Check out these funny and innovative New Year's Resolutions! Enjoy these and make some for yourself...enjoy!!

• Just for today, I will not sit in my living room all day in my nightdress. Instead, I will move my computer into the bedroom.I will no longer waste my time relieving the past, instead I will spend it worrying about the future.
• I will not bore my boss by with the same excuse for taking leaves. I will think of some more excuses.
• I will do less laundry and use more deodorant.
• I will avoid taking a bath whenever possible and conserve more water.
• Assure my lawyer that I will never again show up drunk at a custody hearing.
• I will give up chocolates totally. 100%. Completely. Honestly....
• I will try to figure out why I *really* need nine e-mail addresses.
• I will stop sending e-mails to my wife (husband).
• I resolve to work with neglected children -- my own.
• I will stop sending e-mail, ICQ, Instant Messages and be on the phone at the same time with the same person.
• I will spend less than one hour a day on the Internet. This, of course, will be hard to estimate since I'm not a clock watcher.
• I will read the manual... just as soon as I can find it.
• I will think of a password other than "password."
• I will not tell the same story at every get together.
• I won't worry so much.
• I will cut my hair.
• I will grow my hair.
• I will stop considering other people's feelings when they so obviously don't consider mine - if that unwashed fellow sits next to me again, I'll tell him he stinks!
• I will be more imaginative.
• I will not hang around girls - they think you love them and that sucks.
• I will not ring the stewardess button on airplanes just to get her phone number.

1 Peter 1:3
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

I TRIED TO CLIMB THE MOUNTAIN TODAY



I tried to climb the mountain today. As I inched my way up the path, I felt overwhelmed, so I had to turn back.

I tried to climb the mountain today. On my journey, darkness started to fall, and I was full of fear, so I had to return to a safe place.

I was ready to climb the mountain today. But it was so hot outside, I thought I better stay in my nice air-conditioned house and rest up for tomorrow's attempt.

I was about to climb the mountain today. But I had so many other things to do, so instead of climbing the mountain I took care of much more important tasks. I washed my car, mowed the grass and watched the big game. Today the mountain will just have to wait.

I was going to climb the mountain today. But as I stared at the mountain in it's majestic beauty, I knew I stood no chance of making it to the top, so I figured why even bother trying.

I have forgotten about climbing the mountain today; until a friend came by and asked me what I was up to lately. I told him I was thinking about climbing that mountain some day. I went on and on about how I was going to accomplish this task.

Finally, he said, "I just got back from climbing the mountain. For the longest time I told myself I was trying to climb the mountain but never made any progress. I almost let the dream of making it to the top die. I came up with every excuse of why I could not make it up the mountain, but never once did I give myself a reason why I could. One day as I stared at the mountain and pondered, I realized that if I didn't make an attempt at this dream all my dreams will eventually die."

"The next morning, I started my climb." He continued, "It was not easy, and at times I wanted to quit. But no matter what I faced, I placed one foot in front of the other, keeping a steady pace. When the wind tried to blow me over the edge, I kept walking. When the voices inside my head screamed "stop!" I focused on my goal never letting it out of sight, and I kept moving forward. At times, I was ready to quit, but I knew I had come too far. Time and time again, I reassured myself that I was going to finish this journey. I struggled to make it to the top, but I climbed the mountain!"

"I have to be going," my friend said. "Tomorrow is a new day to accomplish more dreams. By the way, what are you going to do tomorrow?"

I looked at him, with intensity and confidence in my eyes, and said, "I have a mountain to climb."

- Gary Barnes
You can visit Gary’s site, Self-Worth.com at: http://www.self-worth.com

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."

James 1:2-4 ESV

Every Job is a Self-Portrait of the Person Who Does It

Autograph your work with excellence.

Someone once asked All Jolson, a popular musical comedy star of the twenties, what he did to warm up a cold audience.  Jolson answered, "whenever I go out before an audience and don't get the response I feel that I ought to get...I don't go back behind the scenes and say to myself, 'That audience is dead from the neck up-it's a bunch of wooden nutmegs.  No, instead I say to myself, 'Look here, Al, what is wrong with you tonight?  the audience is all right, but you're all wrong, Al."

Many a performer has blamed a poor showing on an audience.  Al Jolson took a different approach.  He tried to give the best performance of his career to his coldest, most unresponsive audiences....and the result was that before an evening was over, he had them applauding and begging for more.

You'll always be able to find excuses for mediocrity.  In fact, a person intent on justifying a bad performance usually has excuses lined up before the final curtain falls.  Choose instead to put you full energy into your performance.  Your extra effort will turn an average performance into something outstanding.

Ah!...the joys of a job well done...that is true satisfaction!

"Many daughters have done well, But you excel them all."

Proverbs 31:29