You Have Today in the Palms of Your Hands

You Have Today in the Palms of Your Hands
By Patricia Kirkcaldy

Today – it’s simply the “bottom line”. Today is yours, with all its magic possibilities of
being and doing. Yesterday, with its mistakes, lost opportunities, and failures, is gone forever. Fretting about those fiascos won’t get you anywhere, except maybe the doctor’s office for ulcer medication!

And we’re not concerned about tomorrow right now. It’s still just a wink and a promise.

Today you have the here and now -your reality. Today is the clay in your hands. You mold it and make it what you choose.

One effective today plus another effective day – add 365 of those and you get one incredible year. That whiz-bang, take-you-to-the-top year is created simply by focusing on what’s in front of you right now. What can you take action on right now - even if it’s just for a few minutes- that will bring you closer to your goal?

Do you want a stronger family life? What can do you right this minute that will support that goal? Perhaps it’s to communicate, perhaps it’s to forgive. Maybe it involves setting work aside and playing with your children. Do it – right now. Take the next step immediately.

Do you want greater income from your business? Then what money making activity can you focus on right now to get you closer to that goal? You’ll have a greater chance of taking home a bigger paycheck if you learn to take action and not procrastinate.

Decide to make every moment of your life enriched by the right use of each passing moment. When you do so, you naturally eliminate worry from your life – and that’s one disease out of the picture!

How do you reach success? Simple. Do your best every day, with whatever you have.
By all means, plan for the future, and revise your plans in relation to what you accomplished yesterday. But in order to move forward, you must take action today.

Just get started. Set a timer for five minutes and decide you’ll work on the most pressing job for that long. Then you have complete permission to stop. 99.9% of the time, getting going is the tough part, and once you’ve taken one baby step, you’re motivated to tackle more of the job. As author Mike Litman writes, “You don’t have to get it right, just get it going.”

This simple rule, if followed on good days and blah days and terrible days, will create an incredibly beautiful life! And the legacy you leave for others will inspire them to greatness as well.

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James Russell Lowell-Wealth

"Wealth may be an excellent thing, for it means power, leisure and liberty" - James Russell Lowell

Four Disciplines To Getting What You Want

Discover four spiritual disciplines to transform your life.

I bet you’re like me - you want results now, without having to put in the effort and time to make things change. We want to pray a prayer and have instant results. Kind of like microwave Christianity!

But God isn’t our sugardaddy. He wants to build character in us so that once things do change we can handle the new lifestyle and be better equipped to fulfill His plan for our lives. And building character takes discipline and time.

But what disciplines do we need to work on? It depends upon what outcome you’re looking for. If a person wants to be a concert pianist, he practices the piano consistently and increases the level of his challenge as he improves.

If you don’t know what you want in life, you just know you’re not happy and your life needs improving, then you’re in serious trouble! If you don’t have a target, then you’ll hit your aim every time! But the good news is that every person has a dream. Even if your dream was put on the shelf some time ago, you can take it down and begin working on it today. The dream is still there because God put it there and He is ready to help you implement it.

Let’s look at how the following disciplines will help you, no matter what you are striving for.

Transform Your Thoughts (change your beliefs)

To make changes in our life it helps to understand the process of what happens between the time we think about something and when we take action. It looks like this:

Beliefs create thoughts
Thoughts create emotions
Emotions create actions
Actions create our lifestyle

Therefore, to change our thoughts requires us to identify false beliefs and replace them with God’s truths. Sometimes if we aren’t sure why we acted in a certain way, we can backtrack through the above process to uncover our core beliefs that caused our ultimate action.

Whenever we want to make changes in our life, fears and self-doubt begin to creep in. In order to conquer them we need to identify the specific fears (false beliefs) so we can counter them with God’s truths.

This is accomplished by continually reading the Bible. When we read statements that are contrary to what we think (believe), then we have a choice to make. We choose to either believe God's truth and act according to this new belief or continue to believe the lie, which keeps us stuck in a rut. We must make the choice as soon as we realize our thoughts are focused on lies.

Speak Your Future Into Existence

This outcome of this second discipline is described very well in Proverbs 18:20-21: " A man's [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequence of his words he must be satisfied [whether good or evil]. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life]."

God created the world and everything in it, including us, by the words He spoke. He first thought about what He wanted, then He spoke it into existence. This power isn't limited only to God. God tells us that we, too, have this power to create with our words.

Many of us spend more time talking about our past than speaking forth our future. When we talk about our future, it's important to say what we "want" not what we "don't want." We must be extremely specific on what we speak forth for our future.

Control Your Emotions

We aren't taught that it is possible to control our emotions. Therefore, we feel powerless over how we react to situations. In John 14:1 Jesus told His disciples, " Do not let your hearts be troubled (distressed, agitated)..." God won't ask us to do something that He is not capable of helping us do.

This is great news that we can reign in our out-of-control emotions. Just knowing that this is possible helps us to see things in a new light. We see new possibilities of change where we didn't think change could ever occur.

Pray Consistently

This fourth discipline keeps us connected to the source of our hope – God. We obtain success through deepening our relationship with God and others. The three disciplines above help us develop character to enable us to develop healthy, loving relationships which fulfill us.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kathy Williamson teaches biblical principles to help people overcome their problems and discover God's will for their lives. Her book, teachings and ezine can be found on her website at http://www.wisdomforliving.org/

Kites-Winston Churchill

"Kites rise highest against the wind, not with it." - Winston Churchill

Success Opposition and Courage

"Success is not measured by what you accomplish, but by the opposition you have encountered, and the courage with which you have maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds." - Orusin Sweet Marden

Theodore Roosevelt-Get Action

"Get action. Seize the moment. Man was never intended to become an oyster." - Theodore Roosevelt

Easy to Get Faked Out!

Don't mistake movement for achievement. It's easy to get faked out by being busy. The question is: Busy doing what? - Jim Rohn

Every Thought Has Power

Every thought has the power to bring into being the visible from the invisible. It is absolutely necessary for us all to understand that everything we think, do or say comes back to us. Every thought, word or action—without exception—manifests itself as an actual reality. - Ann Wigmore

Believe and Do!

If the things we believe in are different than the things we do, there can be no true happiness. - Dana Telford

You-Brian Tracy

You have within you right now, everything you need to deal with whatever the world can throw at you. - Brian Tracy

Ordinary vs. Extraordinary People

Ordinary people believe only in the possible. Extraordinary people visualize not what is possible or probable, but rather what is impossible. And by visualizing the impossible, they begin to see it as possible. - Cherie Carter-Scott

Marianne Williamson Quote

God exists in eternity. The only point where eternity meets time is in the present. The present is the only time there is. - Marianne Williamson

Get Action-Theodore Roosevelt

Get action. Seize the moment. Man was never intended to become an oyster. - Theodore Roosevelt

Quote from Fulton J. Sheen

Show me your hands. Do they have scars from giving? Show me your feet. Are they wounded in service? Show me your heart. Have you left a place for divine love? - Fulton J. Sheen

Tryon Edwards Quote

Thoughts lead on to purposes; purposes go forth in action; actions form habits; habits decide character; and character fixes our destiny. - Tryon Edwards

Albert Schweitzer Quote

Do something wonderful, people may imitate it. - Albert Schweitzer

Johnny Cash-Build on Failure

"You build on failure. You use it as a stepping stone. Close the door on the past. You don't try to forget the mistakes, but you don't dwell on it. You don't let it have any of your energy, or any of your time, or any of your space." - Johnny Cash

Success

"Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the basic fundamentals." - Jim Rohn

Ann Landers-Expect Trouble

"If I were asked to give what I consider the single most useful bit of advice for all humanity it would be this: Expect trouble as an inevitable part of life and when it comes, hold you head high, look it squarely in eye and say, 'I will be bigger than you. You cannot defeat me." - Ann Landers

It's the Little Things That Lead to Success

It's the Little Things That Lead to Success
By Patricia Kirkcaldy

Everybody knows that good habits need to be cultivated while bad habits seem to grow like weeds. Habits like self-discipline, self-control, order, and perseverance, are all habits that require a conscious effort to create and maintain. Procrastination on the other hand, is a behavior takes no effort at all. For better or worse, it's your habits that make or break you.

The amount of self-help information available today is virtually unlimited, but it is of little value without first learning to direct your focus and attention. The mind moves constantly from one idea to the next with amazing speed, rarely giving its sole attention to one subject for any length of time. Yet success in anything depends largely on the ability to direct your mind; not only where it goes, but also how long it stays there.

Success, like anything else, must be learned and practiced. A habit starts out as no more than a thought. When this thought is pursued it turns into action. If repeated often enough this action will impress itself on the subconscious mind. Statistics show that an action or behavior repeated for at least 30 days becomes a habit, good or bad. Once a habit is formed it becomes automatic and no longer requires the attention of your conscious mind.

Take a close look at your routines. Routines are what form your habits. Examine what is working for you and what is not. Just as with a garden cultivating good habits will also take time and attention. You need to nurture the flowers in your life and start pulling the weeds. If something is not working for you, get rid of it! Your time and energy are too precious to waste on uneccessary thoughts and routines.

If you wish to be successful in anything you do, follow the clues.

Study the habits of successful people. It is the habits we create that make us who we are. One habit all successful people have in common is the ability to focus their attention for extended periods of time.

How do you make focus a habit? Start small and work up.

Resist the impulse to jump from one unfinished project to another. Write out a priority list and pay particular attention to the order of that list. Do not let petty distractions interfere with working through each task in the order you have established. When you overcome the temptation to let your focus and efforts become scattered, you are creating the habit of finishing projects and seeing them through to the end.

Situations will always arise over which we have no control but we can choose how we react to them. When you are thrown off course make a habit of returning to the task at hand as quickly as possible.

Learn to use your imagination and create a mental image of your end goal. The importance of mental imaging in attaining your goals cannot be over-stated. This mental image will act as a blueprint for your action plan, bringing your thoughts one step closer to reality.

When you consistently focus on your mental image it will manifest in the physical world. Regardless of whether you are trying to lose weight, succeed in business, or simply trying to improve your life, the more detailed your image, the better your chances of achieving your ultimate goal.

Acknowledge the small things.

Recognize and acknowledge each little success as it comes along. As one success leads to another they add up and you gain confidence in your ability to reach even larger goals. What you're doing is actively engaging in healthy "behavior modification". That puts you way ahead of most people who are not very conscious or awake!

Everything is learned by degree. Start small and practice daily focusing your attention for ever longer periods of time. As you learn to calmly focus and concentrate success will start to become a lifelong habit.

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Help a Child With Heart Birth Defects!

"Apparently there is nothing that cannot happen today." - Mark Twain

Help A Child With Heart Birth Defects

August 6th, 2005 --
My friend Dr.Mani is a heart surgeon who innovatively uses Internet marketing to help kids born with heart defects.
On August 6th, in a very special event called the Heart Kids Blogathon, he is blogging non-stop for 24 hours to raise funds for his 'heart kids'.
And this year, he's setting his sights high
Dr.Mani plans to raise $100,000 in a day to fund lifesaving heart surgery for 50 children. But to make it happen, we need YOUR help!
He's got two very practical plans worked out - check them out here. Be a part of this great project, if you can.
Also, don't forget to drop by and encourage him on the big day! Make sure you visit the Heart Kids Blogathon blog on August 6th, 2005 - the URL is

http://www.EzineMarketingCenter.com/blog/

Security

"Only the insecure strive for security." - Dr. Wayne Dyer

Milton Berle-Opportunity

"If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door." - Milton Berle

The Major Value in Life

"The major value in life is not what you get. The major value in life is what you become." - Jim Rohn

Miracles-Wayne Dyer

I am realistic - I expect miracles. - Wayne Dyer

Thomas Szasz Quote

Clear thinking requires courage rather than intelligence. - Thomas Szasz

Two Handles-Henry Ward Beecher

Every tomorrow has two handles. We can take hold of it with the handle of anxiety or the handle of faith. - Henry Ward Beecher