Ungenerous God

When I was a kid, I prayed for the power to fly and to shoot my enemies with the power of Cyclops. At the park that day, I learned that my archenemy was praying too… he prayed to be given the powers like those of Jean Grey and Wolverine. At the end of the day, I thanked God He did not grant his wishes. Maybe he was grateful too that my prayers were not granted either.

Perhaps, the greatest generosity of God is His restraint in delaying or even not granting most of our wishes. Imagine if all our prayers are answered ‘yes’. What a chaotic a world this could be. Bruce Almighty understood this very much.

“If your son asks for food, will you give him a scorpion?… If you then, sinful as you are, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"
~Luke 11:10-13

God always answers our prayers in three ways:
‘Wait’, you’re not yet ready, so be patient. Ok?
‘No’, it’s not good for you and the people around you. Be reasonable.
‘Yes’, you made the right choice. Enjoy and treasure it.

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photo:by Bruce Almighty| posted by john b. bejo

Stink Bugs

Stink bugs are all over my windows.  They came green and stayed there until they turned dark brown. So, they either die of old age or being squeezed between doors.

For almost four years in my previous job, I and my colleagues would talk about how the system stunk and how unhappy we were. We talked about green pastures and eventually leaving. But after a decade, most of them are still there.

Some people stay where they are like bugs. They would complain about their status, hate their bosses, damn the system and talk about moving out or getting married but never did. They came green with idealism and dreams, but stayed until they turned brown with fear to leave and explore the world.

Life is too short to stay in one place. There are thousand things to do, millions of wonderful people to meet and countless amazing places to go. Don’t get squeezed in the system, go, take risks, be willing to lose  and be always ready to live. Buongiorno

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photo:by br1gino| posted by john b. bejo

Overtake

Italy is a bikers’ haven. Pedaling to my work one morning, I noticed an awful smell: it was a garbage truck ahead. I knew I was no match with its speed, so when it stopped to pick up more garbage, I sped up with all my might to overtake it; and yeah, I did it!

I used to do a job which I really love, but left after 4 years because members of the administration were addicted to garbage talk and they wanted everyone to feel bad about themselves. I made a detour and overtook them.

Once in while, we may feel awful and bad about ourselves and the world around us; but if we look closely, we understand why: we catch other people’s garbage. These people collect garbage along the way and make us see and smell them. They air out their frustrations, stress and simple discontentment about anything. And the most awful thing about all these is we absorb them.

One thing I always remember about my father: ‘Avoid people with loud and dirty mouths;  they can kill the spirits…’

“Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.” ~ Ephesians 4:29

Ciao

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photo: about.com| posted by john b. bejo