Sunday, March 13, 2011

The Perfect Example

As I look into your big, brown eyes, I see love. How, I think, can one love so unconditionally? You watch me as if you love me, as if you will always protect me, as if you do not judge me. How, I think, can this be possible? Oh the questions I would ask if you could speak. How can you have such love for and devotion towards a human such as me?

As I observe you throughout our many days together, you play as if you have no worries. You sleep as if you have the most pleasant dreams. When you get punished, you so easily forgive. When you get hurt, you plead for my help and love. When you cause mischief, you have a glow in your eye as if your behavior is to be funny. When I get hurt or feel down, you cuddle up beside me, refusing to leave. You obey every order, never questioning.

Oh how I wish I could understand how you do it; how you remain so positive and unselfish in a world such as this. Can you really be so perfect?
As I gaze into your big, brown eyes, wishing I could speak to you and you to me, I suddenly realize that you already know how I feel and what I think.

I begin to understand that you are speaking to me, rather to my heart, through your actions. You are saying, “I Love you, care for you, watch you, forgive you, cuddle up to you when you are down, and do all those things you see me do. All I ask in return is that you love me, care for me, and of course play with me.”

As I look into your big, brown eyes, I begin to understand that I cannot have a more perfect example and companion.

Thomas Stanley, Jr.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Music: The Language of Heaven?

The power of music is evident in each of our lives. This is true no matter who we are and no matter what kinds of music we prefer. In such a world as where we live, we hear music everywhere we go and in everything we do. We hear music on the radio, on our ipod's, from the instruments we play, at concerts we go to, etc. Each of us is unique and therefore attracted to specific genre's of music, matching our specific personalities. Many say our generation has been involved in and has created more music than any previous generation. Although this may be true statistically, we cannot forget that music, no matter how much, has always been the most important aspect of every generation and has played the most important role in every life from the beginning of time.

So why is music so powerful? Why does it create emotions we cannot explain? Have you ever noticed animals around music, how it attracts and calms them? We often believe music affects only humans, but how often do we see it affect all living things?

Janice Kapp Perry, a songwriter, said about music, "Is it a memory that birth could not erase?" Maybe music has such power because the feelings we receive are so close to the joy we felt in our heavenly home. Is music the language of heaven? Is everything in our universe composed? Modern scientists have reported that planets and stars within our solar system have certain rhythms to their rotations around each other. Scientists have also declared that the left-brain, right-brain theory is no longer correct. When a person hears music or when they create music in their mind, most EVERY part of their brain lights up.

Pay close attention to your feelings when listening to MUSIC, not NOISE. Ponder the power of music in your life, and how it affects you. When you listen closely to music and the feelings it creates, you will find you are more in tune with the spirit inside you; more in tune with your heavenly home.

Thomas Stanley, Jr.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Be Yourself!

“I think of life itself now as a wonderful play that I've written for myself, and so my purpose is to have the utmost fun playing my part.” ~Shirley MacLaine~

Take a moment to ponder about your life. Search deep within and ask yourself, "Am I trying to be someone I am not? Am I acting in ways which do not define who I am? Am I letting the world define me rather than me defining myself?" If you are allowing the world to slap a label on who you "are"....rather who the world wants you to be, then you need to take control by discovering yourself and recognizing how much you have to offer this world. Everyone has something to offer! You just have to discover yourself! Understand who you truly are; that you are unique and equipped with the talents and the personality that will allow you to benefit yourself as well as others. Do not worry about what people think of you, because even though they or you may think it matters, it doesn't!

Too many people try to be someone else whom they believe is much "cooler" and "better-looking" than they are. People say "I wish I could be like him/her. He/she is much more talented and good-looking than I am." Our society creates ideal idols whom they say you must copy in order to succeed in this world. I would give you examples, but I think you know exactly what I am speaking of. Please know that the world needs you! You are not a clone of another individual. Whether or not the world chooses to admit it, it needs your unique personality and talents, not a million copies of the same artist, writer, actor, musician, etc.

A longing for a different path than that which was placed in front of you is a dangerous road. You must know yourself and thereby know the direction you must take. Stay there! Don't attempt to place yourself on someone else's path. Our paths intersect giving us the opportunities to bless others with our personalities and talents, but every path and purpose in this world must be filled. If you stray onto a road that is not yours, you will be depriving yourself and the world of so many opportunities and blessings; leaving dark holes in your life as well as the lives of others.

The purpose of life is to discover yourself, to understand your personality, your talents, and your gifts. Have fun with your life as you discover the many things you are capable of. Don't waste those wonderful blessings by attempting to be a copy of the ideal! As Shirley MacLaine stated, "have the utmost fun playing [your] part."

Thomas Stanley, Jr.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

I Am a Prince

Have you ever dreamed of being a prince or a princess, living in a time of magnificent kingdoms and castles? I have....many times. I often believe I was born in the wrong era, that I should have been born in the age of kings and queens. I would have loved to live in a beautiful country full of forests, hills, mountains, rocks, and grass, with my kingdom in the middle of it all.

There is something magical about that time....something that draws me there. This is who I wish I could have been.....what I wish I could have had. I have the personality of a prince and a love for green lands and magnificent castles. If everything about me points to this lifestyle, then why wasn't I given that? Why am I stuck in a time where castles and kingdoms are a thing of the past? Why am I a simple city boy stuck in a crowded place and a time where all the beautiful land is being destroyed by industry? What happened? Why am I here?

The more I think of it, I begin to realize that all of this is not a thing of the past. This is my future. I am a prince, born of royal blood and disguised in a world that refuses to recognize who I truly am. My Father is a magnificent king who believes in me and wants me to one day rule by His side in His kingdom....and eventually become a king to rule a kingdom of my own. He has sent me here during this age because this world is where I will gain the knowledge required to become a king. While in this temporary home, if I can show my Father I am willing to follow every law and marry a true princess, He has already promised His kingdom and much more!

By Thomas Stanley, Jr.