Feb

3 Things

Fri Feb 3rd 2012 @ 2:45 am

Since I have lived much of my life in the public eye through radio, television and speechmaking, a lot of people know ABOUT me, but don’t actually know me. The REAL me. My friends and family…who DO know the real me…report that when my name comes up in conversation with someone who listens, they usually get the same question: “Is Ed always as happy as he sounds?” The short answer is: most of the time. Of course I have my down times, when I let my guard drop and the world (or the enemy) sneaks in and overwhelms me with bad news. It’s at those times; when I have allowed my eyes to focus on circumstances instead on the Master of all circumstances, that my spirits have drooped. As soon as I realize why I’m feeling sad or angry and get my vision refocused on Jesus, my joy and good mood usually return pretty quickly.

Please don’t get me wrong: just because you’re a Christian doesn’t mean that you’re immune to hard times. It does mean that you do a better job handling those times. And while simply becoming a Christian can bring salvation, it doesn’t necessarily guarantee that you’ll be in a great mood forever after. That only comes when you finally surrender everything…and I mean EVERYTHING to Jesus. I was a Christian for years before I truly surrendered. Wow! What a difference in my life! Once you really surrender everything…all your troubles, burdens, hopes, dreams, finances and even your wife and kids…to Jesus, joy pours into your entire being. So again, am I really that happy? Yep, most of the time…since I finally gave up control to Him. And surrendered. Totally.

All to Jesus I surrender;
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.
I surrender all,
I surrender all;
All to Thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.

In addition to surrendering my cares to God, there are also some tricks I learned years ago, that I have made part of my daily pattern of life. I’ve been practicing these tricks every day for so long that they’ve become automatic…I do them without even thinking about it. I call them MY THREE THINGS.

1 Every day I check the newspapers, TV and the internet for a story about something stupid that has happened in the world: like the sun’s rays reflecting off the new energy efficient windows in office buildings melting the new energy efficient Prius in the parking lot. Both of which are made with our tax dollars. Then I laugh out loud. Then I share the story with someone else.

2 Every day I check those same sources for a story about something stupid that a human being has done: like the dumb crook who went into a bank to rob it. He had a sack for his loot in one hand and a pistol in the other. He went to a tellers window and announced, ”This is a stick-up! Fill this bag up with cash!” He reached across the counter to hand her the bag…which is where things went terribly wrong. He got confused and handed her the gun instead of the bag. Then I laugh out loud again and share the story with someone else.

3 And most importantly, I stop and reflect on my own recent stupid moves: like the other day in a Walmart parking lot I had an arm load of packages and needed to free my hands to unlock the car. So I reached up to put my packages on the roof of my car. I was wearing beltless shorts. My shorts dropped like a rock to my ankles. In broad daylight in the middle of a Walmart parking lot. And then I laugh out loud even harder and share the story with someone else.

Do these three things every day. If you do:

1 You won’t be able to take the world too seriously. Someone once said “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” In other words, the world has been a crazy place for a very long time and you aren’t gonna’ change it, so relax and enjoy the ride.

2 Other people can’t intimidate you. People are people, and some of them are more screwed up than we are. Compared to some of these nitwits, you and I are geniuses.

3 You’ll get over yourself. Taking ourselves too seriously is one of the major causes of unhappiness and depression. It also makes a real relationship with Christ virtually impossible since YOU are the center of your world…not Him. Constantly reminding yourself of your fallibility and yes, your klutziness, allows you laugh at yourself and realize that you’re really not all that cool.

Those are My 3 Things. Now they’re your 3 Things…I hope.

Epilogue

In The Anatomy of an Illness: As Perceived by the Patient, Norman Cousins tells of being hospitalized with a rare, crippling disease. When he was diagnosed as incurable, Cousins checked out of the hospital. Aware of the harmful effects that negative emotions can have on the body, Cousins reasoned the reverse was true. So he borrowed a movie projector and prescribed his own treatment, consisting of Marx Brothers films and old "Candid Camera" reruns. It didn't take long for him to discover that 10 minutes of laughter provided two hours of pain-free sleep. Amazingly, his debilitating disease was eventually reversed. After the account of his victory appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine, Cousins received more than 3000 letters from appreciative physicians throughout the world.

Thought for the Day

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Proverbs 17:22

Turn the radio on

Listen to God & Ed’s Excellent Adventure on the Radio. Monday through Friday at 4pm on “The Word,” 98.5/99.3 FM. Or listen on-line at KLGO.net. It’s the place for Christians of all varieties to hang out and be loved, entertained and uplifted.

Semi-interesting fact

Humans begin laughing at two to three months of age. Six year olds laugh about 300 times per day, while adults laugh from 15 to 100 times per day

Forward…Mail!!

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Joke du Jour

Several women appeared in court, each accusing the other of the trouble they were having in the apartment building where they lived. The judge, with Solomon-like wisdom decreed, "I'll hear the oldest first." The case was dismissed for lack of testimony.

Cool Music

We’ve added more cool songs you’ve never heard on radio. Check the player on the upper right, click and brighten your day.

Questions I ask myself

Should vegetarians eat animal crackers?

Really?? Actual News Stories

6 organs! A 9-year-old Maine girl is home from a Boston hospital healthy, active and with high hopes — and a new stomach, liver, spleen, small intestine, pancreas,

and part of an esophagus to replace the ones that were being choked by a huge tumor. It's believed to be the first-ever transplant of an esophagus and the largest number of organs transplanted at one time in New England. Spunky and bright-eyed as she scampered around her family's farmhouse outside Portland, Alannah Shevenell said Thursday that she's glad to be feeling well again and able to go sledding. Doctors had discovered the tumor when she was five. It grew rapidly as it made its way like octopus legs from organ to organ. Surgery was the last resort to save her life. The family was told there was a 50 percent chance Alannah wouldn't survive the procedure. But without it, she had no chance whatsoever. "It's probably one of the most extensive tumor removals ever done," the surgeon said.

Take this job and shove it A research company conducted an online survey to measure the level of job dissatisfaction of respondents. Limited growth opportunities and lack of reward, not salary, were the biggest complaints. These occupations registered highest on their misery index:

10. Marketing Manager
9. CNC Machinist
8. Technical Support Analyst
7. Law Clerk
6. Electronics Technician
5. Technical Specialist
4. Senior Web Developer
3. Product Manager
2. Director of Sales and Marketing
1. Director of Information Technology

Marry a building? A Seattle woman recently exchanged one-sided wedding vows with an abandoned warehouse building that is set to be demolished to make way for a new apartment building.

In December, Babylonia Aivaz and 16 friends occupied the warehouse, located on 10th and Union streets, to protest the planned development of an apartment complex on the site. “Gentrification is happening,” Aivaz said. “It’s a serious issue that affects poor people and especially people of colour and this is just the beginning of the fight.” Calling it a “gay marriage”, Aivaz was asked by the attending minister if she would “love and cherish and protect this warehouse”. Aivaz reportedly responded in verse, quoting the Cat Power song “Sea of Love”. daily times monitor

Still 10 of them Warner Brothers is behind the new movie, tentatively titled "Gods and Kings" that will focus more on the life of Moses than the actual reception of the commandments. One insider told Deadline.com, "It's a movie like a Braveheart-ish version of the Moses story: him coming down the river, being adopted, leaving his home, forming an army, and getting the Ten Commandments." This will be the first movie to challenge the 1956 classic starring Charlton Heston. That production was made by Paramount Pictures and is the highest-grossing movie of all time, with $977 million in 2010. The American Film Industry named "Commandments" one of its "Ten Top Ten" in the epic category. Mike Fleming carefully points out that "Gods and Kings" is more focused on "the book of Exodus and other stories from the Old Testament."

Withdrawal Tweets? A Chicago student who spent 90 days abstaining from cellphones and social media said the first two weeks were "anxiety-ridden."

Jake Reilly, 24, a student at the advertising and design-focused Chicago Portfolio School, said he was originally only going to give up his phone, but he decided to expand it to all social media when he realized his communication would just migrate to other forms of technology. Reilly said the first two weeks of his project, which he began in October, were "anxiety-ridden." "All of a sudden, you get home on a Friday night and there's no one around and it's just you and your thoughts," he said. "Very scary." However, Reilly said he soon found staying away from cellphones and Facebook increased his face-to-face interactions and made him more active. "I rode my bike all over the city," he said. "I made collages. I did puzzles. I did all these things that I normally never would have considered. And you know what, I loved all that."

Food and Nutrition: The U-S Department of Agriculture has finalized the first major changes in nutrition standards for school meals in 15 years. They call for USDA-subsidized breakfasts and lunches to offer more fruits, vegetables and whole grains; serve only fat-free or low-fat milk; and reduce levels of saturated fat, trans fat and sodium. They also set calorie maximums for the first time, and lower calorie minimums. Schools are required to be in compliance with most of the new standards by Jul 01. But --don't be too impressed: the finalized standards aren't as healthy as the USDA had intended. In response to food-industry lobbying, Congress last year blocked some of the requirements included in the USDA's original subsidized-meals program proposals, including limiting pizza and French fries, and limiting potatoes to two servings per week. A bill also continued the practice of allowing schools to count the tomato sauce on pizzas as a vegetable.

Are you kidding me???

John 11:35 is the shortest verse in the Bible

Groaner
The situation in Damascus is Syrias!

Point to Ponder

When a motivational products company interviewed Tim Dumler by phone for a sales job, he told them his goal was to become their number one employee. After meeting him in person they were shocked to discover he was legally blind. But he promised he'd buy a machine that magnifies letters. So, despite serious misgivings, they hired him. And it's a good thing they did. He came in early, worked late, and within six years became their top producer. His clients loved him because when you're blind you become a great listener. And his associates loved him because of his caring, positive attitude. He said, "It's unfortunate that I'm visually impaired but adversity made me a better person. I have a lot more than I don't have." Tim has the 100-degree attitude! What's the 100-degree attitude? Motivational speaker Mack Anderson explains: At 99 degrees Celsius water is hot. At 100 degrees it boils. With boiling water comes steam. And steam can power a train. One extra degree makes all the difference in business and in life; it separates the good from the great."

Remember, Christianity is more about walking than about talking