As we walk through life, we observe others naturally, walking along the same sidewalks or driving along the same roads in their cars. In our daily lives we notice that body language speaks volumes of how a person is feeling. You could be completely emotionless and yet to others, you're telling a deep story of perhaps depression or confusion as too why your life is the way it is.

It's amazing on any typical day that when good things happen to people, it's announced upon the rooftops and a person's good mood is exuded or reflected to others. While those who have bad days or moments do the exact opposite, not only do they get upset but they near intentionally work to get everyone else around them just as upset, outraged, or hurt.

I wouldn't suggest keeping things to ourselves as there seems to be no therapeutic value to that whatsoever. However when we are in good moods' it is strange to notice in the human make up that it is not in anyway our nature, to try to give a good mood back to others.

This is a very difficult line of discussion, for the thought process of the issue and actions of what is expected of us, seems foreign. When we have good things, happen to us in our lives, the only people that benefit are those that are involved, and whether others are happy for us or envious, we then go on in our lives, with our moment of temporary joy without concern for anyone else. While on the flip side, if we're in a bad mood, it's our duty to take it out on everyone else around us.

Or is it?

In a perfect world, or if perhaps we were just simply more kind to one another, we might be interested in taking a moment to hope that others are having good lives and see what we could do for other people in an attempt to keep our good mood going. It is fact that when something good happens, if you pass that feeling on, at the end of the day your feeling of self satisfaction is multiplied and is not fleeting.

This is where the split occurs as well, it is the exact opposite but exactly the same in a sense, when in a bad mood, and you take it out on others, you feel doubly worse afterwards. Having to make up for, or apologize for what you did to those who were innocent.

I think the key message to keep hold of is to truly "Love others as you would love yourself." Loving yourself is good enough for your own well being, but loving others keeps loving flowing through the world. Not knowing if the next person will pass on that love to another they run across.

Never stop giving, even when others take advantage of you and do wrong to you. Continue to love others, so that others will love you, and let those who hurt people continue to hurt themselves by there own actions.

Take time out of your day to notice a good thing someone else has done and compliment them on it, so that they may be recognized and acknowledged. If you get in a good mood spread it, and if you feel depression, sadness, or loss find a good friend to talk to, to bring you out of it so that you don't hurt other people with your anger or rage.

Colossians 3

5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.

6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.

7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.

8 But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.

12 Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

It's Friday night. You've had a long day at work. You and your friends head to your favorite restaurant for some great food and gossip. It's something you've looked forward to all week. You get a nice glass of wine and peruse the menu while your friend tells you about the new dress she bought for her date tomorrow night. Ahhhh, so peaceful, so quiet, so relaxing. This is what life's all about. You place your order and sit back, smiling at how perfect the moment is. Then, out of the blue, a scream pierces the silence.

You and your friends turn. What is the source of such a horrid noise? Is it a jungle animal? How did it get into the restaurant? But no...it's something much more human. Something small and innocent. Something that normally would be so adorable but has suddenly gone way, way wrong...

"They should take that kid outside," one of your friends says. "It's just selfish of them to stay here."

You look at the parents. They are not happily enjoying their meal; in fact, they look quite stressed. This temper tantrum was obviously unwarranted and unexpected. Sure, they could grab the kid up and whisk him outside to spare the restaurant the noise, but what will that teach the child?

Many people say parents with children like that should just stay home. But just as much as it's my right to go to a restaurant and have a peaceful dining experience, isn't it their right to go to a restaurant every now and then as well? And how will that child ever learn how to behave in public if he never leaves the house?

More and more restaurants are claiming to be "family friendly." Some have even resorted to confining the customers with children to a separate area of the restaurant. Ironically, many of the parents have complained about that. They don't want to eat surrounded by screaming children. Imagine that.

But one restaurant owner in Chicago decided to put an end to it, once and for all. He hung a sign that read, "children of all ages have to behave and use their indoor voices when coming to A Taste of Heaven." You can imagine the outrage that created.

"Part of parenting skills is teaching kids they behave differently in a restaurant than they do on the playground," Dan McCauley said in an interview. "If you send out positive energy, positive energy returns to you. If you send out energy that says I'm the only one that matters, it's going to be a pretty chaotic world."

And McCauley isn't the only one. A restaurant in Minneapolis has the following note on the menu: "We love children, especially when they're tucked into chairs and behaving." A cafe in Massachusetts has rules about "inside voices" posted in its play area and a bistro in California declares, "Well-behaved children and parents welcome."

This isn't necessarily confined to children. More and more I've noticed places of business displaying signs about cell phones. It has little to do with cell phones as much as lack of consideration. If I get a phone call in a quiet area, I'll take it outside. But there are people who will sit and talk, very loudly, with no consideration for those around them. Since businesses can't post a sign banning inconsiderate jerks, they must ban cell phones for all of us.

It's the same with parenting. McCauley claims to have dealt with children running up and down the aisles, throwing themselves at display cases, climbing poles, screaming, and laying on the floor blocking the line for coffee. Why didn't the parents admonish those children? Who knows. Should the business owner just ignore this as these children drive business away?

Soon after posting the sign, petitions were circulated. Chicago parents began boycotting the restaurant. But as soon as word leaked out to the media, letters of support began pouring in. People sent money to make up for the business he had lost. McCauley's business tripled. All because of that sign.

So...what do you think? Are parents inconsiderate of others or are we all just becoming more and more intolerant? Many states have already banned smoking. What else should we ban in restaurants? How far will we go with all this?

Proverbs 29:17
17Discipline your son, and he will give you peace; he will bring delight to your soul.

Ephesians 6
1Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2"Honor your father and mother"--which is the first commandment with a promise-- 3"that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."4Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

Trust is one of the hardest and one of the most necessary qualities we all need, in order to live with ourselves, each other and God.

But why is it so hard to trust? We find it easier to trust in other people, that they won't betray us, and yet the Lord who MADE us, we are suspicious of Him at every turn. Sure we love Him, but we are also told that we must TRUST in Him.

So why don't we? I think it's the fact that somewhere inside us, we all realise that He controls EVERYTHING. That He can do absolutely anything He pleases. How many of us equate power with corruption? It gets hard to trust that someone who can do whatever He wants will really do what is in our best interest.

When it comes to trusting in God, I'm inspired by my friend Eric. He is 32 and married and has 6 children. The youngest two having been born here in Australia. God called him to move to Australia to minister. My friend was worried and scared of such a huge step. But God called, and Eric moved his family here, and gave up his life to whatever God wanted him to do, and put his trust in God to provide for his family.

I admit, I have trouble trusting in God. My experiences have made trust an extremely hard thing to learn. But I am the one who is missing out because of my mistrust. I have a Lord who wants to open my eyes and my heart and tell me "You know what? I will NEVER leave you." My mistrust hurts myself, as your mistrust hurts you.

So think about it. When God tells you "I want you to do this for me, and remember I will be there with you" what are you going to say? Will you wallow in your own mistrust and fear, or take His hand and trust Him with your whole heart?

If you are dismayed by the news, disheartened by the state of the world, and feeling anxious or helpless, take heart. You are not alone. And there is something we can do. Find out what one inspired and inspiring visionary has to say about what we can do, right here:

First of all, don't be -- depressed, frustrated and disillusioned, that means. Know that you are doing what you can and that it counts. Every single solitary thing that we each do and say and, especially, think really does count. More than we can ever believe.

Some might argue that we don't have any choice in this upside down dangerous world and that we can't effect what will happen. But even if we can't immediately alter the course of human events in the world stage. We can certainly create and change our own lives and in all of the lives that we touch. And our thoughts are the seeds of that change.
Use your thoughts wisely. Understand their power. Thoughts have a tendency to become their physical equivalent. This is one of the fundamental laws of the universe. Another one is the law of attraction, which states that 'like attracts like.' Because it is consciousness that creates reality.

So our first order of business must be to stay positive. Entertaining only positive possibilities. Imagining only affirmative alternatives. Surrounding our selves with wholly uplifting, life-affirming people and influences. Aligning our selves solely with the greater good so that our actions will be born of only the finest of our best intentions.

What we all have to do from now on is to stay alert, stay centered, keep connected and most important of all keep talking. Talking, writing, protesting keeps the light of truth and tolerance shining upon the hidden agendas of governments, industries, institutions and individuals. Silence, like the dark of night, shelters nefarious deeds. Silence forgives violence.

Be bold.
Make a statement.
Make a stand.
Make a difference.

In light of the widespread oppression, manipulation, intimidation that surrounds us today, we most certainly need to say something. We need. In fact, to talk to everyone who we meet, actually engage on a human level with those who we encounter as we make it through our day. Not just our families, friends and colleagues, but the shoe repair guy, the waitress at the coffee shop, the post office clerk, the bag boy at the super market. Everybody is, after all, somebody.
If we ignore, exploit or patronize those people whose lives intersect with ours, how can we expect international relations to be more civilized? We need to walk the walk and, talk our talk, wherever we go, whatever we do, remembering always, that by doing so we do make a difference. Let us each be a sun, sending our caring energy out into the world, shedding light wherever we go. You never know who you might touch with the radiance of your warmth.
You know there really is still a chance for peace and that chance will definitely increase if we each do our piece. So let's make peace -- in our homes, in our own hearts, in our relationships, in our communities, in all of our dealings and in the world. Peace be with us all.


John 1: 4-10

4. These things we write to you that your joy may be full 5. This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all 6. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His son cleanses us from all sin. 8. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.

Music many will say is a form of art. Each color carefully chose; each stroke of the brush thought over time and time again, but a musician doesn't use elaborate colors, instead, each note every pitch has been thought over and practiced a thousand times to form a masterpiece in the minds of those who will listen in no band is this more evident in then Nightwish. Though Nightwish falls under the metal category and are fully worthy of that honor one cannot help but notice amidst the wicked bass and tantalizing guitar solos there is melody that gives all their songs a majestic sound that keep the listeners captivated.

Not only are the sounds of the instruments good but so is the voice itself. Combining operatic vocals with metal some may think is impossible but Nightwish and many other bands made it work. The words of every song never fails to inspire me. The lyrics are brilliant and proves to the audience that Tuomas Holopainen, keyboardist, song writer and founder of Nightwish, take time in what he does and makes sure everything is perfect. Their attitudes toward the fans are also very positive. They are very nice and try to do as much as they can to please them. The concerts are also wonderful. They try to perform as best they can and even when sick they pour their whole hearts out playing which is also another example of a positive attitude.

The true measure of a band's greatness is also measured by how they perform live. Some bands have an almost completely different sound when they perform live. This is not the case with Nightwish not only do they keep the same sound when performing live but their chemistry with one another and the crowd are outstanding. They always look so happy when performing for a live crowd even though things inside the band and offstage are really tough. The greatest thing about Nightwish is they always remembered where they came from and this is so evident in their stage antics.

When we listen to music, we many times seek something to connect with. The way they sing the sound of the music or the lyrics themselves but perhaps the thing we connect with Nightwish on is that you can accomplish anything when you keep your mind to it and perhaps the greatest thing we can learn from this great band.

Many people don't realize how hard it is to release oneself from sexual sins; especially when it comes to mental sexual sins.


"But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matthew 5:28)


The sin you can commit with your mind. The sin you can commit just by willfully laying your eyes upon the things you shouldn't or thinking the thoughts you know you shouldn't. Maybe you just shouldn't look or think anymore. That sounds easy, right?

Temptation is everywhere. It's in television, magazines, advertisements, you name it. From the people you meet to the things you hear. They can all influence you to sin. Sex sells, and the world knows it. You say dirty thoughts only belong to those with "dirty minds"? But aren't all minds dirty?

It is the very world around us that makes us dirty! The media raises us to think certain ways; to accept the unacceptable. They tell you it is acceptable to commit adultery if you don't love the one whom you married. They say it is acceptable to have pre-marital sex because you are in love. And it is even acceptable to have 3 girlfriends.

So are you to blame for your sinful way of thinking? Whose fault is it to be curious? Whose fault is it to want to see more? Is it natural? Or is the fact that you can't do anything about it, save joining an Amish community, supposed to make it ok?


"If your eye causes you to sin, poke it out. It would be better for you to enter God's kingdom with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell." (Mark 9:47)


So how far are you willing to go, to keep yourselves from sinning? What would it take to free yourself from sin? Would you stop reading those magazines? Would you sell your T.V.? Or would you rather poke out your eyes?

Greetings. If you missed my last Angel Message, I am Mephisto, the Hatred of Mankind. As you might infer from that title, I will speak at length about matters involving hatred and its different forms. Last time I briefly touched on a troubling subject the hatred, that is all too popular, of religion. This time I'd like to reach further, and discuss one of the defining reasons that people give of WHY they hate religion. I speak, of course, about the misconception that all those who make faith a major part of their life are bigoted, intolerant, and hate filled human beings.

To begin, where does this misconception stem from? Childish rebellion against rules and social mores? Or is it something more profound? First of all, no one ever likes to be told they are in the wrong. There is no criticism, no matter how constructive, that can ever be accepted without engendering negative emotions. Sometimes these emotions are merely shame or guilt, that can be alleviated by forgiveness and understanding. Other times these emotions can be anger, resentment, or even hatred; where forgiveness only serves to add insult to injury. BECAUSE religion forgives the sinful, it is unacceptable. If we merely condemned out right, like the bigots so many wish us to be, we would be much easier to simply dismiss.

So how then, if we are so forgiving, do those who hate religion perpetuate this imagery of hate filled religious fanatics? Well, some fanatics do exist. No matter how pure an ideal may be, there will always be those that either misunderstand the message or corrupt it for their own purposes. Secondly, there are dark patches in our religious history where religion has been used as the excuse and then the scapegoat for war, political torture, and petty theft. None of this has anything to do with the here and now, you might say, and you would mostly be right. The only problem is its only 'mostly' and those that WANT to hate will take any excuse they can get, any reason to prove that they are 'right' and you are 'wrong'. And when they find a wrong, they are not required to forgive.

We arrive at the core of the problem then. Is it wrong to hate hatred? There is certainly a prevalent double standard in our society, where if you are said to hate a person or group of people (regardless of if it is true) you forfeit any right to not be hated and tormented yourself. A similar problem arises with those convicted of murder being sentences to death. Do two wrongs make a right? If you are hated, is it alright to hate back? Is an eye for an eye the most acceptable route? The religious answer, of course, is no. We are taught to turn the other cheek, to forgive, and to forget. We are taught to hate the sin, not the sinner. But those that hate us, they don't have that same teaching. Even if they once did, they've turned their back on it. They can hate you as hard and as strong as they like because they have refused your morals as flawed. But does that make it right?

The world hates to be told that it is in the wrong. The world hates even more to be forgiven, especially if it has no intention of ever repenting. So logic would dictate the best course of action would be to remain silent...to forget our beliefs and gently lie about what we think is right or wrong. No one could accuse us of being intolerant if we accepted everyone, even if they did not repent of their sins. No one could point us out as bigots if we shook hands with murderers and adulterers and proclaimed them to be wonderful members of society. No one would hate us or organize groups to specifically persecute us then. Yet there would none the less be a reckoning. We may be accountable to this world, but we are also accountable to God, and even more than that, we are accountable to OURSELVES. It is wrong to betray your own beliefs just because their inconvenient to you or the society you live in. No matter how much hatred and intolerance we must bare, we have a responsibility to all of mankind.

"When I say unto the wicked, 'Thou shalt surely die', and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way to save his life, the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy soul." Ezek.3:18-19

Hi, I'm Michael and I'm "The Guardian of The Weak"...So I'm going to write about true guardians , the police. What interested me in writing this is my career interest of being on a S.W.A.T. team.

There are many things every day that police do to make the world better, and protect those who can't protect them selfs . Their presence alone brings some sort of peace to society. Needless to say how they clean the streets of criminals.

I guess the way I'm going to take this article is in the direction of drugs, and the work police do to stop the flow of drugs on the streets. In my opinion, drugs have to be the leading cause of crime in todays world. If you look at crime statistics, there is more violent crimes in drug neighborhoods.

Even though your average patrol officer pulls over a car and catches a few kids with some marijuana or cocaine and bust them, this is hardly the dent in drug crimes that law enforcement does. Our streets being cleaned of drugs is all the work of detectives. Our detectives do everything from go undercover and face the worst of criminals without any sort of weapon or backup to sitting in an office listening to phone taps.

Not only do our narcotic detectives protect the general population against random crimes, but they also protect innocent children and women from drug abusive fathers. Keeping drug traffic on our streets at a minimum will keep a lot of people from getting there hands on things like Cocaine, Amphetamines , Ecstasy, etc preventing these types of situations.

Drugs not only kill people and ruin relationships, but they also cause a lot of our poverty. If you go into any "bad neighborhood" in the United States you will notice a lot of drug traffic. Our detectives do their best to keep drugs at a minimum, and because of that our poverty level is much lower then it would be without them.

I think a real "Guardian of The Weak" is your every day narcotics detective. They are the ones who put their lives on the line and expose them selfs to these terrible things so that you and I don't have to experience it. These people are true "heroes " to all of us. Not only do these people need our thanks for making our lives better, but we also owe them our respect.

-Michael

The Legion of Angels website main goal was to help spread the word of God. In general by helping people we hope to create a type of trickling effect that goes down to affect and change the lives of many more people. From these acts we hope to display the love and mercy of our Lord God through aid, prayer, and faith. The text on the banner of the main site page sums it up in Luke 10:27 where Jesus explains the greatest commandment. "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself."

This website is dedicated to higher learning, deeper wisdom, and self improvement on all levels. The members of this website are normal people, just like everyone else. And because of that, like many others, we all need a little help and support or a helping hand from time to time. Regardless, it truly shows a kind heart, to those who join as members, to become part of a community where we can hold each other's backs, or crosses in a sense, and help one another in times of need.

Whether sinner or saint, we accept all members regardless of your background. And we all need to act with honor and respect by showing tolerance of everyone's beliefs, even if they're different, as well as displaying integrity, character, and honesty, while on this community.

In closing, aside from spreading the word of God, and offering support to one another, the last goal is for everyone to enjoy themselves here and enjoy life in general.

Legion of Angels

I am Uriel, The Eye of the Beholder, the angel of foresight.

People often picture a fortune teller, or a palm reader when they hear the word foresight. Psychics that we see on the television infomercials are often just charlatans parading around making a mockery of the curious and powerful blessing. Because of these relationships made by others, people most often see foresight as a myth, or a joke. But most people don't see the relationship to the word to the Lord. God gave us free will, of course, but in the Bible, there are guidelines to follow in life, to walk in the footsteps of Jesus. And as we are humans, we don't always follow in the path that God sets for us.

Many people feel that they often see "signs" or "messages" sent from the Lord. I am confident in saying God is giving us these messages or signs in order to direct us in the right path, tell us something we need to know, or just to show us that he is there. The Lord is around us all, even if we don't know it. He is omnipotent, strong, merciful, and forgiving, making him related to, by many, a "father", because he is in fact our Heavenly father. Many of these gifts that God sends, have indeed been sent to me. Almost all of them recently, have helped me change my life. They helped me get closer to Him, and gain a stronger love and passion for Him.

God is the ultimate foreseer. He is the Almighty Soothsayer. With that being said, shouldn't we be following His guidelines and messages? Worldly influences have caused our faith to wither more and more, to the point where the messages from God don't even exist in our eyes.

His children are losing faith. Our brothers and sisters are leaving us. Which is why we get together and witness, because there are people on this Earth that do not know Jesus. We have to give them a chance. We need to help.

We need to pay attention, and stop ignoring God's messages. He is what is important.

After all, he is not some cheesy psychic on television.

He is God.

I am Alpha, the Arrow of the Heart. The mode of existence for this angel is that of love.

What is love exactly?

As defined by Webster's dictionary, love is intense affection arising out of kinship or personal ties. Wikipedia says "love is any of a number of emotions and experiences related to a sense of strong affection or profound oneness." 1 Corinthians 13 describes love as being patient, kind, slow to anger, and holding no record of wrong doing done against it. "If I gave everything I had to the poor and even sacrificed my body... but I didn't love others, I would be of no value whatsoever," verse three proclaims. Love is undoubtedly one of the most influential and most powerful forces in life, both in history and in our present lives.

There are many types of love. Some types, like familial and platonic love, we have lived with for most of our lives through warm embraces, smiles, and even laughter. Some types we have yet to embark upon, whether that be a personal oneness with God or the strong personal ties we forge with the person we have decided to spend the rest of our lives with. All types are important and all forms of love are from God. However, the love I will be addressing today in my message is that of self-acceptance, of knowing your self-worth.

"The commandments, 'Do not commit adultery,' 'Do not murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not covet,' and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: 'Love your neighbor as yourself' "(Romans 13:9). But how can a person love another if he does not love himself? Love yourself as God loves you because He values your existence, my existence- our existence.

In growing numbers, there have been many instances of people with eating disorders, the connection between dissatisfaction with body image and eating rising, both in men and women. People are unhealthily obsessing over exercise, surgery- altering the body and the face they were born and blessed with. Where there is discontentment with self, there is always a temporary, quick solution for the moment to fix the supposed problem at hand. But understand, as many changes as one goes through, no matter how physically beautiful a person ends up, it does not change the fact that from the beginning, this person was unhappy with themselves. Make up, surgery, all the squats in the world do not amount to anything when the major change needed is in the heart.

This topic is very close to home for me. I can remember everyday as a result of the way I felt, my attitude reflected how I felt about myself. I did not care about how I dressed or how I looked and avoided a mirror at every possible chance. I hated myself. I hated my life because I felt so ugly, so cursed. I tried dieting, tried starving myself for that perfect self but nothing worked; I felt that I was destined for loneliness. When I was about 16, I went to a church camp for the weekend and ended up speaking to one of the youth counselors after one of the classes. She told me that God is a God capable of anything. He is a God that loved us so much that His only son was sent down to earth to save us. And then she said that I, like everyone around us, was a masterpiece created by the Almighty. To be ashamed of myself and to hate my physical appearance was to doubt in the perfection of God.

"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."
- Matthew 10: 29-31

Sometimes, we forget the origins of which we sprang from. When God created us, He did not have tags on people to be 'ugly' or 'pretty' but made us "a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor"(Psalms 8:5). He made us in His likeness, in His image, and made us rulers of all life forms( Genesis 1:26). Sometimes, in order to feel love though, a person has to be shown love first. Father may have not given those stern lectures television dads are always notorious for or is probably better not being in the picture. Mother may be busy at work and too busy to hear out those troubles. God is ALWAYS there. Whether morning, night, stuck in traffic, stuck in school, or in those meticulously drawn out days at work, He's there. It says in Matthew 10 that not one of the sparrows will fall to the ground without Him knowing, that He knows the number of the hairs on your very head. He knows when you are hurting and when you are in pain and is listening. "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me," Jesus says in John 14. God chose to adopt us through Christ, as sons and daughters long before the "foundation of the world"(Ephesians 1:4). He had resolved to be that familial love in our lives that we are missing today. He is the true friend we've been waiting for(John 15:13-15). Nothing can separate us from the true love, the all encompassing power of love God has instilled in us(Romans 8:35).

There is a parable in Matthew 18 that has always been a particular favorite of mine: the story of a man that owns a hundred sheep. A hundred? To me, that number is huge; I couldn't imagine that the shepherd would notice if one wandered away. What if this sheep had been the scrawniest, the most plain, the runt of the group? What if this sheep was the meanest and bit other sheep? What if this sheep had been in the worst condition and had gross sheep hair or a nasty wool coat? None of this matters. He is overjoyed to have found that lost one than those ninety-nine that did not stray. It might seem crazy that the shepherd would venture and possibly risk someone stealing the rest of the herd but one was just as important as ninety-nine. Just as Abraham had questioned the Lord and asked him about the residents of Sodom and Gomorrah, if God had found only a handful of people in hundreds of thousands among the residents there, would He spare the entire place? "For the sake of ten," the Lord had said in Genesis 18:32. "I will not destroy it."

For me, it is amazing how all equal we are as people. Equal is a strange word; we could be all "same and even proportions" of love and grace but even had saying that, the one sheep is more important than the crowd. The Father is elated because the one that was lost and alone is now comforted. The one that was lost and alone was just as important as the group who stayed with Him though He is happy because now that ONE is not alone anymore. The thought that even if one of us were to disappear from sight and from society, who will notice? God will. That if my heart were to the brim and I was in danger, who will keep me safe? God will. It is almost impossible to even began to imagine how much love God has for all of us. And that even though one person's problem may be different and may feel not as important or as profound as others, it pains that ONE. He is there to take care of each and every person that will let Him in his or her heart.

I had found my spiritual father long before I mended my relationship with my earthly father. I had found a friend in Jesus long before I became a friend of anyone else. I can look in the mirror and appreciate what God has created, what face God has given me, what personality quirks and character traits God has blessed me with, and appreciate those attributes that others have but I do not. I can share these simple tokens of affection, those warm embraces, funny faces, and smiles. I can laugh at myself without being ashamed or hurt. I can forgive myself when I make mistakes and try to move on. I can pray when I am in need or when another needs help. I can love myself today because the Lord God first loved me.