JULY 29, 2010

Your Job Should Express Your Heart by Rick Warren

Posted by Dorothy under Philosophy1 comment

This post is specially dedicated to those adventurous and daring souls who have denied the norms of professional blue collar jobs to venture out in pursuit of their dream jobs!! As for those who are still contemplating ( year after year ) on leaving their office jobs, this post might give you the courage to make your move. The rest of you who do not know what your dreams are, good luck and may you stumble upon it one day:) Trust me as you will stop complaining about Mondays and get excited on Fridays. Your job will no longer be a chore but a hobby in which you make a living from.Read on and be inspired.

From now on if you listen obediently to the commandments that I am commanding you today, love God, your God, and serve him with everything you have within you, he’ll take charge of sending the rain at the right time

…. Deuteronomy 11:13-14 MSG)

“Don’t waste your life in a job that doesn’t express your heart”. Repeatedly, the Bible says to “serve the Lord with all your heart”. God wants you to serve him passionately, not dutifully. People rarely excel at tasks they don’t enjoy doing or feel passionate about. God wants you to use your natural interests to serve him and others.
How do you know when you’re serving God from your heart?

The first telltale sign is enthusiasm. When you’re doing what you love to do, no one has to motivate you, or challenge you, or check up on you. You do it for the sheer enjoyment. You don’t need rewards, or applause, or to be paid, because you love serving in this way.

The opposite is also true: When you don’t have a heart for what you’re doing, you’re easily discouraged.

One characteristic of serving God from your heart is effectiveness: Whenever you do what God wired you to love to do, you get good at it.

Passion drives perfection. If you don’t care about a task, it is unlikely that you’ll excel at it. On the other hand, the highest achievers in any field are those who do it because of passion, not duty or profit. We’ve all heard people say, “I took a job I hate in order to make a lot of money, so someday I can quit and do what I love to do”. That’s a big mistake. Don’t waste your life in a job that doesn’t express your heart. If you’re dealing with inequitable treatment in the office, an employment lawyer can guide you and protect your rights.

Remember, the greatest things in life are not things. Meaning is far more important than money. The richest man in the world once said,
“A simple life in the fear-of-God is better than a rich life with a ton of headaches”(Proverbs 15:16 MSG).

Don’t settle for achieving “the good life,” because the good life is not good enough. Ultimately, it doesn’t satisfy. You can have a lot to live on, and still have nothing to live for. Aim instead for “the better life” – serving God in a way that expresses your heart. Figure out what you love to do – that which God gave you a heart for – and then do it for his glory!

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JUNE 9, 2010

Kids Religious and Moral Education Galore

Posted by Dorothy under Philosophyno responses

Scratching your head and undecided on what to buy for your kid or someone else’s kid on their birthday? The common ideas would be either books or toys. I personally prefer buying books as presents rather than toys to encourage the reading habit but these days, kids have so many other wants ie: mobile phones or the latest computer games. Besides all that, most parents would agree with me that books have not lost their popularity amongst these gadget literate kids. Therefore, I would like to introduce to all parents out there a list of Hindu and Buddhist colourful pictorial books with hints of moral and religious education thrown in. If you are not convinced that a child will be interested in these books, think of it as the Asian version of Powerpuff Girls, Sesame Street and Pokemon:)

1) Little Monk’s Ganesha

Do you know whose birthday is celebrated all over the country on Bhadrapada Chaturthi? It is Ganesha’s, the elephant-headed son of Shiva and Parvati. Known as Vighneshwara, meaning the ‘remover of obstacles’, Ganesha is worshipped at the beginning of every auspicious happening so that the venture may get completed without any hindrance.

Ganesha is known for his intellect and presence of mind. He had a very interesting and eventful childhood. With an elephant head, potbelly and a penchant for good food, Lord Ganesha is one of the most popular and loved of the Hindu gods. Each of the illustrated stories in this book presents different aspects of Ganesha, be it his mischief, humour, devotion to his mother or his gentle, compassionate nature.

2) The Little Book Of Hindu Deities

In this  Little Book of Hindu Deities, Pixar animator Sanjay Patel brings to life Hinduism’s most important gods and goddesses in fun, full-color illustrations, each accompanied by a short, lively profile. The stories of Hindu mythology cover everything from love and jealousy to petty grievances and epic battles, with characters ranging from monsters and demons to noble warriors and divine divas. Find out why Ganesha has an elephant’s head (his father cut it off!) and why Kali, the Goddess of Time, is known as “The Black One” (she’s a bit goth).

3) Indian Children’s Favorite Stories

This delightful collection of Indian folk tales-retold for an international audience-contains beautifully illustrated stories that provide an insight into the traditional culture and history of India. Retold here are the wonderful tales of how the Lord Krishna escapes the evil Kamsa’s repeated attempts to kill him, and how the elephant keeper’s daughter Rani humbles an unwise and unjust king by emptying his storehouses of rice.

4) Stories From India

Featuring old stories of trickery and cunning, fable-like tales of animals, and inspiring stories of the battles and feats of different Hindu gods, this book retells 16 traditional Indian tales that will engage and amuse young children.

5) The Little Monk’s Buddha

The stories in this book depict the Buddha in several of his births in animal form. Children learn the importance of compassion and kindness from these delightful fables which are simple and easy to understand.

6) Lastly, if your child prefers computers to books, you can try these websites

http://www.hindukids.org/play/puzzles/index.html
http://www.buddhanet.net/index.html
http://www.dharmagames.org/

Good luck with introducing these Asian fables to your kids and I will appreciate it if you fellow readers can update me in regards of your kids reactions!!!Fingers crossed

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MAY 10, 2010

Love Thyself With Loving-Kindness Meditation

Posted by Dorothy under Philosophyno responses

“ LOVE ” is a feeling which is universally recognized by humans and animals alike. It is a feeling or word which normally exhumes positiveness. It creates happiness, a healthy mind, body and soul and sometimes a meaning to what life is. It makes life worth living and is also a necessity to any living beings. A person who has the ability to love benefits himself and those around him. Without love, there will be no compassion, and vice versa.

Remember the times when you felt love, whether it was for a person, an animal, an object, music and watching our beautiful nature. Keep your eyes closed and recapture the feeling you had during that occasion. Does it make you feel extremely positive and that you can go through any obstacles that come your way? I have no doubt that everyone would have experienced loving another or something and being loved in return.

On another note, there are times when you must have felt that no one is on your side, or that things just do not seem to be moving your way, or that you are alone in this worldly battle. When such negative thoughts dominate your mind, you tend to lack confidence and feel disheartened. One of the reasons for such feelings is the lack of love for yourself. When I say love yourself, I do not mean that one should be egoistic and think that “ I ” am the best. Bear in mind that God created everyone differently so that the world will not be a boring place to live in . By saying that, I would like to add on that God is also fair. No one has a perfect life; one is good in something and not in another department. So do not beat yourself up if you cannot mirror another person’s achievement. Try to see the positive side of everything.  When you love thyself you will love those around you. And those around you will show how much they love you, so love thyself today.

A simple and effective way to spread love within yourself is by practicing the Buddhist  Loving-Kindness meditation. It will help you cultivate positive energy by repeating a four-line mantra with affirmations of yourself. This method of meditation have been taught to me by a friend who went to a monastery in Myanmar to seek solace by immersing herself in the ways of a Buddhist nun. After a few years, she has found happiness within herself and have remained in the monastery to serve the community.

To practice Loving-Kindness Meditation:

• Visualize happy moments in your life where joy is abundance and times when you have attained success.
• Absorb that feeling and imagine yourself in a safe bubble of heart which is glowing radiantly.
• Then recite this mantra in your mind.

( a ) I am free from harm and danger

( b ) I am free from mental sufferings

( c ) I am free from physical sufferings

( d ) I am well and happy.

• Keep repeating the mantra and smile to your heart.
• You will be having all sorts of thoughts but do not force them away. Allow them to pass through for the more you force them away, the harder your mind works and this will cause you distractions and unnecessary use of energy. It is the same concept as when someone tells you to save your breath to save yourself the stress.
• You can take as long as you want and repeat the mantra as many times as you like. The most important thing is to affirm positivity within yourself.

Treat your body, mind and soul like a temple, so love yourself and the world will treat you better.

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