Charity is not about what you gain, but what you can give

Generosity & Kindness, Love & Relationships
“When you say "I" and "my" too much, you lose the capacity to understand the "we" and "our".”  Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free I think perhaps the greatest shortfall of mankind is its inability to look beyond themselves with any kind of real charity. So often you hear people saying things like “my” problems and “my” needs as though they were the only people living in society. One’s ego can easily convince us that our lives, our complaints and our problems are unique – that no other human being walking the Earth could possibly understand or relate to what we’re feeling or going through. We then turn that internal understanding into an excuse – “I” am simply too busy to do this or that; you have no…
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Losing Methodist parishioners is due to not practicing what they preach

Information & Education, Life & Living, Love & Relationships
Many years ago, I used to consider myself a practicing Catholic – regularly attending services and abiding by the rules and restrictions drilled into my head since I was young. But then I became a free-thinking adult. And after watching the poor handling of the sex abuse scandal and their bias towards the homosexual community, I concluded that the Catholic faith was NOT a religion I wanted to be a part of. My wife on the other hand is a loyal and faithful Methodist. She still attends the same church she was christened in almost 40 years ago, the same church her family has attended for generations. Looking for a little spiritual guidance, I began going with her and was surprised how different this religion truly was. Honesty, humility and…
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We all deserve to speak highly of ourselves

Life & Living, Love & Relationships, Youth
If somebody said to you… “Look how fat you are.” “You haven’t a thing to offer a new employer.” “You’re so dumb you’ll probably say the wrong thing.” You’d be highly insulted – and rightfully so. You might point out their rude behavior – maybe even say how inappropriate their comments were. At the very least, you’d expect an apology for these actions, right? But what if it’s not another person saying those things…what if it’s YOU! Far too often that’s exactly how we talk to ourselves. Some call this “negative self-talk” - and I’m just as guilty as anyone. This inner critic isn’t something we’re born with - it’s developed from our day to day environments. Maybe it’s the sting from the bully on the playground, a domineering relationship…
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Valentine’s Day shouldn’t be celebrated only once a year

Love & Relationships
Today I made plans for my wife and I to see a dear friend of ours this coming Friday. She reminded me it was “v-day” as she put in her text, and admittedly at first I had no idea what she was talking about. V-day could mean the global movement to end violence against women, or the political campaign organized by Beppe Grillo in Italy years ago. But the “v-day” she was referring to was Valentine’s Day – the supposed day of love. Anyone who knows me is well aware that my wife and I do not celebrate Valentine’s Day. While many will spend far too much money trying to convince their significant other how their love can be measure in overpriced dinners, flowers and gifts, we refuse to adopt…
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As long as people still think of you, you’re not lonely

Love & Relationships
I admit that I’m a bit of a homebody. My home, and the person I share it with, provide me with a warm, supportive and comforting place to return to at the end of a busy day – so much so that I enjoy just spending time there whatever the circumstance might be. I’m not a hermit however – I do enjoying going out from time to time to see family and friends in social situations. Still it always nice to know I have such a memorable place to return home to. But some weeks seem busier than others and often leave me with a feeling of anxiety. When my day starts at seven in the morning and I don’t return home until well after seven at night, that’s a…
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