Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve . . . . But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. – JOSHUA 24:15

As a boy, my father often played violin in the local symphony.  This budding young talent continued improving into his high school years.

Then one day he decided to join his raced through the school hallways and out the door, my dad hurried to follow them.  The door slammed just as he reached it.  His left hand smashed the glass of the door – severing the tendons to three fingers.  All the doctors could do was tie the tendons in knots, rendering his fingers useless and taking the violin out of his life forever.

I wonder how Dad's life might have been different had  he not made that one small choice.  "What-ifs" have dubious merit – we can always second-guess ourselves.  But we cannot under-estimate the impact of our choices. One choice can produce lifelong consequences, for good or bad.

Joshua's counsel is a good place to start. "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve," he told Israel.  'But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD" (Josh. 24:15).

Serving God will not always be the easy choice, But it is a choice that brings the kind of consequence we can live with. – Bill Crowder

I am resolved to follow the Savior,

Faithful and true each day;

Heed what He sayeth, do what He willeth-

He is the living way.- Hartsough

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What you will be tomorrow depends on the choices you make today.

Source: Our Daily Bread

Behold, I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. – Rev. 3:20

If I asked the question, "Where's Waldo?" you might recall those popular children's picture books from the 1980's.  That little guy in the red -and-white-striped shirt and hat loved to hide in the pages amid a busy blur of images that made it nearly impossible to find him.

Thankfully, finding Jesus is a lot easier than finding Waldo.  Jesus doesn't play hide-and-seek. He says. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock" (Rev.3:20).  You can find Him at the door of your heart – the core of your existence – waiting to come in.  He doesn't just want to meet you at church, or to be kept at bay on the outer edges of your life.  Rather, He longs to be in the center of your dreams, deliberations, and desires.  He wants a real relationship with the real you.

And so wonderful as that is, I need to warn you that it may be a little unsettling.  Your heart is no doubt harboring a few things that He will want to deal with. But there is nothing that is more valuable than intimacy with Him.  Welcome Jesus and He will clear out the clutter until the air is fragrant and fresh with the purity, power, and pleasure of His presence.
 Who's knocking at your heart's door? It's Jesus! How wonderful is that! -Joe Stowell

Sweetest of all of life's blessings,

Communication with Christ above.

Assured of His constant presence,

His matchless, eternal love. – Anon.

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Jesus is standing at the of your heart – welcome Him In!

Source:  Our Daily Bread

Here's a very short and inspiring story on how to deal with obstacles in life.

The Obstacle In Our Path

In ancient times, a king had a boulder placed on a roadway.

Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock.

Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it.

Many loudly blamed the king for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the big stone out of the way.

Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables.

On approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road.

After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded.

As the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been.

The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the king indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway.

The peasant learned what many others never understand.

~~o~o~o~~

Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve one's condition.

From indianchild website

In 1957 a ten-year-old boy in California set a goal. At the time Jim Brown was the greatest  running back ever to play pro football and this tall, skinny boy wanted his autograph.  In order to accomplish his goal, the young boy had to overcome some obstacles.

He grew up in the ghetto, where he never got enough to eat.  Malnutrition took its roll, and a disease called rickets forced him to wear steel splints to support his skinny, bowed-out legs.  He had no money to buy a ticket to get into the game, so he waited patiently near the locker room until the game ended and Jim Brown left the field.  He politely asked Brown for his autograph.  As Brown signed, the boy explained, "Mr. Brown, I have your picture on my wall, I know you hold all the records. You're my idol."

Brown smiled and began to leave, but the young boy wasn't finished.  He proclaimed, "Mr. Brown, one day I'm going to break every record you hold" Brown was impressed and asked, "What is your name, son?" The boy replied, "Orenthal James. My friends call me O.J."

O.J. Simpson went on to break all but three of the rushing records held by Jim Brown before injuries shortened his football career.  Goal setting is the strongest force for human motivation.  Set a goal and make it come true.

~Dan Clark

Chicken Soup for the Soul

Here are a collection of famous quotes from famous people.

Vince Lombardi

It's not whether you get knocked down; it's whether you get up.

Albert Einstein
Try not to become a man of success. Rather become a man of value.

Lao Tzu

Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.

Andrew Young
I have about concluded that wealth is a state of mind, and that anyone can acquire a wealthy state of mind by thinking rich thoughts.

Norman Vincent Peale
Never talk defeat. Use words like hope, belief, faith, victory.

Napoleon Hill
Opportunity often comes disguised in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat.

Kurt Hahn
There is more to us than we know. If we can be made to see it, perhaps for the rest of our lives we will be unwilling to settle for less.

M. Scott Peck
Until you value yourself you will not value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it.

A.M. Rosenthal
When something important is going on, silence is a lie.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

Ralph Waldo Emerson
This time like all times is a very good one if we but know what to do with it.

Alfred A. Montapert
To accomplish great things we must first dream, then visualize, then plan… believe… act!

Ayn Rand
Throughout the centuries there were men who took first steps, down new roads, armed with nothing but their own vision.

Robert H. Schuller
It takes but one positive thought when given a chance to survive and thrive to overpower an entire army of negative thoughts.