Jaus' Notebook

Joseph and Mary possessed little of earth's riches, but they had the love of God, and this made them rich in contentment and peace. They were children of the heavenly King, who was about to give them a wonderful honor. William Fullerton rightly wrote "that He was born of Mary; When Bethlehem’s manger was His only home, And that He lived at Nazareth and labored, And so the Savior, Savior of the world is come." "And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.   And when they had seen it , they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart."   Luke 2:16-19 Here is the lyrics of a most beautiful song   Mark Lowry: Mary Did You Know? Mary, did you know that your baby boy Will one day walk on water? Mary, did you know that yo

Smiling has been found to increase feelings of happiness. Psychologists believe this is because the brain interprets the flexing of certain muscles to be indicative of a particular mood. For example, the zygomatic major is the facial muscle responsible for controlling the corners of the mouth. When this muscle is flexed, it is thought that it triggers the neurological response that controls emotion. Another possibility is that smiling while around other people leads them to smile back, and the brain reads this as a social cue to feel happy. ( wiseGEEK: Learn Something New Every Day ) When someone is wearing a plastic smile, they appear to be happier with a situation or events than they actually are. This is basically a description of the forced smile you might see in many photographs. The point here is that such plastic smiles may actually transform to true smiles. Just keep doing it and eventually, it will become a real smile.This is a very potent  antidote to most of the troubles we

East or west, home's best! A little boy named Danny lived with his family in a trailer. One day, someone asked him, "Don't you wish you had a real home?" Danny's reply was wise beyond his years. He said, "We have a real home. We just don't have a house to put it in." A house and a home are very different. A house is just a physical structure, made perhaps of brick or wood or stone. It can be large or small. It may not even have persons inside. If a house does not include persons, their relationships lack love or commitment. By contrast, a home is a haven of shelter, acceptance and unconditional love. It includes at least one person. In it each person's value is unlimited, and their mutual commitment is forever. Any decent contractor can construct a house, but only God can build a home. ( Bill Bouknight Illustration: Home, House, Family in "Just a Thought," Feb. 20, 2004 ) For residential use only? Jesus in comforting