The Mayonnaise Jar and 2 Cups of Coffee

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 Hours in a day is not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full.. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full.

The students responded with an unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - God, family, children, health, friends, and Favorite passions -- things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car.

The sand is everything else -- the small stuff.

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play With your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.

"Take care of the golf balls first -- the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked".

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

God and the Spider

During World War II, a US marine was separated from his unit on a Pacific island. The fighting had been intense, and in the smoke and
the crossfire he had lost touch with his comrades.

 

Alone in the jungle, he could hear enemy soldiers coming in his direction. Scrambling for cover, he found his way up a high ridge to several small caves in the rock. Quickly he crawled inside one of the caves. Although safe for the moment, he realized that once the enemy soldiers looking for him swept up the ridge, they would quickly search all the caves and he would be killed.

 

As he waited, he prayed, "Lord, if it be your will, please protect me. Whatever your will though, I love you and trust you. Amen."

 

After praying, he lay quietly listening to the enemy begin to draw close. He thought, "Well, I guess the Lord isn't going to help me out of this one." Then he saw a spider begin to build a web over the front of his cave.

 

As he watched, listening to the enemy searching for him all the while, the spider layered strand after strand of web across the opening of the cave.

 

"Hah, he thought. "What I need is a brick wall and what the Lord has sent me is a spider web. God does have a sense of humor."

 

As the enemy drew closer he watched from the darkness of his hideout and could see them searching one cave after another. As they came to his, he got ready to make his last stand. To his amazement, however, after glancing in the direction of his cave, they moved on. Suddenly, he realized that with the spider web over the entrance, his cave looked as if no one had entered for quite a while.

 

"Lord, forgive me," prayed the young man. "I had forgotten that in you a spider's web is stronger than a brick wall."

 

We all face times of great trouble. When we do, it is so easy to forget what God can work in our lives, sometimes in the most surprising ways. And remember with God, a mere spider's web becomes a brick wall of protection.

10 Principles For Living

God knew the specific purpose you were born to fulfill, so He provided All the gifts you'd need, including the environment required to put it all together. Then He looked at you and said, "Very good." Can you say that too? It's important that you can. Why? Because others will treat you according to how you treat yourself! This is not pride, it's just healthy self-esteem based on God's opinion of you as revealed in His Word. When you have it, it affects every area of your life. Truth be told, it determines how far you'll go in life.

Stop and ask yourself today, "How do I really feel about myself?" before you answer read these ten principles. Better yet, keep them before you daily.

1. Never think or speak negatively about yourself; that puts you in disagreement with God.
2. Meditate on your God-given strengths and learn to encourage yourself, for much of the time nobody else will.
3. Don't compare yourself to anybody else. You're unique, one of a kind, an original. So don't settle for being a copy.
4. Focus on your potential, not your limitations. Remember, God lives in you!
5. Find what you like to do, do well, and strive to do it with excellence.
6. Have the courage to be different. Be a God pleaser, not a people pleaser.
7. Learn to handle criticism. Let it develop you instead of discourage you.
8. Determine your own worth instead of letting others do it for you. They'll short-change you!
9. Keep your shortcomings in perspective - you're still a work in progress.
10. Focus daily on your greatest source of confidence - the God Who lives in you!

Written by Rusty LaRue