -- Erich Fromm

"Love is like a friendship caught on fire. In the beginning a flame, very pretty, often hot and fierce, but still only light and flickering. As love grows older, our hearts mature and our love becomes as coals, deep-burning and unquenchable." -- Bruce Lee

"Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead." -- Oscar Wilde

A Life Made Worthwhile by Gary Hayden

Mr Gary Hayden, a philosophy and science writer, has written this excellent article on having a sense of meaning in one's life.

Click here to feed your mind and stay strong and courageous for the journey of life.

Have you been kinded today?

“Love” is both a noun and verb. Thus, we can say love is the grease or icing, if you will, to sound and/or resounding relationships. And, we say, “I love you” around the globe several times a day.

However, when it comes to “kind”, which to me is a close cousin of “love”, somehow the oddity of the English language defines it as either a noun or an adjective. Thus, we may ask, “What kind of books do you like to read? And, we say, “I have not made a conscious effort to notice those who have been kind to me.”

By using “kind” as a verb today, I think it will go some distance to jolt our memory on those unappreciated persons who have kinded us, i.e., shown us kindness (if you prefer the long form as a practising English police) and, at the same time, spur us to kind others.

When we kind someone, it means that we care about their feelings or happiness. It would also mean that we are gracious in showing warmth, friendliness, generosity and favour to others; yes, even without having them to earn it.

We are blessed when others kind us. I would reason that we are even more blessed when we are in a position of grace and maturity to kind others. And, in this kindway of gracious living, let’s not forget to kind ourselves, too.

When we unkind ourselves, it is that much harder to care for others. As with charity, honesty and all good things which begin at home, let’s guard our hearts and continue our journey of kindness by kinding ourselves and our immediate family members.

Alas, we may be unkinded at times. This is when our character is tested, bringing out either the best or the worst in us. Our response to an unkind event towards us will be very telling of the kind of person we really are. What response would we choose?

We can choose to die to our natural response of selfishness and/or self-preservation. We could choose to go up to a higher plane of graciousness with humility and big heartedness. And, we might wanna do all that we can to kind the unkind besides the least, the last and the lost.

Be kind; be one of a kind, and you may find more of your kind!