One
day, an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business
students and, to drive home a point, used an illustration those
students will never forget. As he stood in front of the
group of high-powered overachievers, he said, "Okay, time
for a quiz." He then pulled out a one-gallon, 'wide-mouth'
mason jar and set it on the table in front of him. Then he produced
about a dozen fist-sized rocks and very carefully placed them,
one by one, into the jar.
When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit
inside, he asked, "Is this jar full?" Everyone in the
class said, "Yes."
Then he said, "Really?" He reached under the table and
pulled out a bucket of gravel. Then he dumped some gravel in and
shook the jar, causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down
into the space between the big rocks.
Then he asked the group once more. "Is this jar full?"
By this time the class was on to him. "Probably not,"
one of them answered.
"Good!" he replied. He reached under the table
and brought out a bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand
in the jar and it went into all the spaces left between the rocks
and the gravel. Once more he asked the question. "Is this
jar full?"
"No!" the class shouted. Once again, he said, "Good!".
Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until
the jar was filled to the brim. Then the expert in time-management
looked at the class and asked, "What is the point of this
illustration?"
One eager beaver raised his hand and said, "The point is,
no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard you
can always fit some more things in it."
"No," the speaker replied, "that's not the point.
The truth this illustration teaches us is this: If you don't put
the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all. What
are the big rocks in your life?
Your children. Your spouse. Your loved ones. Your friendships.
Your education. Your religion. A worthy cause. Teaching
or mentoring others. Doing things that you love. Time for yourself.
Your health. Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first, or you'll
never get them in at all.
If you sweat the little stuff (i.e., gravel, the sand) then you'll
fill your life with little things you will never have the real
quality time you need to spend on the big, important stuff (the
big rocks)."
So, tonight, or in the morning, when you are reflecting on this
short story, ask yourself this question: What are the "big
rocks" in my life? Then put those in your jar first.
Dear
Lord: So far today, I am doing all right. I have not
gossiped, lost my temper, been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish
or self-indulgent. I have not whined, cursed or eaten any
chocolate. However, I am going to get out of bed in a few
minutes and will need a lot more help after that. Amen.
A
man was taking it easy, laying on the grass and looking up at
the clouds. He was identifying shapes when he decided to
talk to God.
"God", he said, "how long is a million years?"
God answered, "In my frame of reference, it's about a minute."
The man asked, "God, how much is a million dollars?"
God answered, "To me, it's a penny."
The man then asked, "God, can I have a penny?"
God answered, "In a minute."
THE
MIRACLE
Tess was a precocious eight year old when she heard her Mom and
Dad talking about her little brother, Andrew. All she knew was
that he was very sick and they were completely out of money. They
were moving to an apartment complex next month because Daddy
didn't have the money for the doctor bills and our house.
Only a very costly surgery could save him now and it was looking
like there was no-one to loan them the money. She heard Daddy
say to her tearful Mother with whispered desperation, "Only
a miracle can save him now."
Tess went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its
hiding place in the closet. She poured all the change out
on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The
total had to be exactly perfect. No chance here for mistakes.
Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the
cap, she slipped out the back door and made her way 6 blocks to
Rexall's Drug Store with the big red Indian Chief sign above the
door. She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some
attention but he was to busy at this moment. Tess twisted her
feet to make a scuffing noise. Nothing. She cleared her
throat with the most disgusting sound she could muster.
No good. Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it
on the glass counter. That did it! "And what do you
want?" the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of voice.
"I'm talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven't seen
in ages," he said without waiting for a reply to his
question.
"Well, I want to talk to you about my brother," Tess
answered back in the same annoyed tone. "He's really,
really sick... and I want to buy a miracle."
"I beg your pardon?" said the pharmacist.
"His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing inside
his head and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So
how much does a miracle cost?"
"We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I'm sorry but
I can't help you," the pharmacist said, softening a little.
"Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn't enough,
I will get the rest. Just tell me how much it costs."
The pharmacist's brother was a well dressed man. He stooped down
and asked the little girl, "What kind of a miracle does you
brother need?"
"I don't know," Tess replied with her eyes welling up.
"I just know he's really sick and Mommy says he needs an
operation. But my Daddy can't pay for it, so I want to use
my money.
"How much do you have?" asked the man from Chicago.
"One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered barely
audibly. "And it's all the money I have, but
I can get some more if I need to.
"Well, what a coincidence," smiled the man. "A
dollar and eleven cents--the exact price of a miracle for little
brothers." He took her money in one hand and with the
other hand he grasped her mitten and said "Take me to where
you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents.
Let's see if I have the kind o miracle you need."
That well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing
in neurosurgery. The operation was completed without charge and
it wasn't long until Andrew was home again and doing well. Mom
and Dad were happily talking about the chain of events that had
led them to this place.
"That surgery," her Mom whispered. "Was a real
miracle. I wonder how much it would have cost?"
Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost... one dollar
ad eleven cents ...... plus the faith of a little child.
A miracle is not the suspension of natural law, but the operation
of a higher law......
(A TRUE STORY)
Two
traveling angels stopped to spend the night in the home of a wealthy
family. The family was rude and refused to let the angels
stay in the mansion's guest room. Instead the angels were
given a small space in the cold basement.
As they made their bed on the hard floor, the older angel saw
a hole in the wall and repaired it. When the younger angel
asked why, the older angel replied, "Things aren't
always what they seem."
The next night the pair came to rest at the house of a very poor,
but very hospitable farmer and his wife. After sharing what
little food they had the couple let the angels sleep in their
bed where they could have a good night's rest.
When the sun came up the next morning the angels found the farmer
and his wife in tears. Their only cow, whose milk had been their
sole income, lay dead in the field.
The younger angel was infuriated and asked the older angel
how could you have let this happen? The first man had everything,
yet you helped him, she accused. The second family had little
but was willing to share everything, and you let the cow die.
"Things aren't always what they seem," the older angel
replied. "When we stayed in the basement of the mansion,
I noticed there was gold stored in that hole in the wall.
Since the owner was so obsessed with greed and unwilling to share
his good fortune, I sealed the wall so he wouldn't find it."
"Then last night as we slept in the farmers bed, the angel
of death came for his wife. I gave him the cow instead.
Things aren't always what they seem."
Sometimes that is exactly what happens when things don't turn
out the way they should. If you have faith, you just need
to trust that every out come is always to your advantage.
You might not know it until some time later...
No
man/woman is worth your tears and the only one who is, will never
make you cry.
If you love someone, put their name in a circle, instead of a
heart, because hearts can break, but circles go on forever.
Everyone hears what you say. Friends listen to what you
say. Best friends listen to what you don't say.
If all my friends were to jump off a bridge, I wouldn't jump with
them, I'd be at the bottom to catch them.
Don't frown, because you never know who's falling in love with
your smile!"
"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle."
~Plato
It takes a minute to have a crush on someone, an hour to like
someone, and a day to love someone- but it takes a lifetime to
forget someone."
"Enthusiasm is contagious. You could start an epidemic!"
