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INSPIRING EXCELLENCEFRANCISKONG.COM

2012

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FrancisKong.com | Inspiring Excellence 2


JANUARY 2012

A compilation of post from the personal blog of

F r a n c i s J. K o n g for the month of January, 2012.

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"Money runs after a person who is excellent. And then a loser

keeps on running after money and he never catches up."

Don't ever change just to impress and please someone. Change

because it makes you a better person and it leads you to a

better future.

When a storm comes at sea, a ship turns to face the tempest. If

the vessel allows the storm to hit its side, it will capsize. If it

turns its back to the storm, the storm will drive it wherever the

wind blows. Only in facing the storm is the ship safe. Says:

Robert C. Shannon. As we face them we grow in character and

faith and perseverance. Do not run away from trouble.

Welcome adversities. This is discipline!

A friend gave me a beautiful text this morning: In today's info

age, you cannot UPLOAD love, DOWNLOAD time,

GOOGLE all the answers in life --- so LOG OUT of worldly

deeds, LOG ON to GOD. You will surely LIKE the life!

FACEBOOK is ok, but spend more time with FAITHBOOK

the BIBLE. Wise words indeed.

A farmer had one old horse that he used for tilling his fields.

One day the horse escaped into the hills and when all the

farmer's neighbors heard about it, they sympathized with the

old man over his bad luck. "Bad luck? Good luck? Who

knows? Only God knows.‖ said the farmer.

A week later, the horse returned with a herd of wild horses

from the hills and this time the neighbors congratulated the

farmer on his good luck. "Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?

Only God knows" said the farmer.

Then, when the farmer's son was attempting to tame one of the

wild horses, he fell off its back and broke his leg. Everyone

agreed that this was very bad luck. Not the farmer, who

replied, "Bad Luck? Good luck? Who knows? Only God

knows.―

Some weeks later, the army marched into the village and

forced every able-bodied young man to go fight in a bloody

war. When they saw that the farmer's son had a broken leg,

they let him stay. Everyone was very happy at the farmer's

good luck.

"Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows? Only God knows."

This ancient Chinese story tells us a lot about what‘s going on

in our world. If there‘s one thing that really amazes me it is the


fact that just when the knowledge age is has made men more

knowledgeable, there is likewise an upsurge of interest into

the occult (Vampire movies), astrology and mysticism. Visit

your friendly neighborhood book stores and you will discover

that the shelves assigned to carry such books have expanded

tremendously. Man will always hunger and thirst for that

mysterious dimension which is the spiritual realm and all

means will be exhausted in order to have a glimpse into the

future and the unknown.

Something doesn't seem to connect here. If my life is governed

by luck whether good or bad, then where would I place God?

My Bible says that God is in full control and so nothing ever

happens without His knowledge and control. And so if I

believe in this, then where will I put luck? It doesn‘t take a lot

of intelligence to figure out the fact that being a Christian and

believing in luck is a contradiction in terms.

I just make it simple. I do my best and God does the rest and

I‘m not going to let any fortune teller tell me how to live my

life and neither am I going to allow any moronic horoscope to

dictate what my day will be.

Sometimes it seems like things are going well, and at other

times, things seem to be going badly. And we let those things

dictate our feelings and our outlook on life. When things are

going well, we're happy and we think God is with us. If they

are going badly, we get discouraged and think that God must

have abandoned us. We end up being tossed around by our

circumstances. And if faith in God is sadly wanting, then the

tendency is to believe in luck.

But the apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4 that he had learned

to be content, even happy, in all circumstances. He was happy

when things were bad (he was in jail at the time), and he was

happy when things were going good as well. That's the great

thing about being part of God's family. We really don't have to

worry in our circumstances, because no matter what, we have

hope in Christ. "We know that in everything, God works for

the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28).

Believe me this is such a liberating feeling. To know that my

life and my future is in God‘s hands. So I can travel without a

charm in my wallet and I can pass under the ladder and enjoy

seeing a black cat cross my path. Every single fortune teller

died and remained dead. Jesus Christ rose up from the dead

and that‘s why I‘m putting my trust in Him! It's a spiritual

discipline we all have to exercise.

There is none so busy as those who do nothing. No matter how

busy people are, they always stop & talk about how busy they

are. :)

People who talk too much about how busy they are, they‘re

not. Busy people don‘t even have the time to talk much

because they work much.


Work on but take a break every 90 minutes. This way you can

rest, recharge and still maintain productivity. Takes a lot of

discipline to do this.

We all desire relationships in which we are accepted, valued,

and wanted. We desperately long for this esteem from our

peers, but seldom experience the real thing. This is why teens

succumb to peer pressure. This is why people enter into

disastrous relationships wanting to be needed.

Inspire your people by appreciation and recognition. This goes

a long way. Make their work life meaningful.

What does it take to turn a person into a Judas? What

motivates someone to betray deep-seated loyalties? Unresolved

anger and resentment, for one thing. Consider the story of Earl

Pitts, FBI agent turned Soviet spy.

According to Evan Thomas in Newsweek, Pitts was raised on a

farm in Missouri and was recognized as a Future Farmer of

America. His parents said they disciplined him firmly but

fairly. He was a captain in the army who regarded himself as a

patriot. Even today he is described by his wife as a "good

man." So what happened?

After getting his law degree and serving as a military

policeman for six years, in 1983 Pitts realized a lifelong

ambition by going to work for the FBI. In 1987 he was

assigned to the New York office, and there his troubles began.

He did not see how he could afford to live in the Big Apple on

his $25,000 a year salary.

Thomas writes, "Morale in the office was poor, and petty

cheating on expense accounts was rampant. Burdened with

debt from student loans, Pitts had to ask his father for a loan.

He felt humiliated. Pitts later told a psychiatrist that he was

'overwhelmed' by a sense of rage at the FBI."

One morning he came up with the idea of spying for the KGB.

That way he could kill two birds with one stone: he could solve

his money problems and get back at his bosses. He later told a

psychiatrist, "I was shoved by the bureaucracy, and I shoved

back.―

Over the next seven years Pitts worked as a Soviet spy and for

his services received $224,000. When he was finally caught

and convicted, the judge sentenced him to twenty-seven years

in prison. At his sentencing the judge asked him point-blank

why he had become a traitor. Earl Pitts replied, "I gave in to an

unreasonable anger. "

Never allow anger to fester. Deal with anger as God prescribes.

Here is another story:

Shirley Belleranti shows the negative impact of anger on our

most important relationships: I remember one summer day

when my ten-year-old son and a friend were getting a pitcher


of lemonade from the refrigerator. I'd spent hours that morning

scrubbing, waxing, and polishing the kitchen floor, so I warned

the boys not to spill anything. They tried so hard to be careful

that they innocently bumped a tray of eggs on the door shelf.

Of course, it fell, splattering eggs all over my clean floor.

The boys' eyes widened with alarm as I exploded angrily. "Get

out of here now!" I shouted, while they headed for the door. By

the time I'd finished cleaning up the mess, I had calmed down.

To make amends, I set a tray of cookies on the table, along

with the pitcher of lemonade and some glasses. But when I

called the boys, there was no answer—they'd gone somewhere

else to play, somewhere where my angry voice wouldn't reach

them.

Anger separates us from those we want to be near. Anger

shatters intimacy. It sure does.

Do not let the sun go down on your anger that‘s what the Bible

has to say because the Author know the stuff we are made of.

God has given us a mind to use and we need to use that mind

to educate our moods.

I sure appreciate the fact that God does not blow His top the

way I do.

It takes a lot of discipline to be able to deal with anger

emotions but we simply have to deal with it correctly.

Just remember this. Anger can sure be an expensive luxury.

And we simply can‘t afford it.

One father complains: ―My children think that I am an ATM

Machine.‖ Another dad said: Never date a woman whose father

calls her "Princess".

True justice is when our kids have their own kids. Every word

and deed of a parent is a fiber woven into the character of a

child which ultimately determines how that child fits into the

fabric of society. This is why I love to do parenting talks. It's

important for our country.

It's a parenting talk this morning and then I get to speak to the

science teachers this afternoon. I don't charge fees when it

comes to parents, students and teachers. This is why I love my

life. Happiness comes through doors you didn't even know you

left open.

Think about this. No matter how successful a man is in

business, he is seldom as smart as his mother thinks, or as

dumb as his mother in law says he is.

Somebody asks this question: ―What is the difference between

outlaws and in-laws?‖ And here is the answer: Outlaws are

wanted.

We lovingly call her ―Auntie Carmen.‖ If you want to talk


about being a ―people person‖ then Auntie Carmen surely

qualifies as one of them. We met in church a couple of years

ago and have become friends. She sent me this beautiful story

that is credited to anonymity.

Once upon a time 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 with her

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 and weeks passed. Li-Li and her mother-in-law never

stopped arguing and fighting. But what made the situation

worse was that according to 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.

Li-Li could not stand her mother-in-law any longer so she

decided to do something about it. Li-Li went to see Mr. Huang

who sold herbs. She told him about the situation and asked if

he would give her some poison so that she could solve her

problem once and for all. The wise Mr. Huang thought for

awhile, 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.―

Mr. Huang gave Li-Li a package of herbs. He said, "Li-Li, you

cannot use a quick-acting poison kill 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 the day

she dies, you must be very careful to act very 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 murder plot against her mother-in-

law.

Weeks 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 said about avoiding suspicion so

she controlled her temper, obeyed her mother-in-law, and

treated her like her own mother. After six months, the whole

household had changed. Li-Li had learned to control her

temper and she hadn't had an argument with her mother-in-law

in six months. The mother-in-law now seemed a lot kinder and

easier to get along. Her attitude toward Li-Li has 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's husband was very happy to see

what was happening.

So now Li-Li has a problem. The situation has changed but

what about the poison inside her mother-in-law that would

eventually kill her.

Li-Li rushed to see Mr. Huang and asked for his help. She said,

"Mr. Huang, please help me to keep off 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."

Now I want you to think about this. You will be amazed at how

people would change when the change starts with you. And

couldn‘t it be possible that God is using other people to work

on you?

Never forget. Behind every successful man stands --- a

surprised mother-in-law.

The late business philosopher Jim Rohn says: Affirmation

without discipline is the beginning of delusion. Every single

successful professional or business person I have met is a

disciplined person. There can't be any exception to this rule.


Francis J. Kong is:

• President of Success Options Publishing Company

• President of FunWorks Inc. a member of the Canadian

based Mad Science International Group, the world‘s number

one (1) Science educational-entertainment program provider

for kids.

• Founding member and Director of Inspire Leadership

Consultancy

Francis has extensive work experiences in manufacturing and

retail as he help founded a popular clothing company and ran a

retail chain for many years.

You can hear him in his daily Radio Program ―Business

Matters‖ which was given a Year 2007 special citation by the

Catholic Mass Media Awards.

You can read him through his Saturday and Sunday column of

the Business Page of the Philippine Star.

You can see him as he regularly guests every Monday and

Thursday morning at the popular morning show Umagang Kay

Ganda.

He has been featured in many of the major business

conventions and conferences both here and abroad.

• Francis is co-recipient of the Anvil Award for Excellence

for the staging of the Dr. John Maxwell Leadership Seminar

Series.

• Recipient of the Year 2006 Gold Quill Philippines Award

of merit for Public Speech category sponsored by The

International Association of Business Communicators.

• Recipient of 2008 Dr. Jose Rizal Award for Excellence in

the field of Journalism.

Francis has been trained and licensed by Maximum Impact of

Atlanta Georgia to do the Maxwell leadership programs. He is

also Trained and licensed by The Ziglar Corporation in London

to do the Ziglar Sales and Presentation programs.


He is an author of 14 books:

• His book ―One Day at a Time‖ has been given a most

favorable review by Channel NewsAsia of Singapore.

• His book ―The Early Bird Catches the Worm: is now

translated into the Korean language.

Francis is married to the former Lilia Nolasco and has three

children: Bryan 30, Hannah 26 and Rachel 21.

For more inspiring words from Francis J. Kong, please visit his

personal blog at http://www.franciskong.com.


http://www.franciskong.com/


FEBRUARY 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n g for the month of February, 2012.



















You like someone "BECAUSE" they have pretty eyes, nice

smile, or an elegant nose. You love the person "EVEN

THOUGH" they are not rich, a good cook, or can‘t put the

toilet seat down. Liking someone means that you are fond of

their good traits and loving someone is that you accept that

other person fully even though they are not always perfect.

Liking and loving are different. Know the difference. It's easy

to like but it takes a lot of heart and discipline to love.

Good people change others. Better people change the system

but the best people change themselves. And when God changes

the person the person changes himself/herself, changes the

system and then they inspire others to change as well. Faith

and discipline - package deal to change.

A teacher arranged her young students into a circle. She then

went around the circle and asked each one a question.

"Robert, what sound does a cow make?"

Robert replied, "It goes 'moo.'"

"Albert, what sound does a cat make?"

Albert said, "It goes 'meow.'"

"Oscar, what sound does a lamb make?"

Oscar said, "It goes 'baaa.'"

"Noel, what sound does a mouse make?"

Noel paused, and said, "Uhh ... it goes ... 'click…click!'"

This is the age of technology.

There was a time when mouse used to be a rodent and

windows were fixtures inside your home. Today you have

mouse, wireless mouse, mouse that operates with radio

frequency, track pads is replacing the mice. Disruptive

technology is here to stay. There was a time when it took a

long time before a new product is accepted in the market place.

Today the market eagerly awaits the launching of the next big

thing in technology.

I was giving a seminar then and people began to smile, some

were giggling and a lot more of them began laughing. I asked,

―What‘s going on?‖ One brave soul responded and said,

―Francis, you said we need to read books and we need to listen

to tapes. But nobody listens to tapes anymore.‖ ―Oh boy, ― I

told myself, caught in a time warp. How could I have missed

that?

After giving a talk, one lady approached me and said, ―Francis

I love your talk. Have you recorded it in a cassette?‖

―Cassette?‖ I half smiled but that‘s exactly what happened to

me. The only difference is that I said, ―Tape.‖

This makes me think. What has happened to the products of the

past? The hits? The wonders? The breakthrough technology

that made the world marveled? Products like:

1. The video recorder? (Circa 1983) The one with the flashing

12:00? Never figured out what that function was for anyway.


2. Brick (circa 1990) – I remember my first cell phone was a

phone named ANTEL. Compare the size of that today to the

newer ones my first cell phone was as small as my Coleman

Water Jug. You charge the battery for 8 hours and you get to

use it for only 2.

3. Cloning (same time) – The biggest worry at that time was

not virus but cloning in an Analog platform not digital.

4. Let‘s go back – way back. Remember phones had party-lines

and you fight them all the time?

5. What about Caller ID (circa 1995) – Staring at a number that

came in and you shock the callers by knowing it was them.

And for those who first saw the light in a hospital after 1990, a

quick fad then was called the DAT. DAT stands for Digital

Audio Tape. Sony Corporation introduced this in the mid-

1980‘s. This replaced the old cassettes that really lasted many

years.

And the CD‘s came into the picture and is now losing ground

to Ipods and MP3 Players. A couple of years back I remember

entering the last 2 days of Tower Record‘s existence in

America and everything in there was sold for just $2 and less.

Today online music purchasing gains momentum everyday.

My son plays the drums for a popular band. He says that their

first hit became a hit without a CD. It was placed online and

people here and even in places as far as Belgium and Germany

listened to it.

Products of the past. I wonder why as I think about them the

same products bring back memories of events tied to the same.

And what about future products?

I read about scientists and researchers developing the next

generation paper battery. A supercharged battery that can be

bent, rolled, twisted and cut to size like a piece of paper. It

looks like the next great thing; a breakthrough technology

which becomes today‘s hit would in a short span of time

quickly turn into tomorrow‘s museum piece.

May I make a suggestion? Don‘t be too much of a hurry in

having to HAVE that new toy. You spend a great deal for it and

then a few months later that ―new‖ thing will be left with just

the ―thing‖ when the novelty of newness is gone. Just because

you are using an old cell phone does not mean you‘re second-

class and old. It may mean you are frugal and practical that‘s

all.

Somebody says: ―The world is getting complicated. Somebody

just gave me a battery operated paperweight.‖ And you‘re

probably asking, ―Paperweight? What‘s that?‖

Don‘t let technology complicate your life. Live it simply but

live it to the full. With or even without the latest technology.

Complete the sentence. If at first you don‘t succeed --- Do not

try again. Find out what went wrong. Correct the error and then

try again. It's crazy to continue doing the same thing over

expecting a different result. Working harder on the same

mistake is not a virtue. Humble yourself and find out where


you went wrong. Then correct it and try again. This takes a lot

of discipline to do.

And now more than ever, it‘s important that we commit to a

lifelong quest for knowledge. Things are changing so rapidly

that unless we stay up on the learning curve, we will surely fall

behind.

Knowledge will not acquire you: you must acquire it. Takes

discipline to do this.

After she woke up, a woman told her husband, "I just dreamed

that you gave me a pearl necklace for Valentine's day. What do

you think it means?―

"You'll know tonight." he said.

That evening, the man came home with a small package and

gave it to his wife. Delighted, she opened it - to find a book

entitled "The Meaning of Dreams."

Don't be a cheapskate. Show love and give love every day.

From an anonymous source comes this beautiful material:

My face in the mirror isn't wrinkled or drawn.

My house isn't dirty the cobwebs are gone.

My garden looks lovely and so does my lawn.

I think I might never put my glasses back on.

One of the greatest impediments to progress is denial.

Be truthful at all times and be a disciplined person.

A FRENCH PROVERB SAYS: ―None so busy as those who

do nothing.‖

But what about being too busy all the time?

The truth is if you are too busy to relax, then you are too busy.

Technology is a big culprit behind the reason why we become

so busy.

Just think about this: Do you remember the predictions about

the paperless office and the leisure society? Between 1999 and

2002 global use of paper increased by 22% and we now seem

to have less spare time than ever. We are also sleeping less than

we used to, down from 9 hours per day in 1900 to 6.9 hours

today. Indeed, the benefits of the computer age can be seen

everywhere except in the productivity statistics, because we are

inventing new ways of making ourselves busy.


Still, being too busy seems to be a badge of accomplishment

and a picture of importance. When people invite me to give a

talk I pull out my Iphone, check over my calendar and see my

white spaces occupied with activities. People are impressed.

They see how busy I am.

In fact there is a running rumor going around the corporate

world that it takes them one year in advance to be able to get a

booking from me. This is of course grossly exaggerated but it

does take quite a few months lead time to have me schedule a

date for a speaking or a training engagement.

And then I go home, exhausted and wondered how I could

have packed so many activities in so short a time.

But this is not an exclusive condition for me.

The obsession with "busyness" can be seen in the way the work

ethic has invaded childhood. Children must be kept busy at all

limes. As a result, they are becoming overscheduled and we are

creating a cohort that cannot think for itself, a generation of

passive, risk-averse citizens and comfortably numb consumers

with almost no imagination or self-reliance.

Children today are expected to do so many hours of back-

breaking homework. And then rush off somewhere to do music

lessons. And parents today feel that if they do not push their

kids hard enough they may not succeed.

Watch what happens when summer season comes. Parents get

paranoid and they feel nervous seeing their children idle. And

so they enroll them in summer courses, sports programs,

summer programs just to keep them busy.

Is busyness now an important element to life and living? Could

we not get used to moments of quietness so we can pull our

acts together? As I ask these questions I am actually asking

myself.

Consider the following new terms:

TMI or Too much Information better known as information

overload has a distant cousin, too much choice (TMC). In a

nutshell, humankind is producing an excess of stuff. The

amount of new information we produce today is estimated to

be around 2 billion bytes annually. That's (very roughly) 2

billion bytes or about 20 billion copies of a typical thick book.

The average large corporation similarly experiences a doubling

of the amount of information it produces annually.

Information is no longer power; power lies in the ability to

attain and maintain attention. I am not an alarmist but what I

want people to know is that the pace of life will continue to

increase and we need to learn how to be quiet.

This is why my first hour of the day is spent on quiet time.

Prayer and meditation of Scripture to bring sanity to my being.

Busyness may not be a good thing when it is done in excess.

Learn to be quiet. Learn to spend time in solitude as I certainly

will this coming holiday season.

So don‘t just do something, stand there or better still, sit down

and be quiet.


Here is an old and sobering story: When a victorious Roman

general arrived back in Rome, he was given a hero's welcome

and a triumphant parade of victory. But a philosopher was

hired to ride beside him in the victory parade. As the victor

acknowledged the cheers of the crowd, the philosopher kept

whispering in his ear: "You are mortal. You are mortal." Focus

on God the Source of all good things.

Somebody says: My wife suggested a book for me to read to

enhance our relationship. It's titled: 'Women are from Venus,

Men are Wrong'. It doesn't have to be this way. Takes a lot of

discipline to have a very successful marriage.

I am so excited to speak on marriage this afternoon at St.

Scholastica Westgrove. Have had years of this in actual

experience and is included in my bio-data. :)

Some people are what I call ―The Plan B‖ people. While I

value the importance of being prudent and prepared, some

people would always go to option 2 when they have not

exhausted their efforts into their original plan.

Statesman and businessman George Shultz says: 'The minute

you start talking about what you are going to do if you lose,

YOU have lost.'' Don‘t quit too soon. Takes a lot of discipline

to go through this.

Our country has gone through many kinds of crisis. Crisis that

are both man made and considered acts of God. Which in my

opinion is a very bad term. Why is it that we call a sad natural

catastrophe an ―act of god‖ and then when times are good and

victorious we credit it to ourselves? Maybe this is something

we should think about.

Anyways --- We have a very strange way of getting through

the different crises that have came our way.

A few days after typhoon Ondoy, I joined a relief operations

group and we rode a small Bangka and visited the far places of

the flooded areas in order to distribute relief goods. Guess what

I saw? Water that has gone beyond house roofs with people

practically staying on top of their roofs yet you still see a smile

on their faces.

They say that as a people we are resilient and I think we are.

But being resilient alone does not make us stronger. We need to

evaluate the experience, learn from it and be determined to

prevent the same problem from occurring in the future. This is

why this material I got from the Internet really made me laugh.

It is entitled: ―21 Thoughts to Get You Through Almost Any

Crisis.‖


Now here is a warning. Do not take this material seriously.

This is part sarcasm part plain humor. Following this material

will be totally disastrous so take this as something humorous

and again, do not take it seriously.

Here is the material.

21 Thoughts to Get You Through Almost any Crisis:

1. Indecision is the key to flexibility.

2. There is absolutely no substitute for a genuine lack of

preparation.

3. Happiness is merely the remission of pain.

4. Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

5. The facts, although interesting, are irrelevant.

6. The careful application of terror is also a form of

communication.

7. Someone who thinks logically provides a nice contrast to the

real world.

8. Things are more like they are today then they have ever been

before.

9. Anything worth fighting for is worth fighting dirty for.

That‘s bad.

10. Everything should be made as simple as possible but no

simpler.

11. Friends may come and go, but enemies accumulate. Oh

how I believe that.

12. I have seen the truth and it makes no sense.

13. Suicide is the most sincere form of self-criticism. And it‘s

the biggest cop out too.

14. If you think that there is good in everybody, you haven't

met everybody.

15. All things being equal, fat people use more soap. Now

that‘s being politically incorrect.

16. If you can smile when things go wrong, you have someone

in mind to blame.

17. One-seventh of your life is spent on Monday.

18. By the time you can make ends meet, they move the ends.

19. Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is

serious.

20. There is always one more imbecile than you counted on.

21. Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig

likes it.

Comedienne Lucille Ball says: :The secret of staying young is

to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age.‖

Again, do not take this seriously. Of course all form of lying is

sinful. But here is the key. When you go through a crisis, pray.

Never forget that God is in control. Keep your mind clear and

put your trust in God. This is the only part of the material that

is serious and truthful. So learn the lessons.

Leaders who win the respect of others are the ones who deliver

more than they promise, not the ones who promise more than

they can deliver.‖ says Mark Clement.

One winning principle we can all cultivate for life is this:

Always give more than what we're paid for. Those who keep

on counting the hours and counting the wages are never happy

and worst --- they never grow!!

Happy growing today, this week and the rest of your life.


If you want to feel rich, just count the things money cant buy.

Two kinds of gratitude: The sudden kind we feel for what we

take; the larger kind we feel for what we give. says E.A.

ROBINSON.

There are the givers and there are the takers. The takers of

course they eat better. But the givers, they sleep better. And the

takers have higher cholesterol. Have a Great day today!

"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for

the glory of God."

This special story today found in the web site ―Daily

Encounter‖ was written by Commander Eric J. Berryman.

The USS Astoria (C-34) was the first U.S. cruiser to engage the

Japanese during the Battle of Savo Island, a night action fought

8-9 August 1942. Although she scored two hits on the Imperial

flagship Chokai, the Astoria was badly damaged and sank

shortly after noon, 9 August.

About 0200 hours a young midwesterner, Signalman 3rd Class

Elgin Staples, was swept overboard by the blast when the

Astoria's number one eight-inch gun turret exploded. Wounded

in both legs by shrapnel and in semi-shock, he was kept afloat

by a narrow life belt that he managed to activate with a simple

trigger mechanism.

At around 0600 hours, Staples was rescued by a passing

destroyer and returned to the Astoria, whose captain was

attempting to save the cruiser by beaching her. The effort

failed, and Staples, still wearing the same life belt, found

himself back in the water. He was picked up again, this time by

the USS President Jackson (AP-37), he was one of 500

survivors of the battle who were evacuated to Noumea.

On board the transport, Staples, for the first time, closely

examined the life belt that had served him so well. It had been

manufactured by Firestone Tire and Rubber Company of

Akron, Ohio, and bore a registration number.

Given home leave Staples told his story and asked his mother,

who worked for Firestone, about the purpose of the number on

the belt. She replied that the company insisted on personal

responsibility for the war effort, and that the number was

unique and assigned to only one inspector. Staples remembered

everything about the lifebelt, and quoted the number. It was his

mother's personal code and affixed to every item she was

responsible for approving.

When we always do what is right, the person we help the most

in many ways is our own self and that of our loved ones.

So many people miss this. They go to work everyday without

any purpose or meaning in life.

So why do you think there are many people bored with their

work? Maybe because they are not really working. They are

simply pretending to work. This is why one company came up

with an innovative policy that says: ―You pretend to work and

we will pretend to pay you.‖


Do what is right all the time.

Never allow complacency to creep up on you.

Develop yourself into a life long learner and keep on growing.

This is the only way you begin to open wide better

opportunities for growth.

As I come into contact with many of the real and successful

winners in life whether they be in the field of business,

profession or academe, they all tell the same story. No matter

how humble their beginnings may have been they all were

faithful in what they were doing.

This is why faithfulness is a virtue that you and I should not

forsake.

And we are developed more in this area when we remember

that in everything we do, it is for God‘s Glory.

Start this day with a positive spirit and sustain this week by

being positive.

Do not say, "I have to go to work again and I hate my job."

Say: "I love to go to work today because there are so many out

there who can't even find work." Develop an attitude of

gratitude and thank God in everything!

I am unique. You are unique. There are no two identical petals,

no two identical leaves. You can go all over the world and you

will never find someone who is exactly like you. Why?

Because God is merciful. Just to have one of you is more than

enough. :)

And this is why we should never ENVY another. Envy is dumb

and stupid. It is self-destructive. Learn to celebrate other‘s

success.

A Chinese proverb says: A gem is not polished without

rubbing, nor a man made perfect without trials. So when you

face some rubbing today, stay positive, stay beautiful, stay

trusting in God and in plane English --- just stay! Till you get

through it and start shining.


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.












MARCH 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n g for the month of March, 2012.



















"To err is human - and to blame it on a computer is even more

so." Says Robert Orben.

Never master the art of ―BLAMEstorming.‖ Blaming others

weakens one‘s character. Take responsibility for your actions.

When you have succeeded, stay humble and when you have

experienced defeat, strengthen your resolve, learn from the

episode and move forward. This is how winners are made.

You cannot be in business without conflicts. Conflicts are

good. Conflicts can be healthy. Conflicts bring out creativity in

people but conflicts should make you a better person not a

bitter person. Learn to deal with conflicts professionally. You

may attack the issues but never attack the person. Treat each

one with respect. Be civil and be civilized.

It's been a Great Week!

We are not made happy by what we have. We are made happy

by what we appreciate. Offer thanksgiving to God who is the

Grand Architect of history and change. Welcome change with

great anticipation and gratefulness.

From the book entitled ―More Hot Illustrations for Youth

Talks‖ as edited by Wayne Rice, is a story about a parakeet and

a vacuum cleaner but as you listen to it you may observe that it

deals more than a story about a parakeet. It may actually be

talking about you and me.

There‘s the story of a woman who had a parakeet named

Chippie. She loved Chippie because he was such a happy little

song bird. Chippie's constant chirping just seemed to brighten

her day. One day, the woman was cleaning the bottom of

Chippie's cage with a vacuum cleaner when the telephone rang.

She reached for the telephone without removing the nozzle of

the vacuum cleaner from the cage, which was a mistake. The

vacuum cleaner nozzle got pointed in the direction of poor

little Chippie, and he was suddenly sucked up into the

machine.

When the woman looked back at the cage and realized what

had happened, she was horrified. She dropped the telephone,

turned off the vacuum cleaner and ripped open the dust bag to

get to her little bird. Chippie was a real mess, but he was still

alive. She raced to the kitchen sink and turned the water on full

force on Chippie. The more she tried to wash him, the worse he

looked, so she took him to the bathroom and started trying to

dry Chippie with her hair dryer--full force and high heat.

Finally she got the bird dry and put him back in his cage.


Several days later, a friend called and asked how Chippie was

doing.

"He's alive," he said, "but he just sits in his cage and stares into

space. And," she added thoughtfully, "Chippie doesn't sing

much anymore."

We all know people who are a lot like Chippie. We know

young people who once had a song in their hearts. But due to

circumstances out of their control, they discovered that "life

sucks." As a result, they aren't singing much anymore.

I never gave much thought about this until one time I had to

stay home during a long vacation. The religious holidays took

a couple of days and the stores were closed, the movies were

showing nothing but old religious movies and I wasn‘t at the

mood of messing around with my computer. The only thing

that got me going was to watch rented tapes all day long. BY

the end of the day, I simply found myself staring at the boob

tube allowing my mind to drift.

Thinking yet having no thoughts. Looking yet seeing nothing.

So different from the usual vibrant and hyper active me. My

wife and my kids noticed this and they laughed because at that

time and circumstance, I was really a funny figure.

When they awakened me from my spell, I suddenly realized

that I have been so accustomed to be moving around, getting

busy, running all over the place such that I get so caught up

with the rat race I don‘t know how to rest any more. No, it‘s

not burn out, it‘s not anything I know it‘s just a case of getting

so busy with life‘s stupid demands such that my heart can‘t

even sing anymore. I may not have noticed this but I probably

worship my work and work at my play because life‘s different

circumstances do have a tendency to rob our very life away

from us. In other words, I felt like Chippie. But the question is:

What about you?

Have you ever felt a little like Chippie? Have you been abused

by people you loved? Has your world been turned upside

down? Have you lost your desire to Sing? Well don‘t!

As Chippie found out, there are no "quick fixes." Healing takes

time. But there is someone who can give you back your song

and restore your joy. His name is Jesus. "Sing to the Lord a

new song, for he has done marvelous things" (Psalm 98:1). It‘s

no longer strange to find that the Word of God calls Jesus a

Healer. I guess no one can exist without Him, and that includes

chippie as well as me.

Do not call it Monday morning blues. This time call it

Awesome Monday that will start your Awesome Week! Put

your mind in the right frame and work to make this week your

most productive week of your life. And then repeat the process

next Monday! BE AWESOME!

If a problem causes many meetings, the meetings eventually

become more important than the problem, says writer Arthur

Bloch. Make your meetings productive. Cut to the chase. Stick

to the agenda. Respect opinions. Make it quick and go back to

work.


Our purpose in life is tied to our calling. But our calling will

always test our character. No matter how noble our calling in

life is, we need to make sure we develop a Christ-like character

so as not to destroy the nobility of our purpose. Enjoy the day!

G K Chesterton says: ―To be clever enough to get all that

money, one must be stupid enough to want it.‖

And isn‘t this so true? For the love of money is a root of all

kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered

from the faith and pierced themselves with many grieves.

Never allow money to change you. Don‘t be that cheap!

What you hold in your hands will not be as important as what

you carry in your heart. Make sure you spend this week

carrying an attitude of gratitude and a firm determination to be

excellent to make this week the best week of your life. I do.

The world has lost it‘s Moral Reference. What has replaced

morality today is the new or maybe not-so-new term called

political correctness.

I have attended a session in a business conference. The famous

book author who was speaking opened the session with a

claim, ―I am a Buddhist.‖ I do not understand the relevance of

that statement to his topic presentation but I gave him the

benefit of the doubt.

In another session Ken Blanchard, famous author, trainer and

speaker had to exert a lot of efforts in explaining why he is of

the ―Faith‖ and that he does not intend to use his Christianity

to convert anyone. And then the thought hit me.

One famous author and speaker can be proud in declaring that

he is a Buddhist. But Ken Blanchard has to qualify to

acknowledge that he is a Christian. This is what happens when

we have lost the point of moral reference.

Maybe you are thinking that the issue is about religion? Not

exactly. Please allow me to qualify. America has been built by

the Bible. This is why there is a huge area of American Land

today that is still called the Bible Belt area. But isn‘t it a

wonder that today public prayer is already prohibited and the

10 Commandments have been removed from Court Houses and

there are attempts to remove the words, ―In God We Trust‖

from the Dollar Bill?


I was in my hotel dressing up preparing myself for the training

session. There was an interview happening in an American TV

program. The wife secretly poses herself in the nude and does

Web Sex without the knowledge of her husband. During the

interview the husband was obviously surprised.

When asked why she is doing this, "She said I love to do this

and I also get to make a few bucks in between."

Husband asked; "Is there any physical contact with any man?"

The wife shook her head and said, "Absolutely not."

Husband says, "Who am I to stand in between my wife and

what makes her happy?―

And the audience broke up in "aaaahhhh!" And applauded the

husband. Why in the eyes of the audience the husband is a

hero. He is understanding and he shows his love for his wife in

spite of the fact that she does porno acts in front of a web cam.

Here is a question I would like to ask. Would you and I

applaud our children or daughters for doing the same thing?

Just to do things that make them happy?

America has lost it. There is absolutely no point of reference

that porno is wrong. What is all this about? Is everything all

about being happy? Some people I know do stupid things and

they are happy too….

But why is porno wrong? Now the question becomes hard to

answer is it not? But when you have a moral reference then the

answer becomes pretty obvious. "Because you and I are image

bearers of God. A body given to us as His Temple.― And so we

take care of it because we value it. It's not some cheap device

you show off to everyone and earn money from it. What makes

this different now from selling one's body for physical

pleasure? Not much difference right?

Let The Scriptures serve as the main point of reference and let

it‘s Author be the Final Authority for indeed He is. Then we do

not experience happiness, which is so shallow and is so

dependent on happenings. We experience true joy that can only

come from Him.

After 17 hours of flying time and 12.5 hours of airport waiting

time I finally made it to Boston for my yearly brain upgrade.

This is what knowledge is all about. You have to go out of your

way and seek it. Rarely does knowledge come and interrupt us

in the middle of our DVD movie watching.

Same thing with God. We have to seek Him with all of our

heart and then we'll find Him! Classes start tomorrow and I'm

excited.


A Swedish proverb says: Fear less, hope more. Eat less, chew

more. Whine less, breathe more. Hate less, love more. And all

good things are yours. I will add more. In all things give thanks

to God!

HENRY BOYE says: "In life, no matter how tall your parents

were, you still have to do your own growing."

There's nothing we can do with our ancestry but there is

everything we CAN do with our legacy. Take charge, be

responsible and start growing!

Somebody says, "If we are what we eat then most of us would

become french fries by now. The truth is we are what we read.

Jim Rohn says 5 years from now, you and I will be exactly the

same people today except for two things: the books we read

and the friends we meet. Read good books and cultivate honest

and good friends by being one yourself.

After more than 20 hours of flying time and waiting time

coming back, can't wait to go back to work. No one can be

happy unless he or she is productive. Start with a positive

mindset. Seek wisdom not answers, give encouragement and

not just help and make this week the most productive and

meaningful week ever. Today is a gift from God and so are the

days of the week.

It is important that we get our math right. The things that count

are the things that cannot be counted. I am convinced that we

need to see through the clutter and see Jesus for He is all that

matters. Youth is fleeting life on this earth is finite and only

what matters in eternity truly counts. Learn to number our days

aright so we can have a heart of wisdom.

Norman Cousins says: "Death is not the greatest loss in life.

The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live."

My father raised us up well and even though we grieve his

passing last night we rejoice in his arrival in the promised

place Jesus offered. He passed on in peace because the Prince

of Peace is in his heart.


History teaches us the mistakes we are going to make. This is a

wise saying. We all should be students of history learning from

our past mistakes as well as our past successes. Every day is

class in session and everywhere is a classroom for learning.

Observe and absorb for today may offer the greatest lesson you

and I need to learn. Happy Learning.

A farmer‘s boy decided to get married. His father said to him,

―John, when you get married, your liberty is gone.‖ The boy

said he did not believe it. The father said, ―I‘ll prove it to you.

Catch a dozen chicken, tie their legs together and put them in

the wagon. Hitch up the 2 horses to the wagon and drive into

town. Stop at every house you come to, and whenever you find

the man is boss, give him a horse. But whenever you find the

woman is boss, give her a chicken. You‘ll give away all your

chickens and come back with 2 horses.

―Is it really that bad?‖ The boy wondered. What is father trying

to say? That the woman is the head of the house? That she is

the boss? Still, the boy wouldn‘t believe.

Nevertheless, he accepted the proposition and drove to town.

He had stopped at every house and had given away 10

chickens when he came to a nice little house and saw an old

man and his wife standing out on the front lawn. He called to

them and asked, ―who is the boss here?‖

The man said, ―I am.‖ Turning to the woman, the boy said, ―Is

he the boss?‖

The woman replied, ―Yes, he is the boss.‖

The boy asked them to come down to the street. He then

explained his reason for asking and told the man to pick out

one of the horses. He said he would bring the horse back to

him that afternoon. The old man and the old lady looked over

the horses carefully, and the husband said, ―I think the black

horse is the better of the two.‖

The wife then said, ―I think that brown one is in every way the

better horse. I would choose him.‖

The old man took a careful look at the brown horse and said, ―I

guess I‘ll take the brown horse.‖

The boy smiled and said, ―Oh no you won‘t; you‘ll take the

chicken.‖

Clearly, the woman is still the boss around the house.

Some times I get really tired of hearing all those jokes about

certain men being ―Under‖ the power and authority of their

wives. All jokes imaginable have been concocted and why is

this so? Very simple. Because not too many people understand

God‘s design for marriage.


You would be amazed at the kinds of things business people

say about marriage. One guy said that -Marriage is not a word.

It is a sentence (a life sentence!).

Another one trying to play with the concept of philosophy

deduces marriage this way: He says -Marriage is love. Love is

blind. Therefore, marriage is an institution for the blind. Would

you believe that?

One business man tired of all the household chores says that

the Marriage certificate is just another word for a work permit.

One wise guy says that you see that the disintegration of

marriage comes in different stages:

In the first year of marriage, the man speaks and the woman

listens adoringly.

In the second year, the woman speaks and the man listens

agonizingly.

And in the third year, they BOTH speak and the NEIGHBORS

listen excitedly.

Truth is those who make fun of marriage perhaps is simply

being defensive about it. Maybe the guys in the office who

tease men saying that their wives are their bosses are

themselves being defensive in a way.

Somebody says: Marriage is an institution in which a man

loses his Bachelor's Degree and the woman gets her Masters.

And lastly, another business man says: when a man holds a

woman's hand before marriage, it is love; after marriage, it is

self-defense.

Husband and wife, instead of complementing each other

collide with each other. This is not an exception, rather it is

more of a rule. This is an eventuality because both parties in

the marriage relationship do not understand his and her role.

Haven‘t you noticed that after attending various marriage

seminars, the husband and wife goes home even increased the

intensity of their fights. Simply because they start blaming

each other. This should not be.

The Bible says that the husband is to love his wife to the point

of even dying for her as Jesus Christ gave His life for the

church. But the woman‘s part is to submit to the authority of

her husband. Mess up this pattern and your marriage is messed

up too.

So the next time you hear those turkeys teasing you just

because you don‘t want to go with them to the bar after work

tonight, they have no idea what marriage is all about. But you

know better because you know the Word of God.

The one important quality business owners and executives are

looking for in their people is initiative. Most people shy away

and avoid responsibility and then wonder why their career is

going nowhere.

Make things happen this week because we will never be happy

unless we are productive.


Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to

learn. We are all ignorant in different subjects anyway. The

person who pretends to ―know it all‖ is the true ignorant in

every way.

Some people do not want to make a stand. They always want

to be on the "winning" side. Stand on the side of truth. In the

face of falsehood silence simply means agreement. We know

what happens to people who stay in the middle of the road.

They get run over. He who is not willing to stand for anything

will fall for everything.

Some people are blessed with the ability to create wealth.

There is no need to envy them. We have wealth in many other

forms. The important thing is to appreciate, to be contented

with what we have but to never be contented with what we can

become. Become a person of character, grace, manners and

values. This is true wealth money cannot buy.

Take the time to truly rest. Vacations are important.

But here is the key: The ideal length of a vacation is just long

enough to be missed and not long enough for them to discover

how well they can get along without you... :)


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.












APRIL 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n g for the month of April, 2012.



















If something is wrong with your cellphone, you do not consult

your washing machine manual.

If something is wrong with your TV, you do not consult your

DVD manual.

When your life is in disarray you don't consult your business

manual. You consult your Bible. Do not master the Bible. Let

the WORD master you.

It was June 18, 1815, the Battle of Waterloo. The French under

the command of Napoleon were fighting the Allies (British,

Dutch, and Germans) under the command of Wellington. The

people of England depended on a system of semaphore signals

to find out how the battle was going. One of these signal

stations was on the tower of Winchester Cathedral.

Late in the day it flashed the signal: "W-E-L-L-I-N-G-T-O-N---

D-E-F-E-A-T-E-D- -." Just at that moment one of those sudden

English fog clouds made it impossible to read the message.

The news of defeat quickly spread throughout the city. The

whole countryside was sad and gloomy when they heard the

news that their country had lost the war. Suddenly the fog

lifted, and the remainder of the message could be read. The

message had four words, not two. The complete message was:

"W-E-L-L-I-N-G-T-O-N- - -DE-F-E-A- T-E-D- - -T-H-E- - -E-

N- E-M-Y!" It took only a few minutes for the good news to

spread. Sorrow was turned into joy, defeat was turned into

victory!

So it was when Jesus was laid in the tomb on the first Good

Friday afternoon. Hope had died even in the hearts of Jesus'

most loyal friends. After the frightful crucifixion, the fog of

disappointment and misunderstanding had crept in on the

friends of Jesus. They had "read" only part of the divine

message. "Christ defeated" was all that they knew. But then on

the third day--Easter Sunday--the fog of disappointment and

misunderstanding lifted, and the world received the complete

message: "Christ defeated death!" Defeat was turned into

victory; death was turned to life! Such a beautiful and

inspiring story taken from the book, ―Illustrations Unlimited‖

edited by James S. Hewett.

Imagine what and how the disciples felt the day and night

before the Resurrection.

Men who have given up everything in order to follow Christ

and now distraught to see their Messiah crucified and died on

the cross. Some times we get into the case of the disciples and

criticize them for their lack of faith but how would we have

responded had we been in their sandals then? I wonder.

There is such a tone of finality to the word ―death.‖ It‘s like the

final curtains are down. It‘s ―the End.‖ ―Finito‖ as the Italians

would say. I cannot type Chinese characters from my

keyboards but it‘s just as gloomy as it sounds. ―Finished!‖

―Dead!‖ ―That‘s All Folks!‖


Or is it? Do you know that the One who dies on the first Good

Friday is familiar with death but He treated it in another way?

Let me tell you why.

The Moody bible Institute in Chicago stands tall and erect right

in the heart of the windy city. I have visited it and I have at one

time spent a few hours in their impressive library browsing

over some of their books. This institution is named after the

very popular evangelist name Dwight L. Moody.

As a young man, D.L. Moody was called upon suddenly to

preach a funeral sermon. He hunted all throughout the four

Gospels trying to find one of Christ's funeral sermons, but

searched in vain. He found that Christ broke up every funeral

he ever attended. Death could not exist where he was. When

the dead heard his voice they sprang to life. Jesus said, "I am

the resurrection, and the life."

And then the glorious Sunday came. The stone could not hold

Him, death could not conquer Him and the only One who

conquered death lived and rose again to assure us and comfort

us that in Him we may have life too. Don‘t ask me how this is

done I‘m not a theologian. Heck --- I‘m not even religious. I‘m

just a businessman who believes. And this is why in Him I

invest my entire life. That particular Saturday sure is a lonely

one but it‘s the lull before the Rise! Death now carries no more

sting. For those who believe.

Put your work aside and just think about this for a moment.

Your perspective in the board room will be different from you

perspective in the operating room when that time comes but

the Rise on Sunday will give you hope.

Somebody said: ―The stone was rolled away from the door, not

to permit Christ to come out, but to enable the disciples to go

in.‖ And that is the very essence of the Christian faith.

DA Harvard University research study involved two groups of

100 Harvard graduates between the ages of 65 and 75. The 1st

group retired at age 65 while the other group continued to be

employed for another 10 years. In the first group - those who

retired at 65 - 7 out of 8 were dead by age 75. In the second

group of 100 men who continued to work - only 1 out of 8 was

deceased by age 75. According to Gordon Botting, "The Stew

Pot", 04 '98.

Good people do not retire, they re-fire. do not call it Monday

morning blues. This time call it Awesome Monday that will

start your Awesome Week! Put your mind in the right frame

and work to make this week your most productive week of

your life. And then repeat the process next Monday! BE

AWESOME!

Sometimes the trouble with being a parent is that by the time

you're experienced you're usually unemployed. Children grow

up and parents grow old and moments are lost without creating

pleasant memories of time spent well together.


Enjoy your family. Every family tree always produces nuts!

And I am the biggest one in ours. Let there be love and

laughter in yours too!

The way you spend your time is the way you live your life.

You can make more money, friends and open more businesses

but there is always a limit to time. Spend in only on the things

that truly count like --- eternity with Christ?

Oswald Chambers says: ―All heaven is interested in the cross

of Christ, all hell terribly afraid of it, while men are the only

beings who more or less ignore its meaning.

Carrying the cross does not mean carrying a problem. When

Jesus carried His; He was on a mission to die for us. Everyone

who carried the cross died on the cross but Jesus bodily

resurrected to offer us life and hope. Today is a good day to

reflect on this.

Many men will talk about the character of Jesus and how

beautiful His teachings are but only a few would find it

comfortable to talk about the Christ of the cross and His

sufferings for us. Yet without the cross and Jesus' Resurrection

there is no hope for mankind.

Oswald Chambers says: Calvary means "the place of a skull"

and that is where our Lord is always crucified, in the culture

and intellect of men.

The cross and the resurrection is a great study and it takes a lot

of humility to understand it.

Lent is always a good time for us to rest and more importantly

to reflect. Maybe this is why we call it ―Holy week.‖ 7 days for

us to purposely meditate and pray so that we can survive the 51

"unholy" ones.

I did a little research. Mel Gibson in his movie ―The Passion of

the Christ‖ made it a little easier to grasp the situation. The

cross today adorn many a man and woman‘s necks as a nice

piece of jewelry and what many people fail to understand is the

fact that during the early days the cross symbolized a curse and

it was not something to be proud of.

The cross consisted of a perpendicular stake with a crossbeam

either at the top of the stake of shortly below the top. The

height of the stake was usually little more than the height of a

man. A block or a pin was sometimes driven into the stake to

serve as a seat for the condemned person, giving partial

support to his body. Sometimes also a step for the feet was

fixed to the stake.


Victims of crucifixion did not usually die for 2 or 3 days. But

this was determined by the presence or absence of the seat and

the footrest, for a person suspended by his hands lost blood

pressure quickly, and the pulse rate was increased. Usually the

victim had been severely scourged before crucifixion took

place. Total collapse through insufficient blood circulation to

the brain and the heart would follow shortly. If the victim

could ease his body by supporting himself with the seat and

footrest, the blood could be returned to some degree of

circulation in the upper part of his body. To fix the hands to the

cross beam either cords or nails and cords were used;

sometimes the feet were nailed also. When it was desired to

bring the torture to an end, the victim's legs were broken below

the knees with a club. It was then no longer possible for him to

ease his weight, and the loss of blood circulation was

accentuated. Coronary insufficiency followed shortly. The

victim's offense was usually published by a crier who preceded

him to the place of execution. Sometimes it was written on a

tablet, which was carried by the condemned man himself. The

cross in the olden days was a symbol of a curse. Today many a

man and woman use it to adorn their necks. This is the image

of Friday.

But Sunday brings us to a different message.

As a young man, Chicago based minister D.L. Moody was

called upon suddenly to preach a funeral sermon. He hunted all

throughout the four Gospels trying to find one of Christ's

funeral sermons, but searched in vain. He found that Christ

broke up every funeral he ever attended. Death could not exist

where he was. When the dead heard his voice they sprang to

life. Jesus said, "I am the resurrection, and the life."

And here is another story. Margaret Sangster Phippen wrote

that in the mid 1950s her father, British minister W. E.

Sangster, began to notice some uneasiness in his throat and a

dragging in his leg. When he went to the doctor, he found that

he had an incurable disease that caused progressive muscular

atrophy. His muscles would gradually waste away, his voice

would fail, his throat would soon become unable to swallow.

Sangster threw himself into his work in British home missions,

figuring he could still write and he would have even more time

for prayer. "Let me stay in the struggle Lord," he pleaded. "I

don't mind if I can no longer be a general, but give me just a

regiment to lead." He wrote articles and books, and helped

organize prayer cells throughout England. "I'm only in the

kindergarten of suffering," he told people who pitied him.

Gradually Sangster's legs became useless. His voice went

completely. But he could still hold a pen, shakily. On Easter

morning, just a few weeks before he died, he wrote a letter to

his daughter. In it, he said, "It is terrible to wake up on Easter

morning and have no voice to shout, 'He is risen!'--but it would

be still more terrible to have a voice and not want to shout."

Don‘t shout: ―It‘s back to work again on Tuesday!‖

It‘s great to shout: ―Christ is Risen!‖


Christianity is a religion of the open tomb. The stone was

rolled away from the door, not to permit Christ to come out,

but to enable the disciples to go in.

"He is Risen!" Three powerful words that offers Hope for the

future providing power to live and win for the present.

May you have this victory too!

Vacation time is almost over. Be excited to go back to work.

"There is nothing better for a man than to rejoice in his work."

says the wisest man who ever walked the earth.

Work is the least expensive way to occupy your time. A

successful Silicon Valley executive says: "Our credo is work

hard, play hard and don't worry about the difference between

work and play. There isn't any.‖

Every business commits customer service errors. I experienced

one last week. Called up and aired my concern. All I wanted

was an apology but all I ever got was an excuse. I promised

myself never to do business with that company again unless

they train their people on the art and science of "Service

Recovery.―

Here is the lesson for today: ―Never mess up an apology with

an excuse." Same principle for business is theme principle for

life and living.

Off to Singapore for some speaking and training commitments.

Just one thought for the day: Do not trade your dreams for

debts. Do not sleep well at night until you have paid it off.

Money borrowed does not belong to you. Benjamin Franklin

says: "Creditors have better memories than debtors.―

What you hold in your hands will not be as important as what

you carry in your heart! Spread joy around today in the work

place. Never mind the skeptics.

Had a great time speaking in the 10th Annual Secretaries'

Summit held at Marina Mandarin, Singapore. Today I speak to

the wonderful people of Mediacorp on Creativity and

Innovation. I learn so much in the process. To teach another is

the best way to learn but am guided by William Arthur Ward's

words of wisdom: The mediocre teacher tells. The good

teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires. And by God's grace this is what I aspire to do.


Vance Havner says, "God uses broken things. It takes broken

soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain

to give bread, broken bread to give strength. It is the broken

alabaster box that gives forth perfume." God uses mightily

those who have been hurt deeply and in this aspect, brokenness

is a great blessing.

A fisherman from the city was out fishing on a lake in a small

boat. He noticed another man in a small boat open his tackle

box and take out a mirror. Being curious the man rowed over

and asked, "What is the mirror for?― "That's my secret way to

catch fish," said the other man. "Shine the mirror on the top of

the water. The fish notice the spot of sun on the water above

and they swim to the surface. Then I just reach down and net

them and pull them into the boat."

"Wow! Does that really work?"

"You bet it does."

"Would you be interested in selling that mirror? I'll give you

Php2,000.00 for it."

"Well, okay."

After the money was transferred, the city fisherman asked, "By

the way, how many fish have you caught this week?"

"You're the sixth," he said.

That‘s a fine catch and the word for this is MOMENTUM.

Have you ever watched a basketball team scores continuously

every time they do down the court, forces the opponents to

commit turnovers maybe three times in a row what would the

opposing coach do? He would call a time out. And why does

he have to do this? Because he wants to break the

―MOMENTUM!‖

When someone tells you they're "on a roll," that's momentum.

When the sales are coming in, money is pouring in that‘s

momentum.

When the invitations continue to come and every time you give

a performance the reviews are all so positive that is

momentum.

When you're consistently beating deadlines on a project, that

too, is momentum. So now you have a big project and so many

people are involved. How do you build momentum to keep

your team on course and accomplish your intended goals?

May I offer a couple of suggestions? The philosophy behind

momentum is to first understand that you build momentum by

accumulating small successes. Doug Firebaugh says: "The


secret to Momentum in life can be found in the word

Momentum... you create it Moment by Moment..."

The bigger the project, the bigger is the payoff as long as

momentum is there.

So here are a few suggestions:

1. LET MOMENTUM BE PART OF YOUR PLAN

Have everyone know that the entire team will push all speed

ahead once they know how to create momentum.

2. TARGET A FEW SMALL WINS

These may be initiatives that do not cost much, easy to carry

out, does not meet much objections and a few small wins give

your team the starting push to get momentum going. Choose

these small projects, get them done because this is your way of

telling the team that you are now on the move.

3. LET SMALL WINS LEAD TO BIGGER GOALS

The reason why suggestion number 2 is crucial it is because

you gain the energy and the zeal and most importantly the

optimism to be able to tackle bigger goals. But may I suggest

that you focus only on important thing and not too many of

them. Trying to do too much at once may cause a diffusion of

focus and demoralization in the group. You need at least 1 big

win to be able to tackle some more.

4. CELEBRATE YOUR SUCCESS

Once you see the successes coming in celebrate publicly. Send

e-mails, put it on your company newsletters, congratulate

everyone in your team and make sure their bosses are copy

furnished. Praising people publicly is one of the best non-

monetary motivational tools you can use that prepare them

raring to do more and achieve even bigger goals.

It takes a leader with a grand vision to be able to achieve great

success.

Peeking through a peephole is no way to stay motivated when

you're moving toward a goal. The big picture is important. The

leader with the big dreams--big goals--big rewards--big faith—

is the one who can keep his people moving through obstacles

and fatigue and discouragement.

Study Jesus in the New Testament and find out how he

discipled a handful of rowdy disciples and had them achieve

great things that turned the whole world upside down. Best

leadership lesson ever if you were to ask me.

There are people you can make friends with but only for a day.

Many for a few weeks, perhaps a few for months or years.

Only the rare and few are for a lifetime. These are rare but they

are God's gifts to you. Treasure them. Be a good friend

yourself. This week, do something special for them.

Education's purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open

one. Says Malcolm Forbes. Today I will have the privilege to


speak to 400 educators this morning and speak on parenting

tonight. So few people have the privilege of doing this and this

is why of all men I am so blessed!

Somebody says: ―My other brother-in-law died. He was a

karate expert, then joined the army. The first time he saluted,

he killed himself.‖

Be careful with your strengths. Use them right and use them

well.

Much of our human life has very little to do with the physical.

You and I are spiritual beings. We are made up of thoughts,

feelings, intentions, choices and many of which deals with the

issues of the soul. Poor is the person blessed with physical

faculties but is impoverished in the spirit.

Would you like to have more creative ideas for your business?

Talk to your front liners and not just your managers. Use the

five magic words that would work wonders: ―I would like your

opinion.‖

Studies show that simply asking for another‘s opinion

significantly enhances your positive image of that individual.

People want to talk and they want to be heard. So may I have

your opinion as well?

There is only one thing that can overcome the power of choice

and that is to be chosen. A person who has a sense of destiny

cannot be stopped. It is important to know one's calling in life.

This gives us a sense of purpose.

There are times when I have to go to our domestic airports

regularly. There are so many out of town speaking

engagements that bring me to the airport at early hours in the

morning and as uncomfortable as this maybe it is now part of

my life I have learned to live with.

Many things happen in airports. Long lines, short lines, put

your bags, remove your shoes, socks with holes socks without

holes and some without socks… and for the life of me I cannot

understand why people have to remove their slippers and

sandals too and let it slide through the x-ray machine. They‘re

probably scanning for germs and bacteria. Part of the job I

guess.

There are so many interesting people inside the airport. There

are so many interesting people inside the lounge. And I say this

without exaggeration, there has never been an airport


experience of mine without running into someone I know or

someone who happens to know me. A participant in my

seminars, an audience in my talk or maybe somebody who

would call my attention because they recognize me from this

column. Overall, apart from the sleepiness and the predictable

food inside the lounge my airport experiences have been pretty

good.

And then I am always on the lookout for drama.

Drama that happens right before my eyes.

Big Shots, and Big People they come in different sizes and

shapes and characters.

Big Shots come with many body guards. One to carry his

suitcase, another to pave the way so there won‘t be traffic and

delay, maybe one or two more whose only job is to look

menacing. And may I say that they are quite good at what they

are doing. I am sure security inside the airport is lacking and

that is why they need to bring their personal guards with them.

Big Shots make a grand entrance. Here the drama is about to

unfold. What a sight to behold. Accompanied by airport

officials I presume because they wear those huge ID‘s on their

chest. These Big Shots need not fall in line. They are public

servants you know and as such they expect to be served. And

then I turn around and my smile meets the smiles of other

passengers who begin to shake their heads. Maybe our

thoughts are on the same wave length. What a reflection of our

country. The values we hold dear.

Perks and privileges of a democratic government is this it? I

really don‘t know.

Maybe the wise guy who said this was right:

• An autocratic government is run by an autocrat.

• An oligarchy is run by oligarchs.

• A communist government is run by communists.

• A monarchy is run by a monarch.

• And a democratic government is run by demons….

Of course this is not true but when you see sights like these

you tend to believe it is.

The irony is that there is no respect and admiration from those

who watch the drama unfolding. They shake their heads, they

mumble words I cannot hear and then they move on.

And then there are the Big People. I see them and I recognize

them because they are known and they are famous. But they

are inconspicuous and they try their best to stay that way. No

fanfare no accompanying officials with huge ID on their chests

and they do fall in line. Greet them and they greet you back.

Move over and let them go first and they refuse with a smile,

say a little ―Thank you‖ and gain the admiration of people

around them. These are not the Big Shots. These are the Big

People.

There is a big difference between the Big Shots and the Big

People. Humility is what differentiates them.

Maybe I am just tired and maybe having to wake up so early

just to go to the airport to catch my morning flight has made

me critical and cynical and I apologize for this. But would


you blame me if I wish I could see more public figures

displaying humility and serving because this is what they are

called to do?

We still have a lot of growing up to do don‘t we?

Borrowing a famous line from famous American comedienne

Lily Tomlin and revising it a little for the local context:

―Ninety eight percent of the adults in this country are

decent, hardworking, honest Filipinos. It's the other lousy two

percent that get all the publicity. But then, we elected them.‖

Everything rises and falls on leadership and I pray to God that

He gives us good leaders.

Go to work with joy and gladness in your heart today. This just

may define your theme for the week. Never mind the critics.

Albert Einstein's theories came under attack; even an anti-

Einstein organization was set up. When a book was published

entitled 100 Authors Against Einstein, he retorted, 'If I were

wrong, then one would have been enough!"

Do what is right and not what people say.

Take your limitations with grace. Helen Keller (born blind),

Albert Einstein (refugee) and Abraham Lincoln (born poor)

never complained about their plight. This is why they're great.

Dynasties do not last, they are destroyed because of the golden

spoon treatment.

THE FOUR-TO-ONE RULE: For every criticism you make of

someone's job performance, make sure you give the person

four compliments.

The saddest words in pen or tongue are the words: "It might

have been." Life, love and business involve risk taking. Each

day is a gift from God and a great adventure to experience.

Live your life to the full. There will never be another day like

today.

There are some institutions who teach that it is right for one to

believe that he is right but it is wrong to for one to believe

others are wrong. So what happened is that these people want

us to cultivate our thinking process without coming to a

rightful conclusion. I don't know why but some times I feel

that many have educated themselves to imbecility.

Where there is no frame work of morality, there is only

relativity and the stupidity of being unable to determine right

from wrong. God's Word could never be wrong and this should

be the basis of our moral framework.


I don‘t like chain letters and I can assure you I don‘t participate

in one too. But once in a while I get to receive something that

is worth sharing and this happens to be one of them.

I studied the long chain of names wherein this material has

been circulating through the Internet and the only lament I

have is that there is no mention as to the author‘s name and

identity.

It is a true story though as claimed and the moment my friend

Cynthia sent it to me, I knew this one is so important I just

have to share it with you.

I have simply entitled this, ―It Could Have Been You.‖

Jenny was so happy about the house they had found.

For once in her life twas on the right side of town.

She unpacked her things with such great ease.

As she watched her new curtains blow in the breeze.

How wonderful it was to have her own room.

School would be starting; she'd have friends over soon.

There'd be sleep-overs, and parties; she was so happy.

It's just the way she wanted her life to be.

On the first day of school, everything went great.

She made new friends and even got a date!

She thought, "I want to be popular and I'm going to be,

Because I just got a date with the star of the team.

To be known in this school you had to have a clout,

And dating this guy would sure help her out.

There was only one problem stopping her fate.

Her parents had said she was too young to date.

"Well I just won't tell them the entire truth.

They won't know the difference; what's there to lose?"

Jenny asked to stay with her friends that night.

Her parents frowned but said, "All right."

Excited, she got ready for the big event

But as she rushed around like she had no sense,

She began to feel guilty about all the lies,

But what's a pizza, a party, and a moonlight ride?

Well the pizza was good, and the party was great,

But the moonlight ride would have to wait.

For Jeff was half drunk by this time.

But he kissed her and said that he was just fine.

Then the room filled with smoke and Jeff took a puff.

Jenny couldn't believe he was smoking that stuff.

Now Jeff was ready to ride to the point

But only after he'd smoked another joint.

They jumped in the car for the moonlight ride,

Not thinking that he was too drunk to drive.

They finally made it to the point at last,

And Jeff started trying to make a pass.

A pass is not what Jenny wanted at all


(and by a pass, I don't mean playing Football.)

"Perhaps my parents were right...maybe I am too young.

Boy, how could I ever, ever be so dumb."

With all of her might, she pushed Jeff to stay away:

"Please take me home, I don't want to stay."

Jeff cranked up the engine and floored the gas.

As Jeff drove on in a fit of wild anger,

Jenny knew that her life was in danger.

She begged and pleaded for him to slow down,

But he just got faster as they neared the town.

"Just let me get home! I'll confess that I lied.

I really went out for a moonlight ride."

Then all of a sudden she saw a big flash,

"Oh God, Please help us! We're going to crash!"

She doesn't remember the force of impact.

Just that everything all of a sudden went black.

She felt someone remove her from the twisted rubble,

And heard, "call an ambulance! These kids are in trouble!

Voices she heard...a few words at best.

But she knew there were two cars involved in the wreck.

Then wondered to herself if Jeff was all right,

And if the people in the other car were alive.

She awoke in the hospital to faces so sad.

"You've been in a wreck and it looks pretty bad.

These voices echoed inside her head,

As they gently told her that Jeff was dead.

They said "Jenny, we've done all we can do.

But it looks as if we'll lose you too."

"But the people in the other car?" Jenny cried.

"We're sorry, Jenny, they also died."

Jenny prayed, "God, forgive me for what I've done

I only wanted to have just one night of fun."

"Tell those people's family, I've made their lives dim,

And wish I could return their families to them."

"Tell Mom and Dad I'm sorry I lied,

And that it's my fault so many have died.

Oh, nurse, won't you please tell them that for me?"

The nurse just stood there-she never agreed.

But took Jenny's hand with tears in her eyes.

And a few moments later Jenny died.

A man asked the nurse, "Why didn't you do your best

To bid that girl her one last request?"

She looked at the man with eyes so sad.

"Because the people in the other car were her mom and

dad."

This story is sad and unpleasant but true,

So young people take heed, it could have been you.

I don‘t think I should say more.


Not every one has the right to have a formal education. (some

do not have money). But every one should have the drive to get

educated.

Do not think out of the box. Get out of the box and do some

thinking. As long as the determination is there, there will

always be a way.

In the digital economy, we turn obsolete the moment we finish

writing our resume. The challenge is: Will there be new things

added to my resume should I prepare one today? What new

things would I learn today? Never be satisfied with the status

quo. Level up everyday.


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.












MAY 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n g for the month of May, 2012.



















Somebody says "Every person is holding an invisible sign that

says: "Please make me feel important!" This is so true. Make

someone feel important especially the people way down there

in the organizational chart. (janitors, messengers, security

guards, etc)

Greet them, smile at them and simply make them feel

important and one this is guaranteed. You will feel joy!

Be wary of people who agree with you all the time. Either he

or she is a fool or the person is ready to skin you. Do not

constantly seek for the things you want to hear. Real friends

are those who will tell you things you NEED to hear. Be wise

but be gentle.

It would be wise to heed the words of Victor Hugo when he

said: "You can resist an approaching army but no one can resist

an idea whose time has come!―

Wisdom is having the ability to read the signs of the times and

this has to be sought. It is not given.

At a college reunion, thirty years after graduation, one man

said to another, "See that fellow over there? Well--he's gotten

so bald and so fat he didn't even recognize me!" Look at the

mirror. Do not see through a window.

How would you know whether you are a mother or not?

Well, you Know You're a Mother When....

1. You count the sprinkles on each kid's cupcake to make sure

they're equal.

2. You have the time to shave only one leg at a time.

3. You hide in the bathroom to be alone.

4. Your kid throws up and you catch it.

5. Some one else's kid throws up at a party. You keep eating.

6. You consider finger paints to be a controlled substance.

7. You've mastered the art of placing large quantities of

pancakes and eggs on a plate without anything touching.

8. Your child insists that you read "Once Upon a Potty" out

loud in the lobby of Grand Central Station and you do it.

9. You cling to the high moral ground on toy weapons, your

child chews his toast into the shape of a gun.

10. You hope ketchup is a vegetable, since it's the only way

your child eats.

11. You can't bear the thought of your son's first girlfriend.

12. You hate the thought of his wife even more.


13. You find yourself cutting your husbands' sandwiches into

cute shapes.

14. You can't bear to give away baby clothes - it's so final.

15. You hear your mother's voice coming out of your mouth

when you say, "NOT in your good clothes!"

16. You stop criticizing the way your mother raised you.

17. You donate to charities in the hope that your child won't

get that disease.

18. You hire a sitter because you haven‘t been out with your

husband in ages, then spend half the night checking on the

kids.

19. You use your own saliva to clean your child's face.

20. You say at least once a day, "I'm not cut out for this job",

but you know you wouldn't trade it for anything.

Motherhood. And this is why having one day a year paying

tribute to mothers may be a noteworthy thing to do but it is my

belief and conviction that mothers deserve more credit than

that.

First, let me tell you how Mother‘s Day got started.

The earliest Mother's Day celebrations can be traced back to

the spring celebrations of ancient Greece in honor of Rhea, the

Mother of the Gods. During the 1600's, England celebrated a

day called ―Mothering Sunday‖. Celebrated on the 4th Sunday

of Lent (the 40 day period leading up to Easter*),"Mothering

Sunday" honored the mothers of England.

During this time many of the England's poor worked as

servants for the wealthy. As most jobs were located far from

their homes, the servants would live at the houses of their

employers. On Mothering Sunday the servants would have the

day off and were encouraged to return home and spend the day

with their mothers. A special cake, called the mothering cake,

was often brought along to provide a festive touch. As

Christianity spread throughout Europe the celebration changed

to honor the "Mother Church" - the spiritual power that gave

them life and protected them from harm. Over time the church

festival blended with the Mothering Sunday celebration .

People began honoring their mothers as well as the church.

In the United States Mother's Day was first suggested in 1872

by Julia Ward Howe (who wrote the words to the Battle hymn

of the Republic) as a day dedicated to peace. Ms. Howe would

hold organized Mother's Day meetings in Boston, Mass ever

year. In 1907 Ana Jarvis, from Philadelphia, began a campaign

to establish a national Mother's Day. Ms. Jarvis persuaded her

mother's church in Grafton, West Virginia to celebrate Mother's

Day on the second anniversary of her mother's death, the 2nd

Sunday of May. By the next year Mother's Day was also

celebrated in Philadelphia.

Ms. Jarvis and her supporters began to write to ministers,

businessman, and politicians in their quest to establish a

national Mother's Day. It was successful as by 1911 Mother's

Day was celebrated in almost every state. President Woodrow

Wilson, in 1914, made the official announcement proclaiming

Mother's Day as a national holiday that was to be held each

year on the 2nd Sunday of May. While many countries of the

world celebrate their own Mother's Day at different times


throughout the year, there are some countries such as Denmark,

Finland, Italy, Turkey, Australia, and Belgium which also

celebrate Mother's Day on the second Sunday of May. And of

course here in our own country, we became conscious of

Mother‘s Day because Department stores and shopping malls

remind us always.

May I make suggestion? That we honor the many mothers

who are working as overseas Filipino workers sacrificing

themselves for their families this time?

The Bible says: Honor your father and your mother and on this

special occasion it would be good to also remember the

gallantry, nobility and the sacrifice Filipino mothers all over

the world are doing for their families.

One proverb says it best: That one mother can take care of ten

children, but ten children can't take care of one mother.

A wise person says: "The difference between ordinary and

extraordinary is that little extra!" Do your best work today and

for the rest of this week. Do not be a painter, be an artist.

Always give more than what you are paid for. This is the path

to success.

Anybody who is afraid to look bad is a loser. He is the same

person you can beat every time. CNN founder Ted Turner says:

―If you never quit, you‘re never beaten.‖ Quitters have never

won. Winning has nothing to do with how you look, it has

everything to do with your tenacity and resolve to win. The

question is not ―How do I look?‖ The question is ―How am I

going to solve this.‖

"A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his

influence stops." says Henry Brooks Adams. This afternoon I‗ll

speak to more than 400 public school teachers which will be

held in CCF St. Francis Square. Again, it's time for me to give

back to what they have given me.

Most trouble is produced by those who don't produce anything

else. They complain, criticize and suck up the life, and energy

of other people. Be positive and be productive. This is the path

to joy and happiness.

Facing difficulties? Two ways to meet them. Change the

difficulty or change yourself. Life difficulties are intended to

make us better, not bitter. And don't melt like butter.


Croft Pentz says: An ounce of mother is often worth more than

a ton of clergy.

A nation's strength or moral fiber is judged by the quality of its

mothers. Almost all of history's greatest workers had godly

mothers. This is why we honor them everyday.

Have you ever been bumped off from a flight? I have. And I

can assure you it‘s not a very pleasant experience. Specially if

you have a connecting flight to catch.

So what do you do when you‘re caught in a situation like this?

Fret, whine, moan and groan? Threaten to sue the airline?

Sure, they give us a pass that offers free food but truth is we

hate the inconvenience.

You may find this hard to believe but I have conditioned my

mind to thank God for the inconvenience and simply trust in

His plans. Listen to the story told by T. W. Wilson.

One day many years ago I was in Atlanta, Georgia, trying to

catch a plane to Charlotte, North Carolina, so that I could visit

my father and mother. I got my ticket at the last minute, and I

was seated on the plane when all of a sudden the flight director

spoke: "Mr. Wilson, please." I raised my hand. "You'll have to

deplane," he said, "because another man had bought his ticket

before you, but he was late getting to the terminal."

I must confess that I complained. "What kind of a business are

you running?" I asked. They took my baggage off the plane.

The next flight was several hours later, so instead of waiting, I

took a taxi to the bus depot in Atlanta. A bus was ready to

leave, and I was told to board and then purchase my ticket

when we arrived at the next stop. When we reached that stop, I

phoned my father to tell him that I was taking a bus instead of

a plane. He answered the phone, asking, "Who is this?"I said,

"It's T. W."

"Oh, son. Oh, son . . ." he said repeatedly. It really didn't

make sense to me.

Finally he said, "Son the plane that you told me you would be

on crashed and all 23 people were killed." I was stunned. It

dawned on me that God had spared my life and that he had

some more work for me to do!

Suppose God had worked things out in the way that I had

wanted – I would be dead and not able to minister today. This

is why I chose Romans 8:28 to be my life's verse: "We know

that all things work together for good to them that love God, to

them who are the called according to His purpose" (KJV).[1]

Well, it looks like Mr. Wilson really knows what he‘s talking

about. Considering his dramatic experience.


Now here‘s the problem. Most of us do not have dramatic

experiences like Mr. Wilson in our story and when

inconveniences come into our lives, we complain.

But what we fail to realize is that every single inconvenience

that has happened in our lives, when we allow our 20-20

hindsight vision see it with an open heart, we would realize

that God has used them to build us up to become stronger in

the process. We begin to realize that our prayers were not

answered and what a relief they were not.

Trusting God gives us inner peace. Relinquishing control and

allow His hand of divine providence to rule our lives make us

enjoy the gift of life that God has given.

Mary Beth says these are the symptoms of Inner Peace

1. A tendency to think and act spontaneously, rather than on

fears based on past experiences.

2. An unmistakable ability to enjoy each moment.

3. A loss of interest in judging other people.

4. A loss of interest in judging self.

5. A loss of interest in interpreting the actions of others.

6. A loss of the ability to worry.

7. Frequent, overwhelming episodes of appreciation.

8. Contented feelings of connectedness with others and

nature.

9. Frequent attacks of smiling.

10. An increasing tendency to let things happen; And finally,

11. An increased susceptibility to love, and to freely receive

the love extended by others, as well as the uncontrollable urge

to extend it. So trust God when something you want to happen

don‘t and something you want to do you can‘t. Say a word of

prayer and give thanks. Trust God for He knows what‘s best for

us.

By the way, when you‘re in business like me, you get to sign a

lot of contracts. And contracts always refer to disasters,

calamities and negative events and happenings as ―acts of

God.‖

Listen. God‘s acts are for good and not for evil. So stop

complaining and start trusting. Always remember that there are

only two certainties in life. No. They are not death and taxes.

The 2 certainties in life are these:

1. That there is a God and

2. You‘re not Him.

So put your trust in Him

[1] By T. W. Wilson, DECISION, November 1998

The insights and comments are fantastic! Combine all of your

thoughts and put that into a book will equal if not surpass the

"money" books you find in stores today. So here now is the

start of my one-liner practical money management tips for this

week."A small house is always better than a large mortgage."


Two men with no money, yet the one who is debt free is still

richer than the one who owes people money.

A latte a day takes your savings away!

Lending people money is not good for their health. It may

cause amnesia.

Money is a wonderful slave but a terrible task master; never be

enslaved to it.

It's amazing that the Bible never says money is the root of all

evil....it's the LOVE of money that is!

A wise and trustworthy person is one who values his principles

more than money.

LOVE IS A DECISIONThis is an old one but it still is funny to me.

Ever heard of the Seven Ages of the Married Cold?

Here‘s how it operates:

During the 1st year of marriage, everything was still so hot and

romantic--The husband says, "Oh, sweetie pie, I'm really

worried about those nasty sniffles you have! There's no telling

what that could turn into with all the germs that's been going

around. I'm going to take you right down to the hospital and

have you admitted for a couple days of rest. I know the food is

lousy there, so I'm going to bring you some takeout from our

town‘s best Italian restaurant. I've already arranged it with the

head nurse."

2nd year--"Listen, honey, I don't like the sound of that cough. I

called the doc and he's going to stop by here and take a look at

you. Why don't you just go on to bed and get the rest you

need?"

3rd year--"Maybe you better go lie down, darling. When you

feel lousy you need the rest. I'll bring you something--do we

have any canned soup around here?"

4th year--"No sense wearing yourself out when you're under

the weather. When you finish those dishes and the kids' baths

and get them to bed, you ought to go to bed yourself!―

5th year--"Why don't you take a couple aspirin?"


6th year--"You ought to go gargle or something, instead of

sitting around barking like a dog!"

7th year--"For Pete's sake, stop sneezing. Are you trying to

give me pneumonia? You'd better pick up some tissues while

you're at the store."

I like Gary Smalley and the way he writes. He‘s a specialist in

the area of marriage and family. I would like to share with you

an article he wrote entitled: ―Love is a Decision.‖ Here‘s how

it goes.

If your marriage relationship doesn't have a destination, how

will you know when you arrive? And why wait for love to

materialize out of stardust, when you could choose excitement

and romance - now?

There is a simple yet profound plan for a marriage of depth and

warmth and excitement! Plan, you ask? Exactly! Good

marriages are no accident. The rules are simple enough; you

just need them outlined for you to follow in a profound guide.

Tough times can strike any family relationship. But deciding to

love - in practical ways outlined here - can result in

relationships that are tougher than tough times.

Six elements to staying in love, included in Love is a Decision,

are:

1. Making your spouse feel truly honored

2. Learning the art of touching - tenderly

3. Keeping courtship alive in your marriage

4. Re-opening a heart closed by anger

5. Building - or rebuilding - trust in a relationship

6. Becoming best friends with your family

These six elements are the keys to Love. Love is not an

emotion, love is not a feeling, love is not happen-stance. Love

is a Decision. Love is waking up every day committed to

honoring your mate by implementing the above six keys. If

you want to have a great relationship, guess what, it's up to

you.

We see so many couples come through our live events and

counseling sessions that want us to "fix" them. They want a

better, more fun-filled and intimate marriage, but they don't

know how to reach it. The most common and most

fundamental thing these couples are lacking is the knowledge

that love is a decision.

If you want to wake up each and every morning excited about

your marriage, then deciding to do this is the first step. If you

don't know how to make this first, most basic step, then Love is

a Decision will help you get there!

They say that marriages are made in heaven, but God leaves

the maintenance to men.

Harold Green says: In the business world, everyone is paid in

two coins: cash and experience. Take the experience first;


the cash will come later. There is something fascinating about

cash. A sign in a store says: ―In God we trust; all others must

pay cash.‖ Funny how cash can look so big when you take it to

church, and so small when you take it to a store. Cash is not

king. God is!

It's not motivation that leads to action. Actions precedes

motivation. You need to put in effort to take the 1st step and

make today the best day of your life......everyday!

A young and brilliant participant in my seminar said, "I am

now working in my fourth company in 3 years. I always felt

like I was no longer growing and so I would move to the next

company. But the most important thing I have learned from

this seminar is that growing IS my own business and

responsibility not the company's." I am so happy she realized

this and have no doubt she is well on her way to success.

People who are proud and self-centered are like arithmetic;

they add trouble, subtract pleasure, divide attention, and

multiply ignorance. Humility is always the better choice.

You can get ideas everywhere. Paul McCartney says: "I used to

drive out to John‘s house. He lived out in the country, and I

lived in London. I remember asking the chauffeur once if he

was having a good week.

He said, I'm very busy at the moment. I've been working eight

days a week.' And I thought, 'Eight days a week! Now there's a

title.' " To have a great idea you need to have lots of ideas.

Somebody says: People are strange: they want the front of the

bus, the back of the church, and the center of attention.

Winners know how to set their priorities right.

My daughter Rachel taught me how to love. I know that a dog

is a man‘s best friend but I never cared about them. I mean --- I

don‘t hurt them, kick them or eat them but I just didn‘t feel like

having them as pets. Fish, yes. Turtles, I have. But dogs?

Let me be frank. I love to play with them but I don‘t like their

pooh poohs and their pee…pees.

Guess what? One day Rachel just brought home a puppy. I got

so upset because she broke my rules. But the moment I saw

that cute little white Japanese Spitz. I fell in love. And within

one month‘s time, we now have 1 Chow Chow, the Spitz and

of course 3 Siberian Huskies.


One morning, I walked slowly to the cage where the youngest

of all our dogs was staying. So engrossed was I with Georgia,

(that‘s the name of the youngest Huskie), I never noticed that

there was a piece of extended GI sheet and it cut through my

forehead.

Blood flowed. Not too serious because no sewing was

required…but an ugly cut nevertheless. And I had a whole

week full of speaking engagements before me.

A cut! And now a scar. It will be months before the scar go

away. It‘s not that bad.

You know what? A lot of people carry scars through out their

lives. The scars never left them. Maybe some time in the past,

something happened. A piece of metal or a rock shattered your

peace. Maybe the rock hit in adolescence when your heart was

broken. Maybe you made it into adulthood before the window

was cracked. But then that piece of metal came.

Was it a phone call? ―We have your daughter at the station.

You‘d better come down.‖

Was it a letter on the kitchen table? The letter said, ―I‘ve left.

Don‘t try to reach me. Don‘t try to call me. It‘s over. I just

don‘t love you anymore.‖

Was it a diagnosis from the doctor? ―I‘m afraid our news is not

very good.‖

Was it a letter from the government? ―We regret to inform you

that your son is missing in action.‖

Whatever the rock or the piece of metal that was, the result was

the same—a shattered piece and a broken heart.

The scar on my forehead is still visible. But a lot of scars in

people‘s lives cannot be seen but it‘s there. The pain is not

forgotten and the healing has not taken place. And suddenly

God was not so easy to see.

The moment the rock struck, the metal became a reference

point for you. From then on, there was life before the pain and

life after the pain. Before your pain, the view was clear; God

seemed so near. After your pain, well, he was harder to see. He

seemed a bit distant . . . harder to perceive. Your pain distorted

the view—not eclipsed it, but distorted it.

I‘ve got news for you. Jesus is called the Healer. But you have

to be willing to be healed. Jesus is the Redeemer but you have

to be willing to be forgiven. Release the pain and let there be

clarity of eyesight. Let the vision see, nearer to God you will

be.

When you can‘t see Him, trust Him. Jesus is closer than you‘ve

ever dreamed. Your scars cannot be deeper than the ones He

carried on His hands and on His side.

C. S. Lewis says: ―God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks

in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone

to rouse a deaf world.‖ Question is: ―Are you listening?‖


My father taught me: there are three things I cannot pretend to

have if I don't have it:

1. Money

2. Strength

3. Wisdom

Be real. Work hard. Exercise and learn continuously.

A team is made up of different people. Together much is done,

alone not much. Celebrate each person‘s differences. Doug

Floyd says: "You don't get harmony when everybody sings the

same note."

Do not be late for meetings and appointments. Being late is

stealing other people's time. Showing up early is a sign of true

professionalism.


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.












JUNE 2012

A compilation of post from the personal blog of Francis J.

Kong for the month of June, 2012.














This eBook was created and compiled by One Awesome Social

Media Company Inc.




The key to effective time management is the management of

self. Understanding one‘s priority, values and worth is

extremely important.

There was a couple who used to go to England to shop in the

beautiful stores. They both liked antiques and pottery and

specially teacups. This was their twenty-fifth wedding

anniversary. One day in this beautiful shop they saw a beautiful

teacup. They said, ―May we see that? We‘ve never seen one

quite so beautiful.‖ As the lady handed it to them, suddenly the

teacup spoke. ―You don‘t understand,‖ it said. ―I haven‘t

always been a teacup.

There was a time when I was red and I was clay. My master

took me and rolled me and patted me over and over and I

yelled out, ‗let me alone‘, but he only smiled, ‗Not yet‘.

Then I was placed on a spinning wheel,‖ the teacup said, ―and

suddenly I was spun around and around and around. ―Stop it!

I‘m getting dizzy!‖ I screamed. But the master only nodded

and said, ‗Not yet‘.

Then he put me in the oven. I never felt such heat. I wondered

why He wanted to burn me, and I yelled and knocked at the

door. I could See him through the opening and I could read his

lips as he shook his head ‗Not yet‘.

Finally the door opened, he put me on the shelf, and I began to

cool. ‗There, that‘s better,‘ I said. And he brushed and painted

me all over. The fumes were horrible. I thought I would gag.

‗Stop it, stop it!‘ I cried.

He only nodded, ‗Not yet‘.

Then suddenly he put me back into the oven, not like the first

one. This was twice as hot and I knew I would suffocate. I

begged. I pleaded. I screamed. I cried. All the time I could

see him through the opening nodding his head saying, ‗Not

yet‘.

Then I knew there wasn‘t any hope. I would never make it. I

was ready to give up. But the door opened and he took me out

and placed me on the shelf. One hour later he handed me a

mirror and said, ‗Look at yourself‘. And I did. I said, ‗That‘s

not me; that couldn‘t be me.

It‘s beautiful. I‘m beautiful.‘ ‗I want you to remember, then,‘

he said, ‗I know it hurts to be rolled and patted, but if I had left

you alone, you‘d have dried up. I know it made you dizzy to

spin around on the wheel, but if I had stopped, you would have

crumbled.

I knew it hurt and was hot and disagreeable in the oven, but if I

hadn‘t put you there, you would have cracked. I know the

fumes were bad when I brushed and painted you all over, but if

I had done that, you never would have hardened; you would

not have had any color in your life.


And if I hadn‘t put you back in that second oven, you wouldn‘t

survive for very long because the hardness would not have

held. Now you are a finished product. You are what I had in

mind when first began with you.‘ ―

I guess by now you already know what the story is all about.

Pains, trials, difficulties in life. A non-stop, continuous action-

packed adventure. That‘s what life is and the blows, well, they

keep coming. Guess what‘s happening? The Master is putting

us – His clay into the oven in order to break us, mold us and

form us into His image.

God knows what He‘s doing (for all of us). He is the Potter,

and we are His clay.

He will mold us and make us, so that we may be made into a

flawless piece of work to fulfill His good, pleasing, and perfect

will.

Think about it. Our every area of strength comes from our past

―oven-experience.‖ This is why we‘re strong today and that

strength, is used to help others and bring glory to His name.

Helen Keller says ―I thank God for my handicaps, for through

them, I have found myself, my work and my God.‖ Warren

Wiersbe noted that when God permits his children to go

through the furnace, he keeps his eye on the clock and his hand

on the thermostat. As for me the best thing to do is to

remember that I am but clay. But what a privilege it is to have

Christ as my Master. So let the molding continue until the day

He completes the work He has begun in me.

Those whose hearts are following God will always be

challenged by those who are not. How true it is that you will

know a man not only by his friends but by his enemies.

How is your hope level this week?

Wise men say: The secret of motivation is hope. You don‘t

have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.

Love your enemies. This is not only a biblical principle we

need to apply but this is effective because it will drive your

enemies crazy!

We need to send our emotions to school. Feelings need

education and should be subservient to the will. Emotions will

either serve us and without education emotions will shame us.

Successful people master their moods and emotions well.


People will pay more to be entertained than educated. Great

people talk about ideas. Average people talk about events.

Small people talk about people.

To the wise money is a wonderful tool. To the greedy money is

a lethal drug. To the givers money is a blessing. To the takers

money is their master.

Love your enemies. This is not only a biblical principle we

need to apply but this is effective because it will drive your

enemies crazy!









Look at how the cycle of fatherhood works:

At 4 years of age: ―My Daddy can do anything.‖

7 years: ―My Dad knows a lot, a whole lot.‖

12 years: ―Oh, well – naturally – Father doesn‘t know that

either.‖

14 years: ―Father? Hopelessly old-fashioned.‖

21 years: ―Oh, that man is so out-of-date. What did you

expect?‖

25 years: ―He knows a little bit about it – but not much.‖

30 years: ―Maybe we ought to find out what Dad thinks.‖

35 years: ―Let‘s ask Dad what he would do before we make a

decision.‖

40 years: ―I wonder what Dad would have thought about that?

He was pretty smart.‖

50 years: ―My Dad knew absolutely everything.‖

60 years: ―I‘d give anything if Dad were here so I could talk

this over with him. I really miss that man.‖

Now that‘s life isn‘t it?

My kids are grown up. It‘s heartening to know that the more

they mature the more Father‘s Day mean a lot to them.


It took me this long to realize that I never knew what was

going in their hearts when they were younger.

When they were younger…I felt bad when they forget my

birthdays.

When they were younger…I felt bad when they did not even

greet me ―Happy Father‘s Day!‖

When they were younger…I felt bad when they rushed out of

the house to be with their friends on Christmas eve.

When they were younger…I felt bad when they seem to be

spending more time with their friends than with their folks.

But now that I‘m a little older and a little wiser I realize

they‘re all part of the stages of life.

My kids never forget my birthday this time.

My kids make sure they stay home with us on Christmas eve.

My kids surprise me with a little something on Father‘s Day.

Father‘s Day to me now is both a joy and a worry as my kids

are growing up. I am always afraid they are going to give me a

present that I couldn‘t afford.

I love my kids and they are all growing up very well indeed.

My son and I wrote a book on ―Paren-Teen‖ entitled: ―Why

don‘t you grow up…dad!‖

Not only is it a funny book but in it he expressed his love and

his sentiments being a son.

I‘ve accomplished many things in life though I would love to

accomplish a lot more.

I have had people given me standing ovations and glowing

evaluations to my seminars and speeches and I feel very much

fulfilled in what I am doing.

God has blessed me over the years and He has occupied me

with gladness of heart.

Similarly I have gone through tremendous challenges in life

both in the business fields as well as in the personal areas too.

I have had business partners who cheated me…I have had

friends who betrayed me…I have had people I respect for so

long…. lied, condemned and deceive me. And that‘s all right.

All part of life‘s different stages but the bottom line is that

when I hit home, my wife and my kids are all there for me and

then nothing else matters any more.


God is number One in my life. Next to Him is my wife and the

people who come next are my kids. My businesses and career

follow.

This is the order or my life‘s priorities.

Father‘s Day is not just receiving gifts from my wife and kids.

They already are.

Family happiness is homemade.

This is why I am home most of the time.

It is important to be humble in victory and to be gracious in

defeat. Pacman shows both. In my book, he won!

Do not allow yesterday to use up too much of today. It‘s a

brand new week. No one can move forward with eyes fixed on

the rear view mirror. Have a Great Day and a Great Week!

There is a diminishing returns on happiness based on money

and things. Only in God is there a continuous joy.

Do not expect God to one day say, ―Well done, you‘ve left so

many things behind.‖

Edward B. Butler says: ―One man has enthusiasm for 30

minutes, another for 30 days, but it is the man who has it for 30

years who makes a success of his life.‖ Faithfulness is the key

to long term sustainable success.

What you acquire by reaching your destination isn‘t as

important as what you become by reaching your destination.

There are many who have reached their goals but in the

process has destroyed their character. This is not success. This

is a great loss! We need to work on our character every day of

our lives.

Many are called but few actually return the message …

Always be courteous. Return calls. Do not be late for

appointments. Deliver on your promises and be an inspiration

to others.


If you want to go to bed tonight with satisfaction for a day well

spent, you need to wake up early this morning with the

determination to do so. Determination precedes satisfaction.

Popular author and motivator Zig Ziglar tells us a story.

Many people set low ceilings on their expectations and

capabilities. In the process, they place themselves in a ―box.‖

Alexander Whortley took that a step further and literally lived

in a box. It was a mini-trailer, three feet wide, four feet long,

and five feet high. He lived there until he died at the age of 80.

His box was made of wood, had a metal roof, and it housed

him and all his meager belongings. Regardless of where he

worked, Whortley chose to spend his life in that cramped

space, even though larger, more comfortable quarters were

always available.

Few of us live in a ―box.‖ However, too many of us have a

tendency to ―box‖ ourselves in and continue to do things one

way because we‘ve ―always done it this way.‖ In many cases,

time and experience have proven that ―this way‖ is the best

way. However, I challenge you to periodically take a long walk

or quietly sit and think about the way you do things. Ask

yourself if there might not be a better way. Could your

procedures be simplified? Are they necessary at all? Could

they be done more cheaply or efficiently? Could your product

be longer?

Shorter? A different shape? Another fabric? Another color?

Sometimes you can come up with simple ideas that make a big

difference. Incidentally, one advantage of a continual personal-

growth-and-education way of life is that the broader and

deeper your knowledge base, the more creative your problem

solving approach to life.

Simple example: For years men‘s coats had an inside pocket

only on the right where pens and other items were kept. One

day somebody had a thought: Since most men are right-

handed, why not put a pocket on the inside left so that they can

reach in, extract the pen with their right hand, and begin

writing? Not monumental, but it saves a second or two and it‘s

sold lots of suits.

That‘s thinking out of the box.[1]

Famous playwright George Bernard Shaw says: ―Imagination

is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire, you

will what you imagine and at last you create what you will.‖

Some people wait for that flash of inspiration but it never

comes.

The thing is to get you to start doing something and then the

inspiration does come.


People who think out of the box are usually people with

multiple interests.

They love music, they love arts, they‘re into sports, they adore

literature, they study history, they travel and they don‘t confine

themselves into one solitary thing.

Prominent professor and psychologist Frank Barron says: ―The

creative person is both more primitive and more cultivated,

more destructive and more constructive, a lot madder and a lot

saner, than the average person.‖

And before you start thinking of somebody you know in the

office realize that the person is the one that stares right back at

you from the mirror.

You can think out of the box. You can be creative.

Learn a second language, take up a new craft.

Enroll in cooking lessons, go and join a skydiving club, go out

there and enjoy life and pretty soon you will discover that

you‘re adding strength and resource to your creativity.

You know what makes us different from animals?

We are created in the image and likeness of God and God is the

Creator.

This is why He has gifted us with creativity too so that we can

enjoy this wonderful gift of His, this thing called life.

Enjoy it and live it to the fullest.

[1] Adapted from Zig’s book, SOMETHING ELSE TO SMILE

ABOUT, published by Thomas Nelson. Zig Ziglar On Getting

Out of the Box

A person‘s values are revealed more by the questions asked

than the answers given.

When your loved ones call to report an accident and your

immediate question is: ―Is the car damaged badly?‖ or ―Are

you all right?‖ tells a lot about what you value.

Be sure you are asking the right questions but more

importantly, be doubly sure that you have the right godly

values in your system.

An amateur is a person who is always giving you the benefit of

his inexperience. A professional asks questions before airing

out an opinion. An amateur cites clichés and thinks he or she is

being wise. A professional evaluates, probes and studies before

offering advice. We all start as amateurs but we need to learn

and work our way up to being professionals. Make everyday a

learning day.


There are many business owners who do not value their

people‘s opinions. They just want them to be honest but to act

stupid or to be stupid. These are owner‘s whose business will

never last.

Best to have honest cut creative people who are fired up with

energy. Even business owners need to learn how to lead.

―I must do something‖ will always solve more problems than

―Something must be done.‖ I have interviewed CEO‘s and

business owners. Integrity is a given.

But the most sought quality they are looking for is initiative.

Do not wait to be told what to do. Make things happen. Go and

do it.

Chris Widener has a very interesting thing to tell. In his weekly

e-magazine he entitles this: Stop Just Writing About Your Past

and Start Writing Your Future!

Listen to Chris:

Dwight D. Eisenhower says: ―The history of free men is never

written by chance, but by choice – their choice.‖

Many people spend a lot of time on their history. Some do it

purposefully with such hobbies as journaling, while others

simply write and rewrite their history over and over in their

minds. Depending upon the way you go about this, this can be

good or bad. If you are doing it so you can reflect back on your

life, that‘s good.

If you are doing it so you can learn from your past, that‘s good

too. Unfortunately, many people do it simply as a subconscious

act of running themselves into the ground over and over.

What you ―write‖ in your mind is an act of mental discipline,

just as what you write on a sheet of paper is a discipline. Keep

that in mind. So if this is true, that we can make a choice as to

what we want to write, both literally and figuratively, we have

an extraordinary opportunity! Instead of going over and over

our past, we can choose to write our future!

Have you ever thought about writing your future before it even

happens to you? Well now you can – and you will! Here is a

process that will let you determine and write your own future!

Choose to choose your own future. If you don‘t make the

decision to accept responsibility for your own future, then you

are choosing to not write your future. You must choose to

choose. Do you?


Determine what you want your future to be. Be specific.

What do you want to earn?

Where do you want to live?

What do you want to weigh?

What do you want to do for a living?

What do you want to do in your leisure time?

How much do you want to retire on?

If you don‘t know the answers to these questions then you may

as well not even begin to write your future. Take some time to

answer them fully.

Get a good understanding of your strengths and weaknesses. If

you are going to write your future, you will have to have a

sober understanding of what you are good at and what you are

not particularly good at. Maybe ask a good friend or your

spouse to give you an honest appraisal of your strengths and

weaknesses.

Focus on playing to your strengths while ever improving your

weaknesses.

Be sure that what you are doing is utilizing your strengths to

their fullest.

And you don‘t want to forget your weaknesses, even while you

are trying to stay away from them. Instead, set smaller goals

for improvement in your areas of weakness while you set grand

goals for the areas you are strongest in!

Get out a three pieces of paper.

On the top of one, write, ―One year from today I will…‖

On the next write, ―‖Three years from today I will…‖

On the last write, ―Ten years from today I will…‖

Then begin to fill them out.

Make commitments to yourself. As you write them, end each

sentence with a transition to how you are going to do it. For

example, you may write, ―One year from today I will… Have

$4800 in my saving account by saving $400 per month.‖

Start putting only information into your mind that will benefit

the fulfillment of the kind of life you are writing about. For

example, if you have a hard time spending money rather than

saving it, you should probably cancel all of the catalogues that

come each day that entice you to spend. Instead, spend the time

you would have spent thumbing through catalogues going

through financial growth material instead.


Discipline yourself to spend your time in a manner that will

help you get to your goals. For example, cut out five hours of

television a week and spend that time on your goals instead.

That would be a difference of 260 hours in the next year!

Wow! What could you do with another 260 hours? Almost

anything!

You do not have to be a paper cup blowing to and fro in the

wind! You do not have to live at the whims of other people or

circumstances. You CAN choose your future! You can write it

out just the way you want it to happen! Yes, ups and downs

will come but you will outlast them and eventually arrive at

your destiny. Then, when you get to the end of your life, you

will know how it all turns out because you will have been the

author! Get going – write your future!

Nice advice from Chris but I think he forgot the most

important one.

Love God and put your faith in Christ.

Believe me when you are His child, your name is already

written in the Book of Life and that‘s the best plan for your

future that could ever have been written.

Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up

their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don‘t turn up

at all. Says Sam Ewig

Reflect on the duties you have been avoiding today. Face them

this week and work on it. You will be happy you did.

A patient limped into the doctor‘s clinic. The doctor gave the

patient a large pill. As the nurse asked him questions, the

patient limped over to the sink and swallowed the pill. Then

the doctor returned with a bucket and said, ―Now drop the pill

in the bucket and we‘ll soak your foot.‖

Always wait for instruction or you just may put your foot into

your mouth…

When an opportunity arises, we need to pray: ―Lord, let me

focus on the good that will be done and not on the gold that

would be gained.‖ The heart of the issue is always the issue of

the heart.

The three hardest words to say are, ―I was mistaken.‖ Only

people with class are comfortable saying it. Those who pretend

to be perfect make themselves objects of ridicule. He who

humbles himself will be exalted but he who exalts himself will

be humbled.


Have you ever met leaders who are gentle and caring? They

inspire me all the time. Only the strongest of men are gentle.

The brash and the rude use their insolence as a cover for their

insecurities. Be wise as a serpent but gentle as a dove.

Leadership is not a title. And neither is it an entitlement.

Leadership is not a right. Therefore it is a responsibility. Some

bosses behave more like jerks who oppress rather than inspire.

These people without skills and they need some serious

training.

We all make mistakes. When looking for faults, use a mirror

not a telescope. Correct the mistakes, learn from it and strive to

do better. This is where we convert mistakes into lessons and

weaknesses into strength.

The three hardest words to say are, ―I was mistaken.‖ Only

people with class are comfortable saying it. Those who pretend

to be perfect make themselves objects of ridicule. He who

humbles himself will be exalted but he who exalts himself will

be humbled.

A friend forwarded me an article that is so interesting I want to

share it with you.

The title of the article is this. Are you a carrot, an egg or

coffee?

A daughter complained to her father about her life and how

things were so hard for her. She said, ―Father, I do not know

how I am going to make it. I just feel like giving up. I‘m tired

of fighting and struggling.

It seems as though every time one of my problems is solved, a

new one comes along. I just can‘t take it anymore.‖

Her father took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with

water and placed them each on high heat. Soon the pots came

to a boil. In one pot of boiling water, he placed carrots. In the

second, he placed eggs, and in the last pot, he placed coffee

beans. He let them sit and boil, without saying a word.

The daughter impatiently waited, wondering what he was

doing.

Twenty minutes later, he turned off the burners. He strained the

water from the carrots and placed them in a bowl. He lifted the

eggs out and placed them in another bowl.


Then he ladled the steaming coffee into a bowl.

Turning to her he asked, ―What do you see?‖ ―Carrots, eggs,

and coffee,‖ she replied. He brought her closer and asked her

to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft and

mushy. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After

pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally,

he asked her to sip the coffee. She smiled as she tasted its

flavor and smelled the rich aroma.

She humbly asked, ―But what does it mean, Father?‖ He

explained that each of them had been plunged into boiling

water, but each had reacted differently. The carrot went into

the water strong and hard but after being subjected to the

boiling water, it softened and became weak.

The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its

soft, liquid interior. But after sitting in the boiling water, it

became hard on the inside.

The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they

were in the boiling water, the water did not really change

them. They changed the water!

―Which are you?‖ the father gently asked his daughter.

―When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond?

Are you more like a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?‖

―When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond?

Are you more like a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?‖

How about you? Are you the carrot that started out strong and

hard long ago, but with the pain and adversity of your life

struggles, did you become soft and lose your strength? Are

you the egg that started out soft inside? Were you a fluid spirit,

but after the pain of death, abuse, rejection, poor health,

divorce, or a layoff, have you become hardened? Your outer

shell might look the same, but have you become hard-boiled

and toughened in your spirit and your heart?

Or are you like the coffee bean? The bean that was plunged

into the rapidly boiling water actually changed the hot water

and gave it flavor and aroma, reaching its peak flavor at 212

degrees Fahrenheit! THAT IS HOT WATER!

When people say bad things about you, do your praises to the

Lord continue or do you blame Him? When the hour is the

darkest and your trials are their greatest, does your worship

elevate to a higher level or do you desert Him?

When you feel burdened by your own troubles, do you still

reach out and help others? How do you handle adversity? Are

you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean? When you get plunged

into hot water, anything that is bringing you pain, like being

plunged into the adversities of life, be like the coffee bean.

When things are at their worst, you will get stronger and make

things better around you, and … you will always leave a

fragrance.

------------

You know what? The article is so nice I don‘t want to add

anything to it anymore.


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy









You can see him as he regularly guests every Thursday

morning at the popular morning show Umagang Kay Ganda.





Series.

















children:

Bryan 26, Hannah 22 and Rachel 17.






JULY 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n gfor the month of July, 2012.



















There are 3 questions we would not want to ask one day:

―What happened?‖ ―How did I get here?‖ ―What was I

thinking?‖

Life is a summary of the choices we make from day to day.

Make sure you make the right choices every day.

Approach any project or promotions not from the point of

having selfish gain, but from the point of serving good.

This is why I am so excited to do my monthly two-day

leadership seminar workshop and excited to meet the many

who have enrolled. This will be physically tiring but with

certainty would be extremely fulfilling.

You can do much by helping people feel better about

themselves. Realize that everyone listens to the same radio

station almost all the time. The call letters of this station are:

MMFG-AM and this stands for: Make Me Feel Good About

Myself.

Encourage someone today!

Progress has less to do with speed and more to do with

direction. Do not be impatient. Many wrong life decisions are

made simply because one could not wait. As long as you are in

the right direction, be patient, be diligent, be excellent and

enjoy the scenery along the way.

It has been said that every man until today is still trying to live

up to his father‘s expectations or still correcting his father‘s

mistakes.

I need to be a good father and take my parenting role seriously.

Having successful children producing successful homes is top

priority in my life agenda.

―He‘s a character isn‘t he?‖

I hear that expression all the time.

It‘s usually used to describe somebody who seems to act, talk

or behave in a peculiar way.

But if we go right down to the issue‘ what is character really?

A Greek proverb says: ―Character is habit long continued.‖


Listen to what motivator Jim Rohn has to say.

Could creating your character be likened to an artist creating a

sculpture? In my opinion, I believe that character is not

something that just happens by itself, any more than a chisel

can create a work of art without the hand of an artist guiding it.

In both instances, a conscious decision for a specific outcome

has been made. A conscious process is at work. Character is

the result of hundreds and hundreds of choices you make that

gradually turn who you are, at any given moment, into who

you want to be. If that decision-making process is not present,

you will still be somebody. You will still be alive, but may

have a personality rather than a character.

Character is not something you were born with and can‘t

change like your fingerprint. In fact, because you weren‘t born

with it, it is something that you must take responsibility for

creating. I don‘t believe that adversity by itself builds

character and I certainly don‘t think that success erodes it.

Character is built by how you respond to what happens in your

life. Whether it‘s winning every game or losing every game.

Getting rich or dealing with hard times.

You build character out of certain qualities that you must create

and diligently nurture within yourself.

Just like you would plant and water a seed or gather wood and

build a campfire. You‘ve got to look for those things in your

heart and in your gut. You‘ve got to chisel away in order to

find them. Just like chiseling away the rock in order to create

the sculpture that has previously existed only in your

imagination.

But do you want to know the really amazing thing about

character? If you are sincerely committed to making yourself

into the person you want to be, you‘ll not only create those

qualities, but you‘ll continually strengthen them. And you will

recreate them in abundance even as you are drawing on them

every day of your life. Just like the burning bush in the

biblical book of Exodus, the bush burned but the flames did not

consume it. Character sustains itself and nurtures itself even as

it is being put to work, tested, and challenged. And once

character is formed, it will serve as a solid, lasting foundation

upon which to build the life you desire.

Right to the point. Jim Rohn always has a way of doing that.

Every single day offers choices we make that either makes or

breaks our character. For after all, our lives is simply a

summary of the choices we make from day to day.

In one of the seminars I gave, somebody stood up to ask me

this question: ―How would I know whether the decision I make

is right or wrong?‖

My answer is this. ―We all need a reference point wherein we

base our moral choices on. I‘m a Bible kind of guy. I make my

decision based on what the Good Book says. And indeed it‘s


like sculpture. Chiseling away the useless parts and building

those that are useful.

Character is defined by what you‘re willing to do when the

spotlight has been turned off when the applause has died down,

and no one is around to give you credit.

Never forget.

―It is possible that through ability we may get to the top, but it

is always character that would keep us there.‖

It has been said that ―A man should be mourned at his birth,

not at his death. ‖ But how could we not mourn when we suffer

a loss?

Today this country suffers the loss of a person I highly respect;

entrepreneur, educator and family friend Brendan Yu. But his

influence, his inspiration and the lives he has touched lives on

and multiply.

I have made a great discovery! I have discovered who the real

rich people are….These are the people who enjoy their

families, enjoy their work, enjoy their food and enjoy their day.

Be rich today and everyday of your life.

KEEP ON MOVINGI have stumbled into a lot of good ideas for business and I

realize one thing: That I can only stumble on ideas if I keep on

moving. Mistakes are inevitable but they open up

opportunities. Those who stay still do not make mistakes but

they don‘t win either! So keep moving.

DESPERATIONDesperation makes fools out of wise people. Desperation

makes people do unethical things. We need to go through the

process of dong only that which is right. God is more

concerned with our character than our ―short-term success.‖

WHAT IS A COMPROMISE?Compromise is best defined as ―finding good reasons to do

wrong things.‖

If the heart is not settled on God then it will certainly settle on

something or someone else. God should be our dwelling place.

BEST BUSINESS ADVICEThe celebrated business leader of the recent past says:

―No matter what you‘ve done for yourself or for humanity, if

you can‘t look back on having given love and attention to your

own family, what have you really accomplished?‖ — In my

book this is one of the best business advice he has given.


BETWEEN THE SIMPLE AND

THE COMPLEXThe mark of an intelligent person is his ability to simplify the

complicated and the mark of stupidity is the one who

complicates the simple.

Life is simple. Love God love others.

LOVE WHAT YOU DOBob Dylan says: A man is a success if he gets up in the

morning and gets to bed at night, and in between he does what

he wants to do.

Do you love what you do or do you only do what you love?

Success is not only about doing what you love but learning to

love what you do.

POWER AND POWERFULDo something good with your power, don‘t just be good at

being powerful.

Leaders guide their people to do what is right and not what is

wrong. ―Everything rises and falls on leadership.‖ says John

Maxwell and he is so right.

INTERRUPTIONSLife is a test in patience. And your patience will be tested in

four different ways. The first one is INTERRUPTIONS.

God usually sends us interruptions to develop our patience.

A PIANIST‘S PATIENCEThe great pianist and composer, Ignacy Paderewski, was once

asked by an admirer how he had reached such a state of

perfection in his field. It must have involved a lot of patience,

the admirer remarked. ―Everyone has patience,‖ said

Paderewski. ―I learned to use mine.‖

WHAT IS A CRISIS?What is a crisis?

A crisis is simply something, someone or some event that

comes in between you and your goals unexpectedly. That‘s all

it is.

Your patience will be tested by INTERRUPTIONS, your

patience will also be tested by INCONVENIENCES.

NO LONE RANGERSmall dreams are reached alone. Great dreams require others.

You cannot succeed alone no matter how talented or skillful

you are.

THE STATIONHere is an old article written by Robert J. Hastings. The title is

―The Station.‖ I love it as it is filled with wisdom, I hope this

material will bless your heart as it blessed mine.

The Station

Tucked away in our subconscious minds is an idyllic vision in


which we see ourselves on a long journey that spans an entire

continent.

We‘re traveling by train and, from the windows, we drink in

the passing scenes of cars on nearby highways, of children

waving at crossings, of cattle grazing in distant pastures, of

smoke pouring from power plants, of row upon row of cotton

and corn and wheat, of flatlands and valleys, or city skylines

and village halls.

But uppermost in our minds is our final destination—for at a

certain hour and on a given day, our train will finally pull into

the station with bells ringing, flags waving, and bands playing.

And once that day comes, so many wonderful dreams will

come true. So restlessly, we pace the aisles and count the

miles, peering ahead, waiting, waiting, waiting for the station.

―Yes, when we reach the station, that will be it!‖ we promise

ourselves.

―When we‘re eighteen. . . win that promotion. . . put the last

kid through college. . . buy that 500 SL Mercedes Benz. . . pay

off the mortgage. . . have a nest egg for retirement.‖

From that day on we will all live happily ever after. Sooner or

later, however, we must realize there is no station in this life,

no one earthly place to arrive > at once and for all.

The journey is the joy.

The station is an illusion—it constantly outdistances us.

Yesterday‘s a memory, tomorrow‘s a dream.

Yesterday belongs to a history, tomorrow belongs to God.

Yesterday‘s a fading sunset, tomorrow‘s a faint sunrise.

Only today is there light enough to love and live.

So, gently close the door on yesterday and throw the key away.

It isn‘t the burdens of today that drive men mad, but rather the

regret over yesterday and the fear of tomorrow.

―Relish the moment‖ is a good motto, especially when coupled

with Psalm 118:24, ―This is the day which the Lord hath made;

we will rejoice and be glad in it.‖

So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, swim

more rivers, climb more mountains, kiss more babies, count

more stars. Laugh more and cry less. Go barefoot oftener. Eat

more ice cream. Ride more merry-go-rounds. Watch more

sunsets. Life must be lived as we go along.[1]

Hastings is right. Life must be lived as we go along. Need I say

more?

[1] Robert J. Hastings

THE PASTFor the lost sinner, the past is a heavy anchor that drags him

down; but for the child of God, the past—even with its sins and

mistakes—is a rudder that guides him forward. Faith makes the

difference.

AUTOMATIC RESPONSESImpatience comes from our automatic responses. Develop a

new way to look at things. This grows our patience.


LIVING AND LAUGHINGThose who can‘t laugh at themselves leave the job to others.

Learn to learn from life and to laugh as you live. The best way

to cheer yourself up is to cheer somebody else up. This makes

us more patient.

WHO‘S IN CONTROL?―I am the master of my fate and the captain of my soul.‖ Says

Invictus.

―I did it my way.‖ Croons Sinatra and we know we fail. Try to

release our insistence to control and leave it to God who

controls everything. This develops patience.

LEARN FROM OYSTERAn irritation inside the oyster produces a pretty pearl.

Irritations in life can produce strength and patience.

Do not let trials pull you down. Allow trials to strengthen you.

Stand on what is right. Do what is right not what is convenient.

FACE THE FEAR―To get rid of fear, you need to act on the issue. When you

wait, put off or postpone you simply increase fear.

Be positive. Develop a positive mindset and disposition.

The French writer Robert Mallet said, ―Many pessimists end

up by desiring the things they fear, in order to prove that they

are right.‖

INVESTMENTSA person who does not invest will never amount to anything.

Before you profit, you should first invest.

There is no short cut to success.

Short term gains equals long term pains.

Start investing in yourself today.

ANESTHESIAJames Simpson, a young Scottish lad was born in 1811.

He was the 7th child of a Scottish family. Even as a young boy

the entire family saw that young James was a genius. And so

the 6 other brothers and sisters together with the father who

was a baker running in bankruptcy pooled all of their resources

together and supported James in his studies.

At the age of 14 he graduated from the University of

Edinburough.

At the age of 16 he got his degree in medicine.

At the age of 18 he had his MRCS.

At the age of 28 he became a professor.

This young man could not forget an incident in his life.

He says that when he walked into his first medical classroom

he saw a surgery in operation.

A woman found herself in a situation wherein one of her limbs

had to be amputated.

And James said what happened in that room is something that

he would never get out of his mind that day.


James saw that the limb was sawed and severed from its body

and there was no anesthetic. Nothing there to help alleviate her

pain. As this young woman screamed in unbridled hysteria, he

just stood there literally swallowing his own spit out of fear

because he realized he was seeing such an agony he has seen

for years as he gave his life to the medical practice.

But as he looked he built up one thing in his mind.

He was determined.

He determined that he will do something or he will make

something that would help alleviate the pain during surgery.

One day he discovered chloroform.

And he administered it for the first time.

And the woman who gave birth, having been administered

James Simpson‘s anesthetic, felt so grateful and so elated she

actually called her daughter, ―Anesthesia.‖

Victory for Simpson?

Yes. But as you look into his story further you would realize

some more important events that happened to his life.

A little boy of his got sick. And despite his medical knowledge

there simply was no way for him to cure his son and he lost

him.

His closest medical colleague a Dr. Liston died rather

suddenly.

Things like these began to break him and James began his

search.

And in his search he found Christ.

And then his questions were all answered.

The principle is so clear.

Where there is pain you would find people searching for but

where there is prosperity, you would find people clenching

their fists at God.

Brokenness has its use in God‘s economy.

And maybe this is the reason why there are people who mock

God, clench their fists at Him and denounce everything that is

associated with Him. Because there is no brokenness and

because there is no need.

But the same person who refuses Christ is inflicted with a life

threatening disease, the hardened heart humbled and softened

would begin to seek Him. And I have seen this happen time

and time again.

However, there are those whose hearts even grow harden when

faced with pain. The clenched fists grow tighter and they drive

themselves farther and farther away from God.

A mystery I will never understand while I‘m here on this side

of heaven.

I‘m glad that many years ago I faced pain and I searched for

Him and He found me.

It‘s been years. And God has been merciful and faithful.

Seek Christ with all of your heart and you will find Him.

Let your pain usher you into His Peace and Comfort.

C. S. Lewis says: ―God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks

in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone

to rouse a deaf world.‖

The question is, are you listening?


FUNNYBONEThe wishbone will never replace the backbone. says Will

Henry. But to live life with joy, always be conscious you too

have a funnybone.

HARD TO RECOVER3 Things that are hard to recover.

1. Words said in oppressive anger.

2. Opportunity missed because of idleness or fear of

inconvenience.

3. Promises made but left unfulfilled.

All these devalue a person‘s character. They will not lead to

long term sustainable success.


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.

















children:Bryan 26, Hannah 22 and Rachel 17.






AUGUST 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n gfor the month of August, 2012.



















Do something good with your power, don‘t just be good at

being powerful.

Leaders guide their people to do what is right and not what is

wrong. ―Everything rises and falls on leadership.‖ says John

Maxwell and he is so right.

Do not think you‘re the smartest in your group. Surround

yourself with people smarter, keep your mouth shut, listen and

learn.

No matter how high our educational attainment is, the fact is

that we are all ignorant but only in different subject matters.

Would you like to be free from stress? Just tell the truth all the

time. You don‘t have to remember what you said the last time.

When a person is truthful all of his or her facts will be

consistent.

Nothing ruins the truth like stretching it.

There is a big difference between knowing the truth and living

the truth. The biggest distance is about 18 inches. That from

the head to the heart. We need to walk our talk and live our lip.

Credibility matters!

A good architect can improve the looks of an old house merely

by discussing the cost of a new one.

If you can afford it then buy a new house but if you don‘t then

don‘t get imprisoned in debt and squander your future

opportunities.

Dr. James Dobson says: ―The key to a healthy marriage is to

keep your eyes wide open before you wed — and half closed

thereafter.‖ so true isn‘t it?

I don‘t expect my marriage to work and this is why I work on

my marriage everyday.

The Ilocana and I entertained the thought of sending our kids

to study in another country. At least for a little while. To have

our children travel and experience a change in environment

would have been an effective means of education.

But we immediately changed our minds the moment we heard

of yet another shooting. A smiling kid enters his school, pulled

out a gun and methodically shot his friends and classmates.

Why? What‘s happening to the young people in the world

today?


An American friend of mine sent me an e-mail and this is his

analysis.

In light of the recent shooting in Massachusetts, let‘s see, I

think it started when Madeline Murray O‘Hare complained she

didn‘t want any prayer in our schools, and we said OK.

Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school ---

The Bible that says, thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and

love your neighbor as yourself. And we said, OK.

Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn‘t spank our children

when they misbehave because their little personalities would

be warped and we might damage their self-esteem. And we

said, an expert should know what he‘s talking about so we said

OK, we won‘t spank them anymore.

Then someone said teachers and principals better not discipline

our children when they misbehave. And the school

administrators said no faculty member in this school better

touch a student when they misbehave because we don‘t want

any bad publicity, and we surely don‘t want to be sued.

(There‘s a big difference between disciplining and touching,

beating, smacking, humiliating, kicking, etc.) And we accepted

their reasoning. Then someone said, let‘s let our daughters

have abortions if they want, and they won‘t even have to tell

their parents. And we said, that‘s a grand idea.

Then some wise school board member said, since boys will be

boys and they‘re going to do it anyway, let‘s give our sons all

the condoms they want, so they can have all the fun they

desire, and we won‘t have to tell their parents they got them at

school. And we said, that‘s another great idea. Then some of

our top elected officials said it doesn‘t matter what we do in

private as long as we do our jobs. And agreeing with them, we

said it doesn‘t matter to me what anyone, including the

President, does in private as long as I have a job and the

economy is good.

And then someone said let‘s print magazines with pictures of

nude women and call it wholesome, down-to-earth

appreciation for the beauty of the female body. And we said we

have no problem with that. And someone else took that

appreciation a step further and published pictures of nude

children and then stepped further still by making them

available on the Internet. And we said they‘re entitled to their

free speech.

And the entertainment industry said, let‘s make TV shows and

movies that promote profanity, violence, and illicit sex. And

let‘s record music that encourages rape, drugs, murder, suicide,

and satanic themes. And we said its just entertainment, it has

no adverse effect, and nobody takes it seriously anyway, so go

right ahead.

Now we‘re asking ourselves why our children have no

conscience, why they don‘t know right from wrong, and why it

doesn‘t bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and

themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can

figure it out.


I think it has a great deal to do with ―WE REAP WHAT WE

SOW.‖ Listen.

Kids are not a short-term loan, they are a long-term

investment!

We want what‘s best for them, we better teach them the Word

of God by introducing them to the God of the Word because

nothing better ever comes close.

I have observed this truth many times: In many cases, refusal

to do what is right is not due to a lack of intelligence but due to

pride, envy or greed. The heart of the problem is the problem

of the heart. This is why we watch our actions cautiously by

watching our hearts carefully.

―If you aren‘t fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with

enthusiasm.‖ says coach Vince Lombardi. The gap between

enthusiasm and indifference is filled with failures. Don‘t just

do what you love. Love what you do.

Being charming and charismatic is not the same as being

trustworthy. In fact the word charisma in the dictionary is

located near the word ―charlatan.‖ I would rather deal with one

who speaks frankly and truthfully than one who pretends to be

gentle and kind but hits people behind their backs. Be truthful

all the time.

Somebody says: ―A smile is the cheapest way to improve your

looks, even if your teeth are crooked.‖

There‘s just a million and one things to be grateful about. So

we put a smile on our faces and to God we give thanks.

A smile instantaneously increases our face value and…..it

could be quite contagious too!

There are things we should be serious about and there are

things we can take lightly. It is the wise person who

understands the difference and does what is right all the time.

One wise person says: ―I always knew that looking back on my

tears would someday make me laugh, but I never knew that

looking back on my laughter would someday make me cry.‖

A wise man learns by the experience of others. An ordinary

man learns by his own experience. A fool learns by nobody‘s

experience. Be willing to be corrected. It takes humility for a

person to achieve success.


Are you fond of trivia?

I am.

Here‘s a list of information that may or may not help you but

will always be interesting for you to know. Information that

covers many subject matters found in America but would be

amusing for us to know.

The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time TV

was Fred and Wilma Flintstone.

Every day more money is printed for Monopoly than the US

Treasury.

Men can read smaller print than women can; women can hear

better.

Coca-Cola was originally green.

It is impossible to lick your elbow.

The state with the highest percentage of people who walk to

work: Alaska.

The percentage of Africa that is wilderness: 28% while The

percentage of North America that is wilderness: 38%

The cost of raising a medium-size dog to the age of eleven:

$6,400

The average number of people airborne over the US any given

hour: 61,000.

Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.

(That is of course assuming that they have hair)

The world‘s youngest parents were 8 and 9 and lived in China

in 1910.

The youngest pope was 11 years old. (I‘m not making this up.

Read history books.)

The first novel ever written on a typewriter: Tom Sawyer.

Those San Francisco Cable cars are the only mobile National

Monuments.

Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great king

from history:

Spades – King David

Hearts – Charlemagne,

Clubs – Alexander, the Great

Diamonds – Julius Caesar

And if you like math, you might be thrilled to know that

111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs

in the air, the person died in battle. If the horse has one front

leg in the air the person died as a result of wounds received in

battle. If the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person

died of natural causes.

―I am.‖ is the shortest complete sentence in the English

language.


Hershey‘s Kisses are called that because the machine that

makes them looks like it‘s kissing the conveyor belt.

Question. Half of all Americans live within 50 miles of what?

Answer. Their birthplace

Most boat owners name their boats. What is the most popular

boat name requested?

Answer is Obsession

Q. What do bulletproof vests, fire escapes, windshield wipers,

and laser printers all have in common?

A. All invented by women.

Q. What is the only food that doesn‘t spoil?

A. Honey

Q. There are more collect calls on this day than any other day

of the year?

A. Father‘s Day

Q. What trivia fact about Mel Blanc (voice of Bugs Bunny) is

the most ironic?

A. He was allergic to carrots.

Q. What is an activity performed by 40% of all people at a

party?

A. Snoop in your medicine cabinet.

In Shakespeare‘s time, mattresses were secured on bed frames

by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes the mattress tightened,

making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase

―goodnight, sleep tight.‖

It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that

for a month after the wedding, the bride‘s father would supply

his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a

honey beer and because their calendar was lunar based, this

period was called the honey month we know today as the

honeymoon.

In Scotland, a new game was invented. It was entitled

Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbidden…. and thus the word GOLF

entered into the English language.

AND FINALLY, Here is a great piece of information you

might want to know.

Roses are red, violets are blue.

That‘s what they say, but it just isn‘t true!

Roses are red and apples are too,

But violets are violet…violets aren‘t blue!

An orange is orange, but Greenland‘s not green.

A pinky‘s not pink, so what does it mean?


To call something blue when it‘s not, we defile it.

But ah, what‘s the difference…it‘s hard to rhyme violet![1]

Life is beautiful. It is a gift from God.

Live it well and enjoy each moment.

[1] Source: Laugh & Lift,

http://www.premiumhealth.com/laughlift/

Have you ever been criticized? Tell me about it. Do not

despair. Albert Einstein theories came under attack; an anti-

Einstein organization was even set up.‖ But Einstein remained

unconcerned about these critics.

All great people have been criticized and attacked.

When a book was published entitled 100 Authors Against

Einstein, he retorted, ‗If I were wrong, then one would have

been enough!‖

―Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character‖ says

Albert Einstein.

A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will

annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. All things

being equal, the person with a positive attitude WILL get the

promotions and the person with a negative one will not.

Work on your likeability factor daily.

Think time is important. Don‘t go on auto-pilot.

There are people who live from day to day without a thought.

Guess what?

Zombies don‘t think.

Success is delayed because of the following things:

―I can‘t do it,‖ ―it won‘t work,‖ ―I can‘t figure it out.‖

There is a way to get through this. Just mentally add one more

word. ―YET‖

―I can‘t do it YET.‖ ―It won‘t work YET.‖ ―I can‘t figure it out

YET.‖

And then carry the resolve to work on it and do not

procrastinate. Everything is a mind-set issue.

Delay success no longer.


http://www.premiumhealth.com/laughlift/

Andy Stanley says: ―You are a unique blend of past

experiences, current circumstances, and future hopes and

dreams. Wisdom allows you to customize the decision-making

process to your specific professional, financial, and relational

dimensions. Don‘t miss this opportunity.‖ Many people are

knowledgeable but are not wise. They make stupid decisions.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Jacquie Sewell apologizes to Robert Fulghum because she

uses his popular book ―Everything I needed To Know About

Life I learned In Kindergarten,‖ reshapes it and came out with

an article entitled: ―Everything I needed To Know About Life I

Learned From A Jigsaw Puzzle.‖

Let me share it with you.

Here are the lessons:

1. Don‘t force a fit–if something is meant to be, it will come

together naturally.

2. When things aren‘t going so well, take a break. Everything

will look different when you return.

3. Be sure to look at the big picture. Getting hung up on the

little pieces only leads to frustration.

4. Perseverance pays off. Every important puzzle went together

bit by bit, piece by piece.

5. When one spot stops working, move to another. But be sure

to come back later (see #4).

6. The creator of the puzzle gave you the picture as a

guidebook. Refer to the Creator‘s guidebook often.

7. Variety is the spice of life. It‘s the different colors and

patterns that make the puzzle interesting.

8. Working together with friends and family makes any task

fun.

9. Establish the border first. Boundaries give a sense of

security and order.

10. Don‘t be afraid to try different combinations. Some

matches are surprising.

11. Take time often to celebrate your successes (even little

ones).


12. Anything worth doing takes time and effort. A great puzzle

can‘t be rushed.

13. When you finally reach the last piece, don‘t be sad. Rejoice

in the masterpiece you‘ve made and enjoy a well-deserved

rest.[1]

We can actually learn life lessons from everything that we see

around us. We just need to keep our eyes and ears open.

I guess one of the greatest tragedies in life is for intelligent

people to be very wise and knowledgeable about many things

in life except life itself.

How ironic it is to find people who have messed up their lives

thoroughly and when you study them carefully, they had talent,

they had intelligence, they had education but they simply do

not know how to live.

Intelligent businessmen unfaithful to their wife, abandoning

the family and hurting the kids.

Educated career people exchanging friendship for the job

promotion, talented winos and drug dependents, you see them

everywhere. They do not know how to live.

Listen. We don‘t just live our lives naturally, we live it

skillfully. Similarly, we don‘t just expect our marriages to

work. We work on our marriage.

This is why I‘m still learning.

Every morning when I meditate on the Bible I am learning. I

talk to the Author and I hear Him talk and I‘m learning.

I choose my books carefully and when I read the experiences

and advices from well known authors who have shown a great

track record of success in life I‘m learning from them. When I

go to church and I listen intently to the message I‘m learning.

And then, life is no longer an inscrutable puzzle, the pieces

begin to fit into place.

I guess you understand what I‘m saying.

[1] Copyright 2001 Jacquie Sewell ([email protected]).

One thing I have observed is that noisy people are not

productive. They toot their own horns their voices are loud but

they do not perform well.

The quiet ones are the dangerous ones. They may be silently

accomplishing much and because they are productive, they do

not have time to indulge in useless revelries.

Be excellent in what you do and here is one important advice I

want to share with you: Make a noise quietly.


You know your children are growing up when they stop asking

you where they came from and refuse to tell you where they‘re

going.

I missed all my 3 kids the last 2 days as all 3 were busy in

church helping out with the relief goods for the flood victims.

No prodding from me as they themselves shelved out money.

Makes me so proud. They don‘t even have to tell me where

they are going because I trust them.

Trust is the foundation of relationship.

3 Things that are hard to recover that will have a negative

impact on your integrity and reputation:

1. Lies told.

2. Decisions that benefit the self at the expense of others.

3. Unethical practices.

Proverbs 29:27 The righteous detest the dishonest; the wicked

detest the upright.

Do not be in a hurry to buy replacements for things lost in the

flood. Start with necessities first, entertainment tools can come

later. Do not enter unnecessary debt and create more problems.

Make time your friend.

You are not the smartest person in your organization just

because you are a leader. A great leader surrounds himself with

people who are smarter. And in the process the people make

the leader smarter. Humility is a virtue and pride is a weakness.

Don‘t believe everything people say. It‘s dangerous for

business. The person that agrees with everything with you is

either dumb or too smart and he‘s getting ready to skin you.

One businessman says: ―In negotiations you should be so

observant in everything. You must be a combination of

Sherlock Homes and Sigmund Freud. This is a fallen world.

Only God can see the heart meanwhile we check our own.

REUNIONSHusband: Dear, do you remember John Williams; the student

body president at our high school? I saw him today.

Wife: That was 35 years ago.

Husband: I know. In fact, he has gotten so bald and so fat he

didn‘t even recognize me.

―At my age, I‘ve seen it all, done it all, heard it all. I just can‘t

remember it all.‖ High school reunions reflect lives as

summary of decisions they made through the years.


Here is a collection of amusing signs and the businesses they

represent:

1. From a Plumbing Truck, the sign says: ―We repair what

your husband fixed.‖

2. Pizza shop slogan: ―7 days without pizza makes one Weak

(w-e-a-k).‖

3. At a tire shop : ―Invite us to your next blowout.‖

4. Door of a plastic surgeons office: ―Hello, can we pick your

nose?‖

5. Sign at the psychic‘s Hotline: ―Don‘t call us, we‘ll call

you.‖

6. At a Towing Company: ―We don‘t charge an arm and a leg.

We want tows.‖

7. Billboard on the side of the road: ―Keep your eyes on the

road and stop reading these signs.‖

8. On an Electricians truck: ―Let us remove your shorts.‖

9. In a Nonsmoking Area: ―If we see smoking we will assume

you are on fire and take appropriate action.‖

10. On Maternity Room Door: ―Push, Push, Push.‖

11. At an Optometrists Office ―If you don‘t see what your

looking for you‘ve come to the right place.‖

12. On a Taxidermist‘s window: ―We really know our stuff.‖

13. In a Podiatrist‘s office: ―Time wounds all heels.‖

14. On a fence: ―Salesmen Welcome, Dog food is expensive.‖

15. Outside a Muffler Shop: ―No appointment necessary, we‘ll

hear you coming.‖

16. In a Veterinarians waiting room: ―Be back in 5 minutes,

Sit! Stay!‖

17. Inside a Bowling Alley: ―Please be quiet, we need to hear a

pin. In the front yard of a funeral home: ―Drive carefully,

we‘ll wait.‖

18. In a counselors office: ―Growing old is mandatory, growing

wise is optional.‖

I wish life would be simple.

You put up a sign and people would understand you or you put

up a sign and things would be all right. But it just doesn‘t

happen that way.

Supposed we could be like a computer?

• If you messed up your life, you could press ―Alt, Ctrl,

Delete‖ and start all over!

• To get your daily exercise, just click on ―run‖!

• If you needed a break from life, click on ―suspend‖. Hit

―any key‖ to continue life when ready.

• To get even with the neighbors, turn up the sound blaster.

• To ―add/remove‖ someone in your life, click settings and

control panel.

• To improve your appearance, just adjust the display

settings.

• If life gets too noisy, turn off the speakers.


• When you lose your car keys, click on ―find‖.

• ―Help‖ with the chores is just a click away.

• You wouldn‘t need auto insurance. You‘d use your diskette

to recover from a crash.

• We could click on ―send‖ and the kids would go to bed

immediately.

• To feel like a new person, click on ―refresh‖. Click on

―close‖ to shut up the kids and spouse.

• To undo a mistake, click on ―back‖.

• Is your wardrobe getting old? Click ―update‖.

• If you don‘t like cleaning the litter box, click on ―delete‖.

But life is not a computer and neither could putting up a sign

makes life all right.

Too many people wake up in the morning and allow their lives

to run on auto-pilot.

We need skills to live life successfully.

Attend seminars. Read books.

Attend church and pay close attention to what the ministers are

saying.

And most importantly, read the Bible.

Stay connected to its Author.

He created us and He knows what‘s best for us.

And when one day our stay in this planet is over, perhaps the

best sign that could speak of us is an arrow that points towards

heaven.

For that is all that matters.

Wimbledon champion Venus Williams says: So what if you

fail? At least you‘ll know what not to do when you try again.

Corrie Ten Boom says: When a train goes through a tunnel and

it gets dark, you don‘t throw away the ticket and jump off. You

sit still and trust the engineer. Having problems? Trust in God

the engineer.

Success and failures come and go. God is constant. This is how

character is built.


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.












SEPTEMBER 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n gfor the month of September, 2012.



















Korean proverb says: ―Power lasts ten years, influence not

more than a hundred.‖ You may have power and use it to boost

your ego and pocketbook. You may not want to know the

conversation that takes place behind your back. Others use

influence to touch lives and they will not be easily forgotten. If

you‘re in a position of leadership, you need to know that

you‘re given a stewardship of influence.

Thomas D Kempis says: ―It‘s good for us to encounter troubles

and adversities from time to time, for trouble often compels a

man to search his own heart. It reminds him he is in exile here,

and that he can put his trust in nothing in this world.‖ Troubles

in business can bring us closer to God or harden our hearts.

Don‘t be hardened. Stay close to God for He is bigger than any

of your problems.

It was many centuries ago in a remote village in India. Word

began to spread that something was about to happen that no

one had seen in their lifetime — the prince was coming to visit

their forgotten little village.

Everyone was excited but no one was more excited than the

village beggar. Every day he eked out another day by sitting by

the road with his little cup, hoping to get enough money to buy

the rice to live one more day. He actually had two cups one for

collecting money and one for his few grains of rice. But now

the prince was coming – the wealthy prince! When the prince

finally arrived, the beggar mustered his most impassioned

appeal – Alms! Alms for the poor! And the prince stopped. The

beggar‘s heart was pounding furiously.

Give me your cup of rice.

That was all the prince said. The beggar slumped down in

disbelief. Here was the wealthiest man in the land, asking for

his lousy little cup of rice.

The beggar was about to refuse, but instead he reached in and

he put three grains of rice in the prince‘s hand. The prince

turned to his servant and said, Bring me the bag of gold. The

beggar could hardly contain himself as he eagerly stretched out

his empty collection cup. The prince reached into his bag and

placed three grains of gold in the beggar‘s cup. And then he

disappeared, never to return but leaving the beggar to wonder

for the rest of his life . . . ―what would have happened if I had

given him my whole cup of rice‖.

Do you know why certain people remain poor? Because they

are a people of small dreams and little visions. I have met rich

people who are insensitive and greedy. Their riches is stuck on

the things of this earth and it‘s a sad thing to see them unable

to use money but are being used by it.

This we understand. While these so-called rich people may be

endowed with the material things of this world in all


reality they are indeed poor.

But you know what breaks my heart?

It‘s when I see poor people who are so self-absorbed –

wallowing in self-pity and thinking that the world owes them a

living and while we lament the fact that they may not have the

convenience of the well-to-do, what I cannot understand is that

they are greedy too.

Now some people would say they have to be greedy because of

self-preservation. They have very little and that‘s why they are

holding on to it tightly.

Yet I have known poor people who are charitable and

generous. They may not have the convenience of the wealthy

too but they carry joy and peace in their hearts. And I bet you

that given time, these people will progress in life because they

have understood the law of investment. When you give you

receive. When you hold back you are deprived. Greatness of

character is never dependent on your tax bracket; it is

dependent on the largeness of your heart.

The same thing with the Christian life.

Only those who know how to give it all, invest all of them to

the Living God would ever experience the fullness of life.

Those who hold back, unable to let go will never experience

God‘s fullness of Purpose in their lives.

I have seen ministers who never progress. A closer look at it

would indicate that they have never given their all.

I have seen Christians who live defeated lives. A closer look at

them would reveal that they tend to compromise on their stand.

Coming to God like a beggar is the picture of the part of

Scriptures that says: ―Blessed are the poor in spirit for they

shall inherit the kingdom of heave,‖ But when God asks the

beggars – meaning you and me – to hand over to Him our little

cup of rice. Are we willing or not?

Simone Kesseler is in the PR business and he says: ―Every

time you answer the phone you have an opportunity to prove

yourself. Everything you do is an advertising for yourself, from

how you talk to everyone from the teaboy upwards. Everything

is positioning, everything is public relations.‖ This is why you

treat each person in your organization with respect. Greet and

thank them at all times.

Here are some good quips about selling:

―Sell the benefit, not your company or the product. People buy

results, not features.‖ – Jay Abraham.


Boxing promoter Don King says: ―If you want to sell a steak,

you can‘t just have the sizzle, you gotta have sauce.‖

And my favorite is:

Earl Wilson says: ―To sell something, tell a woman it‘s a

bargain; tell a man it‘s deductible.‖ Features tell. Benefits sell.

If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call to

make, who would you call and what would you say? And why

are you waiting? — Stephen Levine

We make a living by what we get but a life by what we give.

―Study as if you were going to live forever; live as if you were

going to die tomorrow.‖ Says Maria Mitchell.

Live a good honorable life. This is what makes life enjoyable.

The best inheritance you can leave your children is a good

example. Shouting to make your children obey is like using the

horn to steer your car, and you get about the same results.

―The best way to keep children home is to make the home

atmosphere pleasant – and let the air out of the tires.‖ –

Dorothy Parker

―Teaching kids to count is fine, but teaching them what counts

is best.‖ – Bob Talbert

If you‘re not prepared to be wrong, then you‘ll never have

come up with anything original. Kids aren‘t afraid of being

wrong. Adults are.

We run companies the same way. We stigmatized mistakes.

All children are born artists; to remain artists as we grow into

adult life is a challenge. We‘ve educated ourselves out of

creativity.

Creativity is as important as literacy. Treat it with the same

status.

Getting ready to speak to some 500 Filipino audience in Paris

tonight. Wherever we are in the world, we are warm and caring

and this is a gift that God has given.

1. Cop-outs. They set no goals and make no decisions.

2. Hold-outs. They have a dream, but afraid of the challenges.


They‘ve lost their childlike faith.

3. Drop-outs. When the going gets tough, they quit. They don‘t

pay the toll.

4. All-outs. They set goals. They never quit. They keep on

keeping on, even when the toll gets heavy. They‘re dedicated.

They‘re committed.

What is the difference between Ability, Motivation and

Attitude?

Ability is what you are capable of doing.

Motivation determines what you can do.

Attitude determines how well you do it.

All things being equal, attitude plays the most vital role.

I‘ve known of talented and extremely skillful people who

never go far in life because of their lousy attitude.

I am so inspired with the warmth of Filipinos here in Europe.

In many of my talks, the photo sessions took almost as long as

my speech. Laughter, happiness, joy are there. There is

eagerness to connect and relate. This is what makes Filipinos

unique. It‘s more fun to be a Filipino!

We all make mistakes. Not all of us appreciate its value.

World champion figure skater Michelle Kwan remembers . . .

When I was five years old, the first skating lesson I learned

was: how to fall. My instructor was wise. He knew that until I

learned to fall, I couldn‘t learn how not to fall. You see? Your

mistakes will be your best friends if you let them teach you.

I‘m sure you‘ve many friends too.

You‘re never too old to become younger. We do not stop

playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop

playing.

Think Young. Aging is for wine.

―The old believe everything; the middle aged suspect

everything; the young know everything,‖ says writer Oscar

Wilde. Actor John Barrymore says: ―A person is not old until

regrets take the place of dreams.‖

So tell me now. How young are you?


Am back home from the wonderful European tour speaking to

our lovely Filipino community organized by Filinvest

International. Every day was inspiring.

Will fly to Cebu tomorrow morning and fulfill a business

responsibility.

I work fast, I drive myself hard and I really walk fast but this

time I could not… God is teaching me to slow down. Ever

since the Ilocana had her stroke last year; I have to slow down

and consider her pace.

Great lesson to learn…..we all need to be sensitive to other

people‘s pace and my impatience will only cause frustration

and stress out other people too.

Had dinner with the kids last night. Picked us up from the

airport. This got me thinking.

Burn the midnight oil. Pull an all-nighter. Sleep at the office.

All these may not necessarily be badges of honor. Working

more makes me think and feel important. But working harder

and working more does not mean you care more or you get

more done. It only means you work more and nothing else.

Don‘t bring your briefcase home. Spend time with the kids. It‘s

more rewarding; believe me.

ALBERT EINSTEIN had a disregard for the tyranny of

custom. Once as guest of honor at a dinner party, he was called

on for a speech.

―Ladies and gentlemen, I am sorry, but I have nothing to say,‖

he said and sat down. Arose and added, ―In case I do have

something to say, I‘ll come back.‖

Six months later he wired the president, ―Now I have

something to say.‖ Another dinner was held, he made his

speech.

We always want new things, new cars, new clothes the latest

smart phones. But when it comes to friends, we always want

‗old friends‘ because we have shared with them our life and

our past. They were friends long before we got famous or

wealthy (or poor). And this is why they are our true wealth.

Find true friends by being one yourself.

I am a public speaker and one of the most important thing I

have learned in my life is that people want to be appreciated,

not impressed. They want to be regarded as human beings, not

as mere sounding boards for other people‘s egos. They want


to be treated as ends in themselves, not as means towards the

gratification of another‘s vanity. When speaking express truths

and not impress people.

There are 2 kinds of discontent in this world; the discontent

that works and the discontent that wrings its hands. The first

gets what it wants, and the second loses what it had. There is

no cure for the first but success, and there is no cure at all for

the second.

Learn to be contented with what you have but never be

contented with what you can become. The better you become

the more you will have.

Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the

rest.

You cannot stand out if you constantly try to fit in.

Doing right entails courage but the end results will always

bring fruits of righteousness. Be brave then You are on God‘s

side so who can be against you?

A businessman was highly critical of his competitors‘

storefront windows. ―Why, they are the dirtiest windows in

town,‖ he claimed. Fellow business people grew tired of the

man‘s continual criticism and nitpicking comments about the

windows. One day over coffee, the businessman carried the

subject just too far. Before leaving, a fellow store owner

suggested the man get his own windows washed. He followed

the advice, and the next day at coffee, he exclaimed, ―I can‘t

believe it. As soon as I washed my windows, my competitor

must have cleaned his too. You should see them shine.‖ No

wonder all the windows the critical shop-owner saw was dirty.

It was simply because he was looking at them through his own

dirty show windows.

Now. Doesn‘t this remind you of many people in the work

place?

Critical, negative, nitpicking and you don‘t like to be near

them. Who would anyway?

I know a businessman who complains all the time. Give him a

glass with water in it and he‘ll see it as half-empty, never half-

full. Bring him to a movie and he‘ll look at the flaws behind

the production of the film. Bring him to church and he‘ll doze

off. Later on waking up and complaining that the minister

doesn‘t know how to teach. He sees the whole world as ugly

and boring but what he fails to realize is that he‘s ugly and

boring himself.

Critical people always point their fingers and put the blame on

others. They have forgotten the philosophy behind the pointing

finger. That every time you have one finger pointing at

somebody you have three other fingers pointing back at you.


If you don‘t believe me then try it for yourself.

Confucius once declared, ―Don‘t complain about the snow on

your neighbor‘s roof when your own doorstep is unclean.‖

Life is short and it‘s a wonderful gift from God. Don‘t spend

and waste those precious moments being critical and

judgmental. Try to look at the beautiful side of every person,

place and situation and then you‘ll find life exciting.

I came across a wonderful poem entitled: ―Criticism‖ and I

would like to share it with you. Credit is given to the world‘s

most famous author and his name is ―anonymous.‖ By the way,

do you know how sad I feel every time I come across a

wonderfully written material and the author could not be

identified.

But anyway, here‘s the poem. Listen to it. Enjoy it and learn

from it.

If an impulse comes to say

Some un-thoughtful word today

That may drive a friend away,

Don‘t say it!

If you‘ve heard a word of blame

Cast upon your neighbor‘s name

That may injure his fair fame,

Don‘t tell it!

If malicious gossip‘s tongue

Some vile slander may have flung

On the head of old or young,

Don‘t repeat it!

Thoughtful, kind, helpful speech,

‗Tis a gift promised to each–

This the lesson we would teach:

Don‘t abuse it!

Blaise Pascal says: Cold words freeze people, and hot words

scorch them, and bitter words make them bitter, and wrathful

words make them wrathful. Kind words . . . soothe, and quiet,

and comfort the hearer.

And the Word of God in Ephesians 4: 29 says: Do not let any

unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is

helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it

may benefit those who listen.

It‘s a beautiful day after all! Being positive is a choice.

Start this week on a positive tone and be thankful we have

work to do.

Start this week with this thought:

Big people are always giving someone credit and taking blame;

little people are always seeking credit and giving blame.


Every time I talk to students and ask them a question: ―What is

love?‖ invariably someone in the crowd would shout: ―Love is

blind.‖ And I will say that is the most stupid understanding of

what love is.

Most ―love‖ people know is selfish. The God-kind of love

isn‘t! Here is my take on this: Love is what is left of a

relationship after all the selfishness has been removed. And

Louise Beal says it right: Love thy neighbor as thyself, but

choose your neighborhood.

The people to worry about are not those who openly disagree

with you, but those who disagree with you who are too

cowardly to let you know. And then they move silently

underground. Always do what is right even if it is unpopular.

Always show up early. Had to re-purchase another set of plane

tickets for Singapore because the accompanying credit card

number was not made available by the organizers who invited

me. Lesson learned. Have to check details like these. Fraud is

prevalent and other countries do not have requirements like

ours. The PAL staff was sympathetic and handled the situation

well.

A fellow walked up to a panhandler and politely remarked:

―You‘re not too old and you look reasonably fit. Why don‘t

you try to get a job?‖

―I can‘t. I inherited this business from my father.‖

Fathers should be intentional in shaping, molding future

winners in their kids. No business or profession is more

important than this.

From one of my favorite web sites Wit and Wisdom comes this

beautiful article by Donald & Vesta Mansell in ―Sure as the

Dawn.‖:

I want to share this with you. Many years ago in one of the

Southern states, a woman from the city and her country cousin

were traveling in a horse-drawn carriage through a dense forest

when darkness overtook them. There was no moon, only a bit

of starlight. Soon it was impossible to see the road.

The city dweller became a bit frightened when she thought

they had lost their way, but her country cousin seemed

unconcerned. She stopped the horse, stepped to the ground,

walked around a bit, and came back, saying she had found the

road. She got back into the carriage, and they continued on

their way.


As they went along, the city dweller noticed by the dim

starlight that her companion, instead of looking down at the

ground, was looking up. ―Why,‖ she asked, ―are you looking

up when the road is below us?‖

―Because,‖ her friend explained, ―that is the only way I can tell

where the road is. The trees have been cleared to make way for

the road. On a night like this it is impossible to see the road,

but by looking up I can tell where the road is by the stars in the

open sky.‖

This is the way it is on the road of life. As we travel along,

there are times when trials and perplexities close in around us

as black and impenetrable as the darkness in a dense forest on

a moonless night. At such times many lose their way – but this

need not happen! When the ―downlook,‖ and even the outlook,

are dark and forbidding, never forget that the uplook is bright.

Take comfort in the fact that ―the darkness and the light are

both alike‖ to God (Ps. 159:12). He can see when we can‘t see

a thing. Even when the sun is shining and everything seems

bright and clear, it is always wise to look to heaven, where God

rules, for no road is safe unless He is guiding.[1]

What a beautiful article wouldn‘t you agree?

At a time when everything seems bleak; one look at your local

newspapers and you get this fuzzy little feeling like there‘s no

more hope for this country. Political leaders not after the good

of our country but after their own petty personal agenda,

business people insensitive to the needs of their employees,

career people unfaithful to their companies and professional

people short changing their clients. Enough reason to make

you feel that the whole world is caving in.

But just as the skies are dark, the stars shine the brightest. Just

when the outlook is bleak and the downlook permeates the

more we need the uplook.

Oswald Chambers says: ―A saint‘s life is in the hands of God

as a bow and arrow in the hands of an archer.

God is aiming at something the saint cannot see; he stretches

and strains, and every now and again the saint says, ―I cannot

stand any more.‖ But God does not heed; he goes on stretching

until his purpose is in sight, then he lets fly. We are here for

God‘s designs, not for our own.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon says: ―As sure as ever God puts his

children in the furnace, he will be in the furnace with them.‖

Friends, you many not like what I have to say but I can assure

you everything that is happening is good for our country as

long as we learn the lesson and we put our trust in Him.

Hope for the best; get ready for the worst; then take what God

chooses to send. In Him, you will never fail. So look up.

[1] By Donald & Vesta Mansell in ―Sure as the Dawn,‖

copyright (c) 1993


Many have been betrayed and cheated by the people they

trusted. But the law of sowing and reaping will always apply to

cheaters sooner or later.

Meanwhile it would be good to heed this sagely advice.

Frank Crane says: ―You may be deceived if you trust too much,

but you will live in torment if you don‘t trust enough.‖ Learn

from the experience but do not abandon trust. Here is my take

on this: Trust in God but lock your doors.

One principle that I have learned in life is that knowing the

truth and living the truth are two different things. Old cliché

but rings true – we need to walk the talk but let‘s just add one

more thing – we also need to live the lip. Building trust takes

time. Destroying it takes a second.

Respect is more important than fame, credibility more

important popularity. Be sure that you‘re seeking the right

things.

Seek quality rather than luxury. Seek refinement rather than

fashion. Seek respect rather than popularity. When your words

do not match your actions and your lips do not match your life,

then no one would respect you.

It‘s like somebody saying ―I‘d kill for a Nobel Peace

You‘ve failed. So what? I have. Thank God! I‘ve

learned…..and now I win! This is how it works!

―Keep on going and the chances are you will stumble on

something, perhaps when you are least expecting it. I have

never heard of anyone stumbling on something sitting down.‖

—Charles F. Kettering

So be encouraged. Keep on learning!

―Where‘s home for you?‖ a stranger asks a fellow traveller on

a plane. ―Wherever she is,‖ comes the reply, as the man points

at his wife…..says Robert Fulgum

I fly to Davao tomorrow morning, do a talk and then rush back

in the afternoon and proceed to Baguio to do talks on marriage

Saturday and Sunday. I love doing this. Because The Ilocana is

with me and that is where home is.

Teenage pregnancies in this country is now second highest

through South East Asia? Isn‘t this shocking? Now this is one

thing that is not ―More Fun‖ in the Philippines.


Many young people mistake sex for love. When the love from

the parents is full, then they don‘t need to look for it

somewhere else. Invest in your family all the time and the best

thing to do for our kids is to love their mom!

A man lay on his deathbed, harassed by fear because he had

harbored hatred against another. He sent for the individual with

whom he had had a disagreement years before; he then made

overtures of peace. The two of them shook hands in friendship.

But as the visitor left the room, the sick man roused himself

and said, ―Remember, if I get over this, the old quarrel stands.‖

[1]

Talk about forgiveness. Or the lack of it rather…….

―Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each

other, just as in Christ God forgave you.‖ – says Paul the

Apostle in (Ephesians 4:32)

From the Web Site Wit and Wisdom comes this beautiful

observation. Some years ago during a visit to Yellowstone Park

one writer observed that the only animal the grizzly bear would

share food with was a skunk. It wasn‘t that the grizzly bear

wanted to share his food but rather that he chose to. With one

swing of his powerful paw he could have crushed the skunk.

So why did he allow the skunk to eat with him?

Because he knew the high cost of getting even. Clever bear!

Undoubtedly he learned the hard way. Strange that we humans

often aren‘t as smart. Sometimes we carry grudges for years,

often repressing them from conscious memory, and end up

hurting ourselves more than the ones we would like to get even

with. We fail to see how damaging an unforgiving spirit is.

In his book, ―None of These Diseases,‖ Dr. S.I. McMillen says,

―Medical science recognizes that emotions such as fear,

sorrow, envy, resentment and hatred are responsible for the

majority of our sicknesses. Estimates vary from 60 to nearly

100 percent.‖

I read about one patient who was told by his doctor. ―If you

don‘t cut out your resentments, I may have to cut out a part of

your intestinal tract.‖

Fortunately the man took the doctor‘s advice. He had been

nursing a bitter grudge against a former business partner. He

went to see this man, resolved their difference, and forgave

him. When he returned to the doctor, his physical condition

had cleared up. Smart man!

The reality is what we fail to forgive keeps us bound to and by

the past. Forgiveness sets the hurt person free. That‘s why

Jesus told Peter we need to forgive seventy times seven; that is,

to keep on forgiving so we don‘t become bitter and resentful.


Buddy Hackett says: ―Don‘t carry a grudge. While you‘re

carrying the grudge the other guy‘s out dancing.‖

Mahatma Gandhi says: ― he weak can never forgive.

Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.‖

William Arthur Ward says: ―Forgiveness is a funny thing-it

warms the heart and cools the sting.‖ And all of these are

wonderful suggestions but here‘s the most important one:

Jesus Christ says in Mat 6:14 ―If you forgive those who sin

against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you

refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

And so it‘s our choice really and I do hope and you and I

would learn to make the right choice.

[1] G. Ray Jordan - –James S. Hewett, Illustrations

Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988) p.

216.


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.












OCTOBER 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n gfor the month of October, 2012.



















Cheer up! Remember today is the tomorrow you worried about

yesterday.

Last week‘s schedule was heavy. But God has blessed each

one.

And now it‘s a brand new week and it starts with this

wonderful day.

You cannot serve two masters. Either you serve God or you

serve money and the worst of them all is when people serve

money and uses God as an excuse for his or her greedy heart.

Stay away from these people. They misrepresent the Name

they profess.

Love is a command, not just a feeling. Somehow, in the

romantic world of music and theater we have made love to be

what it is not. We have so mixed it with beauty and charm and

sensuality and contact that we have robbed it of its higher call

of cherishing and nurturing. This statement from Ravi

Zacharias should be understood by the young and old alike….

I spoke to more than 300 college students yesterday. Ran out of

time and the kids were all wonderful.

What drives you? What keeps you? What is the purpose and

meaning behind what you do?

These are questions we all need to answer. You and I need to

be Purpose-Driven and not Pera-Driven. God has not called us

to be successful. God has called us to be faithful.

Have you ever met people who insist on being right even

though he or she is clearly in the wrong? They are so

despicable aren‘t they?

Humility is not in them and their pride and stubbornness is just

a disguise for their insecurity. You and I cannot be right all the

time. Only God is. And this is why we need to be willing to

accept correction.

Here is a worthy saying: ―There is something wrong with you

if you insist on being right all the time.‖


Can‘t wait to speak tonight in Waterfront Hotel Cebu. This is

what I have been called to do and this is what delights me

every time I do it.

Any man or woman who has a sense of calling and destiny

finds joy, meaning and fulfillment in his or her labor. And they

can hardly be stopped.

A heart that is not settled on The Lord will always settle for

something or someone else. How much of God is there in your

life? Is God just an 8am service in your day? Maybe 10? 12?

Let God rule in your heart every moment and yes…..don‘t

forget to go to church….

Let me try to impress you with the following words I will use.

Now listen to this carefully and figure out if you can decipher

it. Here goes:

In promulgating your esoteric cogitation or articulating your

superficial sentimentalities, and amicable philosophical or

psychological observations, beware of platitudinous

ponderosity.

Let your conversational communications possess a compacted

conciseness, a clarified comprehensibility, a coalescent

cogency, and a concatenated consistency.

Eschew obfuscation and all conglomeration of flatulent

garrulity, jejune babblement, and asinine affectations. Let your

extemporaneous descanting and unpremeditated expatiation

have intelligibility and voracious vivacity without

rodomontade or thrasonical bombast.

Sedulously avoid all polysyllabic profundity, pompous

prolificacy, and vain vapid verbosity.

Sounds Greek to you? You bet. Now let‘s simplify it. With all

the words I said, it simply means in short: ―Be brief and don‘t

use big words.‖

I have been asked this question frequently. ―Francis, as a public

speaker what tips could you give me to improve my speech?‖

I have also experienced being invited to an event. And then the

guest of honor arrives late, destroys the whole program, sends

the organizers into a state of panic and then advised me that

my original talk of 45 minutes will now have to be delivered in

10 minutes. Isn‘t that frustrating? But these are the realities of

life.


If you want my advice allow me to offer them to you. Well, I

won‘t pretend to be an expert but there are 2 strong ideas

regarding public speaking and here they are: Make sure you

have finished speaking before your audience has finished

listening, says Dorothy Sarnoff. In other words, do not bore

them to death.

―Constantly talking isn‘t necessarily communicating.‖ Make

sure that you are giving out words that would benefit the

audience and not yourself. Learn to use an economy of words

to deliver a profound message.

The famous motivational speaker Denis Waitley says only a

mere 3,000 words separate the winners from the losers and so

the moment you increase your vocabulary arsenal you

automatically increase your intelligent quotient.

Consider these:

- Pythagorean theorem: 24 words

- The Lord‘s Prayer: 66 words.

- Archimedes‘ Principle: 67 words.

- The 10 Commandments: 179 words.

- Lincoln‘s Gettysburg address: 286 words.

- The U.S. Declaration of Independence: 1,300 words.

- The U.S. Government regulations on the sale of cabbage:

26,911 words.

Maybe what this means is that the lesser the words, the more

efficient things are? I really don‘t know.

―SAY IT WITH FEWER WORDS‖ is an article written by

Patricia Fripp. It deals with communications. Patricia says:

You‘ve got a great, major presentation, and suddenly you‘re

asked if you can get your message across in five minutes!

Don‘t panic. For today‘s television generation, sound bites can

be more powerful than lengthy dissertations. Here‘s how to

compress your speech without losing impact.

1. Don‘t apologize or mention that you usually have much

more time. Be confident that you can communicate in five

minutes.

2. Begin fast. Start with an attention-getting statement such as,

―Your job won‘t exist five years from now,‖ or ―In the next 5

minutes I want to convince you the best action you can take

is…‖

3. Use a strongly visual story. Illustrate your points — how it is

now, how it will or could be — with a story so vivid that the

audience can ―see‖ it.‖

4. Divide your 5 minutes into three parts. Present a problem, a

payoff, and your point of view: ―The number one piece of

advice I can give you today is…,‖ your story illustrates your

idea and your walk away line could be what will happen if they

do what you suggest!

Ever wondered why Jesus spoke so few words yet the lessons

are so profound they outlast time? That‘s how it is done. So

learn from the Master Himself.


The main factor that separates the good from the great is the

heart factor. If you cannot do great things, do small things in a

great way. The difference between the ordinary and the

extraordinary is that little extra. Put your heart into it.

Off to Baguio today and prepare to speak to the business

community tomorrow.

One of the greatest perks of my life is to meet new people. The

downside of this is that it is extremely hard for me to

remember names and faces. I guess when you meet hundreds

of people every week, you just have to cope. But I learn from

them in every encounter and this is such a great bonus for me!

Make each day a learning day!

―Don‘t feel entitled to anything you didn‘t sweat and struggle

for‖ says Marian Wright Edelman. The person who bullies his

or her way to obtain an advantage is a cheat and a loser. Same

thing for people who grab the credit and the account from

others. They close their own doors for future opportunities.

A Swedish proverb says: ―The best place to find a helping hand

is at the end of your own arm. ‖

Some people are so dependent on others they even allowed

others to do the thinking for them. Learn to be self-reliant.

Have faith in God but do hard work to achieve great things.

There is one common thing with people who fail in life, career,

business or marriage and family. They fail because of their

pride, ego and unwillingness to accept correction. Humility is

key virtue needed for success.

I like what management expert Ken Blanchard says when he

said: EGO in the negative means ―Edging God Out‖ when the

right kind of ego means ―Exalt God Only.‖

The world would be a better place if only humility and not ego

reigns.

Here is a great lesson I have learned. When great men fell they

fell not because of their weaknesses but they fell in the area


of their strengths. This is why we need to surrender our

strength and abilities to God who gave it to us in the first place.

This gives us the humility to experience long term sustainable

success.

The dangers to a man‘s fall is unguarded strength and untamed

passions. Watch yours….carefully!!!

God‘s Word and God‘s laws are intended for our pleasure.

Doing things His way brings us perpetual novelty. Do what is

right, pure and godly. You would not want to go to the dark

side. Go to church today and be refreshed!

What does it take to be healthy and to stay healthy? Answer?

Self-discipline.

One businessman said: ―I joined a health club last year, spent

about Twelve thousand Pesos. Haven‘t lost a pound.

Apparently, you have to show up.‖

Another one rationalizes: ―I don‘t exercise at all. If God meant

us to touch our toes, he would have put them further up our

body.‖

One stoic looking person thought long and hard and came up

with this conclusion: ―The advantage of exercising every day is

that you die healthier.‖

Another person says: ―I like long walks, especially when they

are taken by people who annoy me.‖

And this is my personal favorite: ―My grandmother started

walking five miles a day when she was 60. She‘s 97 now, and

we don‘t know where the heck she is.‖

It takes an enormous amount of self-discipline to stay healthy.

While I get to be invited to speak on vital life issues and

principles on how to be successful in business and in

professional life, I would not forget to mention that once health

is neglected and sickness comes then everything we‘ve worked

for amount to very little.

One wealthy businessman says: ―I can assure you that there is

no glamour in a 14 karat golden bedpan.‖

Last year The Ilocana and I made a tour of 12 European cities

and I had the privilege to speak to more than 5000 Filipinos

courtesy of Filinvest Sales International. It was memorable

experience for us both. I experience the warmth, the hospitality

and most importantly the hunger of our people to learn.

That was 15 months ago. This time we were invited back. My

first speaking assignment was to train the leaders of this

organization and the event was held in the lovely city of

Prague. And then we proceeded to Paris, Brussels and London


to do the public events where almost a thousand people

attended.

What a joy it is to see familiar faces that journeyed with us last

year as I spoke to our OFW community, embassy officials and

community leaders. After pleasantries were exchanged and the

never ending photo sessions concluded, I saw a need that made

me change a major part of my lesson and shifted to a lot of talk

and tips on how to keep one‘s self healthy.

It‘s amazing what a difference a year makes. Many of these

talented leaders are successful. Their income has increased,

their targets reached and are excited to achieve even more but

it takes someone from the outside like me to see them 15

months later to notice the additional weight they have

accumulated over that short period of time.

This time I taught on how important mind, body, soul and

spiritual health development are all integral towards one‘s

quest for success. And I seriously emphasized the need to be

healthy and to stay healthy.

People ask me where I get the energy to do more than 330 talks

in a year. Well it‘s no secret. I watch what I eat. I exercise. I

take in a lot of vitamins and with the grace of God maintain a

healthy lifestyle. Health is now a priority in my life. I have

endorsed a shoe brand, I have endorsed a luggage brand and I

have endorsed a technology shop and lately (with permission

to mention) I have endorsed Conzace a multi-vitamin brand

that offers enough amount of Zinc as a vital part ingredient for

nutrition. I am more determined to promote health and

wellness these days because health is an investment we need to

make and we can‘t afford to lose.

The good thing about all these is that these leaders in Europe

are serious in learning and they have committed to lose their

weight and stay healthy. Even before the event finished, they

have committed to run their own version of ―The Biggest

Loser‘s Program‖ and apart form just gaining sales and hitting

targets, this time they will hit another target which is by losing

weight and I have no doubt that should I get to meet them

again next year, they would all have turned healthier, better

looking, trim, fit and achieving more than they could have ever

imagined.

Meanwhile, you and I put on our exercise gears, take a lot of

vitamins and nutritional products, eat right and make this God-

given life productive.

There is a thin line between being persistent and being

stubborn. You may be optimistic but if you are not realistic

then you will make a wrong decision. Check your heart

motives.

To be debt free is good and financial independence should be

understood in a better way. If money is your hope for


independence, you will never have it.

The only real security that a man can have in this world is a

reserve of knowledge, experience and ability.‖ says Henry Ford

If you want to feel rich, just count the things money can‘t buy.

This is a very timely reminder for me: ―A Brilliant Mind is

useless without a Humble Heart. You make an IMPRESSION

with what you SAY but you make an IMPACT with what you

DO.‖

Somebody says: ―Some people choose to focus on pain, misery

and despair while others focus on joy, happiness and

possibilities? This is why some people live and stay in the past

while others are excited about the future. This is the power of

attitude.‖ Life is not what happens. It‘s how you take it.

Have you ever been under a boss who acted more like a jerk

than a leader? Have you ever resigned from your job simply

because you could not stand your boss?

Jerks like these do a lot more damage to the business because

they drive away their assets. Find a way to have them trained

for leadership skills. Respect them still but make sure you

never become like them one day.

Most people think that their lives would improve if they could

get a little from those who have more.

How much better could it be if only the same people could

learn a little from those who know more.

On the outskirts of town, there was a big old pecan tree by the

cemetery fence. One day two boys filled up a bucket with

pecans and sat down by the tree, out of sight, and began

dividing the nuts.

―One for you, and one for me. One for you, one for me,‖ said

one boy. Several were dropped and rolled down toward the

fence.

Another boy came riding along the road on his bicycle. As he

passed, he thought he heard voices from inside the cemetery.

He slowed down to investigate.

Sure enough, he heard, ―One for you, one for me. One for you,

one for me.‖

He just knew what it was. ―Oh my,‖ he shuddered, ―It‘s Satan

and the Lord dividing the souls at the cemetery.‖


He jumped back on his bike and rode off. Just around the bend

he met an old man with a cane, hobbling along.

―Come here quick,‖ said the boy, ―You won‘t believe what I

just heard. Satan and the Lord are down at the cemetery

dividing up souls.‖

The man said. ―Beat it, kid, can‘t you see it‘s hard for me to

walk?‖

When the boy insisted, the man hobbled to the cemetery.

Standing by the fence they heard, ―One for you, one for me.

One for you, one for me.

The old man whispered, ―Boy, you‘ve been tellin‘ the truth!

Let‘s see the devil himself.‖

Shaking with fear, they peered through the fence, yet were still

unable to see anything. The old man and the boy gripped the

wrought iron bars of the fence tighter and tighter as they tried

to get a glimpse of Satan.

At last they heard, ―One for you, one for me. And one last one

for you. That‘s all. Now let‘s go get those nuts by the fence,

and we‘ll be done.‖

They say the old guy made it back to town 5 minutes before

the boy.

Are you afraid of ghosts? Don‘t be. Be afraid of men rather

than ghosts.

I‘ve been fooled, swindled, cheated, deceived and taken

advantage of by men but never by ghosts.

My Bible tells me to resist even the Devil himself and he will

flee from me. It's human beings we need to be careful about.

Halloween is coming. I don‘t exactly like it.

Movies, television and cable stations begin to show all those

creepy, scary and mindless little movies about ghosts and

monsters scaring the living daylights out of our kids and

messing up proper theology. Having fun in one thing but to

begin to espouse a certain kind of belief because of it is

another.

Here is a short discourse on its source and history.

A long time ago, the ancient pagan Druids of Great Britain

began their year on the first day of November. On the eve of

the last day of the year the ghosts, the spirits and the witches

were supposed to have had their last fling of the year. And the

Druids built bonfires to scare them away. The Roman Catholic

Church, in the 700‘s, set aside the first day of November for

honoring all saints. It was called ―All Saints Day.‖ The evening

before became known as ―All Hallow‘s Eve.‖ Thus the custom

of the pagans and the celebration of the church were combined

into the holiday we now call Halloween, and it‘s celebrated on

the 31st day of October.


The children of Scotland were the first to use jack-o-lanterns.

And the Irish started the custom of going from house to house

to ask for food and money. But it was the Americans who

originated the playing of pranks. If given a treat, there‘d be no

trick. Their cry was, ―Trick or treat!‖ And Filipinos, the

perennial copycats that we are celebrate Halloween too without

understanding.

What bothers me is the theology behind. The Bible says that it

is appointed for man to die once and then comes immediately,

the judgment. So it‘s either the eternal microwave oven or

eternal presence with the Lord Jesus Christ. No in-between-

creatures.

And this is why I‘m not afraid of ghosts. It‘s really the men I

did business with that scared me. Funny but when I get around

to think deeper on this. It just occurs to me that they look

scarier than the ghosts too. Especially when they‘re cheating in

business. Trick or treat?

Pleasing God is the most exhilarating experience of them all.

This is what worship is all about. Go to church today and start

this week refreshed. There is nothing better and more

important than having an intimate one-on-one relationship with

Jesus Christ.

A poor man can be happy; but a happy man isn‘t poor. Start

this day and the rest of the week with this thought.

―When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often

we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one

which has been opened for us.‖ says Helen Keller.

If I look back today, the good things I now enjoy are the

byproducts of the challenges I endured. Stick to God and stick

to good and He delivers.

Watch out for temptations. When something carries the

potential to destroy us it always looks beautiful. And when we

have bitten the forbidden fruit that‘s when sin rears its ugly

head. Think of the consequences of our actions. The words

―Bahala na‖ has destroyed countless lives and many have not

yet learned.

Flight to Butuan cancelled. Frustrating not for me but for the

delegates awaiting. Realities of life. Bad weather conditions


but I would rather be down here feeling a little bit frustrated

than to be up there rolling in turbulence.

Life is not what happens, it‘s how we take it. God always has a

better plan.

Can‘t wait to be with the mechanical engineers in their

convention tomorrow morning and can‘t wait to speak to the

men of Alliance tomorrow evening.

Each day is a gift from God and I love to make the best of it

for His sake.

What if? Worrying about the future.

If only – Words worrying about the past.

Meanwhile we let the most important resource slip out of our

hands – the Present.

God is in the details. This is why He feeds the birds.

Put your trust in Him and carry the power to live one day at a

time.

Here we go again….all the media hype about ghosts and

supernatural things as Halloween approaches.

Do not be afraid of ghosts. Be fearful of people who are

dishonest. I have never heard of ghosts who are corrupt but I

have heard of ghost projects. There are people who do more

harm to others than ghost. Can you think of one?

There is no fellowship between light and darkness. Right and

wrong cannot co-exist and if it does is called compromise.

Be honest. Be truthful and do not stand unrighteousness.

Choose what is right all the time. This builds character and

leads to long term sustainable success.

This is a great piece of advice. somebody says:

―First I was dying to finish high school & start college.

& then I was dying to finish college & start working.

& then I was dying to marry & have children.

& then I was dying for my children to grow old, & finish

school.

& then I was dying to retire.

& now, I am dying

& suddenly I realized, I FORGOT TO LIVE‖

Each day is a gift from God. Live it well.


Here‘s my question.

How does an ordinary man become an extraordinary person?

ORINARY MEN BECOMES EXTRAORDINARY WHEN

THEY UNDERSTAND THE RIGHT PRIORITIES, AND

WORK ON THEM. [1]

There are extraordinarily good people and then again there are

extraordinarily people who are evil too.

In a book entitled ―Ordinary Men‖ authored by historian

Christopher Browning touching on Holocaust, one critic said:

―The most frightening aspect of Browning‘s book is the

knowledge it conveys to us that it was not a few brutes, but

many good and ordinary men, who committed murder for

Hitler.‖

One might think that the men who engineered such atrocities

were somehow of a different breed, perhaps genetically

predisposed or psychologically imbalanced. I do not mean to

mitigate the power of false beliefs or influence of a mob

mentality, yet I cannot escape the fact that those capable of

such ghastly acts against millions of people were, by all

accounts, ordinary men.

Malcolm Muldgridge, perhaps considered as one of the most

respected Christian with a brilliant mind of the 20th century

tells us his own story.

It is a story of a time when he was a journalist in India, and left

his residence one evening to go for a swim. As he entered the

water, across the river he saw a woman bathing. Muldgridge

impulsively felt the allure and temptation of the moment. He

had often felt this kind of struggle but had resisted because he

was a married man.

On this occasion, however, he wondered if he could cross the

line of his conscience, and swam furiously toward the woman.

His mind fed him the fantasy that stolen waters would be

sweet.

Finally only a few feet away from her, he emerged from the

water and looked at the woman. At once he realized that he

was looking into the eyes of a leper – a toothless old woman

was grinning at him. He was gripped with disgust and thought,

―What a dirty lecherous woman!‖ when suddenly the rude

shock of it dawned upon him. It was not the woman who was

lecherous; it was his own heart.

Jeremiah says it correctly. In the Bible the prophet says the

heart of man is deceitfully and hopelessly wicked. This is why

ordinary people become extraordinarily evil.

How then can an ordinary person turn out to be an extra-

ordinary servant of God?


Let me tell you how. When that person understands priorities.

Let me give you a list of it.

In our relationship with God:

1. It‘s Worship before Work

2. Attitude before Activity

3. It‘s being God‘s Son before being God‘s Servant

4. Enjoyment of God before Enduring for God

5. Being before Doing

6. Obedience before Sacrifice

7. Fruit of the Spirit before Gifts of the Spirit

In our prayer life and bible study:

1. Listening to God before Asking from God

2. God‘s Word before Tradition of men

3. Spirit of the Word before Letter of the Word

4. Facts before Feelings

5. Heart before Head

In our work for God:

1.God‘s will before our desires

2. Holiness before Evangelism

3. Making Disciples before Getting members

4. Teaching before Socializing

5. Quality before Quantity

6. Motive comes before Methods

7. Faithfulness comes before Success

8. Prayer comes before Planning

9. Faith comes before Logic

In Our Life With Others:

1. Forgiving comes before Correcting.

2. Contributing to others comes before Competing with Others.

3. Humility towards others comes before Authority over

Others.

4. Gentleness comes before Firmness with Others.

5. Relationship comes before Organization.

6. Appreciation comes before Judging Others.

Perhaps just like me, you need only to look as far as your own

life to see that your heart is bent on following its own devices

and falls short of what God intends.

But God stands ready to forgive sin and offer new life for those

who honestly seek Him. He has the power to change ordinary

men into becoming extraordinary beings provided we know the

priorities.[2]

By the way, the difference between ―ordinary‖ and

―extraordinary‖ is that little ―extra.‖

Victor Hugo says: ―The future has several names. For the

weak, it is the impossible. For the fainthearted, it is the


unknown. For the thoughtful and valiant, it is ideal.‖

The future always looks bright for me because I know that God

has a plan for me – a plan for success and not calamity but I

need to align my actions with His will in order for this to

happen.

Look at today as ―valiant‖ and the rest of the week as ―ideal‖

and the rest of your life as ―Fulfilled!‖

What we know limits what we can imagine. Be wary of the

experts in your work place. They have a position to guard.

Young kids don‘t.

Do not presume to be an expert. Always have a beginner‘s

mind.

I am currently being offered a wonderful opportunity to

communicate. Technically, I have never done this before but I

am so excited with the challenge. Gives me another

opportunity to stretch and learn. Stretch and learn – this should

be the way to level up!

For some people, their ―lifestyle‖ is really a ―deathstyle.‖

They are so absorbed with ―style‖ they forget to work on the

substance. They live on debt, they wear signature clothes and

accessories they cannot afford it.

Be real. Be authentic. Be simple. Be frugal. Be wise.


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.












NOVEMBER 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n gfor the month of November, 2012.



















The living dead and the zombies I see do not make their

dwelling in cemeteries, many of them are behind their office

desks.

And there are bosses who act more like jerks and vampires

who suck the lifeblood out of their people. Halloween exists

every day in many work places. Do you agree?

This is why training is necessary.

Today is a luxury for me. I have time to prepare my materials

for the radio, script for TV and the preparation for my once-a-

year BIG EVENT for March 1 next year. I‘ve got great new

lessons & great speakers to inspire people to become better and

achieve success.

It takes a lot of time to prepare for a good thing. And the

preparation for me is everyday, holidays included.

Somebody says, I put a mirror on my TV set. I wanted to see

what my family looked like.

These days are best spent with the family and to reflect on

what is important. Every family tree always produces nuts. So

enjoy each other‘s differences and express love in the strongest

way possible. Do not let these days go to waste.

The real content of the heart is shown during the times

prosperity. When we are poor we are humble. When we

prosper we may become different. This is why we need to

prepare our hearts even before we prosper.

If the heart is right, even when things go wrong they will turn

out right but if the heart is wrong, even the good things done

will become wrong. The heart of the problem is the problem of

the heart.

But we immediately changed our minds the moment we heard

of yet another shooting. A smiling kid enters his school, pulled

out a gun and methodically shot his friends and classmates.

Why? What‘s happening to the young people in the world

today?

There are 2 constants in life. Most people would say that the 2

constants in life are death and taxes. And they are right but

allow me to make a twist out of this cliché. The 2 constants in

life is not just death and taxes, the two constants in life is that

there is a God and you are not Him.


But going back to the other 2 constants. Death and taxes. In my

mind it simply means undertakers and tax collectors would

have to classify in this category too. Death and taxes.

Undertakers and tax collectors, they make quite a pair.

It makes me wonder what Jesus saw in Matthew. A tax

collector. A scum of the earth. Despised and hated by his

fellow Jews because collectors during those times could pocket

as much as they can after they have fulfilled their quotas for

the Roman government.

People ducked when they saw collectors coming. Not only

was Matthew a tax collector, he was a public tax collector.

Some collectors did their business underground. They hired

runners to do their dirty work Matthew did his own.. He was

the leech at the bottom of the pit. He pulled his top of the line

Super Saloon Limousine right into the busiest commercial

districts, set up his table and held out his hand. And that‘s when

Jesus called him.

HRD practitioners all over the world would shake their heads

in unbelief. How can anyone decide to recruit a tax collector to

do the work of evangelism?

But on the other hand, you have to wonder what Jesus saw in

Matthew. Look at him. Dirt under his nails. Callused hands.

Holes in his sandals. No headquarters. No office. No

committee. No clout with the local church.

The clergy won‘t give him the time of day His followers look

more like porters in a harbor or pool sharks than seminarians.

And that‘s nothing. Imagine this carpenter claiming to be the

Messiah?

Quite a pair, these two. You have to wonder what they saw in

each other. whatever it was, it must‘ve been something.

Matthew heard the call and never went back. He spent the rest

of his life convincing folks that the carpenter was the King.

Jesus gave the call and never took it back. He spent his life

dying for people like Matthew, convincing a lot of us that if he

had a place for Matthew, he just might have a place for us.

Quite a pair, Jesus & Matthew.

These keen observations from Max Lucado made me think. As

I flipped over the pages of his Inspirational bible, I smiled to

myself. Matthew was the scum of the earth, he exhibited his

mischief publicly. Crude. No finesse. So unlike me.

While Matthew was the scum of the earth I was the toast of the

town. Young, ambitious, graduated top of the school and

rubbing elbows with models and celebrities. Matthew did his

atrocity in public, I did it in private.

Cheated on my wife, cheated on practically every business

deals I entered into. Bought my business friends and corrupted

them in the process. But that‘s the way of the world I reasoned

and I guess I was right.

But something happened some 20 plus years ago. This

underground scum of the earth met the Lord Jesus Christ and


has been His since then. There‘s a marked difference between

Matthew, the tax collector and me. Matthew responded to the

call when the human hands of the carpenter called him. This

criminal in his executive suit responded in faith to the

Resurrected Christ.

Matthew and Jesus. Francis and the Risen Christ. They sure

make quite a pair.

You‘ll do quite all right so be in Him too.

Do not be disappointed when people shoot down your ideas.

The biggest person with the biggest ideas can be shot down by

the smallest person with the smallest mind. Think big anyway.

Who is a faultfinder? A faultfinder is a person with a bad

memory who never remembers the good, or a person with a

good memory who always remembers the bad. Do you know of

anyone in your life who is like this?

Be a good-finder. And make this world a better place.

Beware of a manipulator: he shakes your hand one minute and

pulls your leg the next.

Beware the opportunist: he has no use for people he cannot

use.

Avoid people like these but more importantly make sure we do

not become like them. Be kind. Serve and always do good

without expectations of rewards for there is One who will.

Make this day productive!

There is a big difference between praise and flattery. Praising

comes from an honest and humble heart. Flattering comes from

deceitful and a defective heart. This is why Wendell Philips

says: ―Many men know how to flatter. Few men know how to

praise. Check the heart motive at all times for after all, God

sees the heart.

I have an observation: no matter how rich, powerful, brilliant

or influential a person is, that person cannot escape the fact

that he or she has a God appetite within.

It‘s a beautiful day. Pray, go to church and be in intimate in

fellowship with Him.

Modern day computer generated graphics and animation are

really magnificent things to behold. Even cartoons today


impress us with their marvelous technological advances not

only in the movies but in home entertainment and video games

as well. This is why Max Lucado‘s story in his book entitled

―God Came Near‖ could propel us to one of those funny

computer animated cartoons in our imagination as he tells us

the story of the 4 candles. Let me share it with you. Lucado

says:

―A few nights ago a peculiar thing happened. An electrical

storm caused a blackout in our neighborhood. When the lights

went out, ―I felt my way through the darkness into the storage

closet where we keep the candles for nights like this……I took

my match and lit four of them……

I was turning to leave with the large candle in my hand when I

heard a voice. ―Now, hold it right there.‖

―Who said that?‖

―I did.‖ The voice was near my hand.

―Who are you?‖ ―What are you?‖

―I‘m a candle.‖

I lifted up the candle to take a closer look. You won‘t believe

what I saw. There was a tiny face in the wax….a moving,

functioning, flesh like face full of expression and life.

―Don‘t take me out of here!‖

―What?‖

―I said, don‘t take me out of this room!‖

―What do you mean?‖ I have to take you out. You‘re a candle.

Your job is to give light. It‘s dark out there.‖

―But you can‘t take me out. I‘m not ready,‖ the candle

explained with pleading eyes, ―I need more preparation.‖

I couldn‘t believe my ears. ―More preparation?‖

―Yeah, I‘ve decided I need to research this job of light-giving

so I won‘t go out and make a bunch of mistakes. You‘d be

surprised how distorted the glow of an untrained candle can

be……..‖

―All right then,‖ I said. ―You‘re not the only candle on the

shelf. I‘ll blow you out and take the others!‖ But just as I got

my cheeks full of air, I heard other voices.

―We aren‘t going either!‖

…….I turned around and looked at the three other

candles…….‖You are candles and your job is to light dark

places!‖


‗Well, that may be what you think.‖ Said the candle on the far

left………‖You may think we have to go, but I‘m

busy……….I‘m meditating on the importance of light. It‘s

really, well…………very enlightening‖……………..

―And you other two,‖ I asked, ‗are you going to stay in here as

well?‖

A short, fat, purple candle with plump cheeks that reminded

me of Santa Claus spoke up. ―I‘m waiting to get my life

together. I‘m not stable enough.‖

The last candle had a female voice, very pleasant to the ear.

―I‘d like to help,‖ she explained. ―but lighting the darkness is

not my gift…..I‘m a singer. I sing to other candles to

encourage them to burn more brightly.‖

……she began a rendition of ―This Little Light of

Mine‖…….the other three joined in, filling the storage room

with singing………I took a step back and considered the

absurdity of it all. Four perfectly healthy candles singing to

each other about light but refusing to come out of the closet.[1]

One thing I like with Lucado is that he uses words and pictures

to make you see. But I guess you‘re beginning to get the point

aren‘t you?

So many reasons, so many excuses yet instead of Christians

who are called to be light of the world go out there and show

light and warmth you have them bunched together worrying

about their own petty little things, confined in their petty little

worlds.

Let me add 4 more candles I know:

The first is the Legalist candle. – They don‘t want to do their

jobs because according to them, ―the world deserves their

darkness. Let judgement come to them.‖ The second is the

Scholar candle – spends most of his time in the library poring

over voluminous books. Still understanding the true meaning

of darkness in Greek and Hebrew. The third is the Talented

candle – She sings only to a select crowd. Her favorite songs

are: ―You light up my life‖ and ―Come On Baby Light My

Fire…..‖ And then there is the Gracious candle – He lets his

life be burned and used up to bring light to a dark and cold

world.

Question: When was the last time you presented the gospel to

someone? Are you scared to be the light-giver that God has

created you to be? Pray today that God would bring you

opportunities to share your faith and give you the courage to

take them. Now step out in faith and keep your eyes open!

So let your light so shine so that the world may see your good

deeds and glorify god who is in heaven.

An egotist talks to you about himself, a gossip talks to you

about others, and a brilliant conversationalist talks to you about

you.


Talk to your people today but let them talk about themselves

and you genuinely listen. Make this the theme of this week and

you will be surprised at how much you could learn.

"What‘s the difference between crime and politics?‖ In crime,

you take the money and run………

I hope that this time, the elected officials will be people of

honor and integrity and most importantly, people who

genuinely love our country don‘t you? I do.

Somebody asked me: ―Francis, how much time do you set

aside for study?‖

I thought about it and I guess this is really how it is: ―I study

all the time and the few times that I do not I am doing

something else…..‖

Life lessons never cease. We just need to observe and absorb.

The worst thing about history is that every time it repeats itself

the price goes up. And now it‘s Php12 Billion and counting!

So victimized by scams and Ponzi schemes. The recent one is

terrible. My heart goes out for them. Why do things like these

keep on repeating? Please give me your thoughts and opinions.

Some people pay their bills when due, some when overdue,

and some never do. Fulfill obligations. Protect the name. It‘s

more precious that gold and silver.

―A church is a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints.‖

says L. L. Nash. Don‘t go to church today if you think you‘re

perfect. You should be crucified instead. Go and be refreshed.

Start this week by being positive. Don‘t worry too much about

people who keep on slandering. If you are not noticed then you

are not efficient. Remember: When you are being kicked from

behind, it means you are in front of the pack.

Henry Ford says: ―It has been my observation that most people

get ahead during the time that others waste. Spend your time

learning. Be productive. This is wealth management.

We‘ve had bad times. Some of us still are.


Tough times? Say this:

―This is temporary. Rock bottom? No way else to go but up.‖

Trust God to get you through. Never give up hope.

Today marks my 301st talk for the year. I love what I do and

do what I love. This is why work is never work for me. Do not

do what you love but learn to love what you do.

"A friendship founded on business is better than a business

founded on friendship‖ says John D Rockefeller. So be careful.

Many a friendship has been betrayed because of business. Do

you know of any?

If you want something you‘ve never had, you need to do

something you‘ve never done. You cannot have a different

result when you keep on doing the same things. Choose to

change.

Every blessing is a test on our character while every test is a

blessing in disguise. When we have challenges, lessons are

being taught, when we have blessings, we need to stay humble

and give credit to God. Tests and Blessings. They form who we

are and what we become.

What are the things you keep? Some people collect coins, other

stamps. And then there are those who keep their baseball or

NBA cards. We never know. But the question I want ask you is

this. What do you keep?

Here‘s a touching article written by an unknown author

entitled: ―Some Things You Keep.‖ Listen to this carefully.

Some things you keep. Like good teeth. Warm coats. Bald

husbands.

They‘re good for you, reliable and practical and so sublime

that to throw them away would make the garbage man a thief.

So you hang on, because something old is sometimes better

than something new, and what you know is often better than a

stranger. These are my thoughts.

They make me sound old, old and tame, and dull at a time

when everybody else is risky and racy and flashing all that‘s

new and improved in their lives. New careers, new thighs, new

lips, new cars. The world is dizzy with trade-ins. I could keep

track, but I don‘t think I want to.

I grew up in the fifties with practical parents -a mother, God

bless her, who washed aluminum foil after she cooked in it,


then reused it – and still does.

A father who was happier getting old shoes fixed than buying

new ones. They weren‘t poor, my parents, they were just

satisfied. Their marriage was good, their dreams focused. Their

best friends lived barely a wave away. I can see them now, Dad

in trousers and tee shirt and Mom in a housedress, lawn mower

in one‘s hand, dishtowel in the other‘s. It was a time for fixing

things – a curtain rod, the kitchen radio, screen door, the oven

door, the hem in a dress.

Things you keep. It was a way of life, and sometimes it made

me crazy. All that refixing, reheating, renewing, I wanted just

once to be wasteful. Waste meant affluence. Throwing things

away meant there‘d always be more. But then my father died,

and on that clear autumn night, in the chill of the hospital

room, I was struck with the pain of learning that sometimes

there isn‘t any ‗more.‘ Sometimes what you care about most

gets all used up and goes away, never to return.

So, while you have it, it‘s best to love it and care for it and fix

it when it‘s broken and heal it when it‘s sick. That‘s true for

marriage and old cars and children with bad report cards and

dogs with bad hips and aging parents. You keep them because

they‘re worth it; because you‘re worth it.

Some things you keep. Like a best friend that moved away or a

classmate you grew up with, there are just some things that

make life important…. people you know are special…. and

you KEEP them close!

End of article.

And so, back to the question. What are the things you keep?

Money in a bank? That magnificent piece of diamond you

bought from Tiffany‘s? Not necessarily bad but not very

important either. They‘re just expensive but they‘re not

important.

What I would like to keep is friendship with people. I‘d like to

keep those precious moments our small group share once a

week when we would just take time out, sit in one of those

coffee shops, discuss important issues in life, share God‘s Word

and have a good time.

I‘d like to keep those precious memories of my kids growing

up, those days I started courting my high school sweetheart

who would one day turn out to be the mother of my kids.

I‘d like to keep the company of those wonderful church folks I

mingle with.

These are the things I like to keep but most importantly, I

would really love to keep my love for God growing stronger

and stronger every day.

I would like to keep my pledge of faithfulness to my wife and

keep my promise to my kids that they do not have to be afraid

that one day their dad will no longer go home.


Let me tell you a story.

Joey‘s teacher sent a note home to his Mother saying, ―Joey

seems to be a very bright boy, but spends too much of his time

thinking about girls.‖ The Mother wrote back the next day, ―If

you find a solution, please advise. I have the same problem

with his Father.‖

That‘s the one thing I don‘t want to keep.

My Mondays and Thursdays start 3:45AM as I get up early and

prepare for Umagang Kay Ganda (UKG). Love the discipline

of having to hit the bed early. Rising up early and doing so

much work. Always learning!

A miser one who lives poor so that he can die rich. I wonder

why the root word of ―MISERABLE‖ is MISER & ABLE.

Be generous today and for the rest of the week. Be a cheerful

giver and open doors to greater blessing. Time, talent and

treasure, these are things you can share.

Your attitude is more important than your skills. Work on it

more. It opens to a world of opportunities.

All things being equal the person with the better attitude gets

promoted. All things being not equal the person with the better

attitude STILL gets the promotion.

If you have been criticized and charged with many things; their

opinion is not your reality. Continue the work. Positive people

influence. Negative people tear down. Stay positive yourself!

Bite-size wins today lead to BIG-time championships

tomorrow. Don‘t shy away from work. Just get things going

and get things DONE!


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.












DECEMBER 2012


F r a n c i s J. K o n gfor the month of December, 2012.



















Be careful who you share your weaknesses with. Some people

can‘t wait for the opportunity to use them against you. In my

experience most people do and only a few can be trusted. Have

you ever had one of these nasty experiences? Learn from the

lesson.

I don‘t know what the day holds but I know Who holds the

Day. Love God. Trust God. Go to church today.

A woman is dying of AIDS. A minister is summoned. He

attempts to comfort her, but to no avail. ―I am lost,‖ she said.

‖I have ruined my life and every life around me. Now I‘m

going painfully to hell. There is no hope for me.‖

The priest saw a framed picture of a pretty girl on the dresser.

‖Who is this?‖ he asked. The woman brightened. ‖She is my

daughter, the one beautiful thing in my life.‖"And would you

help her if she was in trouble, or made a mistake? Would you

forgive her? Would you still love her?‖ ―Of course I would!‖

cried the woman; ‖I would do anything for her! Why do you

ask such a question?‖ ―Because I want you to know,‖ said the

minister, ‖that God has a picture of you on His dresser.

―[1]How important it is for people to know that accepting Jesus

Christ as Lord and Savior means accepting the love of God and

His forgiveness. I was seated across a very successful

businessman in an Italian restaurant and I never had any idea

that our talk would take an entire 4 and a half hours.

―He was troubled. Had problems with his finances like most

business people do today. But as we talked about a lot of things

the one thing that struck me was when he said, ―You know,

I‘ve done some very crazy things in my life before I became

serious with God. I love Him and I know that He is punishing

me for that.‖ No wonder the guy was troubled, He‘s got a

faulty theology. And this is no time for me to offer comfort.

This is the time for me to correct his views on God. He must

have seen the sudden serious look on my face when I said,

―Listen, you‘re wrong.‖The moment you accepted Christ you

have been forgiven. All of your sins, past, present and future.

That‘s what the cross is all about. That‘s why He died for you.

You may have done stupid things in the past and perhaps

you‘re still paying the consequences for such but that‘s not

God‘s punishment upon you.

―And then I had to spend a lot of time talking about God‘s

forgiveness. The businessman is not alone. Guess how many

people walk the streets everyday carrying the excess baggage

of guilt and fear in their lives ignorant of God‘s forgiveness.

People who are in Christ some times forget to wear their

badges. You know what that badge is? It‘s the assurance in the

Book of Romans wherein Paul says, ―there is therefore no

condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.‖ And maybe

this is why they have no joy in their lives. ·


Oswald Chambers says: The most marvelous ingredient in the

forgiveness of God is that he also forgets, the one thing a

human being can never do. Forgetting with God is a divine

attribute; God‘s forgiveness forgets. ·

George Arthur Buttrick says: God does not wish us to

remember what he is willing to forget. Some times human

beings are more unforgiving than God but that doesn‘t change

His character.

So, the next time you feel that God could not love you and

would not forgive you, remember that He has a picture of you

on His dresser.

[1] The Jokesmith, Published by Edward C. McManus, 44

Queen‘s View Road, Marlborough

When you wake up in the morning with a grim determination

to improve you will go to bed with the full feeling of

satisfaction. What areas of personal improvement should I

work on today? A good start towards long term success.

Every now and then I will feature excellent businesses and

excellent customer service. Bulgogi Brothers in Greenhills 5 is

one of them. My family and friends enjoyed it last night and I

am going back there with new friends. Businesses that really

take care of their clients get more business and this is

inevitable.

One of my favorite words is ―Chill!‖ It has helped me in many

difficult situations. Here is a question I need to ask myself

constantly: ―Francis, are you working hard or should you rather

wait? There are things you can work for there are things you

have to wait for.‖ Wise people know the difference. Maybe you

can find this useful. So chill!

Take some time to think. A minute of thought is worth more

than an hour of talk. Some people just talk and talk without

thinking while wise people think first before they open their

mouths. Do you know of such people?

The successful person will tell you: ―I got to the top fighting

laziness and ignorance everyday.

Laziness is defined as: ―Getting into the habit of taking a rest

even before you‘re tired!‖Where do you usually find lazy

people? Tell me all about it.


Anger is a fascinating thing. The language you use when you

are angry is your first language actually. And here is another

thing about anger: Never forget what someone says to you

when they are angry because that is usually when the truth

comes out.

Procrastination is a success-killer. Because of this many have

been turned into murderers. They kill time. One of the most

dangerous words you can use is the word ―Later.‖ ―One of

these days‖ is none of these days and there might not be one.

When it comes to exercise, I find that many people come up

with the craziest reasons and cook up creative excuses for not

exercising. One businessman friend of mine says: ―I am in

shape. Round is the shape.‖

Another one says: ―I‘ve started an exercise program. I do 20

sit-ups each morning. That may not sound like a lot, but you

can only hit that snooze button so many times.‖

An honest one among them said this. ―I don‘t exercise at all. If

God meant us to touch our toes, he would have put them

further up our body.‖

And then the philosopher says: ―The advantage of exercising

every day is that you die healthier.‖

But this one is my favorite. Somebody says: ― My grandmother

started walking five miles a day when she was 60. She‘s 97

now & we don‘t know where she is!‖

If you are in your late 20‘s and you do not exercise, chances

are you won‘t notice anything. If you are in your late 30‘s and

you do not exercise you will notice that you are beginning to

develop muscles in the wrong places mostly in the stomach

area and they are really fats. When you reach your 40‘s all

sorts of sickness begin to surface. You begin to experience

funny pains and aches in the different places of your body.

When you reach your late fifties you begin to pay. All those

years of neglect and harmful lifestyle will begin to take its toll

on you. And when we reach our 60s you probably will run out

of resources to pay…for the medical bills.

I have seen good people lose their entire lifetime‘s savings

because of poor health and meanwhile their cardiologist buys a

brand new Mercedes Benz.

I have a weighing scale in my bathroom. I make sure I weigh

myself same time every morning in order to monitor my

weight. There was a time when I had to squat down just to see

the numbers on my weighing scale.

I take my vitamins daily. I take lots of them under a doctor‘s

supervision. There is no one pill that can provide everything I

need, I take vitamins in its right dosage including Zinc which I


find is in sufficient dosage in Conzace, a brand I use every day.

I stay away from sweets, I exercise regularly and I watch

carefully what I eat. How else would I be able to do more than

300 talks, trainings and seminars in a year and travel the world

in doing so?

This reminds me of a story wherein the bathroom scale

manufacturer was very proud of the new model being

introduced at the trade fair. Proudly, the manufacturer said in

his well-prepared sales pitch: ―Listen to these features: it‘s

calibrated to one hundredth of a pound; it can measure your

height as well, in feet or meters; it gives you a readout via led

and it can even tell your weight by means of a human-voice

simulator.‖

―Very impressive,‖ says an overweight prospect. ―But before I

place an order would you mind if I try it out first?‖

―Be my guest,‖ said the manufacturer graciously.

But no sooner had the overweight spectator taken his place on

the scale than a loud, synthesized and computerized human

voice loudly announced: ―One at a time please, one at a time!‖

As a result, there was no sale that day.

One woman said, ―I noticed my husband standing on the

bathroom scale, sucking in his stomach. Thinking he was

trying to weigh less with this maneuver, I commented, ―I don‘t

think that is going to help.‖

―Sure it does,‖ he said. ―It‘s the only way I can see the

numbers‖.

It‘s easy to add pounds and but it‘s so difficult to lose them.

This is why exercise takes a lot of discipline and determination

but it‘s good for us. It teaches us to prioritize the important

things in our lives. Health is wealth yet only a few are serious

enough to take care of this investment. Make sure you do.

If I go to bed early to be in shape for a speaking engagement

next morning, the more I should tonight because tomorrow I go

to church.

Somebody says ―Give God what is right….not what is left.‖ So

true isn‘t it?

In victory as in defeat, Manny displays tremendous grace. That

for me is the character of a true champion. Wouldn‘t you wish

political candidates who lose would behave the same way?

With grace, honor and dignity just like our boxer Manny?

That‘s my wish.

It‘s not just talent. It‘s not just smarts. You need to be

determined. Determination trumps smarts any time all the time.

Be determined to be successful today and every day of your

life.


Remember this: The day goes slow but the years go fast. Make

every moment count. The way you spend your time is the way

you spend your life. Don‘t waste life.

Suddenly my kids are all grown up and I am glad had great

moments with them.

Convictions will always be tested. And when you stand on it

you are STRENGTHENED. When you compromise you are

weakened. Be brave & strong. Never find good reasons to do

wrong things.

I am a fan of Michael Jordan but I am a follower of Jesus

Christ. This is the difference between knowledge and intimacy.

Do we simply know God or are we intimate with Him? Big

difference between the two! Don‘t lose Jesus in the midst of all

this Christmas celebrations.

I have the best ―pick-up line‖ for single men and here it is:

―I‘ve got a job!‖

My most important advice to my two daughters:

―Never make the mistake of falling for cute looking guys who

are irresponsible. You will regret this for the rest of your life!

Do you agree with this line of thought?

Those who have been hurt deeply, God can use greatly. There

is no testimony without a test, no message without a mess. So

true isn‘t it? Don‘t forget to go to church today.

You better watch out,

You better not cry,

You better not pout,

I‘m telling you why…

It won‘t look good on your personnel record.

The latest thing in other countries is for young boys to have

naked pictures of their girlfriends in their cell phones.

NOT COOL! This is so stupid and dumb. The body should be a

private garden reserved for the one we will enjoy in marriage,

not a public park for the mob to exploit, loiter an litter.


When somebody calls you, text you, or left you a message then

you should call back, text back and give a reply. This is being

ethical, respectful and polite. If you don‘t do this then you‘re

not. It‘s a weakness of character. A block for tomorrow‘s

success opportunity.

Haven‘t you noticed with the way we watch television? Three

channels are no longer enough…we need a hundred and three

now. And the entertainment hunger still cannot be quenched.

Just when we need to spend more time and moments reading

intelligent books and doing more thinking. Such a waste of

resource.

Have you ever met people who behave more like jerks rather

than humans? They crack jokes and they think they‘re funny

but they come across as insulting and offensive.

They may have education yet they do not have culture. So

what do you do with people like these? Actually, these are the

exceptions. Most people I know are polite and decent so

concentrate on the beautiful and not on the ugly! And always

thank God that He equips us to see the difference.

Thank you!‖ These are two words used too often it may have

lost its luster. To make it work it has to be specific. So let me

put this principle into practice.

I would like to close the year by saying: ―THANK YOU‖

1. For the leadership and staff of FunWorks for making this

year the best year ever. Rara has done a great job and has

brought inspiration to everyone in the company.

2. For the young but dedicated and hard-working staff of

Inspire Leadership Consultancy. They have gone through the

process of reorganization and did it so well, obtained so many

new clients. The ever charming GM Binky has performed way

beyond our expectations.

3. For Ana Cristobal for patiently managing the book sales and

collections and for being strict yet deep inside, remaining as

one of the kindest people in planet earth.

4. For all those who keep on viewing this page providing me

the inspiration and encouragement to continue doing what I am

doing. And this even include the hecklers and the jesters who

has given me more reasons to understand that the work of

inspiring people needs to continue.

Have a Blessed Christmas and by the way --- the world will not

end today. It is just the beginning of another beautiful life

ahead.


This is what I have learned:

GRATITUDE GENERATES GENEROSITY!!!

I still have so many people I need to thank. My small group,

my closest friends, my high-school friends and many others.

Time to bring my family for a vacation. I may be out of touch

for a day but once I land and settle down I will immediately do

what I love doing….touch base with you through FB.

It was a long flight, it was stressful and tiring but the moment

the plane lands, clearing immigration and customs; and you see

the welcoming arms of your loved ones saying: ―Welcome‖ all

your tiredness disappears. NOTHING BEATS FAMILY!

―Happiness is not based on money and the greatest proof of

that is our family!‖ says heiress Christina Onassis. If you have

a happy family, you have happiness in a great measure.

Jesus was born in a borrowed manger and He was buried in a

borrowed tomb. A poor man‘s borrowed manger and a rich

man‘s borrowed tomb. Jesus did not come to teach us to be

powerful but to be humble? His gift to us was not wealth and

power but salvation. This is the true reason for the season.

Have a Blessed Christmas!

Christmas. Celebrations…parties…gifts…decorations and so

forth and so on.

Look at the stores…have you realized how commercialized

Christmas has become?

A GRANDMOTHER took her grandson to see Santa Claus in a

department store after purchasing about a dozen Christmas

gifts. Santa gave the boy a little present.

―What do you say to Santa?‖ prompted grandma.

―Charge it,‖ said the little boy.

In our country the economy is not in a very good shape. The

times are hard but not hard enough to stop people from

celebrating.

Somebody says: I never knew how hard the times are until I

got to talk to Santa Claus. I asked him how Rudolph is and he

says, ―Delicious!‖

Now here‘s a funny article I got from the Internet authored by

Laura Walton and she persists in believing that Santa Clause is


a woman. I went through it and I laughed at it. Because it

seems to make sense. So why don‘t I share this with you and

you be the one to decide whether Santa is indeed a woman or

not.

Here‘s how it goes:

Santa is a woman…I‘m convinced it must be true.

So many things he takes credit for…Most men just will not do.

He spends his days in shopping malls…Passing out candy and

gum sticks.

He gabs with moms and kids alike…And takes great party

pics.

Santa always keeps a list…And always checks it twice.

Why, isn‘t that the story…Of every woman‘s life?

Santa‘s into arts and crafts…He‘s always making toys

And he keeps tabs on all the neighborhood kids…Knows the

nice girls and boys

Santa likes to decorate…They say he has a flair

He can do the trees all by himself…Knows which ornament

goes where,

Santa does not mind asking directions…There‘s a lot of

deliveries, you know

To houses all over the universe…In cities high and low

Santa makes a fashion statement…That few other men would

copy

In a fur-trimmed suit of velvet red…Never wrinkled, never

sloppy

Yes, Santa Claus there is a Virginia…And a Mary, Sue and

Jane

You must know all of them quite well…For you are much the

same

Santa has to be a woman…It‘s the only thing that‘s right

Who else would work on holiday presents…All hours of the

night[1] End of article.

Now…are you convinced that Santa is probably a woman?

And here are other reasons why Santa can‘t possibly be a man:

Men can‘t pack a bag. Men would rather be dead than caught

wearing red velvet. Men would feel their masculinity is

threatened, having to be seen with all those elves. Men don‘t

answer their mail. Men would refuse to allow their physique to

be described even in jest as anything remotely resembling a

―bowlful of jelly.‖ Men aren‘t interested in stockings unless

somebody‘s wearing them. Finally, being responsible for

Christmas would require a commitment.

Now don‘t take this seriously.

I don‘t believe in an overweight person wearing red pajamas

with a stocking on his or her head…I believe in Jesus born as a

baby during the first Christmas as God‘s grace and mercy to

send us a Savior because you and I are dead in our sins.

Jesus not Santa. And this is the serious part.

[1] Copyright 2000 Laura Walton. Permission is granted to

send this to others, but not for commercial purposes.


When man reaches out to God and he never could, God is pure

and holy and His standards are just too high, then that effort is

called religion. When God in His mercy reaches out to man

because of His love, sending His one and only son Jesus to die

for us on the cross, then that is no longer religion, that is called

CHRISTMAS!

A Blessed Christmas to you all! Okay. Now that the world did

not end on December 21, let‘s just be wise and live each day as

if it were the last. This way we do only that which is

meaningful.

Just attended the wonderful Christmas Eve service at Menlo

Park and John Ortberg reminds us that the very first Christmas

was not a time of peace but of turmoil yet God declares the

words: ―Do not be afraid!‖ Some may be hurting, some may be

sad but God is with us. Do not be afraid.

A story is told of a teacher in Africa taught the nationals that

people gave each other gifts on Christ‘s birthday as an

expression of their joy.

A student gave this teacher a beautiful seashell as a gift. When

asked where he had discovered such an extraordinary shell, the

native said he had walked many miles to a certain bay, the only

place where these shells could be found. The teacher was

deeply moved and told the young man how much he

appreciated his gift, to which the native replied, ―Long walk,

part of gift.‖ It‘s not the price of the gift but the ―long walk‖

behind it.

People who grow the most are people who have been pushed

the most. Don‘t be afraid of challenges. Learn, grow and be

spectacular this coming year. Those who go through life with

the minimum amount of challenges are the those who exhibit

the least amount of growth. Comfort destroys usefulness.

As the year ends, there will be massive media hype on

predictions and fortune-telling. Much like the Mayan calendar

thingy. I love the philosopher who said: ―Shallow people

depend on luck, intelligent people believe in cause and effect.

Luck is when preparation and opportunity intersects. As for

me, it‘s very hard to reconcile God‘s sovereignty and luck.

Time to grow up!


As the year comes to a close, there are bridges we must cross

and there are bridges we must burn. Ask God to give us the

wisdom to know which is which. Burn the bridges of bad

influences and bad habits. Cross the bridges of labor and

discipline to be more productive for service. Love God, love

family, serve the community and country as these bring in joy

and fulfillment. Have you considered which bridges to cross

and which ones to burn? The process is not easy but necessary.

The text messages are coming while my family and I (minus

my son who is busy preparing his latest ―Crazy Katsu‖ branch)

are in California enjoying our family vacation.

Around this time of the year I get greets from friends and

families wishing me a prosperous New Year and these greets

come in many forms.

One of the favorites of mine which is credited to anonymity

has really made me laugh and made me think. Perhaps this will

also be your reaction as I share this with you.

Several years ago, someone (author unknown) composed the

following list of wishes for the New Year: May your hair, your

teeth, your face-lift, your abs, and your stocks not fall; and

may your blood pressure, your triglycerides, your cholesterol,

your white blood count and your mortgage interest not rise.

May you get a clean bill of health from your dentist, your

cardiologist, your gastroenterologist, your urologist, your

proctologist, your podiatrist, your psychiatrist, your plumber,

and the BIR.

May you find a way to travel from anywhere to anywhere

during rush hour in less than an hour, and when you get there

may you find a parking space.

May December 31 find you seated around the dinner table,

together with your beloved family and cherished friends,

ushering in the New Year ahead. You will find the food better,

the environment quieter, the cost much cheaper, and the

pleasure much more fulfilling than anything else you might

ordinarily do that night.

May you have the strength to go through a year of electoral

campaigning, and may some of the promises made be kept.

May you believe at least half of what the candidates propose,

and may those elected fulfill at least half of what they promise,

and the miracle of reducing taxes and balancing budgets

happen.

May what you see in the mirror delight you, and what others

see in you delight them.


May the telemarketers wait to make their sales calls until you

finish dinner, may your checkbook and your budget balance,

and may they include generous amounts for your church and

charities.

May you remember to say ―I love you‖ at least once a day to

your spouse, your child, and your parent(s). You can say it to

your secretary, your nurse, your butcher, your photographer,

your masseuse, your seamstress, your hairdresser or your

tennis instructor, but not with a ―twinkle‖ in your eye.

May we live as God intended, in a world at peace with the

awareness of the beauty in every sunset, every flower‘s

unfolding petals, every baby‘s smile and every wonderful,

astonishing, miraculous beat of our heart.

May God bless you with happiness, great health, peace, and

much love during the next year and all those that follow.

To the list above I add one thing:―I pray also that you will have

greater understanding in your heart so you will know the hope

to which he has called us and that you will know how rich and

glorious are the blessings God has promised his holy people.

And you will know that God‘s power is very great for us who

believe.‖ (Eph. 1:18-19, NCV)

Now do you see what I mean? Who can ever beat this kind of

New Year Greeting?

Don‘t sell yourself short. Your life is more interesting than you

think. This is why reality shows sell. Time to level up this New

Year! There is no such thing as an unimportant day. As you end

the year with reflections, you start the year with hope.


Francis J. Kong is:





for kids.


Consultancy











Ganda.





Series.











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