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Linda Tran



Last Updated: 12/4/2009

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Gender: Female
Status: Single
Age: 30
Sign: Scorpio

City: Houston
State: Texas
Country: US
Signup Date: 7/25/2005

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December 30, 2009 - Wednesday 

Category: Religion and Philosophy


Prayer for Wisdom, Courage and Justice

From time immemorial people have always believed
That the four greatest virtues are
WISDOM, COURAGE, JUSTICE and SELF-CONTROL.
Let us ask God to help us
To have them in our lives.

O God, help me to have in my life the virtues
Which all persons value and admire.

Give me wisdom always to know
What I ought to to do;
What I ought to say;
Where I ought to go;

Give me courage,
To do the right thing when it is difficult;
If need be, to be laughed at for my faith;
Never to be ashamed to show my loyalty to you.

Give me justice,
Always to be fair in thought, word and action;
Always to think of the rights of others
As much as of my own;
Never to be content when anyone is being
Unjustly treated;

Give me self-control,
Always to have my impulses, passions
And emotions under perfect control;
Never to be swept into doing things
For which I would be sorry;
Never to do anything which would hurt others,
Grieve those who love me,
Or bring shame to myself.
Hear this my prayer for your love’s sake, Amen.

By Georgy

Have wisdom in God and He shall be your guidance in all life’s endeavor.
5:57 PM 
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December 30, 2009 - Wednesday 

Category: Religion and Philosophy


Although things are not perfect
Because of trial or pain
Continue in thanksgiving
Do not begin to blame
Even when the times are hard
Fierce winds are bound to blow
God is forever able
Hold on to what you know
Imagine life without His love
Joy would cease to be
Keep thanking Him for all the things
Love imparts to thee
Move out of "Camp Complaining"
No weapon that is known
On earth can yield the power
Praise can do alone
Quit looking at the future
Redeem the time at hand
Start every day with worship
To "thank" is a command
Until we see Him coming
Victorious in the sky
We'll run the race with gratitude
Xalting God most high
Yes, there'll be good times and yes some will be bad, but...
Zion waits in glory...where none are ever sad!


"I AM Too blessed to be stressed!"

The shortest distance between a problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor.

The one who kneels to the Lord in prayer, can stand up to anything

All things are possible in Lord Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord.
5:50 PM 
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December 30, 2009 - Wednesday 

Category: Religion and Philosophy
James 1:1-4
(1) James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,To the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad: Greetings. (2) My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, (3) knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. (4) But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
James addresses his book, "To the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad." Since the breadth of this address does not indicate that the people were enduring any common experience, James is likely giving counsel of timeless and general application that is indispensable to growth in godly character to all sorts of people under every circumstance. At the very beginning he writes,
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. (1:2-4)
Is patience that important? How important is it that we grow to be perfect and entire? James is clearly saying that patience is a vital ingredient to achieving this. Notice that he does not perceive patience as passive. It works! The fruit of its work can be either another virtue it is producing or in preserving itself, for that, too, is sometimes necessary.
Patience is not merely a fixed determination to hold our place in the teeth of the wind, but to make actual progress in spite of it. A ship may ride out a strong wind with a snug anchor and strong chains, yet another may set the sails to take advantage of the wind to bring it closer to its destination. It is this latter attitude that James is bidding us have and use.
Christ is a good example of this. Luke 9:51 says, "He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem." All His life the shadow of His crucifixion hung over Him, yet without faltering, swerving, or resisting, He took every step of His path and nothing turned Him aside because He came into the world for that hour. His resolve never broke. He would not blench from carrying out His duty.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Did you know that patience is a virtue of Christ?
5:48 PM 
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December 29, 2009 - Tuesday 

Category: Religion and Philosophy


The Jesus Prayer

O my Divine Savior, transform me into yourself.
May my hands be the hands of Jesus.
May my tongue be the tongue of Jesus,
Grant that every faculty of my body may serve only to glorify you.
Above all, transform my soul and all its powers,
that my memory, my will and my affections
may be the memory, the will and the affections of Jesus.
I pray you to destroy in me all that is not you.
Grant that I may live but in you and for you,
and that I may truly say with St. Paul:
"I live, now not I, but Christ lives in me"

Amen

Prayer of St. John Gabriel Perboyre

~~~~~~

Only in Lord Jesus Christ can we be truly transformed from inside out forever.
6:10 PM 
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December 29, 2009 - Tuesday 

Category: Religion and Philosophy


Surely as the sun rises in the East and sets in the West, I shall come unto you as the sun on a clear and bright day at noon shines down upon the earth.

And I shall pour forth My Spirit upon you, and it shall run as mighty rivers of water going forth in a powerful and great way. For there is a time when the river flows peacefully, and there is a time when the river flows at a rapid pace. I am calling you to come with Me, to take your journey upon the river. This is the river of My Spirit that flows forth from the very throne room, from My throne room. And as it goes forth I shall bring forth My people to come to rest in that peaceful journey upon the river.

There shall be times when you shall move rapidly, and you shall go through the rapids and you shall wonder, oh Lord, can I make this journey?

And I say unto you -- yes, you can make this journey, because I have taken a hold of you, and My hand is upon you. And I shall go with you, and I shall strengthen you. And I shall give you that strength deep within your own spirit that will encourage, and cause you to want to come with Me.

As you come with Me upon this journey, you shall see many things that you have not seen before, and you shall see those things through the eyes that I give unto you. For you shall see them through the spirit, not in the natural. You shall see them because I place My hand upon you, and I pour My Spirit down upon you.

Know that I am your God. Surely as I shine upon you, the brilliance of My light is being placed within you and upon you,
that you may shine and reflect the light that I have placed within you.

Know that I am your God, and that this day I have My hand upon you. So stand firm on the word that I have planted within you, and take your journey upon the river.

My Spirit © Fred Kelly

God will walk with us until the end of time through good and bad times.
6:07 PM 
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December 28, 2009 - Monday 

Category: Religion and Philosophy


Behold me, my beloved Jesus, weighed down under the burden of my trials and sufferings, I cast myself at Your feet, that You may renew my strength and my courage, while I rest here in Your Presence.

Permit me to lay down my cross in Your Sacred Heart, for only Your infinite goodness can sustain me; only Your love can help me bear my cross; only Your powerful hand can lighten its weight.

O Divine King, Jesus, whose heart is so compassionate to the afflicted, I wish to live in You; suffer and die in You. During my life be to me my model and my support; at the hour of my death, be my hope and my refuge.

Amen.

-From Christian Prayers

God is good, always. Praise the Lord.
6:08 PM 
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December 28, 2009 - Monday 

Category: Religion and Philosophy


Sandra felt as low as the heels of her shoes as she pushed against a November gust and the florist shop door. Her life had been easy, like a spring breeze. Then in the fourth month of her second pregnancy, a minor automobile accident stole her ease.

During this Thanksgiving week she would have delivered a son. She grieved over her loss. As if that weren't enough, her husband's company threatened a transfer. Then her sister, whose annual holiday visit she coveted, called saying she could not come.

What's worse, Sandra's friend infuriated her by suggesting her grief was a God-given path to maturity that would allow her to empathize with others who suffer. "She has no idea what I'm feeling," thought Sandra with a shudder.

"Thanksgiving? Thankful for what?" she wondered aloud. For a careless driver whose truck was hardly scratched when he rear-ended her? For an airbag that saved her life but took that of her child?

"Good afternoon, can I help you?"

The shop clerk's approach startled her.


"I....I need an arrangement, "stammered Sandra. "For Thanksgiving?



The blessing of thorns is just what you need. Now hear my story.


Do you want beautiful but ordinary, or would you like to challenge the day with a customer favorite I call the Thanksgiving Special?" asked the shop clerk.

"I'm convinced that flowers tell stories," she continued

"Are you looking for something that conveys 'gratitude' this Thanksgiving?

"Not exactly!" Sandra blurted out. "In the last five months, everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. " Sandra regretted her outburst, and was surprised when the shop clerk said, "I have the perfect arrangement for you."

Then the door's small bell rang, and the shop clerk said, "Hi Barbara...let me get your order." She politely excused herself and walked toward a small workroom, then quickly reappeared, carrying an arrangement of greenery, bows, and long-stemmed thorny roses.

Except the ends of the rose stems were neatly snipped...there were no flowers.

"Want this in a box?" asked the clerk.


Sandra watched for the customer's response. Was this a joke? Who would want rose stems with no flowers!?! She waited for laughter, but neither woman laughed. "Yes, please," Barbara replied with an appreciative smile.

"You'd think after three years of getting the special, I wouldn't be so moved by its significance, but I can feel it right here, all over again," she said as she gently tapped her chest.

"Uhh," stammered Sandra, "that lady just left with, uhh... she just left with no flowers!"

"Right...I cut off the flowers. That's the Special... I call it the Thanksgiving Thorns Bouquet.

"Oh, come on, you can't tell me someone is willing to pay for that?" exclaimed Sandra.

"Barbara came into the shop three years ago feeling very much like you feel today," explained the clerk. "She thought she had very little to be thankful for. She had lost her father to cancer, the family business was failing, her son was into drugs, and she was facing major surgery."

"That same year I had lost my husband, "continued the clerk," and for the first time in my life, I had to spend the holidays alone. I had no children, no husband, no family nearby, and too great a debt to allow any travel.


"So what did you do?" asked Sandra. "I learned to be thankful for thorns," answered the clerk quietly. "I've always thanked God for good things in life and never thought to ask Him why those good things happened to me, but when bad stuff hit, did I ever ask!; It took time for me to learn that dark times are important.

I always enjoyed the 'flowers' of life, but it took thorns to show me the beauty of God's comfort. You know, the Bible says that God comforts us when we're afflicted, and from His consolation we learn to comfort others.

"Sandra sucked in her breath as she thought about the very thing her friend had tried to tell her."
I guess the truth is I don't want comfort.


I've lost a baby and I'm angry with God."

Just then someone else walked in the shop.

"Hey, Phil!" shouted the clerk to the balding, rotund man.

"My wife sent me in to get our usual Thanksgiving arrangement ....twelve thorny, long-stemmed stems!" laughed Phil as the clerk handed him a tissue-wrapped arrangement from the refrigerator.

"Those are for your wife?" asked Sandra doubtingly. "Do you mind me asking why she wants something that looks like that?

"No...I'm glad you asked," Phil replied. "Four years ago my wife and I nearly divorced. After forty years, we were in a real mess, but with the Lord's grace and guidance, we slogged through problem after problem.

He rescued our marriage. Jenny here (the clerk) told me she kept a vase of rose stems to remind her of what she learned from "thorny" times, and that was good enough for me. I took home some of those stems. My wife and I decided to label each one for a specific "problem" and give thanks to Him for what that problem taught us."

As Phil paid the clerk, he said to Sandra, "I highly recommend the Special!"

"I don't know if I can be thankful for the thorns in my life." Sandra said to the clerk. "It's all too... fresh."


"Well," the clerk replied carefully, "my experience has shown me that thorns make roses more precious. We treasure God's providential care more during trouble than at any other time.

Remember, it was a crown of thorns that Jesus wore so we might know His love. Don't resent the thorns."

Tears rolled down Sandra's cheeks. For the first time since the accident, she loosened her grip on resentment. "I'll take those twelve long-stemmed thorns, please," she managed to choke out.

"I hoped you would," said the clerk gently. "I'll have them ready in a minute."

"Thank you. What do I owe you?" asked Sandra.

"Nothing." said the clerk.

"Nothing but a promise to allow God to heal your heart. The first year's arrangement is always on me. "The clerk smiled and handed a card to Sandra.

"I'll attach this card to your arrangement, but maybe you'd like to read it first."

It read:


"Dear God, I have never thanked you for my thorns. I have thanked you a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my thorns. Teach me the glory of the cross I bear; teach me the value of my thorns. Show me that I have climbed closer to you along the path of pain.

Show me that,
through my tears,
the colors of your rainbow look much more brilliant."

-Unknown

Blessings are from God. Count your blessings.
6:02 PM 
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December 28, 2009 - Monday 

Category: Quiz/Survey
2 Corinthians 13:5
(5) Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Examine yourselves - Paul advises in Galatians 6:3-4: "For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another." The Greek word for examine here is dokîmázô, which means, according to Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, "'to test, prove,' with the expectation of approving." It can also indicate "to discern" or "to distinguish," suggesting proving whether a thing is worthy or not.
The Living Bible adds clarity to Galatians 6:4: "Let everyone be sure that he is doing his very best, for then he will have the personal satisfaction of work well done and won't need to compare himself with someone else." We realize it is unwise to compare ourselves with others (II Corinthians 10:12), but there is no need to compare ourselves with anyone else if we seek God's help in making the inner secrets of our hearts plain to us through His Spirit! Then, we can work on changing what God reveals that He is concerned about in us.
In other words, if we sincerely, with our whole hearts, ask Almighty God to make us understand the depths of our beings, He is faithful to do it. It is then our responsibility to be prepared to repent fully of what God makes plain to us. This is an easy process to describe, but often hard to follow through on. Nevertheless, it is part of a continuing process in the life of any Christian who wishes to draw closer to God; it is our work. We are required to exert effort—sometimes a great deal of effort, even painful effort—to assure our entrance into God's Kingdom (see, for instance, Philippians 2:12; Colossians 1:23; II Peter 1:10-11). We cannot leave this labor undone!
Greg Smith
How often do you examine all your actions to ensure it coincides with God’s standards through Lord Jesus Christ?
6:00 PM 
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December 27, 2009 - Sunday 

Category: Religion and Philosophy


Lord God, you are everything to me. My spirit rejoices in you, my Savior. Thank you for seeking me when I was lost and for finding me. Thank you for choosing me to go forth and bear lasting fruit in your name. Thank you for enabling me to bear fruit for you, Lord. Without you, I can do nothing.

You are good, O Lord, and you are always ready to forgive. Thank you for your plentiful mercy in my life which I always receive when I call upon you. You are always there to help me; therefore, I will never be confounded. I have set my face like a flint, and I know that you will never let me be ashamed.

You truly are a very present help to me, and I am receiving your help even now as I pray. Thank you, Father. You are my refuge and strength, and because this is true, I will not fear anything or anyone.

You are in my midst, and I will not be moved. You are always there to help me speedily. You are with me, Lord. Knowing this, I will be still. I know that you are my God. Thank you for your constant help in my life, Lord.

Amen

-From Christian prayers

God will always be there to help us through every distressing moment. We just have to believe and trust in Him completely.
5:59 PM 
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December 27, 2009 - Sunday 

Category: Religion and Philosophy

Luke 5:10-11

(10) and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men." (11) So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him.

Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Jesus takes the opportunity of this miracle to call His disciples into a Teacher–student relationship with Him. He figuratively catches Peter in His net before commanding him to "catch men" for the Kingdom of God. Immediately, Peter, Andrew, James, and John leave their boats and nets behind and follow Him. They now understand that Jesus is more than capable of supplying their every need.

We are to apply this lesson in our own lives. When Christ speaks, it is always about obedience to God's way of life. In this case, His teaching affected the disciples' livelihoods. Worship and work form major parts of our lives, too, and in both we must consistently maintain righteousness.

Had Peter failed to obey Christ's command, he would have failed to experience both the miracle and the resulting blessing. No one serves God without being compensated for his service. When we serve, sacrifice, testify, or stand for Him, He will suitably reward our efforts. When God asks us to invest our time, effort, talent, or anything else, we must not resent the opportunity. No one pays dividends on an investment as abundantly as God does—"good measure, pressed down, and running over will be put into your bosom" (Luke 6:38).

Martin G. Collins

How obedient are we to God’s standards through Lord Jesus Christ’s way of life?

5:52 PM 
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