Happy New Year 2009! A joyous greeting from Inspiration from a Blind, the newsletter for those who want to be spiritually ultra-abled, brought to you monthly by
www.ShirleyCheng.com !
Do you believe in God?
If you answered "Yes," your answer would match about half of the human population, because Christians, Muslims, and Jews, all believe in the same God, Jehovah (though Muslims use the name Allah for God).
While I do not doubt their belief (or how strong it is), I do therefore have to wonder: why are we experiencing so many manmade problems in life?
What does believing in God mean? Many would say that it is accepting that God exists and that He is the Creator of everything. Period.
If that is the case, then let us put Satan under the spotlight. Do you not agree with me that he is a believer of God? Heck, he was an angel living in heaven who regularly spoke with God! So unlike any of us who has never seen or spoken with God, he is a spirit who witnessed God in person, face-to-face.
So why is Satan still so evil when he believes in God?
Therefore, believing in God must mean much more than simply accepting of His existence and creation. How much more? Exactly, what should believing in God really mean?
When people tell me, "I believe in God," I often ask myself, "But do they love God?"
Yes, it all lies in love—loving God. This is why Satan has chosen to be evil even though he believes in God; Satan does not love God—he loves himself so much more, and that has driven him to do evil and to spread evil to others.
Truly believing in God means we must love God.
Remember the most important commandment as put by Jesus Christ? He said that we should love God with all our heart.
How should we show God we love Him?
How should we show our parents we love them? How do we show people we love them? Is it to make them happy? And how do we make them happy? We make them happy by doing what they like, what they approve of. By doing so, we can show our love for them.
Therefore, we must show our love for God by doing what He wants from us. And we must love Jesus in the same way.
What does God want from us? Why does it matter to Him?
When you were growing up, your parents or guardians must have given you a set of Do's and Dont's. But what does it matter to them whether you follow their rules? Because following their rules are for your own good. That is why laws are made, to give order to everyone and to protect everyone's interest.
Think about it: God is not depended upon us one bit! After all, He created us, and what can we do for Him? Not much—not for His survival, certainly.
Jehovah wants us to follow His guidance for our own good, not really for His own good (but it does make Him very happy—He is happy when His creations are happy), and by following his guidance, it shows love for not only Him but for ourselves as well.
Being our Creator, Jehovah knows what is best for us, so when we listen and accept His kind rulership, we will be blessed beyond boundaries.
Having faith, therefore, is really loving God and His Son. This is what exercising faith in God is all about—it's all about love!
What positive effects will come out from loving God?
When you love someone, what they do, what they say, even the places they visit and their own belongings, become more interesting and significant to you. Worshipping the ground they walk on would no longer seem so farfetched. To a parent, their child's drawing is much more precious than any famous masterpiece. To a lover's ears, the very name of the one they love is musical. You would more likely take the advice from someone you trust than that from a stranger. A simple gift from a friend is more valuable than an expensive present given by your least favorite person.
I remember the pretty doll my mother gave to me for my fourth birthday when we were in China. I loved it dearly. It was so much more special because it was from my mother's heart. The gift, even if bedecked with real gold and silver, would not mean much to me if it was from someone else.
So how you feel about someone will reflect in your feelings for what the person does, says, or gives.
When you love God, you in turn will love all of His creations, from the wonderful blue and green planet we call home to our fellow human beings. Therefore, love in Jehovah unites us.
Yet, sadly, religion has been one of our major dividers. How come? It is because instead of letting love govern our thoughts and actions, we let manmade devices rule over us. People have been abusing religion and using God's name as excuses to commit horrifying acts, such as raging wars and terrifying other countries. The harmful manmade religious laws create boundaries between people so thick and impenetrable that some people cringe at the mere thought of religion.
How can we break down this wall? Add love to your daily living and it will tear it down into heaps at your feet! True believers of God show love among one another and will never rage wars against their brothers and sisters—this is how you tell a true believer from false believers, no matter if they are Christians, Muslims, or Jews.
So next time, if people ask you, "How should you believe in God?" Give them this answer:
"Love God by loving one another."
To love and accept life is to love and accept God!
Q & A with Shirley
This month's questions are from Linda J. Hutchinson, who says "These are based on my most recent trip to the grocery store where, upon loading groceries from my motorized cart into the trunk of my car (a difficult feat), a man in his 20's stood there guarding the cart to take it for his girlfriend with a broken leg, but would not help me lift one thing from the cart into my car's trunk. Other courtesy-related behaviors had prevailed inside the store." Linda is a freelance writer/copywriter who writes for online and print media about volunteerism, food, living with disabilities, writing, marketing, construction, parenting, and heavy equipment. www.lindajhutchinson.com
Question: Why do those who can walk/run/jog feel it necessary to slam-jump ahead of those of us in motorized scooters at the grocery store? Do they feel we'll impede their shopping? (Or, are they just as rude to semi-truck drivers on the road?) And, WHY do shoppers leave their carts in the MIDDLE of the aisles so we can't get around them?
Answer: I feel many people go on with their lives absent-mindedly or on autopilot, not giving much thoughts to their actions. When I attended school while I still had my eyesight, some students would cut in front of me as I drove my power wheelchair. Trust me, I was not a slow driver; I wasn't called Speedy Gonzalez for nothing! Some people may think, consciously or unconsciously, that us physically disabled people will impede them in what they do. But then, cutting in front of others is not unique to just us; just see how people behave on the roads. If more show a conscious responsibility to preserve one another's well-being, instead of fighting to be the first in line, we would not experience such problems.
Of course, those who act unmindfully of others are not all bad folks. They are simply not given the life's manual. If a student does a new math problem wrong, would it be right to say that he is a bad student? Certainly not—he simply was not taught the mathematical formula to solve the problem. Thus this is the case in life in general—not everyone is taught to be considerate of others at a young age nowadays.
Question: Has the women's liberation movement destroyed/ended all former chivalry/courtesy training of the male of our species? Are children no longer trained to open doors, help lug groceries, or otherwise be courteous to elders with less mobility?
Answer: The women's liberation movement may be part to blame in the end of chivalry, or general courtesy for that matter, but the main culprit lies in the near disappearance of morality in the society. Just turn on the TV, the radio, or flip through a magazine, and you'll know what I mean.
If we could re-introduce morality back into our society, many of the problems we face on a daily basis would be gone; the disabled would not encounter as many problems or as much discrimination as today. Children would be taught at a young age to respect the sickly and the elderly, and they would grow up into responsible and loving adults who would in turn pass down the values to their generations.
Instead of embracing a good way of living, we have sought liberation—liberation that sacrifices morality.
We all want to be free. While freedom is wonderful, we need to draw a line between obtaining freedom and destroying morality.
Would it be okay for people to abuse the interests and well being of others just so they can pursue their own freedom? Is it okay to do whatever we want no matter at what cost? Is it better to show love for others by staying within the borders of morality than it is to destroy others in the pursuit of our own fleshly desires?
Granted, morality is not completely gone, and it will be fully revived once God's Kingdom comes. Right now, morality lies in our own hands—we need to be responsible and take actions on our own. If you have children, teach them about life and its true values; when you are at work, show love to your fellow employees; and when you are out, be the one to lend a helping hand to the disabled. Your good actions will therefore be examples others can model after. Be the person you want others to be!
Shirley's Corner
On Christmas Eve, I was notified that I have won FIVE prestigious Parent to Parent Adding Wisdom Awards™ for my book, "Embrace Ultra-Ability! Wisdom, Insight & Motivation from the Blind Who Sees Far and Wide." The five awards are Adult Health & Well-being, Books - Inspirational/Christian, Gifts For Mom, Gifts For Dad, and Unique Products.
Established in 1998 by award-winning syndicated family/health columnist and bestselling author, Jodie Lynn, one of whose contributed books was featured on Oprah, the Parent to Parent Adding Wisdom Award honors products and websites of outstanding quality that support and help families and children grow ethically, socially, intellectually, emotionally, and physically.
Well, I'm quite speechless. Can you blame me? I've said all that I could...after fourteen awards, words simply left me. But some situations do not need words, for words are useless for things like this... But I do have a few closing words to say for this month's issue...
Love is the answer, the solution, to every single existing problem. Can you possibly think of even one problem that love cannot fix? I can't think of anything, either! So for your New Year's resolution, do not make it to simply lose fifteen pounds, but rather, make it your goal to add fifteen pounds of love to your soul! So until next time, I'd better see your spiritual weight rise; you can never be too overweight on love!
Have a great 2009!
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Best regards,
Shirley Cheng
Award-Winning Author with 14 Awards
5-Time Parent to Parent Adding Wisdom Award Winner
Miracle survivor, inspiring author and contributing author of 25 books by age 25, poet, motivational speaker, self-empowerment expert, advocate, and a co-author in the bestselling Wake Up...Live the Life You Love book series
Board member of World Positive Thinkers Club
http://www.shirleycheng.com
Having a bad day? Then meet Shirley Cheng, A.K.A. the modern day Helen Keller, to inspire, empower, and motivate you to go for the gold medal in life!
"Although I'm blind, I can see far and wide; even though I'm disabled, I can climb high mountains. Let the ropes of hope haul you high!"
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