The Haters, by Maya Angelou-A woman’s heart should be hidden in Christ

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The Haters, by Maya Angelou

A hater is someone who is jealous and envious and spends

all their time trying to make you look small so they can look tall.

They are very negative people to say the least. Nothing is ever good enough!

When you make your mark, you will always attract some haters…

That’s why you have to be careful with whom you share
your blessings and your dreams, because some folk can’t
handle seeing you blessed…

It’s dangerous to be like somebody else… If God
wanted you to be like somebody else, He would have given you what He gave them! Right?

You never know what people have gone through to get what they have…
The problem I have with haters is that they see my glory, but they don’t know my story…
If the grass looks greener on the other side of the
fence, you can rest assured that the water bill is higher there too!

We’ve all got some haters among us!

Some people envy you because you can:
a) Have a relationship with God
b) Light up a room when you walk in
c) Start your own business
d) Tell a man / woman to hit the curb (if he / she isn’t about the right thing)
e) Raise your children without both parent being in the home

Haters can’t stand to see you happy.
Haters will never want to see you succeed.

Most of our haters are people who are supposed to be on our side.

How do you handle your undercover haters?

You can handle these haters by:

1. Knowing who you are & who your true friends are (VERY IMPORTANT!!)
2. Having a purpose to your life:
Purpose does not mean having a job. You can have a job and still be unfulfilled.
A purpose is having a clear sense of what God has called you to be.
Your purpose is not defined by what others think about you.
3. By remembering what you have is by divine prerogative and not human manipulation.

Fulfill your dreams! You only have one life to live…when its your time to leave this earth, you ‘want’ to be able to say, ‘I’ve lived my life and fulfilled ‘my’ dreams,… Now I’m ready to go HOME!

When God gives you favor, you can tell your haters,
‘Don’t look at me…Look at Who is in charge of me…’

Pass this to all of your family & friends who you know
are not hating on you including the person who sent it to
you. If you don’t get it back, maybe you called somebody
out! Don’t worry about it, it’s not your problem,
it’s theirs.. Just pray for them, that their life can be as
fulfilled as yours! Watch out for Haters…BUT most of all don’t
become a HATER!

‘A woman’s heart should be so hidden in Christ that
a man should have to seek Him first to find her.’

Maya Angelou

Source-sparkpeople.com

Principles of an Eagle

1. Eagles fly alone at a high altitude and not with sparrows or mix with other smaller birds. Birds of a feather flock together. No other bird goes to the height of the eagle. Eagles fly with eagles. Never in a flock. Even when Moses (Old Testament Bible) went to commune with God on the mountain, he left the crowd at the foothills. Stay away from sparrows and ravens. Eagles fly with eagles.

2. Eagles have strong vision, which focuses up to 5 kilometers from the air. When an eagle sites prey- even a rodent from this distance, he narrows his focus on it and sets out to get it. No matter the obstacle, the eagle will not move his focus from the prey until he grabs it. Have a vision and remain focused no matter what the obstacle and you will succeed.

3. Eagles do not eat dead things. He feeds on fresh prey. Vultures eat dead animals but not eagles. Steer clear of outdated and old information. Do your research well always.

4. The Eagle is the only bird that loves the storm. When clouds gather, the eagles get excited. The eagle uses the wings of the storm to rise and is pushed up higher. Once it finds the wing of the storm, the eagle stops flapping and uses the pressure of the raging storm to soar the clouds and glide. This gives the eagle an opportunity to rest its wings. In the meantime all the other birds hide in the leaves and branches of the trees. We can use the storms of our lives (obstacles, trouble, etc) to rise to greater heights. Achievers relish challenges and use them profitably.

5. The Eagle tests before it trusts. When a female eagle meets a male and they want to mate, she flies down to earth with the male pursing her and she picks a twig. She flies back into the air with the male pursuing her.

Once she has reached a height high enough for her, she lets the twig fall to the ground and watches it as it falls. The male chases after the twig. The faster it falls, the faster he chases until he reaches it and has to catch it before it falls to the ground, then bring it back to the female eagle. The female eagle grabs the twig and flies to a much higher altitude pursued by the male until she perceives it high enough, and then drops the twig for the male to chase. This goes on for hours, with the height increasing until the female eagle is assured that the male eagle has mastered the art of picking the twig which shows commitment, then and only then, will she allow him to mate with her! Whether in private life or in business, one should test commitment of people intended for partnership.

6. Eagles prepare for training. When about to lay eggs, the female and male eagle identify a place very high on a cliff where no predators can reach; the male flies to earth and picks thorns and lays them on the crevice of the cliff, then flies to earth again to collect twigs which he lays in the intended nest. He flies back to earth picks thorns and lays them on top of the twigs. He flies back to earth and picks soft grass to cover the thorns, and then flies back to pick rugs to put on the grass. When this first layering is complete the male eagle runs back to earth and picks more thorns, lays them on the nest; runs back to get grass and rugs and lays them on top of the thorns, then plucks his feathers to complete the nest. The thorns on the outside of the nest protect it from possible intruders. Both male and female eagles participate in raising the eagle family. She lays the eggs and protects them; he builds the nest and hunts. During the time of training the young ones to fly, the mother eagle throws the eaglets out of the nest and because they are scared, they jump into the nest again.

Next, she throws them out and then takes off the soft layers of the nest, leaving the thorns bare. When the scared eaglets jump into the nest again, they are pricked by thorns. Shrieking and bleeding they jump out again this time wondering why the mother and father who love them so much are torturing them. Next, mother eagle pushes them off the cliff into the air.

As they shriek in fear, father eagle flies out and picks them up on his back before they fall, and brings them back to the cliff. This goes on for some time until they start flapping their wings. They get excited at this newfound knowledge that they can fly and not fall at such a fast rate.

The father and mother eagle supports them with their wings.

The preparation of the nest teaches us to prepare for changes;

The preparation for the family teaches us that active participation of both partners leads to success;

The being pricked by the thorns tells us that sometimes being too comfortable where we are may result into our not experiencing life, not progressing and not learning at all. The thorns of life come to teach us that we need to grow, get out of the nest and love on. We may not know it but the seemingly comfortable and safe haven may have thorns;

The people who love us do not let us languish in sloth but push us hard to grow and prosper. Even in their seemingly bad actions they have good intentions for us.

7. When the Eagle grows old, his feathers become weak and cannot take him as fast as he should. When he feels weak and about to die, he retires to a place far away in the rocks. While there, he plucks out every feather on his body until he is completely bare. He stays in this hiding place until he has grown new feathers, then he can come out. We occasionally need to shed off old habits & items that burden us without adding to our lives…

“As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings:” -Deuteronomy 32:11

Have an attitude of an Eagle as our God blesses you

Principles of an Eagle

By Dr. Myles Monroe

Oprah’s unorthodox gospel comes under scrutiny

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07/14/08

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A New Earth: The New Age Church Of Oprah That Denies Jesus

Oprah Winfrey has become a catalyst for a new journalistic project and increasing news coverage by conservative Christians questioning and criticizing her spiritual beliefs.

Some evangelical Christians have voiced alarm that Winfrey is introducing the 46 million viewers who watch her each week to nontraditional spirituality they don’t condone.

In May, two dozen Christian newspapers pooled their resources to publish an article titled “Oprah’s `gospel'” that prompted higher readership and more letters to the editor than any story some of the individual papers had ever published.

In a first-of-its-kind venture, the evangelical newspapers hired Colorado writer and editor Steve Rabey to write the story.

“For some Christians who have considered themselves part of Oprah’s electronic family, her sins against evangelical orthodoxy have increased in number and seriousness,” Rabey said.

In recent months, Southern Baptist newspaper editors also have written editorials declaring “It’s time for Christians to just say no' to the bigO'” and calling her a source of “foolish twitter and twaddle.” And Charisma, a prominent charismatic and Pentecostal magazine, ran a story in its July issue with the headline “Oprah’s Strange New Gospel.'”

Lamar Keener, publisher of the Christian Examiner regional newspapers in California, came up with the idea to work with a dozen “mom and pop” publishers to address Winfrey’s theology.

“Our point is we want our readers to be aware that what she is teaching does not represent traditional, historical Christianity, according to the Scriptures,” said Keener, who also is president of the Evangelical Press Association.

Twenty-three monthly papers from across the country and Canada published the story and distributed 500,000 copies to churches, Christian bookstores, doughnut shops and other outlets.

Keener was inspired after viewing a video titled “The Church of Oprah Exposed,” which has had more than 7.2 million hits on YouTube.

“It’s taking actual clips off programs,” Keener said. “That’s what got my attention.”

One of Winfrey’s quotes highlighted in the story is her belief that “there couldn’t possibly be just one way” to God.

“One of the mistakes that human beings make is believing that there is only one way to live,” Winfrey said.

A matchmaker from heaven

June 22, 2008,

By Standard newspaper-Erick Wamanji

At the junction of Ralph Bunche and Valley Road, Nairobi, stands Nairobi Pentecostal Church (NPC). It is towards this church that a cheerful couple walks gaily. The petite woman is splendid in a pink dress with matching earrings, a white scarf and silver stilettos.

Meet Ruth Silpa and her husband Solomon Kilaha. Both became widowed at a tender age and suffered the agony of becoming single parents. Many years later, through a programme of widows, widowers and single mums at the NPC, they are happily remarried.

Through this church-based matchmaking project, single people congregate to share. They bond and may fall in love, which can culminate in marriage. The programme is a deliberate endeavour that was initiated to tame the pace at which marriage is collapsing or losing its lustre.

Also cognisant of the fact that young people too grapple with relationship problems, and that traditional support structures are no longer available, another programme to attract the youth and prepare them for marriage was born. In “Crossroad”, for that is its name here, young people in their 20s are taught skills of spotting, approaching and dating a potential mate. They also gain skills in the art of courtship.

At first, each gender is tutored separately. When they are ready, men and women are allowed to meet and mingle. Those who are lucky to win a soul get enrolled in pre-marital classes. The course is free and takes six months, although participants pay Sh2,000 for stationery and snacks.

The scheme has psyched many into marriage, and has created a fertile ground for bonding. According to the church, the marriages are blossoming.

Desperate measures

Henry Kahio and his wife Teresa Kamau met as youth, fell in love and were taken through the process of making and sustaining a marriage. When they finally tied the knot in December 2006, they had discovered the importance of a functioning family.

Must a successful marriage originate from a spontaneous relationship? “Not any more,” declares Pastor Julius Akeng’a, the man behind the project. “Marriage is threatened because, today, no one teaches people how to make a home. In fact, we were worried about the increased number of single parents in society.” The threat to marriage, the pastor says, has threatened the foundation of the family and, by extension, the church and society.

He carries on: “At NPC, we take the institution of marriage very seriously. We are therefore putting mechanisms in place to ensure that the family remains firm and productive.” Through the programme, he says, young people are encouraged to marry and procreate.

The Kilahas owe their new marriage and its success to the programme. Theirs is a heart-rending story. After enduring widowhood for years, they eventually triumphed after cupid struck while the man and woman were fellowshipping with others in the ministry.

“When I was widowed, it was Solomon who introduced me to the Widows and Widowers Ministry,” says Ruth. “I was only 25 when my husband died in a tragic road accident. Here I was, young and widowed. The world was crushing in on me. For seven years, I waited and prayed and God answered me eventually.”

Ruth testifies that the training sessions at the church were beneficial. Progressively, she heard and internalised the Biblical doctrine that “two are better than one”. Mutually, she and Solomon agreed to remarry.

“My children were young when their mother died,” recalls Solomon, a Nairobi-based radiographer. “I didn’t want to rush to a decision of remarrying. I wanted them to mature. Then I could seek their consent to get another wife.” In the meantime, he attended the church workshops.

Of her current husband, Ruth says shyly: “He was our best man.” When she lost her former husband, Kilaha was there for her bereaved family. “He closely consoled us. We were friends for seven years before opening up after attending the sessions in the ministry.”

It is in this ministry, which is gaining currency in the city, that couples learn their roles in marriage. Here, women learn to submit, and men learn to serve their wives. Consultation in decision-making is emphasised, as is openness.

Adds Teresa, who works in a local bank: “Through the ministry, we learnt how to deal with in-laws, and why communication is important. In fact, we (she and her husband) call each other at least three times in a day.”

The importance of gifts and birthdays, bedtime mannerisms, as well as the value of keeping an elegant figure are stressed.

Anger management

Teresa continues: “There is also the issue of courtesy and the need to solve problems amicably.” Courtesy words like “sorry” and “thank you”, she says, are common in her house. “They have got us going… It is a programme I would recommend to anyone who values the sanctity of family and marriage.”

Pastor Akeng’a says friendship is critical to the success of a marriage. In fact, he insists that a couple must bond before getting children.

“They learn that it is wrong for children to come into a world where mum and dad are antagonistic. A child must come to a warmly couple.”

Premarital preparation for couples involves the inculcation of skills in anger management and the need to understand one’s expectations in marriage. The expectations, Akang’a says, must be clear and reasonable to avoid frustration. “If a compromise is not reached, it is better not to go on, than to get into marriage only to end up miserable or divorced.”

Teresa recalls: “We wrote our expectations and discussed them over. For instance, I don’t expect him to surprise me on my birthday with a car key or a key to a house, for such are major projects that must be first discussed. Another thing we learn is building trust, being honest and managing our finances. There is nothing to hide. Now I’m on leave and I let him go with my ATM card, because I trust him.” She asks: “But suppose I find out that my account is empty?” Then she answers her own question: “Next time, I will hesitate. So trust is important.”

“The institution of marriage is under threat,” declares Akeng’a, a forlorn look on his face. The trend of the rising numbers of single parents, he observes, “is dangerous for society and the church at large.”

Owing to the popularity of the matchmaking programme, every year dozens of couples go through these sessions and get married.

Priming the youth for marriage

At the church, young people are prepared on how to relate with the opposite sex. Akeng’a recalls: “The other day, we went to Camp Malta in Sagana for a night out and responded to most of the youths’ questions, some which are quite interesting.”

Singles, he explains, are taken on out-of-the-city excursions, where the atmosphere is conducive for “opening up. We have several events for bonding, including dinner (for instance on Valentine’s Day), or trips away from the city.” It is during these events that mature youths get an opportunity to mingle, spot potential partners and start dating.

Met and married

Recalling how he and his wife met, Joseph Mwangi, who is a member of the church, says, “I was a youth; my wife too. The process enabled us to meet and we got married. It was a great thing.”

Today, Akeng’a is indeed a busy man. Every weekend he officiates a marriage that he has nurtured from infancy. “We were worried that the place of the marriage institution was collapsing,” observes Akeng’a. “With this threat, the dominion and authority bestowed upon man is threatened. We need to participate in creation.”

One of the reasons behind the collapse of marriages, he says, is the rat race and the individualism it spawns. All this, in Akenga’s reasoning, is borne out of ignorance. He says struggles in life can only be meaningful when one has a strong and functioning family. “The biggest worry is that many people have not been brought up to appreciate and respect this institution (marriage). The fabric holding this is in tatters, leading to an increase in divorce and single parenthood. But if the family stands, the church will stand and so will society.”

About children who are brought up by single parents, Irene Njoki, also of the church, says, “They are pampered or left on their own. They hardly learn values and virtues. That is why single parenting should be discouraged.” Initially, Njoki was a single mother. Thanks to the ministry, she “hooked up” and now is settled in marriage. “My son is now growing up in a complete family. He will learn values and virtues in life.” Children who grow up in families, she says, learn conflict resolution and resilience.

A flourishing project

Pastor Akeng’a is all smiles. “It’s a successful project,” he says. Many people are enrolling in it, some even from outside the church.”

Adds Kahio: “The process was very useful. In fact, I learnt how to take family matters seriously. For the time we’ve been married, I can assure you it has been a happy family.” He says that, in the old days, the extended family tutored individuals on how to raise families. “Now that is no more… and we need classes like this.”

Explains Solomon: “We decided to get married for three main reasons: to be testimony and encouragement for others who had gone through a depressing experience like ours, to fulfil God’s command and bear as many children as we can and, finally, to serve God as a family. The church ministry prepared us for all this.”

Confesses Teresa: “There were many things we didn’t know. Our marriage could be struggling were it not for the ministry.”

The Divorce Generation

Courtesy of BreakPoint Online .
By Mark Earley

The United States of Divorced America

It is a common, oft-repeated statistic: One in two American marriages will end in divorce—even within the Church. It hangs over our nation like a dark cloud. But what is truly sobering is that an entire generation of Americans has grown up in a culture where statistically, divorce is every bit as normal as marriage itself.

Writing in a recent Newsweek article titled, “The Divorce Generation Grows Up,” David Jefferson tells the stories of the Grant High School class of 1982. “In our parents’ generation, marriage was still the most powerful social force,” he writes. “In ours, it was divorce. My 44-year-old classmates and I have watched divorce morph from something shocking, even shameful, into a routine fact of American life.”

Indeed, no-fault divorce laws have been in place for nearly 40 years—leaving broken lives scattered in its wake.

The statistics are depressing: Every year “1 million children watch their parents split apart, triple the number in the ’50s.” They are twice as likely as their peers to divorce and more likely to experience mental-health problems. And children in single-parent homes, as we have seen at Prison Fellowship, are more likely to commit crimes.

Kids also take on emotional burdens they are not ready to carry. “I was a 15-year-old high-school freshman who was forced to become a crisis counselor,” says Jefferson’s friend Chris, “trying to keep [my dad] from completely breaking down.” Chris ended up “doing damage to himself, encasing his own emotions in a dispassionate shell,” writes Jefferson, affecting both his professional and personal life.

Many of Jefferson’s classmates later also got divorces; some avoided marriage altogether.
But others had a different reaction. “In many ways,” Jefferson writes, “the urge to stay married is stronger in my classmates’ generation than the urge to get divorced was in my parents’.” Understanding the pain of divorce may be driving younger people to keep their marriages whole.

Unfortunately, the only solace Jefferson could offer Newsweek readers was that their parents’ and their own divorces “were probably for the best,” and that maybe they could find “acceptance of our parents and their life choices.”

But as Kristine Steakley, author of the forthcoming book Child of Divorce, Child of God and a blogger at The Point, wrote recently, “God offers us a better comfort. He doesn’t give us acceptance; He gives us redemption. . . . His comfort does not say, ‘Well, that’s just the way things are; better get used to it.’ Rather, His comfort says that our world is essentially broken and that our only hope is the redemption that He himself offers.”

And that is the message the Church must send to the Divorce Generation. The brokenness caused by divorce is palpable. The pain is real. There is a reason God says, “I hate divorce.” But He is also the God who makes all things new, Who binds up the broken-hearted.

If we want future generations to see marriage not as a hit-or-miss relationship, but as an enduring sign of God’s grace and love, then the Church has some work to do. We must promote the sanctity of marriage in our congregations and in our culture. We must reach out to husbands and wives who are struggling. And we need to show a hurting world the true joy and blessing of strong, holy marriages.

From BreakPoint, Copyright 2008 Prison Fellowship Ministries. “BreakPoint with Chuck Colson” is a radio ministry of Prison Fellowship Ministries. Reprinted with permission of Prison Fellowship, P.O. Box 17500, Washington, DC, 20041-0500.” Heard on more than 1000 radio stations nationwide. For more information on the ministry of Chuck Colson and Prison Fellowship visit their web site at http://www.breakpoint.org.

The Haters, by Maya Angelou-A woman’s heart should be hidden in Christ

The Haters, by Maya Angelou-A woman’s heart should be hidden in Christ

Principles of an Eagle

Oprah’s unorthodox gospel comes under scrutiny

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