Lizhi's White Coffee Lounge

Tales of the Two Pebbles

2009-02-04T16:42:00.000-08:00

Many years ago in a small Indian village, a farmer had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to a village moneylender. The moneylender, who was old and ugly, fancied the farmer's beautiful daughter. So he proposed a bargain.

He said he would forgo the farmer's debt if he could marry his daughter. Both the farmer and his daughter were horrified by the proposal. So the cunning money-lender suggested that they let providence decide the matter. He told them that he would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty money bag. Then the girl would have to pick one pebble from the bag.

1) If she picked the black pebble, she would become his wife and her father's debt would be forgiven.

2) If she picked the white pebble she need not marry him and her father's debt would still be forgiven.

3) If she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown into jail.

They were standing on a pebble strewn path in the farmer's field. As they talked, the moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles. As he picked them up, the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick a pebble from the bag.

Now, imagine that you were standing in the field. What would you have done if you were the girl? If you had to advise her, what would you have told her?

Careful, analysis and would produce three possibilities:

1. The girl should refuse to take a pebble.
2. The girl should show that there were two black pebbles in the bag and expose the money-lender as a cheat.
3. The girl shoul d pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment.

Take a moment to ponder over the story. The above story is used with the hope that it will make us appreciate the difference between lateral and logical thinking. The girl's dilemma cannot be solved with traditional logical thinking. Think of the consequences if she chooses the above logical answers.

What would you recommend to the Girl to do?

Well, here is what she did ....

The girl put her hand into the moneybag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost among all the other pebbles.

'Oh, how clumsy of me,' she said. 'But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which pebble I picked.'

Since the remaining pebble is black, it must be assumed that she had picked the white one. And since the money-lender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.

MORAL OF THE STORY?

Most complex problems do have a solution. It is only that we don't attempt to think. Start your day with this thought provoking story and have a fruitful day.

Have a week filled with positive thoughts and sound decisions.

May God grant us the wisdom to think outside the box. True wisdom comes only from Him, no matter how learned we think we are.

Faced problem? Then we solve it together

2009-01-14T17:23:00.000-08:00

My first appraisal in this company is very much different from the previous appraisal I experienced. Most of the time managers or bosses will just comment on your performance and pointing out the areas that you need to improve.

This time, my new boss asked a few questions, “How are you doing in the company?” “Any areas you feel that the company needs to improve”, and “Are you happy working in the company?”

In the end we asked him whether he has any comment on us.

His answer was simple. ‘This is an appraisal, and appraisal is meant to appreciate, not comment or complain on each others performance.’

He told us his experience during his fresh while dealing with 2 workers in a factory. He was not happy with the workers because they didn’t do a good job and didn’t really respect him. He complained to other departments, and what he found is that everyone is facing the same problem. One day, a friend came to him and said, “No matter how good or how bad your worker is, at least they get the job done.” He added, “You are the supervisor, when they face problem, it is your responsibility to help them.” “When they get the job done, appreciate them.”

As an engineer, we faced problems everyday. There are problems not only on the technical side, but also the human management side. When somebody did something wrong or forgot of something, we tend to blame or argue with that person. So, instead of wasting those times arguing, why not we face the problem, and solve it together?

Let us help and support each other, no matter what circumstances.

God bless.

A Peaceful Morning

2008-11-18T22:24:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning

I felt strings of music flowing through my body

So peaceful…

It was the Holy Spirit

God wants to tell me something

God wants me to lay down all my burden, and to spend more time seeking Him.

His love cleanses me.

My sins have been forgiven.

The past will no longer hunt me down.

Because He will always be with me.

My soul has been restored, my life has been renewed.

I find peace and joy.

Thank you Jesus, for you never forsake me.

You pulled me out of my misery.

And continue to mold me to become a better person.

So he got up and went to his father. "But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.
Luke 15:20

Let's get started again...

Discipline of Marriage

2008-09-22T07:09:00.000-07:00

Marriage, for men, is not just for self gratification, having kids or to satisfy sexual needs. In order for men to have a successful marriage, one needs to have:

1. Sacrificial Love :

‘Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.’ Eph 5:5.

Are you willing to love with a willingness to sacrifice, even unto death?

2. Sanctifying Love

‘ to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blamnless.’ Eph 5: 26-27.

Loving your spouse is not to love her as a saint, but as a sinner.

3. Self Love

‘Husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies.’ Eph 5:28.

In other words, she is me.

Marriage is the second most important relationship in your life. In fact, the relationship with God comes first. If you can’t build a strong relationship with God, do you think you can handle marriage?

Pray that God will guide us.

作丈夫

2008-09-17T22:19:00.000-07:00

作一个顺服的妻子固然不容易, 作一个丈夫的显然更难...

爱妻子的丈夫，

- 能够负起责任来，
- 能够保护，
- 能够安排，
- 能够预备，
- 能够供给，
- 能够在家庭里作头

神分派一个男人就要作男人，
- 他要爱，
- 他要主动，
- 他要负起家庭的责任来，
- 他要安排家庭里一切的事情。

神爱一个男人作男人。

反过来说，神恨一个男人像女人那样。

http://www.cc1w.net/nituoshen/33.jidutushenhuo/chapter27.html

貪念

2008-08-20T17:40:00.000-07:00

来分享一篇很有意思的文章...

有兩個乞丐，每天同時經過一戶富貴人家。
這家的主人，每天丟銅板給他們，比較高大的那位乞丐總是大聲喊著：
多謝主人！你真是仁心大愛，做好事，願你長命百歲，永遠健康！」
但是另外一位瘦削矮小的乞丐，只是輕輕地說：「感謝上主的恩典。」
這家的主人每天都丟銅板到窗外，而每天也同時飄來兩種感謝的聲音，
一個感謝他，另一個感謝主。

人起先不覺如何？漸漸地開始有一點不舒服，那種不舒服的感覺一直累積，
直到有一天，他想：
「奇怪！是我給他錢，他不謝我，卻去謝主，
我要給他一點教訓，讓他明白他應該謝的是我。」

主人到麵包店，叫師傅烤了兩條大小一樣的吐司，
將一條挖空塞了珍貴的珠寶，然後再把它封起來，
兩條麵包看起來完全一樣。

乞丐來的時候，他把那個普通的麵包交給瘦小的、只會感謝主的乞丐，
而把那條藏著金銀珠寶的麵包，交給高大、每天謝他的乞丐，
主人心想：「讓你知道，謝我跟謝主的差別在哪裡！」

那個高大的乞丐拿到麵包，覺得好重，
心想：「這麵包一定沒有發好，鐵定不好吃。」
他一向喜歡佔便宜，所以對矮小的乞丐說：「我這條吐司麵包跟你換好嗎？」
他沒說理由，瘦小個乞丐也沒有問，
心裡想著：「這應該也是主的安排！」就跟他換了；
第二天，那個瘦瘦小小的乞丐，就再也沒有來乞討了，
他決定回去看望他的爸爸媽媽，準備過另一種新生活，他好感謝主！

主人看到高大的乞丐又來乞討，就問：「你的吐司麵包吃完了嗎？」
胖胖高大的乞丐回答：「吃了啊！」
「啊！裡面的金銀珠寶呢？」主人問。
金銀珠寶？」乞丐這下才明白，吐司麵包的沉重是因為裡面包著珍寶，
他說：「我以為是發酵不好，所以把它跟我朋友的交換了。」

主人終於明白，感謝主跟感謝他的差別在哪裡了，
感謝他只是想貪求更好，而感謝主卻是怡然自得的無所貪念啊！

這是一篇很好的文章，不論你是否基督徒，都值得看一看！
我們認為是負面的事，神卻有正面的回應。

你會說：「這是不可能的。」

神卻說：「凡事都能。」（路 18:27 ）
你說：「我太累了。」

神說：「我給你安息。」（太 11:28）
你說：「沒有人真正關心我。」

神說：「我愛你。」（約 3:16; 約13:34）
你說：「我支持不住了。」

神說：「我的恩典夠你用。」(林後12:9; 詩 91:15）

你說：「有很多事情，我不能解決。」

神說：「我必指引你的路。」(箴 3:5-6）
你說：「我不能作這事。」

神說：「你凡事都能作。」（腓 4:13）
你說：「我不能。」

神說：「我能夠。」（林後 9:8）
你說：「我不能原諒自己。」

神說：「我寬恕你。」（約壹1:9;羅8:1）
你說：「我應付不來。」

神說：「我會供應你的所需。」（腓4:9）
你說：「我很害怕。」

神說：「我賜給你的，不是一個膽怯的心。」(提後 1:7）
你說：「我經常憂慮和沮喪。」

神說：「將一切的憂慮卸給我。」(彼前5:7）
你說：「我的信心不夠。」

神說：「我所分給各人的信心，是我量度過的。」（羅12:3）

你說：「我不夠聰明。」

神說：「我給你智慧。」（林前1:30）
你說：「我覺得很孤單。」

神說：「我總不撇下你，也不丟棄你。」（來13:5）

請傳閱，或許今天正有人需要它！
這是一篇很好的文章，不論你是否基督徒，都值得看一看！
我們認為是負面的事，神卻有正面的回應。

Hold My Hand

2008-08-13T01:51:00.000-07:00

Little girl and her father were crossing a bridge.
The father was kind of scared so he asked his little daughter,
"Sweetheart, please hold my hand so that you don't fall into the river."
The little girl said, "No, Dad You hold my hand."
"What's the difference?" Asked the puzzled father.
"There's a big difference," replied the little girl.

"If I hold your hand and something happens to me, chances are that I may let your hand go. But if you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter what happens, you will never let my hand go."

In any relationship, the essence of trust is not in its bind, but in its bond.

This applies in our relationship with God as well. His hand is always there to assure our safety so that we won't fall into the river. On the other hand, are we ready to lend our hands to others who are in need?

A Wonderful Christmas Story

2007-11-24T18:02:00.001-08:00

Touching story and a good reminder: "Take time to appreciate what you have now."
This story makes me very thoughtful.. . hope u will learn something from it :) - The Author

On the last day before Christmas, I hurried to go to the supermarket to buy the remaining of the gift I didn't manage to buy earlier. When I saw all the people there, I started to complain to myself,” It is going to take forever here and I still have so many other places to go. Christmas really is getting more and more annoying every year.

How I wish I could just lie down, go to sleep and only wake up after it..." Nonetheless, I made my way to the toy section, and there I started to curse the prices, wondering if after all kids really play with such expensive toys. While looking in the toy section, I noticed a small boy of about 5 years old, pressing a doll against his chest.

He kept on touching the hair of the doll and looked so sad. I wondered who this doll was for. Then the little boy turned to the old woman next to him, "Granny, are you sure I don't have enough money?" The old lady replied, "You know that you don't have enough money to buy this doll, my dear."

Then she asked him to stay here for 5 minutes while she went to look around. She left quickly. The little boy was still holding the doll in his hand. Finally, I started to walk toward him and I asked him who he wanted to give this doll to.

"It is the doll that my sister loved most and wanted so much for this Christmas. She was so sure that Santa Claus would bring it to her." I replied to him that maybe Santa Claus will bring it to her, after all, and not to worry.

But he replied to me sadly. "No, Santa Claus can not bring it to her where she is now. I have to give the doll to my mother so that she can give it to her when she goes there." His eyes were so sad while saying this. "My sister has gone to be with God. Daddy says that Mummy will also go to see God very soon, so I thought that she could bring the doll with her to give it to my sister."

My heart nearly stopped. The little boy looked up at me and said, "I told daddy to tell mummy not to go yet. I asked him to wait until I come back from the supermarket. " Then he showed me a very nice photo of him where he was laughing. He then told me, "I also want mummy to take this photo with her so that she will not forget me." I love my mummy and I wish she doesn't have to leave me but daddy says that she has to go to be with my little sister."

Then he looked again at the doll with sad eyes, very quietly. I quickly reached for my wallet and took a few notes and said to the boy, "What if we checked again, just in case if you have enough money?"

"Ok," he said. "I hope that I have enough."

I added some of my money to his without him seeing and we started to count it. There was enough for the doll, and even some spare money. The little boy said, "Thank you God for giving me enough money." Then he looked at me and added, "I asked yesterday before I slept for God to make sure I have enough money to buy this doll so that mummy can give it to my sister."

"He heard me." "I also wanted to have enough money to buy a white rose for my mummy, but I didn't dare to ask God too much. But He gave me enough to buy the doll and the white rose."

"You know, my mummy loves white rose."

A few minutes later, the old lady came again and I left with my trolley. I finished my shopping in a totally different state from when I started. I couldn't get the little boy out of my mind. Then I remembered a local newspaper article 2 days ago, which mentioned of a drunk man in a truck who hit a car where there was one young lady and a little girl. The little girl died right away, and the mother was left in a critical state.

The family had to decide whether to pull the plug on the life-assisting machine, because the young lady would not be able to get out of the coma. Was this the family of the little boy?

Two days after this encounter with the little boy, I read in the newspaper that the young lady had passed away. I couldn't stop myself and went to buy a bunch of white roses and I went to the mortuary where the body of the young woman was exposed for people to see and make last wish before burial.

She was there, in her coffin, holding a beautiful white rose in her hand with the photo of the little boy and the doll placed over her chest.

I left the place crying, feeling that my life had been changed forever. The love that this little boy had for his mother and his sister is still, to that day, hard to imagine. And in a fraction of a second, a drunken man had taken all this away from him.

Life

2007-11-16T17:32:00.000-08:00

Sanjay, a rich guy, loved fast cars and he did have a few in his Possession. He loved to speed and could not be bothered about breaking speed limits. Many times he was caught by the cops and speed radars, fined, but still he never bothered.

One day as he was driving at a very high speed as usual, he saw A cop following him. The cop overtook him finally and asked him to stop and checked his license. He then took out his pad and started Writing, and then handed over the sheet of paper to Sanjay. How much was this one going to cost?!!! Wait a minute. What was this???? Some kind of joke? Certainly not a ticket. Sanjay began to read: "Dear Sanjay, Once upon a time I had a lovely daughter. She was six when killed by a car. You guessed it - a speeding driver's car. A fine and three months in jail, and the man was free. Free though his three daughters. I only had one, and I'm going to have to wait until Heaven, before I can ever hug her again. A thousand times I've tried to forgive that man. A thousand times I thought I had. Maybe I did, but I need to do it again. Even now. Pray for me.. And be careful, Sanjay, my son is all I have left."

Sanjay turned around in time to see the cop's car pull away and head down the road. He watched until it disappeared. A full 15 minutes later, he too, pulled away and drove slowly home, praying for forgiveness and hugging a surprised wife and kids when he arrived.

Life is precious. Handle it with care.

The Sheffield Journey - Part 3

2007-11-13T07:27:00.000-08:00

Time passes... 1week, 2 weeks, 3 weeks and so on... Everyday I checked my email for their feedback. I wasn't too happy with their way of working as I need to send at least two emails to them in order to get a feedback. The other thing is that the reimbursement took longer then they promised during the interview. It took more then 1 and a half months before I got my reimbursement. I received my first email from them after that, saying that the managers have not decided anything yet and will let me know soon. The message gives me high hopes and I was praying very hard for it.

Another week later, I received another email from them. My heart was pumping as I was reading the email line by line, and the result was... I didnt get the job.

I wasn't too disappointed as it has going for quite some time and my ‘uummph’ for this job seems to be fading away. Looking back, it was actually a great experience and I really thank God once again for this trip. I will continue to apply once I cool down a little, hehe…

The Sheffield Journey - Part 2

2007-11-07T06:51:00.000-08:00

Derby is a quieter city then I expect. It looks like a kampong rather then an industrial estate. I wasn’t thinking too much about the interview as I don’t want to stress myself.

Well, the interview actually went ok. I was able to answer the questions and explain what I was doing. The managers are quite nice also. It was a long 2 hours interview. I don’t know how the managers thought of me, but I knew I already tried my best and I will leave the rest to God. I was relieved and happy. Now I can enjoy the rest of the week in Sheffield.

It was a great week having to enjoy the time and to refresh my mind. It was a sad moment to leave this place and my love ones, but life has to go on. Where there is sun, there is rain, and where there is darkness, there is light. This is what makes every moment in life special, and precious. Thank God for this trip which He planned earlier than I expected.

The Power of Love

2007-11-06T21:34:00.000-08:00

A long time ago in China , a girl named Li-Li got married & went to live with her husband and mother-in-law. In a very short time, Li-Li found that she couldn't get along mother-in-law at all. Their personalities were very different, and Li-Li was angered by many of her mother-in-law's habits. In addition, she criticized Li-Li constantly.

Days passed, and weeks passed. Li-Li and her mother-in-law never stopped arguing and fighting. But what made the situation even worse was that, according to ancient Chinese tradition, Li-Li had to bow to her mother-in-law and obey her every wish. All the anger and unhappiness in the house was causing Li-Li's poor husband great distress.

Finally, Li-Li could not stand her mother-in-law's bad temper and dictatorship any longer, and she decided to do something about it! Li-Li went to see her father's good friend, Mr. Huang, who sold herbs. She told him the situation and asked if he would give her some poison so that she could solve the problem once and for all.

Mr. Huang thought for a while, and finally said, "Li-Li, I will help you solve your problem, but you must listen to me and obey what I tell you."

Li-Li said, "Yes, Mr. Huang, I will do whatever you tell me to do."Mr. Huang went into the back room, and returned in a few minutes with a package of herbs. He told Li-Li, "You can't use a quick-acting poison to get rid of your mother-in-law, because that would cause people to become suspicious. Therefore, I have given you a number of herbs that will slowly build up poison in her body. Every other day prepare some delicious meal and put a little of these herbs in her serving. Now, in order to make sure that nobody suspect you, when she dies, you must be very careful to actively friendly towards her. "Don't argue with her, obey her every wish, and treat her like a queen." Li-Li was so happy. She thanked Mr. Huang and hurried home to start her plot of murdering her mother-in-law.

Weeks went by, and months went by, and every other day, Li-Li served the specially treated food to her Mother-in-law. She remembered what Mr. Huang had said about avoiding suspicion, so she controlled her temper, obeyed her mother-in-law, and treated her like her own mother.

After six months had passed, the whole household had changed. Li-Li had practiced controlling her temper so much that she found that she almost never got mad or upset. She hadn't had an argument with her mother-in-law in six months because she now seemed much kinder and easier to get along with.

The mother-in-law's attitude toward Li-Li changed, and she began to love Li-Li like her own daughter. She kept telling friends and relatives that Li-Li was the best daughter-in-law one could ever find. Li-Li and her mother-in-law were now treating each other like a real mother and daughter. Li-Li's husband was very happy to see what was happening.

One day, Li-Li came to see Mr. Huang and asked for his help again She said, "Dear Mr. Huang, please help me to keep the poison from killing my mother-in-law. She's changed into such a nice woman, and I love her like my own mother. I do not want her to die because of the poison I gave her."

Mr. Huang smiled and nodded his head. "Li-Li, there's nothing to worry about. I never gave you any poison. The herbs I gave you were vitamins to improve her health. The only poison was in your mind and your attitude toward her, but that has been all washed away by the love which you gave to her."

There is a wise Chinese saying: "The person who loves others will also be loved in return." God might be trying to work in another person's life through you.

Matthew 18:10-14

2007-11-04T06:54:00.000-08:00

The Parable of the Lost Sheep
10 See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.

11 What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?

12 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off.

13 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.

Many children and adults believe the lie that they are worthless to other people and insignificant to God. Jesus indicated that He came to save the lost, no matter how few or how 'insignificant' they seemed. God the Father does not want anyone to miss the opportunity for salvation or recovery in Jesus Christ. God values each one of us, no matter how painful our past or how far we have strayed. If we admit our need for Him to and seek to follow His will for us, we will discover how very important we are to God and the people close to us.

The Sheffield Journey - Part 1

2007-11-04T06:47:00.000-08:00

I can’t explain how glad I was returning to Sheffield. The air, the water, streets, people and the church. Not to mention going to see my love ones. After 3 years of working life, I once again step on the UK ground. Life was slow but relaxing here. Less traffic, less crowd, less pollution and no stress. My arrival was greeted by a warm sunlight like God reaching my heart. I knew this was His gift for me.

On the way from Manchester Airport to Sheffield, I sat quietly in the train, enjoying the breeze and the memorable scenes. The past moments just flashed back on my memory. I started thinking about my life, what if I got this job, and what if I didn’t? If I get the job, I will be able to serve once again in the Sheffield church, earn a good living, and have a better life. But what if I failed? I will be going back to my old job, battling in the city and live the old way. But to think even deeper, does this opportunity mean anything?

I realized that Sheffield didn’t change much… What changes is my mind set and how it sees things in different perspective. And each perspective is an opportunity for me to learn something new.

I spent most of the time with Ruth along the journey. She has grown more spiritual then before and becoming more dependent on God. I believe this is what God want all of us to be, to live like Him and walk in His path. Long distance relationship wasn’t easy. It is a mean of dedication and trust. In the middle is God who will guide us to the right path.