For three years, my husband Jody and I lived in Hong Kong - an exotic city with a unique skyline and magnificent ocean views; opulent, opulent, unbelievably rich, and full of incessant activity. In the evenings, when the salty sea breeze blows in our face, we loved to sit on the shore of the bay and look at the horizon.
Grocery shopping was also a lot of fun. I typed a list of necessary products on the computer and faxed it to the store. Everything listed, including freshly caught salmon and sliced pineapple, was delivered to the porch the same day after dinner. This is how to trade!
Over the years of being in Hong Kong, the word "travelers" has become synonymous with our family name. We were lucky to see China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Vietnam and other countries. It is exciting to visit these amazing countries and meet unique people.
Sunny weather in Hong Kong is a common occurrence. We enjoyed the sun on the balcony of our large hillside apartment. God, in His mercy, gave us a wonderful house with wooden floors and magnificent huge windows, which overlooked the lush tropical vegetation and skyscrapers in the valley.
Public transport Hong Kong is a wonderful alternative in the battle against traffic jams. We didn't even have our own car as boats, buses, trains, metros and taxis are inexpensive and readily available. Once a week I held a Bible study on the island of Lan-to, located in a pleasant place - Discovery Bay. In order to get there, I took a bus, then a train, a subway, a boat, and another bus that stopped right at the door of the house where the Bible class was held.
My four grown children and their friends were so excited to see Hong Kong and China. What a wonderful time we had! And although they lived a thousand kilometers from Hong Kong, we could "talk" by e-mail every day. What a blessing the computer age seems to be when you live far away from your loved ones.
I greatly appreciated the opportunity to live in a city where many women yearned to know God and His Word. The annexation of Hong Kong to China was imminent, and people were asking more and more eternal questions about life. I taught them how to teach the Bible, conduct small group classes, and organize Bible meetings so they would be ready to act when capitalist Hong Kong turns communist. But that's only part of the story.
INSIDE
Hong Kong is a great place for tourists, but I would not say that it is good to live there permanently. The population of Hong Kong has exceeded six million. It is one of the most densely populated cities in the world. In the Mei Fu area, which I visited every week, 70,000 people live on an area of 40 acres! Among so many people, I realized how much I value my “personal space”. In Hong Kong, I often felt claustrophobic.
Shopping is a wonderful activity, but only in certain time day. Because of the huge crowd of people in the store, every day is like the day before Christmas. On Fayuein Street you can buy everything cheaply, but for this you need to turn over piles of clothes, and nothing can be measured. I always carried a tape measure in my purse, because I had to do something long forgotten - measure my hips - and this always spoils the mood!
It is always sunny here, but the climate is very humid. The intense heat, plus the humidity, caused me heat exhaustion, and for most of the year I felt lethargic and unhealthy. The walls were covered with moisture, the houses with mold, and even a rare fungus appeared in the shoes. Lizards - geckos crawled along the walls and ceilings of every house. I could not get used to the fact that a gecko could jump on me at any moment when I was washing my bath. I once crushed a small gecko with my bare foot. Even now, thinking about it, I shudder in disgust.
Traveling to exotic places was exciting but exhausting. We traveled five months out of our first year there. I felt lost. I didn't have time to adjust to the new culture or make friends.
We had a wonderful apartment, but Hong Kong has the highest rent in the world. In two years it has increased by 40%! I felt sick every month when I wrote a check for the apartment.
Hong Kong is a pagan city. And every time I passed by the idol that stood in front of the door of our neighbors, everything inside me turned upside down.
I never felt safe even though we lived on the 4th floor and there were five locks on our front door. One night, despite all these precautions, someone broke into the apartment. When I woke up in the morning, I found the freezer and refrigerator open. Looking around the kitchen, I found food leftovers and even chewed food that the intruder had spat out onto my stove. Obviously, he did not like our food (but how dare he!). We found that someone had been in every room, including the bedroom. The thief was standing right next to my bed! I felt insulted, scared, angry… But I was grateful to God. There have been many cases in Hong Kong where people were killed or badly beaten if they woke up and found the intruder. God sent us a dream and I thanked Him for it.
Public transport is a rational way to travel, but it is always crowded. At rush hour, the "pushers" stuff people into the cars like sardines in a can. One morning, as I was driving to a Bible class in Discovery Bay, a man made rude flirtations with me—we were huddled tightly together. I poked him in the ribs with my elbow. But how do you scream "I'm being molested" when you don't speak the local language and are also the only non-Asian woman on the subway? I felt humiliated. I was shaking all over with anger, and I decided never to ride the subway again. Of course, I had to keep using it, but now I left an hour early to avoid the morning crush.
It is wonderful that our children and their spouses were able to come and visit us. But it was only a short visit. Electronic communication across the ocean is a blessing, but when my son suddenly called and said that he was selling a car and moving to Bolivia, the email was not enough to express all my feelings! When my daughter called and said that she was seriously ill, the computer connection did not calm my heart. I would like to talk to her daily, but the high rates don't allow me to talk for long or often.
And just as the ministry began to grow, we realized that we would soon have to leave Hong Kong because of joining China. Three years to adjust to the culture and then leave is also not easy. Not such a posh life in Hong Kong, right?
DIRT OR STARS?
Most of us can paint our lives with both light and dark colors. You can make a joyful list of all the positive aspects of it, and then write a sober list of negative ones. Both are true, but focus on different things.
How would you describe the life God has given you? Right now, take a moment and list the positives and negatives of it. If you want, write them in two columns, but be sure to do it.
Now answer a question I often ask myself: “Which list do you think about most of the time?”
If you are like most women, then you have a lot in common with a young lady whose story I heard. Her life was not what she had hoped and expected. When she married her lover, who served in marines, I thought that living in other countries and traveling around the world would be romantic and exciting. But two years later it turned out that she was lonely and deeply disappointed. She wrote her mother a letter full of complaints. She has no friends, she does not speak the local language, and it is useless to spend energy on learning it, since they can be transferred from one country to another at any time. And the worst thing is that her young husband is forever away from home. She ended the letter with the words: “I can't do this anymore. Coming home". Her wise mother sent only two sentences in response: “Two women looked through the prison window. One saw dirt, the other saw stars.
This wise woman passed on to her daughter the secret of how to be content with life. Each of us has a choice: we can look into the dirt or look up to the stars. In the life of each of us there are circumstances that may seem like prison bars. God wants us to learn to be content with where we are right now. How is this possible?
HOW TO CONQUER ANXIETY
In the previous chapter, we talked about Paul's amazing statement: "I have learned to be content with what I have." He teaches us that peace can be found - by God's help, putting some effort into it. Our half of the job: "Do not worry about anything, but always in prayer and petition with thanksgiving, make your desires known to God" (Phil. 4:6).
The Living Bible gives the following meaning to this verse: “Don't worry about anything; instead, pray for everything; tell God your needs and don't forget to thank Him for His answers to prayers." Paul admonishes us not to worry or worry about anything, pointing out that our anxiety should serve as a springboard from which we pray for specific problems. By choosing to pray for our needs, we are participating in overcoming anxiety.
Paul commands us to have recourse to prayer in everything, not allowing ourselves to be anxious. It's sad that so many of us do just the opposite, worry about everything and turn to prayer only as a last resort! It is easier to worry, suffer, bring yourself to stomach pains, lose sleep, yell at your husband, friends, children or roommate than pray. In practice, it turns out that we act contrary to what the Bible prescribes.
You should not only pray for your needs, but also give thanks. It's more than difficult! When I am in fear that I have cancer, or worried that my child does not want to study and failed a geometry test, that my friend hurt me, or that a huge amount of accumulated problems weighs on me, it is difficult, very difficult to be grateful in this position.
Reading Ps. 115:8, you begin to understand what it means to pray with gratitude: "I will offer you a sacrifice of praise, and I will call on the name of the Lord." I love this quote because thanking God when the whole world is locked in a dark tunnel is really a sacrifice!
When my little niece, Angie, fell out of a second-story window and found herself with three skull fractures, I mustered up all my strength to pray sacrificially, “Lord, You know the burden of care that lies on my heart. I am so far away from my family and cannot share their pain. There is anguish in my heart, but I want not to worry, but I want to give little Angie into Your hands. It is difficult to find something positive in this situation, but I thank You, Heavenly Father, that You love her and that she belongs to You. Thank you for saving her life. Thank you that her parents have access to a beautiful health care. I believe that all power in this frightening situation belongs to You.”
When faced with difficulties, we make a choice: pray about the problem or worry about it.
GOD'S HELP
In Phil. 4:7 we read, "And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." The Living Bible says that the word "and" at the beginning of the verse means "if you do so." Do how? If we choose to pray instead of worrying, the Lord will give us peace, we will know the peace of God. What a wonderful promise! In a world of chaos, problems, mental anguish and anxiety, we all need peace and quiet.
This verse gives us the key to understanding why peace of mind is not available to us. If, instead of peace, we experience anxiety and fear, we need to ask ourselves if we are fulfilling our duty to pray. Remember, God says that peace and tranquility in the soul is the result of our prayer.
My favorite translation of this verse is: "And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will guard our hearts and minds in Jesus Christ." I imagine it like this: God surrounds me with a "garrison" of angels, whose task is to help my weak and powerless mind and heart. When worries multiply in the heart, the mind rushes about in search of solutions, pondering all sorts of “what if?” My heart, the cradle of emotions, begins to beat furiously. God's peace is the exact recipe for helping my heart and mind caught in anxiety.
What if we decide to put our fears in the hands of God, but after ten minutes we start to worry again? I remember many nights spent thinking when one of my children entered adolescence: “Did I raise him right? How can I keep him from wrong paths?” I prayed with the words of Phil. 4:6-9, but I found myself restless again. My mind seemed to be “fixated” on experiences.
I prayed, “Lord, here I am again before You. I spoke to You just ten minutes ago, but it didn't help; I'm still worried instead of sleeping peacefully." And again and again I prayed, asking for God's help to do according to Phil. 4. And again she began to worry. Then I forced myself to get out from under the warm blanket, and sat down at the table. Taking paper and a pen, I listed everything that God has blessed the life of my child for last year. Then I prayed, thanking the Lord for the fact that He works and will work in his life. I turned off the light and crawled under my cozy blanket, this time to sleep peacefully.
THINK ABOUT THIS
Paul again addresses the topic of wrestling with anxiety in verse 8: “Finally, my brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is glorious, whatever is virtue and praise, consider these things” ( Phil 4:8).
If I had to pick my favorite scriptures, Phil. 4:8 would certainly make it into the top ten. These words of wisdom are framed on the wall in my living room as a constant reminder to think about the good, not the bad. It's hard to control your thoughts, isn't it? But that is what pleases God.
In Proverbs. 23:7 says, "For as the thoughts are in his mind, so is he." Writer and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson put it this way: “Be mindful of what you constantly think about - you will certainly become so.” How convincing! We become a reflection of our thoughts. Our mental life, not our circumstances, determines whether we are satisfied or not. Our mental life, not our friends, husband, children, work or anything else, determines whether we are satisfied!
Holy Scripture commands us to look at the positive in our thoughts, and to capture every thought in obedience to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). My friend Lorraine understands this verse this way: “My negative thoughts are like impatient children learning to walk; they cling to me and jump, shouting, "Look at me, look at me." Jesus and I send negative, "jumping out" thoughts to the penalty box to focus on the good ones. Sometimes they do not obey and again require attention. Then Jesus and I send those thoughts back to the penalty box, but this time we tie them down!”
We must control our thinking. The Lord commands us to "be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Rom. 12:2). And we fulfill this command, renew our mind, captivating negative thoughts and thinking positive.
SKILL IS IMPROVED BY PRACTICE
In verse 9, Paul brought our part and God's part together in overcoming anxiety: "What you have learned, what you have received, and heard, and seen in me, do it, and the God of peace will be with you" (Phil. 4:9).
What comes to your mind when you hear the word "practice". I remember how, as a child, I practiced playing the piano and learned the multiplication table, how, as an adult, I memorized verbs German language. When we practice something, we repeat the same thing over and over again. Training exercises are not fun. It's boring and hard labour. But Paul exhorts us to exercise. In what?
Transfer your worries to God.
Pray for specific needs.
Give thanks for everything.
To think that "only virtue and praise."
We must practice: to replace anxiety with prayer, negative positive, - and the peace of God will be with us! For the second time in this passage, we read that the peace of God follows the decision to do God's will. This was Paul's way to peace of mind. I have been privileged to know some lovely women who have walked this path. They can say with the Apostle, "I have learned to be content with what I have."
DECIDE TO LOOK AT THE STARS
I met Cristina in Romania at a marriage conference - she translated for me. A young, lively, Christ-devoted woman was full of dreams of the future. At that time she was preparing for the entrance exams to the university.
The communist dictatorship, the horror that Romania went through in 1981, shattered all dreams by keeping life at a survival level. There was not enough food, they heated irregularly (if at all). Hot water was available from time to time and there was gas for cooking in the houses for several hours a day. It was a miracle to have any dreams at all! But the universities worked, and Christina set a goal for herself - to enter.
She failed at all because of low marks in exams. She was not allowed to study at the university because her father was a Christian minister. How unfair! How unfair! Many would be offended and harbor bitterness, but not Christina. She decided to see everything positive sides.
"Linda," she said. - I can't go to university, but I can study on my own and improve my language skills. The next time you come to Romania, I will translate better.” And this happened more than once: for seven years, Christina prayed, planned and stubbornly prepared for the entrance exams. She was denied for seven years. And seven times she decided to trust God - He knows what He is doing. What a strong soul she had! Yes, Christina had days of doubt, days when she felt sorry for herself. It is always difficult to maintain peace of mind and satisfaction in difficult circumstances. However, she made such a decision seven times and carried it out.
And in the US, too, there are women who have learned to be satisfied in any circumstances. My friend Tammy was stricken with an incurable disease and was getting worse. She took 30 pain pills daily. She could not have children and, in the end, her life was cut short ... During her illness, I came to that city with lectures on "How to Learn to Be Content." She got out of bed to come to the meeting. When I asked the sisters to write down the positive aspects of my life, and in another column the negative ones, I worried about Tammy. There is so much pain in her life. What could she write in the "positive" column?
When I finished the lecture, Tammy came up to me and said, “Linda! How I loved this challenge! I have 20 items on the light list and only 4 on the dark list!
When I heard her answer, I could only pray, “Oh God! I'm sorry. If I lived Tammy's life, I'm afraid my lists would be the other way around."
I'm still learning how to be nice. God used my life in Hong Kong, all its problems - lizards, humidity, a thief who broke into our apartment - to teach me in all circumstances to find inner peace in Him.
We all desperately need a state of inner fulfillment independent of our circumstances. Ultimately, contentment is a change in attitude towards circumstances rather than in them. Paul changed his attitude to the situation: he decided not to worry, but to pray about specific problems and give thanks to God. He decided to focus on the brighter sides of his life, despite all the difficult circumstances. Therefore, the peace of God reigned in his heart.
We all go through adverse and even tragic situations. If you have been lost, I grieve with you. In such circumstances, I often prayed, “God, may my pain not be in vain. Transform me into Your image. Use this pain so that I can learn to find peace in You."
When there are difficulties in my life, I hear God's voice: “Linda, leave it to me. Give yourself into My hands. Accept My ways. Accept the result. Trust me". His voice: “Linda, make decisions that serve My glory. Let no one see what decisions you are making and know how difficult they are, take them for My sake.”
Alina, Christina and Tammy made a choice: what to focus their attention on. You can choose too. So where do you turn your eyes, the dirt or the stars?
SANDA
In my mind I repeated my plan:
Get off the train and "be like a Romanian".
· Go to the ticket kiosk, put three lei on the counter and take a tram ticket. (Pray no one asks anything!)
· Take the tram going to the left - Linda, remember - to the left.
· Get off at the fifth stop.
· Go right to the third building.
· Climb to the eighth floor:.
· Knock on the door 8B.
· Stay for three days in apartment 8B, where women gather for small group teacher training.”
To remember this trip means to remember fear. I have never been in this city. What if I couldn't get a ticket? What if I got lost? (My stock of Romanian words is "thank you", "please", "bread", "water", and "goodbye"). Actually, I am a veteran traveler, but usually I traveled with a partner. At that time I was alone.
Everything went like clockwork until I entered the entrance to apartment 8B. It was already dark outside, and the landing was pitch black. Slowly, centimeter by centimeter, I climbed the flights of stairs, counting the floors. What a relief to finally be on the platform of the 8th floor! But there was no light there either. Which door is 8B? If I knock on the wrong door, Sandu, the owner of the apartment, will be in trouble, since Romanians are not allowed to communicate with people from the West - it is clear that, knowing five words in Romanian, I will not pass for a Romanian. Feeling the walls, I moved centimeter to the door. After praying, I knocked anyway. Sanda's dear face appeared in the opening. Hooray!
Day and night the women came to this apartment to learn how to lead the Bible studies. Surprisingly, the Sandu church convinces women that their only ministry is to pray for their husbands and bear children. In fact, her church teaches that a woman is saved by having children, not by faith (a misinterpretation of 1 Tim. 2:15.) But these women were eager to teach others the Bible.
Day after day Sanda listened. She rarely spoke. Intense attention was written on her emaciated face. Seeing her silence, I couldn't help but think about how she could conduct Bible studies. Gradually, a light appeared in her eyes, and she said, “Now I understand. I want to raise spiritual children!”
How joyful it is to see that a woman has straightened up, found herself, and is ready to say: “God, I don’t know my spiritual gifts, but I will try to teach others, although it scares me. I will be merciful. I will be hospitable. Reveal to me how I can glorify You."
Although at first Sanda was trembling with fear, she nevertheless decided to conduct classes in her church. After the fall of the communist regime, she began to lecture in churches throughout Romania, became a specialist in women's ministries in her denomination! And when they held a women's conference, shy Sanda, among other lecturers, spoke to a thousand women.
Similar information.
° Immoderate appropriation and consumption of material magic harms the improvement of the soul.
Gluttony, greed, money-grubbing are manifestations of the lower nature, the development of which leads to the loss of the soul. Luxury is a disgrace created by indefatigable selfishness and self-indulgence. A person tries to fill the spiritual emptiness with earthly riches and pleasures, striving for external joys.
° Try not to burden yourself with useless, unnecessary things.
To be able to distinguish things necessary (things that support life and tools) from things that are not important for human life. Any things in in large numbers become redundant.
In life there are things that are necessary, it is difficult to do without them, and things that are constantly needed. And there are superfluous things that a person can easily do without and live without noticing them.
á Compare bread, candy, chewing gum, knife, saucer, coffee cup; paper, toy, pencil sharpener; bed and carpet; apartment and garage.
° You have to be happy with what you have.
Being content with a little is better than chasing a lot. Increased demands do not lead to good, they push for actions in the name of selfish desires, and the counter resistance of the environment excessively develops and tempers the negative properties and traits of a person. Know how to restrain yourself, not engage in self-indulgence. People very often want to think about what they don't have. It seems to them that something is missing, they cannot calm down from this, they always want some new thing or a toy they saw. Learn to appreciate what you have now and think less about what you don't have. If you think that you do not have much, then it is useful to remember how homeless children live in basements, in cold and hunger. Then you will understand who really feels bad, and distinguish the real need from the apparent one.
° Some lack must be accepted as good for one's soul. Lack of knowledge and intelligence is worse than lack of money.
obesity of the heart
Alina had not just a lot of toys, but too many. Well, just a huge amount. Toys were scattered all over the huge room. They lay under the bed, cupboards were filled with them and drawers in the table were clogged. Even new toys, in order not to trip over them, had to be dumped anywhere and stuffed in different corners. In general, everywhere you look, toys stick out from everywhere. No matter which door you open, something will fall out.
Do you think that Alina was the most joyful and happy in the world? You are wrong. She often went in a bad mood. She wanted more and more toys, she could beg and demand them for hours, now capricious, now crying, now offended, now angry.
If someone could look into Alina's soul, he would immediately see what a great misfortune happened in her heart. Because of gluttony and greed, her heart became fat and greatly suffocated her heart's joy. Because of this, Alina could no longer rejoice with all her heart and feel real joy within herself. She could only rejoice with her mind, receiving joy only from new toys and entertainment. But the joy of the mind was very different and short. Toys amused and pleased for a short time. As soon as such joy passed, Alina again felt longing inside herself, in her heart, and plunged into a joyless mood. So she had to, not having joy inside herself, all the time to look for it in toys and entertainment.
Doctors have not yet found a cure for heart obesity, and is it possible to cure insatiability with pills. They only advise to have more joy in yourself and not depend on things and entertainment. Joy gives pleasure to true beauty. A person who feels beauty and strives to admire it will never have a fat heart.
[? ] - Have you noticed the difference between heartfelt joy (for example, when helping someone in need) and mental joy (when receiving something)?
How long do you usually enjoy a new toy?
When do people seek joy for their minds? (When they stop and do not know how to rejoice with their hearts).
- What do you think the cure for "fatty heart" should consist of? (See directions of the conversation).
And for some it's not enough
Animals are always content with only what is important and necessary for them to live. They carry a warm skin with them, they have only one hole from the rain, and they get exactly as much food as they need for strength and health. But among the animal world, sometimes there are those who like to collect and hoard useless things or extra food. The story will go about them now, and you will find out what love for the unnecessary, the passion for hoarding the superfluous and the desire to have more can lead to.
A white shark swam in the blue sea. She, like all her relatives, was very fond of beautiful, but absolutely unnecessary and useless objects for her. But the Shark had nowhere to hide these items, because she had neither a house nor a fur coat with pockets. And then one day a clever idea came to her mind about swallowing everything she liked into her big stomach. You can’t imagine better, because you can hardly find a safer place than your own stomach. From that moment on, Shark began to collect everything that she considered beautiful. Either he will swallow a floating bottle with a shiny label, then he will bite off a float he likes from a fishing net as a keepsake, or he will bite off a piece of an oar. But once she was very lucky. The wind drove a large children's rubber ball from somewhere far away. It was real luck. It is difficult to find something more beautiful and interesting in the sea. Shark was frightened that someone else would get the ball and quickly decided to hide it in her stomach. As soon as she swallowed the ball, she suddenly felt that someone was pulling her up all the time. As soon as the shark goes down to the bottom, it immediately begins to emerge, as if someone had caught it on a bait. The Shark could not understand what was the matter, only soon she completely lost her strength and floated to the surface of the sea. She swam on the surface of the sea until the fishermen saw her fin sticking out above the water. Two days later, Shark ended up in a fish store, and the fishermen gave the ball that was taken out of her stomach to their children.
Magpies love all sorts of completely unnecessary things. One such Magpie adored everything shiny and therefore collected in her nest a whole bunch of glass, coins, bottle caps. Magpie's nest also had an earring with a red pebble, and shiny buttons and colorful candy wrappers. In general, Soroka collected a lot of unnecessary junk and useless little things and began to worry about her good and protect it from her envious thief neighbors. Magpies have no quiet life because of the collected wealth. All the birds flutter and fly merrily in the sky, wherever they please, and the Magpie is circling around the nest, guarding its little things, and looking after new ones. Soon so many things have accumulated in the Magpie that it is about to start falling out over the edge of the nest. Soroka thought and decided to complete her nest: make the edges of the nest twice as high. Magpie began to carry sticks and complete the nest. But the branches could not bear such weight. They bent, cracked, and the Magpie, together with its unfinished nest, flopped into the mud. The Magpie had no jewels, no nest, everything sank in a deep dirty puddle. How much time Magpie lost in vain, how much she worried about her trinkets and stuck out near the nest, and in the end she was left with nothing. It would be better to fly like everyone else, travel and enjoy life.
And here is another story. Lived next to a hamster man and every day, all year round, he fed plenty in the barn of a man, because the grain there was visible-invisible. And everything would be fine, but one day a misfortune happened to him. Somehow, the Hamster decided to make a supply of food in his hole, so that the grain would be considered as his own, and at the same time, so that his neighbors, the Field Mice, could boast and impress them with his wealth. The hamster crawled through the narrow gap in the corner as usual into the barn and began to gnaw on the grain. At first he ate on his own, and then, due to the lack of pockets in his skin, he began to stuff the grain by both cheeks in order to transfer it to his hole. As soon as the Hamster stuffed in the last grain and went back to the crack in the corner, when suddenly on the way he met the Cat, which sometimes came to guard the barn. The Hamster began to run away from the Cat, ran to the crack in the corner, but he could not squeeze through it, his cheeks were swollen painfully. While the Hamster was spitting out grain, he ended up in the Cat's claws. All his life he could have lived in clover, feeding in the barn, but his gluttony and the desire to have more and superfluous let him down.
In autumn, a young Hedgehog settled near a wild apple tree. He chose a secluded hole for himself and decided to spend the winter in it. To sleep softer and warmer all winter, he dragged dry leaves, fluffy moss into his hole and made a cozy place to sleep. Soon delicious apples began to fall from the apple tree, and the delighted Hedgehog began to drag them into the hole on his needles. Very quickly, the hole was filled with apples to the very top, so that even the Hedgehog himself had no room left in it. Then the Hedgehog decided until winter, while it was still warm and there was no snow, to live in a pile of dry leaves, because during this time he would eat some of the apples and free up space in the hole. And so he did. He himself began to spend the night in the leaves and eat the collected apples every day. But the closer to winter, the more unpleasant smell from the hole goes. It turned out that the lower apples in the hole had deteriorated, rotted and turned into a smelly red gruel. Already winter is on the nose, and the Hedgehog has neither a soft bed nor a warm hole left. And so the Hedgehog, because of his excessive love for apples, had to spend the winter under the snow, in a pile of dry leaves.
The stories you have just heard are far from the only ones. Sometimes, in some other animals, a passion for hoarding and a desire to have something superfluous and unnecessary also awakens. But none of the animals can even come close to compare with people who are so in love with things that they are served, they work hard for them and even carefully create beautiful houses for them. Yes, yes, because bags, pockets, drawers, cabinets and even huge warehouses - all this was invented by people for their most beloved, main and important things in the world.
[? ] - Love for what things let Shark and Magpie down? (To the unnecessary and useless)
- Why did the right food let Hamster and the Hedgehog down? (We wanted more and more than was required to sustain life).
- Which love is more sublime: for things or for people and for everything in nature?
– Would you like your parents to love some things more than you?
Whose love is fuller and stronger: that of the one who loves entirely only another person, or that of the one who loves both a person and things at the same time?
– Would you like mom to share her love between you and some thing?
- If it is ugly to love things, then how should one treat the necessary things? (Calmly, indifferently).
– What did people come up with for the safety of their favorite things, and how do they serve them? (wash, clean, repair, etc.).
A modern person cares little about what will happen tomorrow, and very much in vain, because “tomorrow” will come very soon. Each of us tries not to think about old age, but if you are not going to die in the prime of life, then you will have to put up with it. And it doesn't take a genius to realize the fact that the life you live now will affect your life in the future. To be much happier when you hit 50, we offer you 17 simple tips that can radically change your life for the better.
Quit smoking
You know without our moralizing that smoking kills. Smoking is 100% likely to cause you future health problems. If you don't want to get cancer at 50, then stop smoking immediately.
Stop eating shit
In your whole life you can make as much money as you want and spend it on anything, but you can never buy health. Stop regularly drinking, eating fast food and other fatty rubbish. Take care of your health, eat right, and soon you will notice how you began to feel much lighter and better.
Maintain (or fix) relationships with your family and friends
Remember one simple truth, money is running out, work is an infinite amount, friends come and go, and only your relatives and truly close people always stay with you. Make peace with those with whom you are in a quarrel, maintain warm relations with relatives and respect your loved ones. Soon you will understand that this is the real wealth, which, like health, cannot be bought for any money in the world.
Use sunscreen
When you are young, your skin is a real armor, which is nothing, but unfortunately, this is temporary. You have most likely noticed the old people on whom the skin hangs like an old coat, no, we are not saying that this will not happen to you, but this moment can be significantly delayed. Use sunscreens to protect your skin from premature aging, flaking, skin cancer, and sunburn.
Exercise regularly
Start leading an active lifestyle right now! Even though the Internet and television are pushing our asses deeper into armchairs and sofas, this is not a reason to lead the life of a fat seal. Sport will not only give you strength, vitality and self-confidence, it will also allow you to lose weight, or at least not gain weight. Movement is life, remember that.
Start saving money, even if it's not much
Previously, we often heard “save money”, but today we are shouted from everywhere “live one day”. “No tomorrow” and “live for one day” is nothing more than a publicity stunt to get you off the couch right now and go spend money on all sorts of unnecessary crap that kills you. It just so happened that a person is not a one-day butterfly, and lives for a relatively long time. The length of our lives largely determines the amount of resources that we have, so saving money is something that we all simply need. Start saving money now and you will thank us in the future.
Learn to be content with what you have
Today it is fashionable to whine about the fact that each of us is doing very badly. Of course, everyone has their own world and their own problems, but let's be honest, you whine just to get attention. There are much more unhappy people in the world who even have no one to whine. Instead of complaining, learn to enjoy what you have and you will feel like a truly happy person. And then, the attention that you lack so much, give to the person from whom you expect it, and your reward will not be long in coming.
Don't put off your life goals
Fulfilling life plans is a difficult task that each of us is afraid of, which is why we are so eager to create non-existent restrictions in order to postpone everything for later. Do you want to buy a house? To have children? To write a book? Get a second higher education or a degree? Change your career? Learn to play a musical instrument? Learn to cook gourmet meals? Go scuba diving? Run for public office? Run your own business and work for yourself? Then get started today!
get enough sleep
With the hustle and bustle of today, it's time to add the 25th and 26th hours to the dial. Scientists have proven that lack of sleep negatively affects the skin and your brain activity. Go to bed without TV or TV shows, and train yourself to go to bed and wake up at the same time. If you work a lot and you don’t have enough time for your personal life, maybe then it’s time to change or change jobs?
Take care of your teeth
Remember to visit the dentist at least twice a year, brush your teeth and floss. Usually people start thinking about it when they want to howl like a wolf from the will of the teeth. To prevent this from happening, regularly do what we described in the first sentence of this paragraph.
Collect memories, not things
Things are lost, destroyed and out of fashion, which cannot be said about your memories, which will only disappear with you, but by then you will no longer care. You are the sum of your life experience, and the more it is, the more interesting your life will be.
Learn to give
Help other people, do not be afraid to give them what you yourself would like to receive from them. Do good, not only will the people around you treat you much better, but your heart will also be filled with love.
Be curious and don't be afraid to step out of your comfort zone
Get out of the house right now and try to find an adventure for yourself. Nobody encourages you to conquer Everest, there are a lot of interesting activities in life that you have not tried yet. With the acquisition of a fundamentally new experience, your life will sparkle with new colors.
Read at least 10 books a year
It is desirable that this was educational literature, then you will become not only more interesting, but also smarter. Fiction will also keep your brain from shrinking to the size of a walnut. All kinds of magazines, newspapers, crossword puzzles, anecdotes and other small stories do not count.
Travel as often as possible
This informative and interesting experience can change your life beyond recognition. Travel is the very thing that will make you feel alive. Start planning where you will travel right now.
Learn to Meditate
This time of calmness and listening to your inner world will give you an amazing and hitherto unknown experience. If you do everything right, then soon this procedure will become your favorite part of the day.
Keep a diary
Keeping a diary is very important, no matter how stupid it may seem to you from the outside. It is important not only to new experience and impressions, but it is also important to keep them, and in this matter no one will help you better than a good old notebook and pen.
Mar 20, 2015 tigress…s
Have you ever thought that no matter how much we have, we always want more? And it is natural that a person wants to be richer, healthier and more successful. And it is very rare to find a person who will say: I don't want more, I'm happy with what I have».
Most likely, this is the answer of a believer. Faith causes a person to be content with the things and positions that have befallen him. Through faith, a person can fully enjoy the blessings of his life and gain the pleasure of Allah.
When a person is distressed by troubles and shows patience and contentment and does not complain about his sufferings, he is a true believer. Naturally, we do not mean that those who want to be richer, healthier and more successful are not believers. Strive for the best, but be happy with what you have. Discontent is a lack of understanding of faith. Contentment does not mean that a person does not strive for the best or does not feel pain, it means a manifestation of patience and awareness of the will of the Almighty.
The virtue of contentment is closely related to the virtue of trusting in Allah. When a person shows contentment with what he has and does not show envy or hatred towards others, Allah will not let him fail and a great reward awaits him.
The virtue of contentment
With contentment, a person finds inner peace and becomes spiritually higher. When he cultivates this quality in himself, he loves others and will be loved by others. He does not compare himself with those who have Better conditions rather remembers those less fortunate.
If contentment reigned in society, then there would be no place left for the greedy and envious people. Contentment will lead to Paradise in eternal life.
Contentment will bring you closer to Allah in this world and the world to come. If a person shows contentment, he will not experience psychological problems such as depression, anxiety, anxiety. When a person is dissatisfied, the shaitan will build a path to his heart. Contentment, on the other hand, protects the heart from the penetration of Satan, and it will be busy pleasing Allah Almighty.
How to learn to be content
- Don't be discouraged by everything. If you lose your job, for example, don't despair. This means that the money that you could earn is not destined for you. Your rizq will come to you from other sources.
- Purify your heart. Always think about what can bring you closer to Allah. Let go of the little things.
- Think of the reward that awaits you in the eternal world. Allah said: “Everything that is given to you is only a transient blessing of worldly life and its adornment, and with Allah is something more beautiful and durable. Don't you understand?" (28:60).
- Think about today. Be happy with what you have now.
- Be able to notice the positive side even in the bad. For example, a person had an accident but survived, and he complains that the car is in an obscene state, but does not appreciate the fact that he survived.
- And the key to happiness lies in the phrase: "Everything is the will of Allah, and it will be as He wills it." Thus, we realize the power and authority of Allah and accept His divine predestination.
Satisfaction with life as a quality of a person is the ability to actively strive for prosperity and well-being, being satisfied with what fate sends.
One believer had a reputation for being always content. One day he had to stop on his way to spend the night in a family that had heard more than once about this grateful man. Wanting to make sure of his complacency, the owners decided to test him and offered him a room for the night, in which there were only a bench and a stool. The guest prayed and went to bed. In the morning the hosts were impatient to find out what he would now thank God for. “Well, how did you sleep, brother?” “Thank God, I have two sides,” he says, “one side got tired, I lay down on the other, and slept like that ... Unfortunate or happy man only his thoughts do, and not external circumstances. By controlling his thoughts, he controls his happiness.
Contentment is when you are satisfied with your goal. This is when you act happy. Contentment lives not in the past and not in the future, here and now, at every specific moment of the present, no matter how difficult and dangerous it may be, a person with this quality does not lose heart, saying in a cheerful, optimistic voice to himself and others: - Everything Fine. I am pleased with everything that fate has sent me today. Everything suits me.
In this regard, contentment is close in its essence to satisfaction, which, remembering the past, is capable of experiencing peace, calmness and humility every time, while realizing its life, positive emotions when mentally comparing one's goals, desires, intentions, hopes with actual results, one's current state with the past, weighing prospects for the future, comparing one's life with the life of the environment.
To be content with what you have is a positive quality of a person, because it eliminates greed, anger, envy, removes resentment towards people and frees a person from dissatisfaction with himself, the outside world, fate. Omar Khayyam wrote:
It is difficult to comprehend the plans of God, old man.
This sky has no top or bottom.
Sit in a secluded corner and be content with little:
If only the scene was at least a little visible!
Contentment with life is closely related to wisdom. Wisdom will not run to borrow money at crazy interest, she is content with what comes to her by herself: at the right time and place. Wisdom does not envy and is content with what comes as a result of honest work. Where envy has settled, contentment does not live.
Envy as a personality trait is a tendency to experience dissatisfaction, bitterness and sadness from the well-being and success of another, to want to take advantage of other people's happiness, to feel that someone else has deprived you of your financial situation and happiness. The envious person will not be able to be content with what comes by itself, he is doomed to act ahead of the curve: to do meanness, show deceit and treachery, sit, quickly get money, and then not know how to give it away.
Discontent is a terrible scourge modern man. It poisons his life, provokes numerous serious diseases. Dissatisfaction as a personality trait is the tendency of someone or something to constantly scold, condemn, make claims, declare one's displeasure and dissatisfaction.
The rich man is not the one who has a lot, but the one who believes that he has been given a lot. Discontent is always offended by the fact that he was not given enough. Because of this, a person quarrels, conflicts, gets upset and depressed. Not knowing the laws of fate, a disgruntled person blames the world around him: - You didn't give me that. Why? I want everything at once, now or never. I don't intend to wait.
The laws of fate say: A person will definitely get what he deserves. No matter how much a person wants to get something, he will not get it if he does not deserve it. Be content with what fate sends. Don't poison your life with ever-increasing "I want." Tell fate: - Thank you for what I have already received. This is my destiny. I receive exactly as much as I deserved with my piety in this and past incarnations.
It is human nature to strive for happiness. He sets goals for himself and thinks: - Here, I will achieve this goal and be happy. Let's say the goal is a diploma, a car, an apartment. For example, the goal is achieved. Where is happiness? A person who does not know how to be content with what has been achieved is disappointed. Happiness was not, and is not. So close to depression. If you do not set new goals for yourself, if you do not quickly readjust, you can easily fall into the clutches of severe depression with your disappointment and discontent. Isn't it better to achieve and enjoy it, to be content with having realized one of your goals? You need to be able to rejoice, that is, be content with what you have now and, naturally, strive for further movement forward. What is the point if we have reached the goal and do not know how to rejoice at it, to experience contentment with life?
Contentment is the daughter of gratitude. Gratitude as a quality of a person is a tendency to respond with conscience to a pious deed, to show in verbal, non-verbal or mental form pleasure for the good deed and for the blessings already in life.
A contented, grateful person says to himself: “Thanks to fate for taking care of me. There are people who have nothing at all, there are seriously ill, paralyzed people. And I have a roof over my head. I am satisfied with everything, but this does not mean that I should lie on the stove for the rest of my life, be a delegate of doing nothing. I will improve my destiny. To do this, I was given reason and virtuous personality traits. Unlike animals, I can improve the line of my destiny. To do this, I need to do pious deeds. As a result, luck and success will come to me. What is the use of me and people from my dissatisfaction with myself and life? Who will benefit from my anxiety, from my anxiety, vasoconstriction, loosening of the nervous system? Who will like it when I am embittered, dissatisfied, offended, I strive for material goods? My contentment with life does not lead to complacency and complacency. I will constantly strive for prosperity.
In other words, the algorithm of contentment with life: be satisfied with your current state, perceive your present positively and optimistically, look to the future with enthusiasm and act, act, act! Do good people and your destiny will change for the better. Good luck and success will surely come to you.
Ali Shir Navoi wrote: “Contentment with little things pleases the soul of people, it clarifies the vision of the eyes. The stale bread of a dervish contented with little is better than the sumptuous table of a greedy king; A king is one who gives but does not take; a beggar is one who takes but does not give. He who gets used to being content with little, lags behind the vicious habits common to the king and the beggar. Although his house of means of subsistence will be cramped, it has many advantages. Contentment with little is a fortress in which you will be saved from the crime of passions, it is a mountain peak on which you will not depend on enemies and friends; it is modesty which results in pride, it is want which results in freedom from want, it is seeds whose crop is property, it is a tree whose fruit is power; it is a bitter wine that brings joy, it is a difficult road that leads to joy.”
Petr Kovalev
