If I speak in the tongues of Christmas materialism and greed but have not love, I am only a tinny Christmas song or an out of tune choir.

If I have the gift of knowing what Aunt Agatha will give me this year and can even understand last year's present, and if I have the faith that I won't get yet more socks and ties this year but have not love, I am nothing.

If I clear out the house and give everything to charity and my credit cards are snapped in half but have not love, what can I possibly gain?

Items Needed:

1. Toothpick
2. Rubber Band
3. Band Aid
4. Pencil
5. Eraser
6. Chewing Gum
7. Mint
8. Candy Kiss
9. Tea Bag

Why???

1) TOOTHPICK - to remind you to pick out the good qualities in others.

2) RUBBER BAND - to remind you to be flexible; things might not always go the way you want, but it will work out.

3) BAND AID - to remind you to heal hurt feelings, yours or someone else's. A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one.

4) PENCIL - to remind you to list your blessings everyday.

5) ERASER - To remind you that everyone makes mistakes and that's OK.

6) CHEWING GUM - to remind you to stick with it and you can accomplish anything.

7) MINT - to remind you that you are worth a mint.

8) CANDY KISS - to remind you that everyone needs a kiss or a hug everyday.

9) TEA BAG - to remind you to relax daily and reflect on all the positive things in your life.

Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, share a word of praise and they always open their hearts to us.

Show your friends how much you care.

*Gifts that Don't Cost a Cent*

1 THE GIFT OF LISTENING - But you must REALLY listen. No interrupting, no daydreaming, no planning your response. Just listening.

2 THE GIFT OF AFFECTION - Be generous with appropriate hugs, kisses, pats on the back and handholds. Let these small actions demonstrate the love you have for family and friends.

3 THE GIFT OF LAUGHTER - Clip cartoons. Share articles and funny stories. Your gift will say, "I love to laugh with you."

4 THE GIFT OF A WRITTEN NOTE - It can be a simple "Thanks for the help" note or a full sonnet. A brief, handwritten note may be remembered for a lifetime, and may even change a life.

~~ A good marriage must be created. ~~

In the art of marriage, the little things are big things....

It's never being too old to hold hands.

It's remembering to say "I love you" at least once each day.

It's never going to sleep angry.

It's having a mutual sense of values and common objectives.

It is standing together, facing the world.

It is forming a circle of love that gathers in the whole family.

It is speaking words of appreciation and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways.

It is having the capacity to forgive and forget.

It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow.

It is a common search for the good and the beautiful.

It is not only marrying the right partner, but also being the right partner.

A nurse took the tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside. "Your son is here," she said to the old man.

She had to repeat the words several times before the patient's eyes opened. Heavily sedated because of the pain of his heart attack, he dimly saw the young uniformed Marine standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his hand. The Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp ones, squeezing a message of love and encouragement. The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit beside the bed. All through the night, the young Marine sat there in the poorly lighted ward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength.

MORAL: 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 plan for us so LET IT REST!

No use in arguing with those who have no clue, or trying to make them understand your point of view.

So let it rest!

No use in turning lively discussions into a heated one, or turning road rage into murder with a gun.

So let it rest!

No use in exchanging hurtful words or insults, or letting your blood pressure skyrocket as a result!

So let it rest!

Life is a Theater...Invite Your Audience Carefully

Not everyone is healthy enough to have a front row seat in our lives. There are some people in your life that need to be loved from a DISTANCE.

It's amazing what you can accomplish when you let go of, or at least minimize your time with draining, negative, incompatible, not going anywhere relationships or friendships.

Observe the relationships around you. Pay close attention. Which ones lift and which ones lower? Which ones encourage and which ones discourage? Which ones are on a path of growth uphill and which ones are going downhill?

A fellow asked his friend why he never married.

The friend replied, "Well, I guess I just never met the right woman; I guess I've been looking for the perfect girl."

"Oh, come on now," said the fellow. "Surely you have met at least one girl that you wanted to marry."

My wife and I were sitting in the living room and I said to her, "Just so you know, I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine and fluids from a bottle. If that ever happens, just pull the plug."

She got up, unplugged the TV and threw out all of my beer!

Here is a handy reference list of the "Christian Response" to social issues: Love them!

On a BA flight from Johannesburg, a middle-aged, well-off white South African Lady has found herself sitting next to a black man. She called the cabin crew attendant over to complain about her seating.

"What seems to be the problem Madam?" asked the attendant.

"Can't you see?" she said, " You've sat me next to a kafir. I can't possibly sit next to this disgusting human. Find me another seat!"

Father O'Shea, the parish priest in the village, was giving a sermon about charity. He said, "The trouble with the world today is that some people have too much and others have too little. We must give of ourselves and our worldly goods to help the less fortunate."

He said to Harrigan, "If you had ten thousand pounds, wouldn't you give half of it to the poor?"

He said, "I would that, Father."

The priest said, "If you had two greyhounds, wouldn't you give one of them to your neighbour next door?"

Harrigan said, "No."

The priest said, "And why not?"

He said, "I have two greyhounds."

Bob Weber, past president of Kiwanis International, told this story. He had spoken to a club in a small town and was spending the night with a farmer on the outskirts of the community. He had just relaxed on the front porch when a newsboy delivered the evening paper. The boy noted the sign "Puppies for Sale". The boy got off his bike and said to the farmer, "How much do you want for the pups, mister?"

"Twenty-five dollars, son."

The boy's face dropped. "Well, sir, could I at least see them anyway?"

A fellow was very much in love with a beautiful girl. One day she told him that the next day was her birthday. He told her he would send her a bouquet of roses... one for each year of her life.

That evening he called the local florist and ordered twenty-one roses with instructions that they be delivered first thing the next morning.

As the florist was preparing the order, he decided that since the young man was such a good customer, he would put an extra dozen roses in the bouquet.

The fellow never did find out what made the young girl so angry with him.

It isn't the thing you do, friend, it's the thing you leave undone,
Which gives you the bitter heartache, at the setting of the sun:
The tender words unspoken, to letter you did not write,
The flowers you might have sent, are your haunting ghosts at night.

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8-year-olds: "What does love mean?" The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think:

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love."
Rebecca - age 8

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You know that your name is safe in their mouth."
Billy - age 4