A Tale of Two Pots

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on the end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots was perfectly made and never leaked. The other pot had a crack in it and by the time the water bearer reached his master's house it had leaked much of its water and was only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his master's house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you." "Why?" asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?" "I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts," the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path."

Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again the pot apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house."

Each of us has our own unique flaws. We're all cracked pots. But if we will allow it, God will use our flaws to grace his table. In God's great economy, nothing goes to waste. Don't be afraid of your flaws. Acknowledge them, and you too can be the cause of beauty. Know that in our weakness we find our strength.

Editor-in-Chief: @AyannaNahmias
LinkedIn: Ayanna Nahmias

The Prophet's Children | Khalil Gibran

Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you. And though they are with you, they belong not to you. You may give them your love but not your thoughts. For they have their own thoughts. You may house their bodies but not their souls, For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, Which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams. You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you. For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday. You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth. The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite. And He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far. Let your bending in the archer's hands be for happiness; For even as He loves the arrow that flies, So He loves the bow that is stable.

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The Perspective of Life

As Mark Twain said, “You can't depend on your judgment when your imagination is out of focus.” Often, if we take the time to be introspective, we will see that our perspective is colored by the experiences of our life which we project onto others and the world.

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In His Mirror | Nick Vujicic

Ayanna Nahmias, Editor-in-ChiefLast Modified: 03:46 AM EDT, 15 February 2012

Nick Vujicic, Oman, Photo by Vigor Enterprises

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, it is a cold but relatively mild day.  After months of financial difficulties I have finally started working but it seems as if it has been a little late. But, things never happen early or late but always right on time.  However, when one is in the midst of a crisis such as I and many other Americans are currently facing, we pull in and embrace fear.  It is a hard place to be, to trust in God when one is on the verge of loosing one's home.

When I originally wrote this post I was in a different frame of mind in terms of how I interacted with the universe.  I believed at that time that things happened to me versus my envisioning and creating the experiences that subsequently happen to me.  The idea of active creation does not negate God, in whom I am an ardent believer; however, we must do our part in order for Him to do His.

That is why Nick Vujicic story is so important and why it was selected to be featured on our site.  It is a basic human tendency to teach ourselves and our children to speak about those things that we don't want, to vent and talk about what ails us, and to view ourselves as a victim while others prosper. We have moved beyond the 'Me Gen' to simply "Ego Driven."  We make no pretense at caring about others feelings or needs unless they can further our goals and objectives or assuage a present pain or discomfort.

Vujicic story stops most people in mid-thought because of his physical condition, but then it is his words, his life in action that is what truly captivates and reflects back to us our utter lack of respect for the sanctity of human life and gratefulness for all that we have not been called to struggle with.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trUBA_PXyYg&feature=player_embedded]

I have so much to be grateful for - in an economy where more than 8% of American are unemployed, I have finally secured a job. I have a wonderfully supportive mother and sister.  My son is healthy, extremely intelligent and beautiful.  I have good friends and after years of struggle I like who I am.

So why was I complaining?  Because that is what we do.  We complain.  It is like a computer virus, one can go on vacation to disconnect from the daily grind and totally recover through the antibiotics of peace, tranquility and centering; but upon return, once we plug back in we are easily susceptible to reinfection.

Our office mates complain, our friends and family complain, the people on the elevator complain, the people commuting on the train complain, the news delivers a stream of complaints and bad news ad nausea; and because human beings are social creatures, it is easier to conform and so unconsciously we comply.

Only through a shock to the system can we return to consciousness. Vujicic is a man who is living life fully on his terms, but not just for his benefit but for the inspiration and improvement of the lives of so many other people. Instead of wishing for conditions other than what he has, he embraces what he has been given and leverages his gifts and abilities to their fullest potential.

His story is phenomenally inspirational and the impact of his life is transformational in a way that other stories of survival though impressive tend fade with time.  I am a big fan of the Discovery Channel series "I Shouldn't Be Alive" and the Biography series "I Survived" because both feature individuals who survive horrible situations and tragedies through sheer will and determination.  It is a feeling that I am intimately acquainted with because I am a survivor.

However, to overcome a challenge over a brief span of time, though laudable and miraculous, it does not equate to sustained accomplishment. Vujicic would appear to have so much less than many of us and yet he has and continues to achieve everything he sets his mind to do, while helping others achieve similar freedom.

Vujicic is a living proof that “everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life; everyone must carry out a concrete assignment that demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated, thus, everyone's task is unique as his specific opportunity.” ~ Viktor Frankl

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gc4HGQHgeFE]

My mother often speaks to me about my attitude because she is a firm believer in faith.  Thoughts create reality and what we constantly think about we become or it occurs.  She often chides me about "meeting trouble halfway" and counsels me against this because "it usually dies somewhere in between;" meaning that the solution to far out problems almost always manifest before trouble arrives at ones' door.

I appreciate the mirror that Nick Vujicic's life, presented to me. My reflection in his life has challenged me to continue to be the best, to think the best, and to interact with people and the universe by giving my best. I hope this post inspires you, to attempt "to get up each morning with the resolve to be happy... and to set your own conditions to the events of each day. To do this is to condition circumstances instead of being conditioned by them.” ~ Ralph Waldo Trine.

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Population Me

Ayanna Nahmias, Editor-in-ChiefLast Modified: 22:40 PM EDT, 21 January 2012

Homeless

I first heard this song as I was driving home the day I lost my job. My position was abolished due to a 'reduction in work force.' I was comfortably numb as I packed the detritus of an eight year tenure into the boxes maintenance provided.

I hastily bid adieu to the people with whom I had worked before descending to the garage to get into my car and drive home. The office where I worked was adjacent to a major homeless shelter in Washington, DC. Everyday, as I arrived at work I watched homeless people exit the shelter to fend for themselves until evening when the doors reopened.

Many of these people loitered in and around the building where I worked, and I would pass them by with little or no notice. In the years that I worked at that site I may have, and this is a generous estimate, given a total of $50 in loose change to some of these people. My experience living in Africa desensitized me to beggars so I overcompensated by engaging street people with direct eye contact or the common courtesy of polite conversation.

These niceties cost me nothing, yet made me feel beneficent, as if I had increased the citizenry of my 'population me' universe. I had done nothing to improve their lives nor enrich mine, but because all of my needs were met, I was able to care for my family and take care of my mother, I didn't give it much thought. But God and the Universe requires balance and an accounting for the blessings that have been bestowed upon us.

Now it was my opportunity to experience life on the outside looking in and it was a sobering reality. I realized that I was now being given the opportunity to reassess my life, to embrace my purpose, and to expand my consciousness. In the coming months I would come to rely on the largess of others to survive, as well as suffer the indignity of becoming persona non grata to some people whom I had known for nearly a decade.

Thus, I circle back to the beginning. The sun is shining brightly, I am driving with my rooftop open and XM Radio blasting, then this song comes on and silences the storm that is brewing in my heart. It was then that I realized I had been granted a great gift through this small life course correction. I was being granted the privilege of learning from the error of my hubris and generously been given time to live a fuller more compassionate life.

Mother Theresa said it best in her quote, “Our life of poverty is as necessary as the work itself. Only in heaven will we see how much we owe to the poor for helping us to love God better because of them.” This song helped me to realize that I must, we all must, expand our lives to accommodate more than just 'population me.'

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9Yasgzjc0w]

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The Story of the Butterfly

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to squeeze its body through the tiny hole. Then it stopped, as if it couldn't go further. So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bits of cocoon. The butterfly emerged easily but it had a swollen body and shriveled wings. The man continued to watch it, expecting that any minute the wings would enlarge and expand enough to support the body, Neither happened! In fact the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around.

It was never able to fly. What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand: The restricting cocoon and the struggle required by the butterfly to get through the opening was a way of forcing the fluid from the body into the wings so that it would be ready for flight once that was achieved.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. Going through life with no obstacles would cripple us. We will not be as strong as we could have been and we would never fly.

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The Paradox of Our Times

Today we have bigger houses and smaller families

More conveniences, but less time.

We have more degrees, but less common sense,

More knowledge, but less judgment,

We have more experts, and more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We spend too recklessly, laugh too little,

Drive too fast, get angry far too quickly,

Stay up late, get up too tired,

Read too little, watch T.V. too often,

And pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but have reduced our values,

We talk too much, love too little, and lie too often.

We have learned how to make a living, but not a life.

We have added years to life,

Not life to years.

We have taller buildings, but shorter tempers.

Wider freeways, but narrow viewpoints.

We spend more, but have less; we buy more, and enjoy less.

We’ve been all the way to the moon and back,

But have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor.

We’ve conquered outer space, but not inner space,

We have split the atom, but not our prejudice.

We write more, but learn less.

Plan more, but accomplish less.

We’ve learned to rush, but not to want,

We have higher incomes, but lower morals.

We build more computers to hold more information,

To produce more copies, but communicate less,

We are long on quantity, but short on quality.

These are the times of fast food, and slow digestion,

Tall men, and short character,

Steep profits and shallow relationships,

More leisure and less fun.

More kinds of food, but less nutrition,

Two incomes, but more divorce,

Fancier houses, but more broken homes.

That’s why I propose, that as of today,

You do not keep anything for a special occasion,

Because everyday that you live is a special occasion.

Search for knowledge, read more,

Sit on the porch and admire the view,

Without paying attention to your needs.

Spend more time with your family and friends,

Eat your favorite foods and,

Visit the places you love.

Enjoyment is life as a chain of moments,

Not long drawn out survival,

Remove from your vocabulary phrases like,

” One of these days” and “Someday.”

Let’s tell our families and friends how much we love them.

Do not delay anything that adds laughter and joy to your life.

Everyday, every hour, and every minute is special.

And you do it knowing that it could be your last…

Just think… one of these days you may not be here to do any of the above!

Author: Dr. Bob Moorehead, Pastor