Spiritual Advice And Success: 2009

Friday, October 2, 2009

Tell Me Why You Truly Believe in God

Is God the person that you pray to and every once in awhile, he sends someone down to earth, to answer your prayers, like a good parent. God is always taking care of you, whether you're driving down the freeway at 75 miles an hour, or walking through a park.

Do you really know why, you believe in God? I bet you, that you're starting to think about the question now. As children, we are taught to believe, that God is the ultimate protector of the world and is always looking out for us. This seems to bring us comfort, as we go through our daily lives.

Do you think that Hindu's, Muslim's or Christians, have similar beliefs in their god or gods? I have seen Hindus and Muslims that live pretty good life's. Why wouldn't these people be punished by the other gods or God? If I was the god of Jehovah and got mad at everyone who made false idols or worshiped other gods, why wouldn't I go out of my way to make their lives miserable?

It just doesn't make any sense, if you really spend the time, to think about it. If God is that powerful, why wouldn't he wiped out the opposition? Why wouldn't he be story their possessions?

Doesn't it say something like this in the Bible? God will make people's lives miserable if they don't follow him, yet I know plenty of people that are miserable and follow him. Are you really going to spend your life believing in your personal God, and never questioning his existence or even the origins of your religion.

Ask yourself one question, is God real and if so, how do you know that your right? Have you ever thought that someone else could be right and you could be wrong?

What Did God Really Say

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site: Greg Vanden Berge is a published author and a inspiration to millions of people. He has been involved in religious research for almost 30 years, and his influence in the Christian community is growing. The Holy Bible, is the core to Christian beliefs and most Christians don't even question it. Was the Bible actually written by men?

His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with advanced biblical knowledge, answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

Find out a little bit more about Your Religious Freedom

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Tell Me Why You Truly Believe in God

It just doesn't make any sense, if you really spend the time, to think about it. If God is that powerful, why wouldn't he wiped out the opposition? Why wouldn't he be story their possessions?

Ask yourself one question, is God real and if so, how do you know that your right? Have you ever thought that someone else could be right and you could be wrong?

What Did God Really Say

Find out a little bit more about Your Religious Freedom

Thanks for reading the article

Where Did God Come From?

If you believe in certain religions, like Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism and even Buddhism, there's a good chance that you believe in some sort of God like being or cosmic force, especially the one that created our world that we live in today.

Where did God come from? What are we doing here? And where are we going, after we die. Some of these questions, are hard to answer and scientifically difficult to prove. There is very little evidence to prove, where God actually came from, what are we suppose to be doing here and where we are going to go, after we die.

If nobody knows where God came from, why are there so many religions, that believe in a God? Think about it for a moment, the Christian God, was the creator of the universe, and the creator of everything. Where's the proof? Why do people continue to study the Bible, and believe in a God, that they can't really even put their hands on?

If God is truly real, why wouldn't we have ever seen him? It doesn't make a lot of sense, to believe in imaginary beings, or invisible entities and pray to a God that we might not ever see or touch. It might not make a lot of sense, but if you ask serious religious followers, of these religions a question like, can you prove that there actually is a God, there's a good chance that these religious believers will reply, with a simple yes.

They have no proof, no evidence, and almost base their entire beliefs on faith, instead of facts. Rarely do they seek any evidence or even read their religious text, with a goal to understand what they're reading. Most of these people take everything that they learn, lock it away in their head, and never ask any serious questions about their religious beliefs, like these.

If there is a God, why wouldn't he show himself? If there is a God, why wouldn't he prove that he does exist, so that others wouldn't have to doubt his existence? Something to think about, on the days that you're not going to your place of worship.

Who's God Is More Powerful

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If your interested in a different point of view READ THESE ARTICLES - Great Articles For Christians

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author and a inspiration to millions of people. He has been involved in religious research for almost 30 years, and his influence in the Christian community is growing. The Holy Bible, is the core to Christian beliefs and most Christians don't even question it. Was the Bible actually written by men?

His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible.

Is Overpopulation a Religious Problem?

Overpopulation really isn't that hard to understand. People love each other, want to reproduce and have offspring. Their parents took care of them, and they will take care of their children. People love to have families and these families love to have more families. It doesn't get any simpler than that.

Now is overpopulation a religious problem? If you listen to religious text and understand a few simple sentences, you will see that there are plenty of religions all over the world that encourage the multiplication of mankind.

In the Bible, God tells man to be fruitful and multiply. If you read this a little differently, you might take it that God wants men to eat as much fruit as he wants to and plant more trees so that he can have more fruit and be fruitful.

That's not exactly how most Christians read this Bible verse. Christians need to have more children, and their children need to have more children. This is how they interpret the words, to be fruitful and multiply.

I do believe that religions all over the world play an important part in our worlds population problem today. It's not the people who are educated, that are constantly reproducing, in today's world.

Most religions support population expansion, but what are they going to do, once the world becomes so overpopulated, that we can't even take care of ourselves. This should give you another point of view to look at, especially if you one part of the problem and not the solution.

What About The End of The World

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.
His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with superior biblical knowledge , answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

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Thursday, October 1, 2009

Tithing Education - Giving From Guilt

If you're part of any organized religion and donate money on a regular basis, do you know where your money is going? Have you ever asked what they are spending the money on? Are you one of those people who feels that your pastor and church leaders know best and never even ask them, because you might feel inferior to them? Have you asked in the past and were told not to worry about it but still would like to know.

Before you give your hard earned money away, whether you're doing it out of guilt or pleasure, make sure you're supporting the right organization. You should never feel the need to donate money if you don't have it to give.

I went to a church that had funds for everything, building funds, starvation funds, church funds and even funds to fund of funds if they ran out of money. Okay I just threw that last part in their but all kidding aside, there's plenty of stuff to be done in our country, to help the starving, the poor and the needy. Why do we need to go to other countries?

I want to make a suggestion to people who can't afford to give their money away but feel guilty if they don't. In the Bible it tells you to give away 10% of your earnings to the church. The part that it doesn't tell you is what to do if you can't afford to give 10% to the church. I personally have known quite a few people who give money out of guilt and fear but will tell you that this is a requirement of their religion and its okay. God will take care of us and he always does.

I don't really believe God, the all powerful all-knowing and loving creator, wants us to suffer, if we just don't make enough money to survive. If you're planning on sending your child to a Christian private school and could only afford to send them to that school, using the money that you were going to tithe to the church, what will you do? Tithe the money to the church so that they can use it to feed hungry people in other countries or build a new church somewhere or help with your child's education.

Some of these decisions are made difficult by religious doctrine and these are the parts of organized religion that I have problems with. When do we use common sense, combined with a little education to seek the truth. Does your religion ask you to seek the truth but not to gather your information beyond their religious boundaries?

Only give what you can afford to give and feel good about it. If you don't feel good about giving your money away, don't do it. Take care of yourself, so that you can take care of others, if you choose to. Living a life of fear and guilt doesn't make sense.

Question Your Religion

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

Greg is currently working on a religious help library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.

Could You Be a Married Adulterer? - For Christians Only

Adultery has been going on for centuries and obviously was a problem 2500 years ago or it wouldn't have been mentioned in the Bible so many times. Could you actually be married to someone and be considered an adulterer? It's time for you to learn all the rules in the New Testament about adultery.

Here's a Bible verse that could get a lot of Christians in trouble. Mark 10:11-12 (New King James Version)" 11 So He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries commits adultery against her. 12 And if a woman divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."

It looks a little more complicated than most of us could have ever thought. Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, has committed adultery. That means that there are millions of Christians all over the world who have committed adultery.

I've got some more bad news for Christians who might have looked at a woman lustfully. Matthew 5:28 (New International Version Bible) "But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." This isn't looking good, for men or women is it?

If you've never been married, but while you were at church, notice an attractive woman or man and had lustful thoughts, about them, you're an adulterer. I know, it sounds a little harsh, but I'm not making anything up here, it's right out of the Bible.

I know things aren't looking good but I would like to leave you with a comforting thought. If you were divorced from your spouse because of an adulterous relationship, things might be starting to look a little different with this next Bible verse.

Matthew 19:9 (New International Version Bible) I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery."

These are typical contradictions and they are located throughout the Bible. Mark 10:11-12 states that all divorced people who have remarried, commit adultery. Matthew 19:9 states something completely different, if your divorced and your ex spouse has been unfaithful during your marriage and you remarry, everything is okay.

Are you even more confused than when I started? There's a good chance that you are. I'm even confused and I wrote the article. The real question is, can we remarry or can't we.

This would be a good topic during Bible study. You can start by asking, how many people are adulterers?

Read This Today

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Click here if you're interested in the Bible truth.

Mysteries of the Bible - Advanced Bible Study Techniques

Have you ever wanted to really know what the mysteries of the Bible really are? Was Jesus more important than God? Why were the Jewish people considered to be the chosen ones, even though they don't get to go to heaven, because they don't believe that Jesus Christ was their Lord and Savior? I would like to help you solve some of the mysteries of the Bible.

Whether you're a Jewish or believe in Christianity, each if you share an interest in the Holy Scripture. Jewish people obviously don't believe that Jesus was the Messiah and are still waiting for their Messiah to come and free them. Christians obviously believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the true Messiah and fulfilled all the prophecies.

One of the mysteries of the Bible that I would like to share with you, is that your actually going to need to read the Bible to find them. The biggest mystery of the Bible is actually reading it. You don't need to read the entire Bible, to figure out, what it's actually saying.

Start reading certain sections that interest you. Two of the most read books in the Bible are the books of Genesis, which is the first book in the Old Testament and the book of revelations, which is the last book in the New Testament. Both of these books are extremely popular reads.

The book of Genesis is about the beginning and the book of revelations is about the end of times and this seems to be the biggest interest for Christians. In other words, you're not going to be able to find the mysteries, within the Bible if you don't at least start to read some of it.

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Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Self Help For the Self Employed

So much for Mr. Key Executive and his forerunner, Mr. Young Executive. As employees of Corporation Americana, their occupations offer them a unique and negotiable source of estate building. Yet not everyone climbs a corporate ladder, nor has the opportunity or inclination to do so.

For those reasons we want to introduce another character into the drama, a professional woman who is nobody's employee. Her name is Ms. Doctor, the young physician who nets $80,000 a year from her new practice. She has no compensation package and no negotiated benefits, no company to give her any of these niceties. Where are the estate-building opportunities in her occupation? Who is going to help her?

This, in a nutshell, is the situation of some ten million citizens of this country-all the doctors, lawyers, dentists, accountants, architects, engineers, writers, artists, and actors, other independent professionals, and along with them the independent businesspersons: the sole owners or partners of businesses, large or small, the entrepreneurs. These are the self-employed. They range from the actress who commands $100,000 for a single performance and the individual business owner who grosses a million per year, to the corner grocery store operator who nets only $35,000, or the writer who makes $60,000 in a good year, half of that in a bad one, and the Web page designer who has seen his business boom in the last few years, and expects it to keep on growing.

There are no ready-made pension plans, deferred compensation arrangements, or profit-sharing funds for them. They can put up to $3,000 a year into an IRA or $6,000 where there's a nonworking spouse and they file a joint return. (If neither of them participates in a qualified retirement plan they may make deductible IRA contributions. However, if they are active participants in a retirement plan, the $3,000 IRA deduction limit per person is phased out for single taxpayers with income over $45,000 in 2004; $50,000 in 2005 and thereafter. The phase-out income threshold for married taxpayers is $65,000 in 2004; $70,000 in 2005; $75,000 in 2006; $80,000 in 2007 and thereafter.) Unlike the rest of their fellow citizens, their occupations do not automatically provide them with substantial built-in tax shelters. They are compensated as well as or sometimes better than the corporate employee. But since all of this compensation is in the form of income, it is subject to tax.

The heart of their dilemma is in the very word that describes their economic situation: self-employed. Our tax laws were set up originally to benefit the employee, the person who works for someone else. Large though their numbers are, the self-employed used to be an economic anachronism in our economy.

Today there are a variety of opportunities for the self-employed to establish tax-favored savings plans for retirement. The fence that once separated the tax-sheltered employee from the nonsheltered self-employed person is no longer an issue. Over the years it has been opened more and more, until the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982 gave the self-employed the opportunity to provide themselves with most of the same employee benefits that their corporate counterparts enjoy. Since then many changes in the tax law and many more retirement planning opportunities have been added.

"Self-help" is still the concept, however. More than large corporation employees, the self-employed have to take the initiative and put together their own compensation packages, and have to know about and utilize the various opportunities available to them for building funds for retirement and for building an estate.

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Monday, September 14, 2009

Discover How to Gain Self Confidence and Improve Yourself With Easy Methods You Can Do Right Now!

Many people don't have any idea about how to gain self confidence. All of us have our flaws in place. However, we are also useful each in our own way. Therefore, if there is anyone around you who is trying to make you feel useless, then immediately state otherwise. You need to be confident of yourself before exuding it to others.

The more you listen to others who place restrictions on your capabilities the more you start to believe in the impossibility of things. The main thing about how to gain self confidence is to believe that you can do anything you put your mind to if you want to.

Think well about yourself. Be rational about your success and don't blow your failures out of proportion. We all have our good times, and we have our bad times. A confident person will take the good times as it comes and will handle the bad times with much more ease.

If you don't take care of your self confidence you will be stuck in a never ending cycle of low self esteem and depression. Your opinion of yourself will be low at all times. You will never realize your potential. Therefore, it is important to be around people who will boost your confidence and fill your mind with positive thoughts. Stay away from discouraging or intimidating people.

The pursuit of self confidence must come from within. Unless you want to change that about yourself, no one else can. But with the right techniques and tools you can accomplish amazing results.

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Sunday, September 13, 2009

New Effective Way to Market a Business

Successful marketing in 2008, be it internet based or not, just may require entrepreneurs to embrace a certain amount of risk.

I'm always interested in discovering new slants on how businesses market a new product or service. So when my wife, Kim, who is much better than I am about finding coupons in the newspaper or discovering promotional pieces in the mail, mentioned that there was a $1,000 check redeemable from Anderson Windows, my ears perked up. Half the fun is finding just where the gimmick is hidden in these things. Usually you have to spend a minimal amount (on product purchases or even installation services) that enables the promotion to be worthwhile for the incentive to kick in. So we sat down and took a closer look at the mailer promotion and the very professional looking $1,000 check. After closer scrutiny and a thorough reading of all the fine print, I could not find the "gimmick." The promotion basically offers us a new Anderson window with a dollar-worth of up to $1,000 - for free.

The mailer even makes a point of saying that there are no gimmicks - with the exception that only the first 20 people who call are entitled to the promotion. Wow! Since we actually are in desperate need for a new window in our bedroom because when it's windy outside, I've resorted to sticking socks in the window frame just to keep the window from rattling to much. So we called the information on the mailer and had the rep come on out and give us their canned presentation. Before he got here I assured my wife that this is where the 'hidden' charges will be uncovered and for her to be preprepared for a reality check.

Ten minutes after the rep, (Greg) arrived and we had looked at the briefcase version of the new window, I could tell that we were looking at a superior product, the Rolls Royce of windows. Socks hanging from my windows would be a thing of the past - and that alone would make my wife immeasurably happy.

With the presentation coming to an end and the total dollar amount being close to $1,400.00, Greg folded up his display and headed out. Once Kim and I were alone again I went over the numbers again. "So this will cost us about $1,400.00, including the window and the installation - that's still pretty good - I think we should think about it, don't you?" Kim just looked at me and rolled her eyes just enough to let me know that I was missing the big point. "Yep, $1,400.00 but the window and the installation end up being free! This amount did not include the $1,000 rebate check."

Only after flagging Greg down halfway to his car and going over the numbers again did I realize that my wife was right and that this truly was a great offer. I also asked Greg just how can the manufacturer afford to give away what translates to thousands of dollars in free windows, free installation as well as expensive marketing/promotion costs? Greg explained that this is a big risk, but if you take a long-term look at how satisfied customers buy windows and how they inevitably will buy other additional 'matching' windows down the road, the promotion may just be a huge success.

Only time will tell if this promotion will bear fruit. But I must admit I am impressed with their willingness to take a calculated, measured risk with their marketing program. It certainly got my attention and even a certain amount of loyalty as well.

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Feng Shui Lineage and Mystique

"Master YZX, is the sixth generation Feng Shui Master in his family. Since young, he was exposed to the intricacies of this art and learnt the various schools of this study as an apprentice to his grandfather, Master ABC. This is unlike most of his peers who learnt mainly through books and workshops"

The above are typical lines taken off the websites and other advertising medium of certain famous Geomancy masters. While it is understandable to exaggerate service and products levels with advertising puffs, this one really takes the cake as it paints a misleading picture that this Chinese Art is all about secret formulas that are only passed exclusively through appointed successors and descendants. Such an advertising gimmick leads the layman to think that this art is mystical and un-learnable by most people. I have the benefit to come across the blog of the widely respected Master Joseph Yu on this matter. I would like to thank him for his thoughts on this matter. Excerpted from his blog are the following paragraphs in bold:

"I have Feng Shui practitioners today claim to be the xxx generation disciple of Yang Jun Song or even Guo Po, Huang Shi Gong, ... They are proud of peeping under the trousers of these great Fengshui masters in history. This is how the lineage game is played. How did Newton learn from Descartes? The answer is simple: from his written work. The "lineage holders" will say, "You can't learn geomancy from books. The masters in the past wrote the books in cryptic language and only the lineage holders can understand the secret. This is because the masters did not want the powerful Feng Shui technique to be in the wrong hands." How much damage can Feng Shui do if it falls in the wrong hands? Can it be worse than using the knowledge of science and technology to create modern weapons that can kill millions?

If we want to see more, we have to stand on the shoulders of Giants and not hiding under the legs of Giants and claim to be closely related to the Giants. How? The answer is simple: learn from the books written by the great people in history.

There is a Chinese proverb: Stop eating because of hiccups that describes this stupid excuse.

Our attitude should be to stand on the Giants' shoulders to see further and to respect the Giants who give us a lift. How? Learn it the way scientists do."

I hope Chinese Metaphysics believers will wise up and not be taken in by such irresponsible advertising claims. Geomancy is neither mystical nor secretive although it is a practice that requires high intellect. Greater are those practitioners that are receptive to different practices of different Geomancers and yet have the clarity of mind to discern and pick up the crme de la crme of different schools' practices. Poorer are those practitioners who need to cloud their lineage in a veil of secrecy and exclusivity to scare, confuse and con their customers. It is by no coincidence that in my review of Geomancy audit cases of customers who had suffered terribly, they had their such audit done previously by Geomancers that proliferate this type of advertising puffs.

I am a Fengshui Practitioner in private practice and I specialise in Ba Zi, Zi Wei Dou Shu ZWDS, Feng Shui, I-Ching, Qi Men Dun Jia QMDJ and other Chinese Metaphysics tools. My blog site is at: http://fengshuiforward.com and my internet forum at http://fengshuiforward.com/forum

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Making Money at Home

Anyone who reads newspapers today can find home business opportunities. Home business opportunities are on the rise. Small home business opportunities are just as plentiful as large home business opportunities.

Home business opportunities may require research into business law as it relates
to home business opportunities. An entrepreneur interested in home business
opportunities will want to make sure the home business opportunities are
legitimate and profitable. The Better Business Bureau can provide information
on home business opportunities and their financial history.

Once home business opportunities have been thoroughly researched, the person
interested in the home business opportunities should start as soon as possible.
If there are a limited number of home business opportunities, other people
looking for home business opportunities may fill them first. With all home
business opportunities, it is important that the entrepreneur be interested in
the home business opportunities, as it will make the home business opportunities
process easier.

Looking for home business opportunities is simple. Many websites offer home
business opportunities or can direct you to agencies that have home business
opportunities available. If you currently work for a large company, they may
have home business opportunities. Web conferencing and email make home business
opportunities possible. The first step towards home business opportunities is
the hardest. This requires realizing the possibilities home business
opportunities offer, and how home business opportunities can remove you from the
daily drudgeries of working in an office. With home business opportunities, you
can improve your lifestyle and reach your monetary dreams.

Resource:

http://www.bbb.org

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Building A Bond Between Grandparents And Grandchildren

Grandchildren are one of the special joys you receive as you get older. While raising your own children, you may not have had the time or the energy to spend as much time with them as you wished to. Now you can build a special bond with your grandchild.

If you have more than one grandchild, you should try to spend quality time with each one individually. If both their parents are working, these children may not get much attention separately. Plan a unique activity for each one, a memory that only the two of you will have. These activities can be as simple as a nature walk in the woods or playing a board game. You can also teach your grandchild a skill, such as how to play the piano or how to cook. When he grows up and uses these skills as an adult, your grandchild will fondly remember who it was that taught to him.

Another way to get close to your grandchild is just to talk to him and then to listen to what he has to say. Again, with both his parents being busy, the child may not have anyone who really listens to him. Establishing open and close communication when the child is young may lead your grandchild to maintain that communication when he is older and you may pleased to find that he seeks your advice when making important decisions about his future.

You can also share the family history with your grandchild. A child can feel more secure knowing that he belongs to an extended family group. Tell the child about relatives that he may not know and share with him any information that you have about your ancestors. Most children are interested in knowing where their family came from. You can spend an afternoon going through old photo albums and scrapbooks, telling your grandchild small facts about each picture. Also share with him stories of your own youth and his parent's childhood. Not only will this entertain your grandchild, it is a way to ensure that the family histories get passed on to the next generation.

A young child will become excited when he receives mail with his name on the envelope. In addition to birthday and Christmas cards, you can also send him cards for other holidays as well as short notes and letters. This can make your grandchild feel that he is special.

If you do not live close to your grandchild, you can still form a bond with him. In the age of cell phones and computers, pictures are easy to send back and forth between you and the child. You could also mail a video tape of yourself showing him activities that you like to do and in return you can ask the child what activities he likes to do. When there are family get-togethers, you can still plan to spend quality time with your grandchildren, although you may have to plan a group activity as time may be an issue in trying to plan activities with each one of them separately.

Being a grandparent can be one of the most rewarding experiences of your life. Building a strong and loving bond with your grandchildren can lead to a close relationship that will last you the rest of your life

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Friday, September 11, 2009

The Short Scoop on Scones

At trade shows and product samplings here in the Midwest, people are
always asking me, "What is a scone, exactly?"

Most people can describe what a scone ISNT. It isnt a biscuit. It isnt a
cookie. And it isnt a cake.

But people have trouble explaining what a scone IS. Thats why its
helpful to know a little about the history of the scone.

Scones originated in Scotland. In fact, some say this Scottish quick
bread takes its name from the word Skohn or Skon, which refers to the
Stone of Destiny, a place where Scottish kings were supposedly once
crowned. Back then scones were made of oats. They were rolled into a
large round, cut into triangles, and cooked on a griddle over an open fire
or on top of the stove. Since baking powder hadnt been invented yet,
buttermilk was used as the leavening agent. Traditionally, scones were
served at high tea.

Todays scones are a little different. They come in many shapes and are
usually made with flour. Baking powder is the leavening agent, and they
are baked in the oven. Commerical scone mixes and scone pans are
available today, too, making it even easier for people to prepare a
delicious batch of this tempting treat.

While scones are still popular for tea, they are also enjoyed at breakfast,
brunch, lunch, dinner, and especially for snacks.

Suzanne Lieurance is a freelance writer and owner of the Three Angels Gourmet Co. which produces a unique line of "heavenly gourmet mixes" for sale at: http://www.threeangelsgourmet.com For additional food information and daily food tips, visit the Three Angels Gourmet Co. blog at http://www.threeangelsgourmet.blogspot.com

Eat, Drink and Be Brainy

More and more studies continue to emerge on the brain fit benefits of some food and drinks. The best part is that some of these are foods and drinks that many of us enjoy. We all know that fruits and veggies help our general health, but what other goodies help the function of the brain and could be part of our brain fitness program?

A new study in the Journal of Nutrition evaluated the cognitive performance of over 2,000, seventy - seventy four year olds who regularly eat chocolate, drink tea, or drink wine. Researchers compared these adults performance on a battery of cognitive tests to same-age adults who did not partake in one or all of these culinary delights.

The study concluded that eating chocolate, drinking tea or drinking wine, was associated with improved performance on tests for learning, memory, word association and other types of intellectual function. What's more is that eating and drinking all three was better than one or two. Now let's get to a little of the nitty-gritty.

Chocolate - How Much and What Kind.

Chocolate eaters performed better than non-chocolate eaters, but don't go out and stuff your face too much. First of all, the benefits are confined mostly to dark chocolate and the higher the concentration of cocoa, the better. This is where most of the beneficial flavonoids come from in this particular delicacy. As for the amount, about 10g per day did the trick, which is about one-third of an ounce for you non-metric types. Just a little square after dinner will do it.

Tea Time

Tea drinkers did better than those who didn't drink tea on all the cognitive tests as well. The researchers in this study were not able to separate green tea from black tea drinkers. Both types of tea have about equal concentrations of flavonoids anyway, but green tea has been more strongly associated with cognitive performance in the past. This may be due to the fact that it has more of a specific ingredient called, catechins. However, most of the tea drinkers in this particular study population probably drank black tea - so pick your poison, or in this case, your antidote.

Wine and Dine

Wine had the strongest effect on cognitive performance in this study. However, it was a relatively modest amount that had the biggest effect, on the order of about half a glass per day. After that, there wasn't really any added benefit. The study did not include heavy drinkers to evaluate how much is too much. However, past studies have indicated about one to two glasses a day may be OK. White and red wines were not separated for this study either and many previous studies have implicated red wine more strongly in overall health. But, several studies have also implicated any alcohol in moderation to improved cardiovascular tone, which probably translates into neurovascular health as well (the blood supply to the brain).

A big caveat to all of this is that these older adults had likely been eating dark chocolate and drinking tea and wine for a long time. It's unclear how long is necessary to see beneficial effects for any of these, but like most things, it's likely that the earlier the better, but it's never too late to start. Of course, these studies are also associative, which means we can't say for sure that chocolate, tea and wine cause better cognitive performance, but those who use them seem to do better.

So this holiday season, curl up by the fire with a nice glass of wine, cup of tea, or dark hot chocolate and think about thinking about stuff more clearly.

Reference:
Journal of Nutrition (2009) 139:120-127

Dr. Simon Evans is a brain scientist at the University of Michigan interested in lifestyle approaches to brain health and fitness. He is the author of BrainFit for Life: A User's Guide to Life-Long Brain Health and Fitness. Visit his website at http://www.brainfitforlife.com

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Book Review - Lillian Too's 168 Feng Shui Ways to Energize Your Life

I have been a big supportive fan of Master Feng Shui Practitioner and Teacher Lillian Too's for sometime since reading several of her books a few years ago and have been hooked ever since. She continually amazes me with her books and in how much in following her instinctive Feng Shui practical tips have helped and aided me in creating the life I have always wished to lead and have.

So I just had to share which of her books have helped me the most. In her latest book "Lillian Too's 168 Feng Shui Ways to Energize Your Life", She continues to teach us to be aware of energy all around us and in our homes. She not only shows you how to become aware of the energy, bad or good, but shows you how to alter this energy into allowing all good things to come to you in your life.

As always, her style of writing is easy to read, but specifically the Feng Shui concepts described in this book are well spelled out to easily understand in simple terms. In turn, this allows anyone to apply the Feng Shui practices in their own home and for their own well being without great effort.

As I become more knowledgeable about Feng Shui, there are many additional factors that other books simply skip over. This book does not do that, but in fact addresses these more complicated Feng Shui issues with tact and great knowledge allowing the layman in all of us to easily understand, say for example what the 'Three Killings' are, or which Celestial Guardians are best for you to help ward off bad luck and how to easily address these issues.

I am currently rereading this book for a third time, only since I truly wish to digest all the information at hand and save it to be deep in my memory. I highly recommend any of her books, but it you are new to the ideas of Feng Shui, "Lillian Too's 168 Feng Shui Ways to Energize Your Life" is a great first book in understanding the concepts of Feng Shui and to learn and understand the importance of energy and how it effects everything we do to 'bring' or 'attract' goodness into our lives.

This book consists of seven chapters, each page is filled with its own Feng Shui tip to apply in your home and livelihood. I definitely liked how this book gives you information in finding out which corners in your home can bring you success. It further shows you how to use symbols, art and furniture placement to affect the best possibilities in bringing in good Qi (chi) into your life and how to balance ying when you need more yang and visa versa in each of the rooms of your home whether you live in a large house or an apartment in the city.

If you wish to easily learn how to apply Feng Shui techniques into your life and home that brings you more prosperity, family happiness, wealth and career luck, then this is the book for you! I have followed many of her tips and have seen for myself the changes in my overall life. You will be amazed at how bringing in new fresh energy as she describes has a domino effect in all areas of your life. You will feel "revitalized and recharged" by reading this great Feng Shui book by Lillian Too. And soon, you too will receive the bounties the earth has set out for you.

Leah Quinn is a writer specializing on food, health, feng shui, self-improvement and entertainment and is a multi-media artist living in New York. Feel free to stop by at http://divaliscious.blogspot.com to read many of her other articles and feel free to visit her food site to learn about healthy and interesting recipes at http://dinner-and-jam.blogspot.com

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Surviving As A Contractor In California

So you want to make big money making a living as a contractor in the state of California. Well now I bet you have seen contractors on TV or maybe you know someone who is a contractor. You see these men and women playing the part as Mr. or Mrs. Money bags. If you have the slightest thought that becoming a contractor will provide you with a life of riches think again.

Most contractors that I know and have worked with over the years don't think of there jobs as easy. They have to work everyday and a lot into the night doing estimates or meeting with potential clients because they are to busy during the day. The life of most contractors in the beginning will be difficult to say the least. But if successful you will make a great living for yourself and your family.

Now that we got the false illusion of the contractor answering his cell phone all day at some nice golf course having lunch talking about the money that he just made selling his oil stocks. We can start on reality. If being a contractor was that easy everyone would be a contractor. Right..... Well maybe not everyone.

I have been a contractor for over 22 years and in construction for 30 year. I have seen a lot of changes over the years. I remember when a few contractors that I worked for made a lot of money during the late 1970's. These guys had Ferraris and money to burn with one exception they had no idea how to save any of it. These guys went on vacations and bought extravagant toys for them selves. Out of most of the big framing contractors I worked for about 10 percent are still in business or actually saved their money during the good times so that they could make it through the bad times.

These contractors never thought it was going to end. Life on easy street that is. But it did and most went by the way side. I guess that is the nature of business. Especially the current economic business cycles that we seem to go through over the years. If you don't have the money to advertise or carry a payroll. Your business is going to suffer during the bad times. Sure there is credit and bank loans but you still have to pay that money back. IF you can't save your money stash some away for advertising.

Some of the best advice I can give a contractor anywhere especially in the state of California is " Don't Think The Great Times Of Easy Money Will Last Forever". Save some of the money you make just in case you need to get through the bad times. You will thank me for this latter, Some time down the road. Take this advice and put it into action starting right now.

Greg Vanden Berge has over 30 years of experience in residential home building and remodeling. This provides you with the comfort of knowing that you have a professional with the knowledge and skills to complete your construction projects in a timely manner.

Our low overhead along with our new online estimating system will provide you with the most competitive construction pricing in the area. We continue to educate ourselves about the new home improvement books and building systems in the construction industry. If we have any doubt that something might not work we don't use it. We have found some of these products to be the root of some major home building problems.

Click on the Home Remodeling Ideas to get more information and a possible online estimate for your home improvement project.

Personal Development

Brainwave Therapy - Learning to Control Your Brain

Brainwave therapy works on the principle that the brain governs all of the body's functions. Therefore, researchers theorize, if the brain's electrical frequencies can be manipulated the brain can heal the body. There is also a growing trend using this technology to improve thought processes, such as addiction or mood disorders.

There are two methods of producing improved results using brainwave therapy. One involves the patient going into a clinic and being hooked up to sensors which monitor brain activity. The patient is provided with a visual stimulus which responds to the frequency of the brain waves observed. When the desired frequencies are reached the patient is rewarded in an immediate way through the monitor, consequently when less desirable outcomes are measured the video responds in a discouraging manner. The immediacy of feedback helps patients to reinforce brain patterns that are observed in "normal" individuals.

This method, known as neurofeedback, has been documented in clinical studies to have positive results with autistic individuals, as well as persons suffering from addiction. It is believed that this technology may be able to lessen the severity of ADHD symptoms as well as improve outcomes for persons with other developmental disabilities.

The second camp leans towards the self-help sphere of intervention. Here, patients listen to special CDs that trigger specific brain waves. These CDs often contain subliminal messages that are designed to help overcome smoking or encourage better self-esteem in listeners. The basis for success with this methodology is similar to hypnosis in that it accesses the subconscious mind. This allows the messages to by-pass the walls and barriers that people create in their minds.

Due to the nature of self-help programs, there is no scientific data to back up the claims of many of the retailers of these brainwave therapy CDs (also marketed under the name Binaural Entertainment), however the web abounds with many anecdotal accounts of incredible progress made by proponents. If nothing else, the matter deserves more attention if you are looking to change something about yourself.

Discover how the Brain Evolution System can help you take control of your brain using an easy binaural beats meditation.

Fear - Eliminate It

You will accomplish more than you thought possible by making a strong commitment, without any fear, which will distract you from your intent, dreams and goals. The challenges you face with any commitment is an unavoidable element of the goal-realization process. If you allow fear or worry to come into mind, you can quickly dissuade yourself from pursuing your purpose, mission or dreams.
Ralph Waldo Emerson, the great nineteenth-century philosopher and poet, said, Do the thing you are afraid to do, and the death of fear is certain. If you keep this in mind you can wrestle the biggest success saboteurFEARout of existence.

If you examine the word FEAR, you will realize that other words stick like velcro'afraid, anxious, anxiety and phobia. There are two types of fearreal and imagined. Real fear includesthose things, which have potential danger such as: lightening, tornadoes, hail, snow storms, thin ice, being near wild animals, high risk activities, etc. Imagined fear includes things that are imaginedand have little basis in fact. The sky is falling syndromeFalse Evidence Appearing Real.

Be prepared to do your best in conditions of adversity, overcome your fear through your strength of will, skills, talents and previous successes. Simply avoid thinking failure is an option. If you are committed to letting nothing stop you from success, you will achieve your wildest dreams. The more difficult the path is before you, the greater your determination will serve you. Fear and unadulterated commitment can not co-exist in your mind. It is when you bring the fears into your mind, that they take hold and run the show. If you consistently focus on your intent, dreams and goals and avoid putting fear thoughts in your mind you will succeed.

When you stay focused on your intent, dreams and goals you will see the true usefulness of your aptitudes. As a result, your pursuits that promise to further your success will. As you stay focused on tackling those tasks which have unnerved or stymied you before your determination will allow you to conquer them with little difficulty.

If you are unable to release the grip of fear seeking professional help is warranted. As an inspirational and motivational Life Coach, I know the struggles you have faced. Working together one step at a time and at your own pace you can propel your progress faster and more effectively than you imagined. A Life Coach can help you eliminate your fears and you can start living the life you deserve to live.

Unlike behavioral psychology and psychoanalysis, Life Coaching can be done face-to-face or via phone. Therefore, if you would like to engage with a Life Coach you are not restricted to being in the same location as the Life Coach.

Dorothy M. Neddermeyer, PhD, Life Coach, Hypnotherapist, Author, "101 Great Ways To Improve Your Life." Dr. Dorothy has the unique gift of connecting people with a broad range of profound principles that resonate in the deepest part of their being. She brings awareness to concepts not typically obvious to one's daily thoughts and feelings. http://www.drdorothy.net

Monday, September 7, 2009

Ways to Stop Losing Your Car Keys

You obviously don't need to read this article if you rarely lose your car keys. However if you misplace your car keys often and have a pretty good relationship with your locksmith, it's time to change these bad habits into good ones.

One of my friends, recently lost their car keys. I would like you to listen to what I'm about to say and see if it makes sense to you. Most people get two keys when they buy a car. This means, if they lose one key, they now have a spare key. When they lose their first key, this should give them a pretty good clue that the second key is now the only key, if they wish to drive their car.

Does that make sense? If you lose your first key, you don't have a second or spare key anymore. Now is a good time to purchase a spare key or have one made. Don't wait until you lose the second one, unless you are planning to change your bad habit into a good one.

Now let me get back to my friends who recently lost their car's key. The car they were driving was a new Honda and you can't go to the locksmith to get another key made. You have to order one from the Honda dealer and this key cost them over $200. That's a lot of money for one key.

Now my friends lost both of their original keys and now have one key to operate the vehicle and this key cost them over $200. Now if I had to pay this amount of money, I would make sure that I never lost this key ever again. I would do whatever it to to change my old habits and create some new ones.

How hard is it to get in the habit of placing your keys inside of your purse. Placing your keys in your pockets and then only removing them when you are going to place them inside of a drawer, container, cup, bowl or on a shelf in your bedroom. If you place your keys in a drawer, this will keep them out of other people's temptation.

If you choose to lay your keys in a bowl, in the kitchen, there's a good chance someone will take them or another member of your family could lose them. Place your keys in a protected area, do not leave them out in the open ever.

If you want some tips to prevent you from losing your keys, simply talk to someone who rarely if ever loses their keys. Most of these people have simple and easy to follow tips. You can consciously create a habit that can save you money and frustration in the future.

Greg is currently working on a spiritual video library filled with great movies on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world.

When Do We Get To Meet God

Books On Financial Freedom

Financial freedom is the most important thing a person can have, but it can also be very difficult to achieve. Most people will need assistance from an outside source. For those of you who cannot afford to hire a financial expert to manage your finances, there are many books available that will teach you how you can use your money wisely and eventually achieve financial freedom.

There are many financial experts, as well as people who have already achieved financial freedom, writing self-help books for people wanting to free themselves from the clutches of living in debt. The hardest part is choosing the right one. You will need to make sure that the advice you follow is the right one; you do not want to follow the wrong advice and go further in debt.

These books are not very expensive, and they are very helpful. They will be able to give you very valuable advice. There are also books available on the Internet that contain the same material.

If you are able to access the Internet, you should first look for online books on financial advice. This will save you money, considering these are usually free. If you have the need to have a paper copy of the book, there are many places from which you would be able to obtain one. Obviously, bookstores carry books of this nature. You will also be able to buy financial books on the Internet, since most major bookstores have a website where you can place orders. There are many websites available from which you can purchase your book. In fact, some of these websites will offer these books at a lesser price than if you buy them at a bookstore.

Debt is the number one cause of many problems in peoples lives. Getting out of debt is the first and most important step a person needs to take in the process of achieving financial freedom. If you think this task is too difficult to achieve without assistance, then it is best that you buy a book that will aid in your struggle to achieve financial freedom.

Financial Freedom provides detailed information on Financial Freedom, Steps To Financial Freedom, Financial Freedom Resources, Financial Freedom Services and more. Financial Freedom is affiliated with Commercial Equity Line Of Credit.

Practical Affirmation - Focused Action

Everybody knows what an affirmation is, right? A little recitation you say a few times in the morning to make the mirror happy. Positive thinking. A gimmick. A cynic might perceive affirmations as naive self-deception or even as lies.

Sometimes it seems that way, doesn't it? You've chanted the phrase, "I am abundance and prosperity" a boatload of times and still have trouble paying the bills. You've affirmed, "I am the possibility of energy and vitality" and still you're exhausted. You've ranted, "I love and believe in myself!" with the best of 'em, but your self-esteem just doesn't take off.

Yet we also hear the magnificent success stories. Is there a trick to this affirmation game?

Yep. Sure is. And you're about to learn what it is.

Besides the actual language of the affirmation, there are a few more things that need to happen in order to bring the deal to life. Today, we'll be looking at action. Sometimes people get this part backwards, as I hope the following snippet will illustrate:

Me, to wellness coaching participant: So how has your self-image project been coming along?

Participant: I haven't done anything.

Me: We wrote out your action steps for the past week in your planner. Did you follow them?

Participant: Nope. Haven't even opened it.

Me: Why not?

Participant: Low self-esteem.

No amount of affirmation is going to overcome the refusal to take action. The average person, once they say they're going to do something, will set an internal expectation that they're going to do it. Sometimes something happens and it doesn't get done -- ever.

Typically, at that point the person will make up a story in their head about why they didn't do it. Next time a similar situation comes up, something like this will begin to play on their internal tape loop: "I didn't feel like doing it last time, so I didn't. I'm still alive. I survived without doing it last time. Guess I can survive without doing it again now. I'm off the hook!"

Off the hook, yes. Happy? Not a chance.

The person who gets caught in this feedback loop has just conclusively proved to himself that he is a liar. He said he was going to do something, and then let himself off the hook without following through. He is still alive, but he feels like a schmuck.

He also doesn't have the tangible outcome that the action would have produced.

This is what happened to Joe, who was recently laid off from his job as a carpenter. Things are tight. But his sister told him not to worry. She even helped him out by suggesting a calming affirmation:

"My family is securely provided for. All our needs are fulfilled."

Joe started saying the affirmation, just like his sister told him. The next night while spacing out in front of the TV, Joe got a brainstorm. "We've got a big backyard," he thought. "I'll plant a vegetable garden! At least we won't be hungry."

Next time Joe was at the store, he picked up a few seed packets. When he got them home, he read the directions on the back. Plant in well-prepared soil.

Joe, not being an experienced gardener, wasn't sure how to prepare the soil. He never got around to figuring it out and didn't plant the seeds. Now, 2 months later, he's short the cash he spent and has nothing to show for it.

"These affirmations don't work!" he moans. "I said it and nothing happened! Still no job, and we've about tapped out our savings."

As I tell the story here, it's pretty obvious that the affirmation really could have worked. Joe had the insight he needed. He just didn't follow through with action. To make matters worse, his mind is now telling him, "You're a guy who doesn't follow through. No point thinking up any more bright ideas, is there?" The door to creative solutions has slammed shut.

Oh yeah. Joe's job counselor says he has low self-esteem.

Had he planted the garden, chances are that Joe's self-esteem would have weathered the storm just fine. How come? Well, instead of eating frozen chicken nuggets and popcorn for dinner, he'd be fat and happy on fresh garden produce. The nutrition alone would have given him a boost. But that's just the beginning.

Had he planted the garden, Joe would have earned the right to think of himself as a resourceful individual who seizes inspiration, trusts his instincts, and follows through. That mental state would most likely have him think of a few other things, too, beyond the garden. He would most likely have followed through on some of those inspirations as well. Might even have gotten himself another job by now.

Focused action is one of the key factors that brings affirmation to life. Why not make a plan and try it?

Elizabeth Eckert coaxes, cajoles, and gently guides the creation of healing intent. She's the founder of http://www.wordcures.com and author of Word Cures: How to Keep Stupid Excuses From Sabotaging Your Health. Align your whole self for health ... starting today! Share "Arielle's" real-life success story and optimize your own natural healing energy.

When We Choose Misery Over Happiness

I am not one to feel sorry for most people. They seem to have a unique ability to cause themselves the most damage during certain parts of their lives. I have met some pretty self destructive people in my life. Being raised by a mother that lived in misery and love.

My mother had a difficult childhood. It seemed as if every corner she turned there was a obstacle either right in front of here or waiting just around the corner. Her father died when she was 12 year old. He was a farm laborer and didn't make much money. In other words they were poor...... She got sent to live with a few foster families and according to her she was molested by one of the fathers she lived with.

Soon her older sister invited her to live with her. My aunt was married to the owner of a pottery business and had 2 children about 10 years younger than my mother. My aunt soon realized she had a live in baby sitter that allowed her to stay out drinking most of the day.

My Uncle was what you would call a drunk back then, now we call these people alcoholics. Well any way I think you are starting to get a picture of my mothers life up to this point. It is probably safe to assume that this isn't the ideal life for a young woman.

The next event to happen in my moms life was for my uncle to fall in the shower one night after tying one on that night. He died soon after but my aunt seemed to make a another good choice and ended up marring the owner of the bar that they spent most of their time in.
The Grand essentials of happiness are: something to do, something to love, and something to hope for. Allan K. Chalmers

By this time my mom was in High School and met my future father. It wasn't exactly a marriage made in heaven. My dad was always an easy going man. He seemed to let most stuff go in one ear and out the other.

As you guessed it they had a few children. Nice one Dad and Mom. According to the books I have read on Angelic beings. People that believe in the after life and angels. They tell me I had a choice and was able to choose my parents....... What was I thinking...... I should have choose someone with some money and a couple of parents that were deeply in love .

How did I end up here in this situation.

I ended up loving my parents like most of us. They seemed to be doing the best that they could possibly do raising me, my bother and my sister. My mom and dad ended up getting a divorce and I went to live with my father.

My Father is remarried to a wonderful woman that seems to bring him a lot of happiness.
I haven't seen my mother for a while now. She lives with a life of excuses and misery. Her childhood was not the greatest but that doesn't give her the right to bring misery into other peoples lives. She has made a conscious choice to live what seems to be a painful life. Maybe her choices in life have made me choose happiness over misery.

I have always wondered what it is that motivates someone to live a life of true unhappiness when it takes the same amount of energy to live a life of joy. Life is meant to be full of joy and happiness so start today by making the right choices to live a fulfilling life of happiness.

If you are reading this and can't make up your mind what kind of life you truly want to live visit me at http://live.spiritualideas.com/ . Change your thinking and change your life.

Greg Vanden Berge will help you create a new approach to life and discover talents you never knew you had. We can help you get the most out of yourself all the time. Start developing your innate strengths and abilities to start enriching your life TODAY !

Questions To Ask Your Pastor

Thought Vibration by William Walker Atkinson - Book Review

Written in 1906, Thought Vibration by William Walker Atkinson, is as current and relevant today as it was a century ago. Atkinson, a somewhat forgotten New Thought pioneer, was also an attorney, merchant, publisher, editor and author of more than 100 books, many under pseudonyms.

Without being preachy, Atkinson explores the ideas of increasing willpower, mastering the real self, living fully, ridding the mind of negative thought, training habits, harnessing emotions, and developing new brain power. His older writing style is still lively and surprisingly refreshing 100 years later.

I love Atkinson's "in your face" attitude about will power. (If you don't have any, you're mentally lazy!) And his thoughts on what he calls "asserting the life-force" or really living and experiencing each moment of every day, call us to stop doing things half-hearted. Take an interest, man!

Atkinson spends a lot of time discussing fear and how it affects our attitudes and, eventually, our ability to succeed. Fear, he says, is an expectancy of the feared thing. To banish fear, start to do some of the things you could do if you were not afraid to try. Assert courage and, eventually, the fear will recede.

Atkinson leaves us with some thoughts on our views of successful people. We imagine successful people to be superior. And if we ever get the chance to meet someone we deem as superior, many times we are disappointed to find that they are the same as ourselves! The difference, Atkinson asserts, is the successful person's belief in themselves and their ability to concentrate. Resist the urge to undervalue ourselves and overvalue others.

Amazing how the world around us is so different yet the human element remains the same!

Annette Greco is co-owner of a successful home remodeling business, author of The Kitchen Remodeling Cookbook: The Survival Guide to Cooking When Your Kitchen Can't and co-founder of On The Level Consulting. The remodeling business requires a successful combination of sales, marketing, administration and production. It is even more important for the small remodeling company to execute all areas well and in the right combination. Find out how to maximize profits while minimizing time and stress. Sign up for On The Level Consulting's FREE online newsletter to find out how. Visit http://www.onthelevelconsulting.com

Live with High Energy Drive Successfully

Imagine a world where what you do is enjoy life and work is simply a part of your enjoyment? Can you see it yet?

I woke up this morning to cloudy gray skies and drizzling rain, chilling the atmosphere. After I prepared a lovely breakfast of rye muffins, eggs, and grape juice I settled in front of my computer with a nice hot cup of tea. This is my favorite place to write.

Im not rushing, Im just enjoying my life, and youre reading what I love to do.

You can do what you love to do and earn a living doing it too. It doesnt have to be writing, it can be anything. Ill show you how.

1. Take a vacation.

Have you ever noticed, the most successful people take time to have fun? They plan vacations into their lives, the keep family time separate from work time, and they enjoy what they do. Its a choice. Take time out for fun and enjoy your life.

2. Give generously.

Donate to charity. Give to the poor. Tithe to your church. Give generously from your heart. What you have comes from God, it was given to you - give it back. God is your Provider, and He provides plenty. When you see someone in need, give.

3. Forgive those who trespass against you.

Forgive those who owe you a debt so you may be forgiven. When you hold a grudge against your neighbor, you prevent the gift of forgiveness from being given to you. You cant open your heart and accept the gift of love until you learn to let go of the grudges and forgive.

4. Love without fear.

The love you give comes from an endless storehouse of love. You can love without fear, without worry. Theres more love to give. Youre not limited to a specific amount of love in your life, theres always more available. Give it away freely.

5. Take care of yourself.

Youre important. Youre a valuable being, created in the image of God. You deserve to be cared for, loved, and provided well, because you are precious and wonderful.

6. Save something for tomorrow.

Because planning ahead is important, keep something for tomorrow. Invest in your future and show good stewardship with your finances. Follow the old principle of owing no-one. Live a life free of debts and encumbrances by planning ahead for any emergency.

7. Do what you love.

Learn to do well that which you love and do it expecting to earn good wages for what you do. Charge what you deserve and always give more than you get. Your value is far above jewels and precious metals, because you are worthy of your pay.

So, where are you at today? Are you feeling low and down, wondering how to get out of the hole, or are you climbing close to the mountain top, hoping you can find a pentacle to rest upon?

Or are you enjoying life?

Claim your FREE 3-Part Traffic Report and more http://secret2prosperity.com

2007 - J.D. Verhoeff

The Quandary With Goals

Ok, two weeks into the new year. Have you met your goals for this year, yet? Ha! of course I'm just teasing. . .

Was it just me, or did you wade through a new year goal frenzy too?

First, I found myself repelled by the "be all you can be" type new year goal promotions. Last week, I even told myself that I was NOT going NEAR the gym until next month or later! Sure, I'm laughing now, but I was struck by the depth of my reaction to these type of goals.

Then a slew of messages, expressing the idea that "I'm already fabulous," grabbed my attention. THAT perspective felt great! In contrast to the other message, I got excited about my life, and was ready to dive into my amazing relationships, and work.

Whew! I know which approach I'm using! Here's why a feel good approach to goals is effective.

We're evolving creatures-always have been, and always will be. You evolve whether you're sitting on the couch day dreaming or running your 10th marathon! There's just no escaping your personal evolution. From this perspective, our attraction to personal improvement, goals, and New Year resolutions make sense, because they tap into our innate desire to expand.

Consider that your goals reflect what your soul already knows is true about you. On some level, you know that you're ALREADY that savvy business woman , or the mom, lovingly in the middle of her family, or that 145 lb strong and sexy woman. Yes, that is exactly who you are!

And yet, your mind needs to catch up to what our soul understands for your true self to emerge. Until then, you might believe that you need to have, do, or think the right thing to be who you want to be.

Can you see that the quandary that setting goals creates? How do you become who you already are? No wonder new year resolutions are so easy to break, they're unnecessary!

Think about it. How much energy do you expend trying to be the person who you already are?

Yes, of course there is an easier and much more enjoyable way to make room for your true nature to emerge.

Here are two suggestions.

Michael Neill suggests that you take at least a week off from working on yourself in any way. Don't try to change, improve, or fix yourself - just enjoy hanging out with your work, your hobbies and your loved ones.

Try this exercise. Let me know what you noticed? What brought you joy?

Here's a second approach.

Look at your goals, or things you want to accomplish this year, and ask yourself:

"How would I live my life if this goal was already met?"

I imagine that there are some beliefs, and actions within your description that you can incorporate in your life right away, yes? Let yourself step into being the person your goals represent. You're ready, and your goals reflect this.

You'll create a momentum that the universe will gladly match. Now THAT'S a sweet spot!

Judy is a Law of Attraction Coach for accomplished lesbian, bi and queer women who are ready to fully enjoy their fabulous life! Find her at http://www.dreamandflourish.com

Bathroom Moisture Problems - Home Repair

Right above my bathtub in my master bathroom the paint is peeling off the wall. The area is peeling above the tile in my bathtub and shower combination. I tried to glue the peeling paint back and only made the situation worst.

First things first. The paint is peeling because there is to much moisture in the bathroom while you are using it. Do you have any windows you can open or a ventilating bathroom fan. If you have a window crack it open part way while you are showering.

The water droplets will accumulate on the walls and drip into any cracks. Right above the tile grout is a great place for moisture to accumulate. Oh yeah moisture loves grout and drywall. If you have any unpainted areas or an area that has cracked. Guess what you have now.

Your paint is peeling because the bathroom gets hot and cold. Moist and dry. If you have the door and windows shut. You just created a moisture trap. Most people prefer their privacy and will closes the door when using the shower. Well then open the window and let some cold air in while you are taking a nice warn shower. I don't think so. Most showering fools don't like that idea either.

Ok one more idea keep the windows shut so you don't let the cold air in. Then lock the door so no on barges in on you. If you have a ventilation fan turn it on. This will at least pull fresh air in from under the door and send the moist air out of the house.

But the fan is so noisy and I can't enjoy my nice warm vapor producing shower that will eventually cause me to get sick from mold particles floating around in the air while I am using my bathroom.
Does this about sum it up for you and don't we all do this from time to time. We want to enjoy our shower time, so we close up everything and when we are in our bath sauna environment relaxing our house is getting some damaging moisture that could cause mold and mildew.

Open a window or door a little when you shower. Get some air circulating through the bathroom and prevent damage to your nice house.

Put up with a little inconvenience for you homes sake and your pocket book.

Greg Vanden Berge has been in the home building and remodeling business in California for over 30 years. With this knowledge he has created a few websites that provide useful information for home owners as well as contractors. His main goal is to educate professionals in the home related businesses, dealing with problems that can easily be avoided with just a little bit of information.

His website provides all kinds of answers to remodeling and new house building in North San Diego Home Remodeling Carlsbad Home Remodeling

Visit us now for Bathroom Ideas

Christian Articles

Developing a Positive Attitude by Pretending

Developing a positive attitude creates a positive attitude, just as energy produces more energy. Developing a positive attitude affects your own way of thinking, as well as the thinking of other people that surrounds you. In effect, no matter how bad or rotten a situation may look like, you can make it seem or appear better by at least pretending to have that kind of outlook-even if you yourself do not feel optimistic at all. In this case, even if you are just feigning to have a constructive outlook, the people around you would sense an optimistic energy and would be influenced to the point where they are developing a positive attitude relative to a given situation.

This feigned positive attitude would also have a huge deal of favorable response and influence on anybody that you have to encounter with which can be an answer to your problem as well-even if they're not exactly included in the solution to the problem. If for example, your company is on the edge of bankruptcy, and you really need to visit the bank manager in how to get a loan to rebuild and continue your business despite the financial crisis no matter what. Now, how do you approach him? Of course, you do not want to walk right inside his office with tears welling in your eyes, begging and complaining about how terrible and unforgiving the business is.

Preferably, you would want to walk in with a hopeful smile pasted on your face and telling him optimistic and bright things about the company and your future plans, so he could see that you haven't given up hope on life, and that he could sense that there is a practicable plan in store. The point here is trying to depict or represent a positive attitude that a solution would be found in the offing that you simply refuse to believe the situation is beyond hope, and to let the team understand that you are carrying on and not calling it quits-even if you don't truly believe any of those yourself.

Pretending in possessing a positive attitude is not permitting to telling lies, however. The persons who are involved in trying to help resolve a problem must be told the truth of the situation though. This perception would clean their minds, and help them create good decision in connection to the problem at hand-which helps you also, and makes you believe as if your false positive attitude becomes real as well. In addition, you could fool yourself into possessing a positive attitude also. By feigning that you already have that positive attitude, you play it for so long that little by little, it becomes habitual-a learned stimulus.

This encouraging outlook that you get to portray each and every single day becomes real, even without you being aware of it all. If ever this happens, some people don't even recall or recognize that they were just pretending in the first place! They may begin to think it was for real all along.

The author of this article Amy Twain is a Self Improvement Coach who has been successfully coaching and guiding clients for many years. Amy recently decided to go public and share her knowledge and experience through her website http://www.innerzine.com You can sign up for her free newsletter and join her coaching program.

3 Keys to Personal Self Help

Personal self help is one of the greatest ways to reach your purpose and achieve your goals in life. The more you grow and increase personally the more you will succeed in your life. However, its not always easy to know where to start or what to do. Here are 3 keys to personal self help.

1. Read.

One of the simplest ways to start your personal self help is to read books, magazines, and articles on the topic that you are wanting to grow in. There are so many books in the world today that you can find a great book that will help you. This is one of the ways that I first started my personal self help. Its not always possible to sit down and get the knowledge and wisdom from someone personally but you can get it first hand in a book that they have written.

2. Get a mentor/coach.

Probably the most powerful way to grow is to get a mentor or a coach. This will allow you to learn directly from someone that you respect as well as get hands on experience. Another great thing that you will get is the gift of accountability. This may not seem like something you want but it will do wonders for your progress in life. If you really want the most personal self help, you need to have a mentor or coach.

3. Be honest with yourself.

I have talk to many people that say all the right things but arent honest with themselves. They deny that they have certain areas that they need to change and are always sidestepping the real issues at hand. For you to truly change and be all that you can you have to be more honest with yourself then with anyone else.

Is there greatness on the inside of you but you don't know how to achieve it? Jason has just completed his brand new 7 part e-course, 'Find Your Greatness'

Get it free here: Find Your Greatness

Do you want to learn how to create successful habits and goals? Download Jasons new FREE ebook here: Goal Setting

Jason Osborn has dedicated himself to changing thousands of lives by helping people find their greatness and true potential through his Find Your Greatness Newsletter.

Moisture Against Gravity - Destroying Walls

Well I'm going to start this article with a little information on a job I did once.

I had been repairing a rental house for one particular homeowner for about three years when all of a sudden I got a phone call from him telling me the rental house was destroyed and he had never seen nothing like this. He sounded so upset over the phone I told him I would meet with him immediately.

On my way to the house I was trying to get an idea in my head what the house was going to actually look like. Since I have been repairing rental properties for over 20 years at this point of my career, nothing really shocked me. I had pretty much seen everything that could possibly be done to rental property by the tenants that lived there. There is a lot to be said about taking care of it as if it were your own.

He was waiting for me at the front door and he looked thoroughly disgusted. As I approached him he was shaking his head and yelling at the same time can you believe these people, can you believe what they did to my house. I was expecting to see the front door ripped off and all the windows broken out of the house but this wasn't the case.

As he led me through the home and I could see the usual clothing on the floor, broken cabinets, a few holes in the walls and of course that awful smell of mold and mildew. All of this stuff was nothing new to me because I'm the guy they call to fix it when a renter moves out of the property.

As I entered one of the bedrooms I got my first glimpse of something I had never seen before but heard stories about and could not believe my eyes. Looking at the walls in the bedroom about 3 feet from the floor all the way around the room, the plaster was soft. It actually looks like someone shoved popcorn into the wall somehow.

The homeowner wasn't even looking at this because of the rest of the damage in the home. I started to explain to him I'd never seen nothing like this but I could guess it was water damage somehow since the plaster was soft. I could actually stick my finger into the wall, that's how soft the plaster was.

My first thought was to examine the carpeting a little closer to see if it was wet. Well it was damp but it wasn't as wet as I would've expected it to be with the amount of water in the walls. With a little more home inspecting I had found the culprit, it was a broken water bed. The water bed was now in the backyard looking innocent.

I couldn't believe a broken water bed could do this much damage so I looked around for broken or leaking water pipes and could not find any. The other bad news I had to inform the homeowner was that the water had damage the bathroom and closet walls also. These walls of course were on the other side of the bathroom walls that were damaged.

Well the point of this story is that water will actually wick its way up or worked its way up into a wall. I had to remove 4 feet of drywall all the way around the room. The plaster or drywall actually acts like a sponge pulling the water into the walls. Hard to imagine that gravity in this case seems to reverse. I would've never thought that water would've traveled so far up the walls creating that much damage.

To repair the rental property I had to remove the damaged drywall, remove the carpeting, dry the wood framing out and put the whole thing back together.

I'm still amazed and will remember that project for as long as I live.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more Building and Remodeling Library and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

Visit us and get more information on House Water Damage

Using Words In The Bible Effecti

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Beyond Motivation - Passion

It seems that just as we shifted paradigms in the eighties, we worked synergistically in the nineties; now we are passionate in the naughties. Even my local petrol station has passion brochures at the pump! So what are we passionate for ?

Last October I got some unasked for, but expert, advice from an extreme extrovert to be more passionate. After I had calmed down, I took a long hard look at what I was doing and seriously questioned my passion level. This was after all, expert advice.

My research took me through a motley assortment of superficial pop psychology and self help books, all with Passion in the title and each more inane than the last. Finally I stumbled across a book by Sydney author Peter Wallman, The Wisdom of Passion. He appeared to get to the real core of what Passion is, and after meeting with him I was convinced that he had identified a simple but powerful process for identifying and capturing our core passions. I loved the simplicity of the process and the clarity it brought to me and my business. Now I assist others to identify what it is that gets their juices flowing.

Along the way through research, self analysis and questioning of my clients and others who have Passion Mapped I have identified some keys to passion.

Passion is very personal and unique to the individual.

Most of our strongest passions are kept internalised and rarely expressed outwardly.

The most powerful passions are not material (or sport).

Connecting strongly with our passions creates a magnetic effect We attract people and opportunities.

Eliciting deep passions requires skill, we have learned well from the school of hard knocks to keep this side of ourselves hidden.

When we express our passion, our voices change, our eyes sparkle, and our physical demeanor shifts.

Passion is contagious be very careful.

Passion comes before motivation and way before action.

Passion makes a difference.

I share my story of being told to be more passionate with colleagues and clients and generally get snorts of bemusement. As an introvert, I am not given to bounding into a room, leaping in the air, giving great shouts, or jumping up and down on a sofa Oprahs or anyone elses. So how do I express Passion? Tell me after you talk to me!!!

Passion is not something you have more (or less) of. Passion is inherent and intrinsic.

Last week I had the opportunity to coach 10 leaders and staff members of a niche organisation during three intense days.
Each of these individuals has a determination and a spark in their eyes, a tone of voice and a body posture which unmistakably conveys the depth of their passion about the work they do. Unsurprisingly, the organisations Director is passionately leading from the front - a true visionary leader. I felt honoured and very humbled to be coaching this particular team. Their common focus and harnessed energy, steered by their Director, is making a huge difference to their client base. Truly a high impact and passion based organisation.

One of our tasks as leaders is to uncover and unleash the hidden power of Passion in our employees, to harness and direct this passion towards a common shared goal. Just imagine, if you will, for a moment what your team could achieve this year if they were as passionately involved and focused as the organisation I mentioned earlier.

Kofi Annan said To live is to choose. But to choose, you must know who you are and what you stand for, where you want to go, and why you want to get there.
In business our Mission and Values statements spell out who we are and what we stand for, Our Vision statement gives where we want to go, and our Strategy gives us the how. But the why is missing.

Passion is the why!!

Liz Cassidy, founder of Third Sigma International is an author, Speaker, Trainer and Executive Coach and is passionate about facilitating results in the businesses, professional and personal lives of her clients. For more information http://www.thirdsigma.com.au

A College Party Changed My Life Forever

Excitement immediately exploded as one person after another was asked to the Toga party at the elite sorority house surrounding the pristine college campus. To be invited to this occasion was like finally arriving at the top! Now you would be forever associated with the 'in crowd' who set the highest bar to the most elaborate parties around.

I couldn't believe how lucky I felt! What was I going to wear to the Toga party? Quickly I text messaged my friend telling the news and together we planned my entrance. I wanted to be noticed and invited back again and again.

I arrived at the sorority house filled with anticipation. Entering the house, I walked through two Roman like columns with white cascading draperies across the top and long flowing white sheers on either side. My hostess handed me a beer. Looking around I saw a tent with more sheers and drapes and skimpily dressed girls standing by the entrance beckoning everyone to come in. There were pillows and mattresses spread all over the floor.

Music flooded my ears and the smell of tobacco and marijuana wafted through the air. There was a group of girls all wearing olive leaves in the shape of bikinis and they were dancing and enticing others to join them. One girl grabbed my hand and encouraged me to let go and have fun.

I was from a small town and I was raised by a very conservative family. This was the first time I had attended any kind of toga party with my friends. I had to admit I was a little shy about letting go and enjoying myself. I took a puff from a joint that a friend handed me and before long everything I was taught about faith and obedience to God was pushed aside.

I wanted to have fun. I didn't want to think about whether it was right or wrong. Before long the girls and guys began disrobing and it was no longer about drinking, but about hooking up with as many people as you desired. I was feeling so free and they were so enticing! Why shouldn't I join them?

Not many people understand that we live in a teaching world. It all began when Satan entered into the snake and tempted Adam and Eve to eating the apple from the tree of knowledge. In order to attain knowledge you must be presented with right and wrong choices. Now the once perfect world God created was instantly changed because Satan entered into the world bringing the full force of evil with him.

Satan became man's greatest adversary and he corrupted the souls of men by luring them away from the right teachings of God. Satan does this by attacking man's human desires. He uses sex and the feelings of desire that awaken within a man at the sight of a beautiful woman to lure him into giving into lust. He uses feelings of not being accepted to trap us into drinking until we are drunk and taking drugs so we can feel totally free. He knows just what to say even using our very friends to get us to think with our emotions and not with our heads.

This is the reason why there are orgies because young men and women become so filled with lust, they can't control there desires. This is the reason why there are rapes that lead men into taking sex by force. This is why, young people especially, fall prey to pornography that stimulates there desires to an explosive energy that makes them fall prey to giving into their desires without thinking about the consequences.

During the time of Moses, God separated the Israelites from evil by taking them into the Promised Land. But the people were so corrupted by the teachings of the Egyptians that they wandered in the desert for forty years until he could get them to understand the difference between following Him or Satan. He did this by teaching Laws that gave them the key to resisting evil.

The Ten Commandments taught them how important it was to believe in God. The Commandments taught them how to resist Satan by not committing adultery, murder, stealing, lying and many others that were meant to give them an upper hand against the very things that Satan would use to tempt them into doing evil.

Because Israel was the chosen people they also became the world's example of what happens when you give into sin. They wrote hundreds of stories of their experiences in the Bible so the entire world would understand the consequences for giving into sin and how it can ruin your life for an entire lifetime. One such story was when they were about to enter into the Promised land and they came into the country of Moab. Moab had an evil King named Balak. He found out through a corrupt evil soothsayer named Balaam how to defeat Israel and keep them from taking over their land.

Balaam had a donkey who spoke to him. The donkey saw an Angel of God standing in the road and he stopped Balaam from cursing Israel. As the story unfolds we find that Balaam blessed Israel instead and this made King Balak very mad. So Balaam manipulated the circumstance and encouraged the king to lure the men away and trap them by instructing beautiful Moab women to have sex with the Israelites. (Numbers 31: 16)

Once the Israelites gave into their lust then they would invite them to parties in order to get them to worship their god Baal. When they were no longer serving God then they would be under a curse and the Moabites would easily defeat Israel.

Numbers 25: 1-3a, "When the Israelites were camped at Acacia Valley, the men began to have sexual intercourse with the Moabite women who were there. These women invited them to sacrificial feasts, where the god of Moab was worshiped. The Israelites ate the food and worshiped the god Baal of Peor. So the Lord was angry with them."

In the Old Testament every sin had a sentence that had to be followed in order for God to bless them. This was a sin that could only be rectified with death. Immediately an epidemic spread through Israel killing 24,000 Israelites that committed a sexual sin and were led into worshiping Baal. Remember, this may have seemed like a very harsh punishment, but it had to be like this so we could see what happens when sin enters into a person's life.

The Old Testament clearly illustrates what happens when you give into sin. It tells stories of what happens when God isn't first in your life. It presents stories of real people who allowed Satan to come in and use the very weaknesses found in man to lead them away from God and trap them into living there lives for evil.

If you are not on God's side then you are on the side of Satan and evil. Satan uses lust to tempt the men into turning their backs on God. He uses parties as a means to corrupt your thinking through the use of alcohol and drugs. He uses the desire to fit in as a means to get us to let go of our moral values and give into sin.

2 Peter 2: 13-19, "Pleasure for them is to do anything in broad daylight that will satisfy their bodily appetites; they are a shame and a disgrace as they join you in your meals, all the while enjoying their deceitful ways? They want to look at nothing but immoral women; their appetite for sin is never satisfied. They lead weak people into a trap. Their hearts are trained to be greedy. They are under God's curse! They have left the straight path and have lost their way; they have followed the path taken by Balaam son of Beor, who loved the money he would get for doing wrong and was rebuked for his sin. His donkey spoke with a human voice and stopped the prophet's insane action.

These men are like dried-up springs, like clouds blown along by a storm; God has reserved a place for them in the deepest darkness. They make proud and stupid statements, and use immoral bodily lusts to trap those who are just beginning to escape from among people who live in error. They promise them freedom while they themselves are slaves of destructive habits-for a person is a slave of anything that has conquered him."

When you are in a huge multi-faceted world game of good versus evil you must understand the rules of engagement. Believing in God is the difference between winning and losing your game of life. Understanding sin and temptation is the difference between following God or giving into your desires.

The excitement of the toga party faded when the doctor told me that I had contracted Aids. I couldn't believe how stupid I was to have allowed the pressure of being accepted to lead me into having sex with someone I didn't even know. Now I was under a death sentence for the rest of my life. Who would want a person who could infect them and destroy their life too?

The Old Testament taught us about sin and the consequences. The New Testament tells us about the saving power of grace and how believing in Jesus Christ as your Savior can bring about forgiveness of sin. Jesus' can take a hopeless situation and turn it into good if you will give your life to Him!

Linda C Dipman author of THE GAME OF LIFE IT'S ALMOST OVER http://outskirtspress.com/gameoflife presents AND HIS LOVE SHONE DOWN my true life story! It describes all the persecutions I endured. It will put you on the edge of your seat as you read each vivid detail. You will feel terror and experience love like nothing you have ever read before. http://lovinghandsministry.com

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