I Found It ~ Really

Have you ever found yourself thinking:

Man, if only there was a company worth working for.

If only you could trust people to tell you the truth, without some hidden agenda and half-truths.

If only something that seemed too good to be true could really be true.

With all this modern technology, shouldn't there be something that really WORKS where our health is concerned?

If I could design the perfect busines, it would look like...

Well, I have personally had these thoughts many, many times. If only there could be a company you could feel really good about being associated with. If only there were a way to really help people ~ not by throwing money at a problem, but help them with their health, their self-esteem, their know-how, their family situations. If only there could be a "perfect" scenario. If only I could not only pay my bills each month, but have extra money to give to special projects at church, help fill the food pantry, support the local women's shelter, help families with special-needs kids, give more to local and foreign missions...

Well, I have found something I think is really amazing. I have not been associated with them very long (only a few months), but the more I learn and see, the more excited and impressed I really am. If you are curious ~ if you'd like to know more ~ seriously ~ check out the links in "My favorite links." I have never seen ANYTHING quite like it. And trust me, I am a hard-sell, having been let down hard in the past, I am a major skeptic. But I have done some digging on this one, and I mean it when I say "this is the one." It actually addresses EVERYTHING that would have been on my "if only..." list. Be sure to either leave comments here or "contact me" on my personal business website with your feedback and/or questions. If you take a chance on this one, you will never regret it.

Prayer for the Elections

I am praying for God's perfect will for America. For the upcoming elections. I don't know what God's will is. I know what I think it is. I know what my will is. I am very clear on how I plan to vote. I have done my best to be informed, to be current on the important issues. I have tried to see past what I hear from the main-stream media, past what the political info-mercials tell us. I feel that I am clear on the issues as they relate to my values, beliefs, and priorities. I know exactly how I intend to vote. As I have talked to some, I find that many people still have not made up their minds, they are confused on the issues. I pray that everyone who goes to the polls on election day would take the time first to read up on the issues, educate themselves on where the candidates really stand. There are voter guides available from Focus on the Family. These are non-partisan, strictly-the-facts guides that simply report the past voting records for all the candidates running for office, and other factual information. These guides are simply intended to educate everyone on the issues and the candidates, not to sway anyone's vote one way or the other. We must all become informed voters. The issues are too big, the future of America too precarious, to vote without knowing the facts. Get informed ~ then vote. There is still time. Go to http://focusvoter.com/ and click on your state, then fill out the information, turn off your pop-up blocker, and there you go. It is worth taking the time to be informed.

I Never Put It All Together Before...

I read the following post on another blog. Fascinating. Really puts it all in perspective ~ read on and see what I mean. (Be sure to read the whole thing, it gets even better.) We DO have some cleaning up to do.

545 PEOPLE... by Charlie Reese 
 
Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them. 
 
Have you ever wondered why, if both the Democrats and the 
Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits? 
 
Have you ever wondered why, if all the politicians are against 
inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes? 
 
You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does. 
 
You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on 
appropriations. The House of Representatives does. 
 
You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does. 
 
You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does. 
You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does. 
 
One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president, and nine 
Supreme C ourt justices. 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country. 
 
I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that 
problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank. 
 
I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes. 
 
Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their f ault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party. 
 
What separates a politician from a normal human being is an 
excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The president can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it. 
 
The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole 
responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. 
 
Who is the speaker of the House?...She is the leader of the majority 
party. She and fellow House members, not the president, can approve any budget they want. If the president vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to. 
 
It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot 
replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. 
 
I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable 
directly to those 545 people. 
 
When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the 
power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist. 
 
If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair. 
 
If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red. 
 
If the Army & Marines are in IRAQ , it's because they want them in 
IRAQ. 
 
If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way. 
 
There are no insoluble government problems. 
 
Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom 
they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. 
 
Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists 
disembodied mystical forces like 'the economy,' 'inflation,' or 'politics' that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do. 
 
Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible. 
 
They, and they alone, have the power. 
 
They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees. 
 
We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

AMEN, and AMEN! What more can be said?

God is Amazing!

I continue to watch my little granddaughter grow and change. It is the most amazing thing, as a grandmother. I know I marveled at our sons as they grew as well, but there is a difference with a grandchild. I feel more at peace and able to REALLY see her (and Him) in the process. I don't know if that peace comes from not having to stress as the decision maker when she has a runny nose or fever, or if it comes from maturing in the Lord, or the perspective you gain with age, or because God has healed so many of my wounds over the years that I can see all things more clearly without the filter of my soul-pain. It is probably a combination of all of the above. But I can only say, "WOW! God is truly amazing!"

God has been continuously impressing Phil. 4:8 on my mind and heart lately. It must be very important to Him that we focus our minds on all the things listed in this verse of scripture. Important to Him, because it is important to us, only we don't realize it. Someone hurt my feelings a couple weeks ago (not that it was the first time nor the last), and it was so tempting to think negative thoughts, reminding myself of all the times they had hurt me in the past or even things I had seen them do to others which had nothing to do with me, but God brought this scripture to me. At first I thought, "But I can't think of any good things about this person to focus on." And then He reminded me that the verse doesn't say anything about thinking good things about a person or even our circumstances. "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable..." As I thought about those words, what came to mind is God Himself, and His Word. After all, what is "true"? What is "noble, right, pure..."? God is the only one who fits that description completely. So... instead of focusing on the person (even any good traits they might have) or the circumstances (trying to find the "silver lining" in a bad situation), I decided to get my eyes off all that entirely and focus on my awesome Savior, Almighty God (ruler of angel armies!), various scriptures that came to mind, His many blessings, etc.... And TADA! My whole being seemed to change, almost glow, with His presence and His peace and His Spirit. And that was so much better than thinking about earthly things, let me tell you.

I hope this encourages someone today. God bless.

By God's oh-so-amazing Grace,

Rewritten Princess