Properly Exercising Faith - People Who Represent Christianity

It's your responsibility as a Christian to properly exercise your faith and to express your opinions as such. If you don't know something for a fact, you are obligated to seek and gather more information about these so-called facts.

With this said, if you hear a Bible verse quoted to you by someone and you don't necessarily understand 100% of what they are saying or you think that they might be twisting around the Scripture, it's your obligation to find out, the truth and nothing but the truth.

Let me give you an example of how to properly exercise your faith. An atheist walks up to you and asks you why you believe in God, you reply," Because it says so in the Bible." Wrong.., wrong answer. Because it says so in the Bible, isn't what I would consider a good answer. It's what I would consider to be a controlled Christian answer, simple but untrue.

The minute that you start referring to things in the Bible and you don't really understand what it is that you're talking about, you're not doing Christianity any favors. The minute that you listen to another person quote out of the Bible and start repeating, what it is that they were saying, without clearly understanding the truth, you're simply spreading rumors.

Think about this, the next time that you tell someone something that you heard, just because you hear something three times, doesn't make it a fact. I would like to tell you a little secret, so pay attention, simply because someone within your religious community, who others look up to, say something that sounds believable, don't start spreading rumors, find out for yourself, if it's actually true.

Christian Bible Problems

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Greg Vanden Berge is a published author and a inspiration to millions of people. He has been involved in religious research for almost 30 years, and his influence in the Christian community is growing. The Holy Bible, is the core to Christian beliefs and most Christians don't even question it. Was the Bible actually written by men?

His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with advanced biblical knowledge, answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

Understanding the Bible

Financial Burdens From Church Leaders

I really can't believe how many people that don't have enough money and could be living below poverty levels, often he as much as they can to their religious organizations. It saddens me to see those who don't have enough to eat, giving money to their church, even though they needed more than God does.

I realize that the Bible tells its followers to give at least 10% of their earnings to their church or temple. The problem is, that the Bible doesn't provide any information for people that constantly give money to the church, even though they can't afford to. They need this money for food and to educate their children.

I guess it's okay, to form a dependency on your church, even though you could provide for yourself, if you didn't give away all of your money. There are plenty of churches that will provide their patrons with close, food and some of them will even provide shelter for the poor or homeless.

The financial burdens that are produced by some church leaders, make me sick. They make those who can't afford to give, feel guilty and this guilt eats away at them like a cancerous disease, working its way through your vital and important body parts.

I'm going to suggest something to the church leaders. Quit making people feel guilty, simply because you need more money to accomplish the things that you are planning to do. It doesn't really matter, if the stuff that you are doing is great for wonderful, if you're doing it at the expense of others.

I would also like to give some advice to those people who can't afford to give away their money. Quit giving it away. Save your money, feed your family, by your own clothes, and save up for your children's education.

Some of, the money that you are giving to your religious organization, might be squandered away on your church leaders programs. These programs might have nothing to do with God's desire for a better world.

Click Here For A Fascinating Journey Into Christianity - Great Book About The Bible

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If your interested in a different point of view READ THESE ARTICLES - Great Articles For Christians

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author and a inspiration to millions of people. His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with advanced biblical knowledge, answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

Thanks

Are Your Prayers Being Answered by God - Christianity

I spent a large portion of my life praying for things that never seem to come about, like most of us. I would pray for a better life, help with solving certain problems, good health, a new car, to attract abundance into my life, wealth and happiness. I can tell you that I am in good health and have a better life than I used to but I never got the new car and seemed to have a hard time solving certain problems that I was praying for.

Now here's the catch in Christianity. If I pray for something and I get it, great God has blessed you and you must have done something good to receive what you had prayed for. If you don't receive what you prayed for within the next couple of days, maybe it isn't the right time to receive what you were asking for. If I receive what I have prayed for after that, God has answered my prayers and has given me what I needed at the right time. God knows best and I will continue to pray.

When I ask someone who prays often, how do you really know that God has answered your prayers. In Christianity, I'm talking about God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit. I'm not talking about Zeus, Krishna, or any other unspecified creator of the universe. How do you really know that your God has given you what you ask for.

Now think about this for a second, I know that as a Christian you believe in your God but what if, the Hindu god Indra has actually answered my prayer and blessed you. How do I know that Jesus is not one of the Hindu gods, hiding under another name. Could I actually be manifesting my desires from the universe somehow and I am actually God. Think about it, if this doesn't make sense to you, have you ever thought about why yours does.

The minute that I accept something as a fact, I have closed my mind to other possibilities. The world was flat at one time and now it is round. I do not accept the earth has being round, simply because someone has told me this. I can look at pictures, read books, watch movies and come to my own conclusion that there is a very good chance that the earth is round, but I can't seem to forget at one time people thought the earth was flat.

Most of us never even question what we are taught. If you were taught that Jesus, Krishna, Satan or any other god answers your prayers, that's what you probably still believe. Whether your prayers are being answered or not, does not guarantee the existence or deny the existence of God. What you're thinking caps on, Seek and You Will Find.

Eliminate Bible Propaganda

You are free to copy this article to your site as long as you include the following resource information with an active link to my site:

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author and a inspiration to millions of people. He has been involved in religious research for almost 30 years, and his influence in the Christian community is growing. The Holy Bible, is the core to Christian beliefs and most Christians don't even question it. Was the Bible actually written by men?

His newest book," Did God Actually Say That?" Was written specifically for Christians who are interested in gaining additional knowledge about the Bible. This book provides Christians with advanced biblical knowledge, answer some tough questions and should be read by every faithful follower of Christ.

Click here if you're Interested in Christianity.

Affirmations - Far More Than Just Positive Thinking

When someone mentions affirmations, the first thing that comes into your mind is positive thinking. The classic positive thinking affirmation was created by Dr. Emil Coue. "Everyday in every way, I get better and better. The idea behind this type of affirmation is to create new positive habits and thoughts. This works very well but, it is only half of the story. There is another type of affirmation and it is just as important as positive affirmations.

The problem is that the subconscious mind accepts any belief without question. For example, the old belief that you wish to replace is that wealthy people are greedy. You have heard this throughout your lifetime and it becomes set in stone in your subconscious. When you realize that you have this false belief, normally, you would create an affirmation that will give you a new belief. For example, you might start using an affirmation like: I am grateful that my wealth grows each and everyday for with great wealth I can do great good.

This is an excellent new belief for your subconscious but, it also creates a problem. Although the subconscious has accepted this new belief, it has also created a conflict in your mind. Although you have created a new positive belief, it has not eliminated the old negative belief that rich people are greedy. Both beliefs are existing side by side in your mind and the old belief still has it's self-limiting effects.

What I use to overcome the old negative thought pattern is what I call a reprogramming affirmation. The point of this is to convince the subconscious that the old self-limiting belief needs to be eliminated from the data bank. Reprogramming affirmations tend to be somewhat more complex than positive affirmations.

For example, my reprogramming affirmation might read something like: Many people say that the rich are greedy but this is a false belief. Rich people have an abundance mindset and readily give away large portions of their income because they know that their is a limitless supply of wealth. For example, Bill Gates out of the kindness of his heart has created numerous philanthropic organizations and given away millions of dollars of his personal worth to help the poverty stricken of the world. He is super rich but obviously not greedy.

The subconscious is not capable of judgment. It runs automatically in the background and helps us make it through the day. It is our conscious responsibility to control and correct any data that is held within it's data banks. Properly programmed, the subconscious will rapidly propel us toward limitless wealth and self-fulfillment. But, only when there are no conflicts within the data of this most powerful of digital computers.

Stan Pontiere has been an avowed self-help geek since high school-more than 40 years ago. For more information on self-fulfillment please visit: http://www.wealthbyaffirmation.com or my blog at: http://wealthbyaffirmation.blogspot.com/

Why Aren't You Using the Secrets of Self Help to Be Happy?

Now that you are reading this article, chances are, you are looking for tips and self help to be happy in your life. In today's hectic world, there are many people who are stressed out so this is not unusual. The real object of human existence is after all to be happy. In fact, this is why we want more money, more quality time, more comfort and so on. As the Dalai Lama said "The purpose of life is to BE HAPPY".

Because the sad part is that there are many people who do have more money, more quality time and more comfort but still feel unhappy.

One of the biggest information searches is for free self help ebooks and personal development articles to help people to be happy.

There is many a free self help ebook online. The key is to find something that feels right for you at the time of your search. There are self help books that were written many years ago by authors of a different era, some were written about a decade ago and some, only a few years ago. The self help books of long ago may be interesting, but these are cumbersome in the fact that the English used is more complex than what we are used to now.

Getting the self help to be happier in life should be simple and straight forward. Like C. Kingsley said "We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us really HAPPY is something to be ENTHUSIASTIC about."

I have found a self help website created by Helene Malmsio that has around 200 free self help books in many subjects to suit the various areas of your life that needs some self improvement. It is unusual, as this site doesn't need you to register or pay membership fees, or even to subscribe to a newsletter, to be able to download as many self help ebooks as you want. Some sites actually require you to be a registered member in order for you to use its online self help features which you can access through the links on the site, or through an interface.

The following is an excerpt from the site to help you better manage your emotions:
You might look at the following strategy and think "Oh No! Not more of this simplistic - quick fix - nonsense". Please don't discard this powerful concept just because it is so SIMPLE. Simple doesn't always mean EASY. You have to apply yourself - consistently - with a genuine desire to improve your emotional wellbeing, THEN you will get powerful results.

Go on - Try this straightforward self help exercise - answer the questions and notice how you feel when you think about the answers......

"What am I most enjoying in my life right now?" (as Tony Robbins says, don't say "Nothing!" Instead ask yourself "If I could be enjoying something in my life right now, what would that be?")

Then ask yourself: "What about that do I enjoy?"

Then ask yourself: "How does that make me feel?"

Then next ask yourself: "What am I most happy about in my life right now?"

Then ask yourself: "What about that makes me feel happy?"

Notice how your emotions react to the experience of dwelling or thinking about the good and sweet things in your life. If you like the feeling and want more of it, just keep asking yourself the right questions.
When you start each day asking yourself questions that generate a feeling of pleasure, excitement, enthusiasm, just by the act of answering them, your day gets off on the right path.

Try designing self help questions that suit your life or interests, maybe straightforward ones like

* What am I excited about in my life now?
* What am I grateful about in my life now?
* What am I most looking forward to in my life today?

You don't have to be a rocket scientist to apply this self help strategy, do you? All you need is the DESIRE to improve your day and then make the commitment to actually APPLY it every morning for at least 30 days. It will work.

Any self help tool, no matter how powerful, only works when you work it.
So what is stopping you from using the secrets of self help to be happy? To quote Abraham Lincoln "Most people are about as happy as they make up their mind to be."

Again, the key is to look for places that give you plenty of online free resources and tips on self help to be happy. Then remember, you need the commitment to becoming happier by implementing the tools and technology that you learn from them.

If you would like to get some of those free self help ebook downloads I mentioned in the article , just go to the site below where you can also get hundreds of self help articles on how to be happy and love your life here: http://www.personal-enterprise-self-help-resources.com/HAPPINESS-EMOTIONS.html

Will You Be Giving Organic Hampers This Christmas?

The Christmas period is a great time for many people, it's a chance to spend time with family and friends and just unwind from the busy year that you have had. Food and drink is also a main part of the festive holidays and it's a time of chocolates, sweets, rich foods and of course that all important Christmas dinner.

Choosing quality foods is an important part of everybody's life and helps you maintain a healthy body. Organic hampers are a great Christmas idea because the foods in them taste better; they are simply more animated and lively.

With organic foods you are in taking a lot less chemicals so your body doesn't have to work as hard disposing the materials, instead your body can concentrate its attention on getting the goodness from that specific food type, and with Organic hampers you are guaranteed a high quality of foods and drinks.

By taking time and browsing around the Internet for ideas you can create your own custom made organic hamper or if you would rather save time there are a plethora of online stores that sell ready made hampers that you can get delivered straight to the gift receiver's house.

This year a hamper will serve much more of a purpose than other years due to the financial situation of the country. So people are having to spend money but in return will get a nice organic Christmas hamper to stock up their cupboards and drinks cabinets for the New Year, it's a gift that is sure to be appreciated.

Gemma loves spending her free time writing articles on ideal purchases that can save you money at funky hampers

The Brilliance of the Bagua

Today, people are folding more and more Feng Shui practices into their lives. Restaurants, malls, shops and even public places have realized the remarkable usefulness of Feng Shui and its many facets. One of the most important aspects of Feng Shui is the Bagua. The Bagua is an octagonal mapping system that is designed to help you understand how to maximize your energy. The Bagua is a great tool to bring all the elements of Feng Shui into perfect synchronization.

The nine aspects of the Bagua, and thus Feng Shui, correspond to integral parts of our life and must be harmonized for optimal results. It's an accepted fact that

subtle vibrations play a very important role in our lives. The right vibrations can help is achieving prosperity while the wrong ones can create problems in our lives. According to the Bagua, there are nine areas of our lives, namely: family, health, relationships and love, prosperity, fame and reputation, creativity and children, skills and knowledge, helpful people and travel, and career.

Feng Shui and the Bagua suggest people with money problems concentrate on prosperity. The associated elements are water, wood, and the color purple. When you want your fame to grow, then the area of fame and reputation is to be concentrated upon in Bagua. This aspect is governed by the elements of fire and wood. The color of this aspect is red. If you want to enhance or initiate a new relationship, then you need to concentrate on the area of relationship and love in Bagua. The color of this aspect is pink and it's ruled by the elements of earth and fire.

These days there are a lot of divorces happening across the world. If you have a family issue that needs to be sorted out then you need to concentrate on the family area of Bagua. This aspect has the main element as water. The colors associated with this aspect are green, black and blue. If you are suffering due to your health, then you can harmonize the health aspect of Bagua. The colors related to this area are yellow, brown and orange. Health is governed by the components of fire and earth.

Children tend to have a number of developmental adjustments to deal with as they grow. Feng Shui and the Bagua has an answer to a number of age-old problems. The Bagua is designed to help children by optimizing their space and their environment. Child development is governed by the color yellow and earth tones. Life skills and knowledge and prosperity can all be enhanced by the use of this powerful design mechanism.

H. Reich

http://www.sheffield.edu/

Traditional Feng Shui Rules

Feng Shui has been the rage for a very long time and it has all to do with balance. There are many practitioners all over the world who help people rearrange their homes in the Feng Shui style. The words Feng Shui actually mean wind water and the idea of it is to create balance where there is chaos, and this is all due to energy. In order to balance your home you have to bring together the 5 elements that make up feng shui: earth, fire, water, metal and wood. Each of these will have traditional feng shui rules that govern how they are used, and each has an area of your house that it rules.

In order to tell how your things should be arranged, you need the help of the bagua map that is usually included in any feng shui kit that you can purchase from a new age store. If you hire a practitioner to do this for you, they should also have this of tool.

Here are some of the traditional feng shui rules in no particular order:

1. Couches, Beds or chairs - As per traditional feng shui rules these should all be arranged so that anyone using them can see the door. This view should be uninterrupted and any headboard should be against a wall.
2. Shapes -- whether you have thought about it or not, shapes can cause problems in any room if they are not in harmony with the person living there. In the traditional feng shui rules it is said that these bring out certain emotions in us. This is worth checking out and paying attention to so you know which shapes make you feel good.
3. Colors -- there are a lot of different colors that are used in feng shui but they are not chosen the same as when you are trying to match colors in your house. Instead, per traditional feng shui rules they are used to balance certain areas. Usually colors are based on the yin and yang balance within your home.
4. Dark Corners -- anything dark in the house like corners where it gets dark or beams that stick out from corners create negative chi in feng shui. It is a good idea to shed a little light in these areas per traditional feng shui rule.
5. Mirrors -- mirrors are used in traditional feng shui rules to reflect views elsewhere. As an example, you may put a mirror on the outside of your front or back door to make sure that negative energy is reflected away from the house.

Are you ready to transform your home into a zen-like palace of tranquility? It's easier than you think once you get familiar with the traditional feng shui rules. You can learn more right now with 5 more of my favorite feng shui rules for improving your home. Check them out right now by CLICKING HERE!

TV Cooking Programmes Drive a Surge of Interest in Culinary Art Schools

Over 53,000 people last month searched on the internet for information on culinary schools and this data is from just one search engine. This increasing trend for people looking for culinary art schools and for careers in the culinary world is believed to be driven by the significant rise in cooking and culinary related programmes which have been aired on television especially over the last few months. This has been coupled with the new high profiles of so called celebrity chefs, further driving interest in the field.

Anne Sprigpitt owner of http://1culinaryartschools.com says, Over the last few months weve seen a significant increase in the numbers of people using our site to find more information about culinary arts schools. Much of this is down to the popularity of TV cooking programmes such as Master Chef, Saturday Kitchen and Great British Menu, which have been screening on the BBC over recent months.

The main problem many people who search for information on culinary art schools is that they are overwhelmed by the number of different options available to them. For example there are French cooking schools, Thai cooking schools, Le Cordon Bleu schools, Italian cooking schools and many more. There are so many choices they just dont know where to start looking

My advice to anyone who is looking for a career in cooking and wants to join a culinary art school is to narrow down your areas of interest, so that you identify what area of cooking you are most passionate about and go for it. The most important thing is doing what you love.

Cooking to a very high standard is not easy and requires many hours of dedication, sweat and tears. If the increase in popularity of culinary art schools continues, we should see a new wave of celebrity chefs coming through over the next few years as more people see it as a viable way to achieve success and fame.

For more help and advice on finding a culinary art school visit, http://1culinaryartschools.com and discover the fine art of cooking for yourself.

Year of the Earth Ox 2009 - Through Feng Shui Astrology

THE SIGN OF THE OX

Born:

1925,1937,1949,1961,1973,1955,1997,2009

(remember if you birthdate is before February 4th in any year the use theprior birth year)

The strong Ox symbolizes prosperity through hard work. They are methodical, calm and dependable. They make tireless, patient workers that can stick to any routine. Laziness is not a option to this creature.

They respect tradition.

They are strong by nature and can persevere what ever life throws their way.

They make excellent parents as they symbolize parental love because of the tenderness and nurturing behaviour they bestow on their calves. They are deeply devoted to their children and families. They possess a quiet, uncomplaining strength. Their steady, reliable character excels in positions of authority and trust. He has a logical mind gifted with intelligence and dexterity.

Although they can be introverted, they have the ability to rise to the occasion and express themselves powerfully and convincingly, that commands respect and attention in any room. His eloquence in speech makes him credible and a patriotic leader. In times of trouble, his presence of mind, refusal to be

intimidated and innate self confidence take over . He is tenacious by nature and can survive incredible adversity. Their capacity to endure the greatest of hardships has kept entire nations and families together. They tend to triumph over life just because of their stubbornness to give in.

They are proud and walk with their shoulders back and head held high.They are at their best during the peaceful hours of the early morning. When the Ox rests he reassembles his great strength to forge ahead through any obstacle of the day ahead.

For 2009:

A Challenging year for career but a great time to decide what you want to specialize in andensure you take the coursesnecessary in order to do so.

Be conservative this year with spending, health and love! Slow and steady can alsowin the race!

2009 Fay Chapple

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Fay Chapple is an International Feng Shui Expert, award winning Interior Decorator and Life Coach, and is Principal of the award winning Home & Life Design Firm Blue Avalon.

Blue Avalon specializes in Interior Decorating, Feng Shui and Abundant Living. Blue Avalon is the publisher of The Blue Avalon Journal, a monthly e-zine packed with ideas, tips and insider secrets! To subscribe log on to our site at http://www.blueavalon.com and you'll receive a bonus book, The Number One Feng Shui Secret That Will Transform Your Life!

Blue Avalon - "Harmony for your home... Balance for your life!" http://www.blueavalon.com

Vaastu Shastra For Your Dining Room

As Feng Shui is an ancient Chinese art of the arrangement of objects to create a harmonious totality which optimizes the flow of energy to bring fruition of goals, so is Vaastu Shastra the Indian art of designing and building living environments that are in harmony with the physical and metaphysical forces. Like Feng Shui, Vaastu also concerns itself with the flow of energy which in Sanskrit is 'Pran' or Life Force and which finds its corresponding term in Feng Shui as 'Chi'.

'Vaas' means to reside or dwell, and 'Shastra' means science, so that literally it is science of buildings or homes. Vaastu prescribes how the different rooms of the house including the dining room should be oriented in terms of direction and construction and also how the furniture therein should be placed. Vaastu tells you how you should arrange your dining room furniture in the best possible manner, in a way that is most auspicious. The Vaastu of the dining room and dining room furniture is said to influence the positive effect that eating will have on you and your family.

The principles of Vaastu indicate that the most beneficial direction to construct the dining room is the western portion of the house. There are also directives for the dining room furniture: the dining table, should not be set against the wall and there should be sufficient space all around the dining table to move comfortably. The dining table can be of a square or rectangle shape.

Like the tenets of Feng Shui, Vaastu also requires the dining room to be free from clutter and to not be crowded with too much furniture. If the dining room is an open plan area; i.e. one that merges with or into the kitchen and / or the drawing room area, there should be a distinction made for the dining room area by demarcating with a screen or some potted plants.

In Vaastu, not only are there instructions for arranging dining room furniture like the dining table and the dining chairs but also how the different members of the family should be seated. It is indicated that the parents of the family should sit facing the North, North - East, or Eastern directions. It is also indicated that should the children be seated in that particular direction, they gain control or the house and impose their will upon their parents!

In keeping with ancient Indian traditions of animals being considered sacred, Vaastu advises that before beginning the meal, some small offering should be made to a cow, crow or dog. It is considered inadvisable to have a toilet adjacent to or opening out on to the dining room. Since there is much emphasis placed on the actual construction of the room and not just the placement of the dining room furniture, it is advised that the dining table should not be placed under a beam. The color palette for the walls of your dining room considered suitable by Vaastu are pink or orange or other non- jarring and calming colors such as cream, or yellow.

Hutches and corner cabinets can greatly add to a dining set. Make sure everything works well together.

Becoming a Grandparent

Every parent waits for the day their child gives them the exciting news that a grandchild is on the way. This is a chance to relive their parenting days without the need to parent. They are now free to simply enjoy all the wonderful moments they many have missed or forgotten while raising their family.

Empty nesters go through a dilemma when their children suddenly are gone. Even if the transition has taken many years to complete, suddenly they are alone. It's time to redefine their life and who they are now. Maybe take up new hobbies they never had time for; reconnect with old friends or even make that big decision to move to a smaller house.

Whatever they are doing and however they are resolving the internal issues, it always comes back to family. Your mind is free to wonder and suddenly you are back in your child's soccer years; or those hours spent at the ballet studio; or the hours you spent chauffeuring them to all the different activities, or the times you couldn't make specific events because you had to work..

Then the questions start popping up; did you do enough; were you too busy; did they know how much you loved them back then? And then suddenly, after all the self doubting, living through memories you did not want to relive, you find you are going to become grandparent! Ah...this is why you have had all the memories. It's time to pass them on to the next generation.

Now is the perfect time to tell your stories to your new grandchild. Search on the Internet, cruise your local book store and invest in a journal that best suits your needs. You'll find hardbound, quilted, paperback and even software applications you can use on your computer. Some are made especially for recording grandparent memories.

Now all you have to worry about is how much you can fit into the journal before you decide it's too much. Why not make the decision to create a keepsake journal for each grandchild that arrives so they each have their own grandparent journal? This way, they'll all know how special they are and how giving you are to have shared your thoughts, feelings and your life stories with them.

Want the ultimate keepsake? Learn how to make a custom photo book for your grandchild and capture memories that can be enjoyed for many years to come.

Moisture Against Gravity - Destroying Walls

Well I'm going to start this article with a little information on a job I did once.

I had been repairing a rental house for one particular homeowner for about three years when all of a sudden I got a phone call from him telling me the rental house was destroyed and he had never seen nothing like this. He sounded so upset over the phone I told him I would meet with him immediately.

On my way to the house I was trying to get an idea in my head what the house was going to actually look like. Since I have been repairing rental properties for over 20 years at this point of my career, nothing really shocked me. I had pretty much seen everything that could possibly be done to rental property by the tenants that lived there. There is a lot to be said about taking care of it as if it were your own.

He was waiting for me at the front door and he looked thoroughly disgusted. As I approached him he was shaking his head and yelling at the same time can you believe these people, can you believe what they did to my house. I was expecting to see the front door ripped off and all the windows broken out of the house but this wasn't the case.

As he led me through the home and I could see the usual clothing on the floor, broken cabinets, a few holes in the walls and of course that awful smell of mold and mildew. All of this stuff was nothing new to me because I'm the guy they call to fix it when a renter moves out of the property.

As I entered one of the bedrooms I got my first glimpse of something I had never seen before but heard stories about and could not believe my eyes. Looking at the walls in the bedroom about 3 feet from the floor all the way around the room, the plaster was soft. It actually looks like someone shoved popcorn into the wall somehow.

The homeowner wasn't even looking at this because of the rest of the damage in the home. I started to explain to him I'd never seen nothing like this but I could guess it was water damage somehow since the plaster was soft. I could actually stick my finger into the wall, that's how soft the plaster was.

My first thought was to examine the carpeting a little closer to see if it was wet. Well it was damp but it wasn't as wet as I would've expected it to be with the amount of water in the walls. With a little more home inspecting I had found the culprit, it was a broken water bed. The water bed was now in the backyard looking innocent.

I couldn't believe a broken water bed could do this much damage so I looked around for broken or leaking water pipes and could not find any. The other bad news I had to inform the homeowner was that the water had damage the bathroom and closet walls also. These walls of course were on the other side of the bathroom walls that were damaged.

Well the point of this story is that water will actually wick its way up or worked its way up into a wall. I had to remove 4 feet of drywall all the way around the room. The plaster or drywall actually acts like a sponge pulling the water into the walls. Hard to imagine that gravity in this case seems to reverse. I would've never thought that water would've traveled so far up the walls creating that much damage.

To repair the rental property I had to remove the damaged drywall, remove the carpeting, dry the wood framing out and put the whole thing back together.

I'm still amazed and will remember that project for as long as I live.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more Building and Remodeling Library and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

Visit us and get more information on House Water Damage

Religion Articles

Improving Self Confidence

Even the most outwardly confident person has times when they would appreciate more self confidence. For the rest of us mere mortals, here are some helpful tips for improving self confidence.

1. Stop putting yourself down

We all have an inner voice. You know, the one that nags you incessantly if you get the slightest thing wrong. You wouldn't let anyone else talk to you in that tone of voice, so don't let yourself do it either! This takes a little practice but the essence is that every time you hear yourself criticizing you, tell that voice to go away (your choice on how polite you are when you do this!)

2. Play to your strengths

You're good at quite a lot of things if you think about it. Play to these strengths. Do more of the things you're good at. You'll find your confidence improving as you become more successful at these. Success breeds success, so it will spill over into other areas of your life.

3. Stop being so negative!

Cut down on your intake of negative things. Turn off the news. Don't read a newspaper. These two can be scary but other people will tell you if anything actually important hits the news. Don't be negative about yourself either - stop saying that you'll never be any good at whatever it is. As far as possible, don't let others be negative about you either.

4. Set achievable goals

Set them out step by step. You wouldn't climb a whole mountain in one giant leap. Split your goals into "bite sized chunks" so that you are constantly achieving something towards your goals. The regular sense of achievement will start boosting your confidence.

5. Remember a positive event

Go back to when you were more confident - it doesn't matter when particularly. Remember what you felt like. See yourself being confident and calm and collected. Make this image larger and more colorful. Add in the sounds that were there when you were feeling so full of confidence. Then "anchor" that feeling - maybe touch your left earlobe, maybe pinch your thumb and middle finger together, whatever you can use to easily "anchor" the feeling. Repeat this a few times and you'll find that the simple firing of your trigger will bring back these warm, happy, confident feelings.

6. Be yourself

You are who you are. Over time, you can use various self improvement techniques to work on yourself and improve things you want to change. But accept yourself as you are - you'll actually find you're probably quite likeable "as is".

7. Celebrate failure

You didn't learn to walk the first time you wobbled onto two feet. You probably weren't a natural bicycle rider or car driver either. As we grow older, we seem to expect to be able to do new things brilliantly the first time we try them. Unless it's painting by numbers or something equally facile, this doesn't happen in real life. Each failed attempt is just one more way you've learned how not to do something. Learn from your mistakes and build on your successes.

Get more tips on developing your self confidence and find lots of ways to start becoming more confident.

Repairing a Leaking Toilet

Let me explain how a toilet works. First when you go to flush the toilet a little arm pulls a rubber flapper up and lets the water drain into the toilet bowl. The water draining into the toilet bowl forces the old water out along with the number two or number one waste and extremities.

If the toilet sounds like it is running there is a good chance that the seal between the rubber flapper and the plastic rain at the bottom of the toilet is broken somehow. The sound you are hearing is water running around this ring and in to the toilet bowl.

This leak is actually causing no damage to the toilet itself but is wasting water. Hence the water bill will be a little higher if you don't fix the leaking toilet. The best way to find out if this is actually your problem is to take the toilet tank lid off. Then stick your hand down into the toilet bowl and press gently on the rubber flap.

If the water stops leaking or starts running faster this is your problem. Turn the water off to the toilet. There will be a shut off valve on the wall under your toilet bowl in the bathroom. After you turn the water off removed the plastic flap and examine it.

You will be looking for a warped toilet flap or of some sort or grooves on the flapper itself. Take the toilet flapper down to your local home improvement store and buy a new one. Go home and replace the new toilet flapper and this should solve 90% of your leaking toilet problems.

There is one more thing it could be. With the toilet tank lid off, check to see if water is overflowing into the little round plastic pipe. This plastic pipe should have a small hose running from the float valve assembly into it.

If the water is over flowing from the toilet tank into this little plastic pipe you will need to adjust the float.

First thing you will need to do is while the toilet is running lift up on the float lever arm. If the water stops you can simply bend the metal arm of the float lever. The purpose of bending the arm will force the float deeper into the water there for stopping the water from rising over the small tube in the center of your toilet.

There are few parts to a toilet and most parts can be purchased at your local hardware or home improvement centers. Toilet repairs like this can be made simple and the parts used to replace are inexpensive.

Happy Toilet Repairing.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He is currently working on more House Building and Remodeling Library and adding useful content to help solve problems created by the lack of construction knowledge in the building industry.

Visit us and get more information on building and remodeling your homes and Some Great Plumbing Ideas

Impact Of Christian Mentors

Religious Freedom For Life

In the United States of America, we believe that we have this freedom, and it gives us the choice to belong to any religious organization in the country. We can even make up our own religions, if we want to. I have the right, in this country to start a new religious movement, without any persecution from the government. The government might choose not to persecute me but I would imagine, that other religious organizations will.

First Amendment to the United States Constitution - Freedom of Religion, of Speech, of the Press, to Petition, and to Assemble.

This must have been very important to our founding fathers. A lot of people left England to come to America, before the United States Constitution was ever thought of. Before there was even a United States of America. People have been coming to the English colonies for over 150 years before the First Amendment was even signed. Often escaping religious persecution.

Religious freedom was very important to America's ancestors and founding fathers. We can only study history to find out how important religious freedom actually was. In the United States today, we really don't give it much thought. What religious freedom really means and the hardships and battles throughout history. They sacrificed, so that we could reap the benefits today.

Freedom of religion isn't the same today as it was 300 years ago. The country's leaders often dictated what religion you could belong to. This was the end of your religious freedom but today things are different. Organized religions have become extremely influential and powerful in today's world, often influencing governments and world leaders. When will these large religious organizations become powerful enough to take away our religious freedom. Do you honestly think things are getting better, or are we soon going to have one or even a few religions throughout the world.

How many Christians do you know that do most of their business with other Christians? How many Jewish people choose to do the same thing? I don't consider this religious freedom. In the State of Utah, it's well known, that if you're not part of the Mormon Church or The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you're probably not going to prosper, unless you convert to their religion. This might sound like, something you would expect back in the stone ages, but it still goes on today.

Religious freedom is a lot more than just being able to choose your own religion. It's becoming a choice economically, politically and of course socially. At what point do you financially make a decision to become part of a large religious organization, out of necessity. The simple need to feed your family. I believe religion is going to become a bigger problem in the future than it ever was in the past as we see more financial and political power forming in these religious organizations.

I'm not trying to scare anyone, I'm simply suggesting that we start associating with people from other religions or spiritual beliefs. We could learn a lot if we just open our ears and close our mouth. Become part of the solution and not the problem.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development. Check out one of his recommended authors, Norman Vincent Peale Books

Greg is currently working on a self help library filled with great subjects on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion

Creating Your Electricity

Creating your own electricity and generating your own power has always been one of my dreams. Having a self sufficient home, not only a house that takes care of itself by generating its own electricity through windmills or solar panels but the satisfaction knowing that no matter what happens to the electrical companies you will always have electricity at your home.

What a wonderful feeling it would be to get a check back from the utility company instead of paying them every single month. I don't know about you but my utility bills are ridiculous and seemed to be going up in price constantly. I can't believe all the fees they have been charging for years to all of their customers. If you add all the fees for every person in the city or county this comes to a large, a very large number and it's getting worse not better.

Generating your own electricity with solar or wind power is definitely green thinking. This is going to be the wave of the future as fuel used to create electricity continues to rise in price. I really can't imagine what the price of electricity is going to be like in 10 years as the mass consumption continues to rise in developing countries.

We have got to start taking care of our own needs through solar or wind power. We have got to start creating our own electricity to become self reliant. The more self reliant we become as a nation the less dependent we will be on major corporations, especially large power conglomerates.

Creating our own electricity can also be used for electrical cars that can be purchased in the future. Think of the money you will say in fuel costs as the price of gasoline continues to increase as well as less pollution into our environment.

This is definitely the wave of the future and common sense tells us this. I suggest you read this article again if you haven't figured out some of the problems coming our way in the future.

Think green and together we can start saving the planet.

While searching for new alternatives and trying to get some advice on creating your own electricity I came across a book you can purchase in digital format. This book seems to have quite a bit of information on creating your own electricity for a totally self sufficient home.

This book has been created in digital format to reduce the consumption of trees and the waste involved in creating a regular book. What a wonderful idea for helping our environment in quite a few ways.

While searching for new alternatives and trying to get some advice on creating your own electricity I came across a book you can purchase in digital format. This book seems to have quite a bit of information on creating your own electricity for a totally self sufficient home.

This book has been created in digital format to reduce the consumption of trees and the waste involved in creating a regular book. What a wonderful idea for helping our environment in quite a few ways.

For more information visit http://www.gregvan.com and look for Get Earth4Energy Here Create your own electricity! Save 1000's with Earth4Energy

Questions To Ask Your Pastor

5 Ways of Dealing With Depression Without Drugs

Feng Shui can be used to help alleviate depression and feelings of being "stuck," which are so common in today's society. Often, an individual just needs a gentle nudge to return to his correct path, where he can be his true self.

I should know; I've battled feelings of depression and low energy. A combination of Feng Shui, proper nutrition, exercise, meditation and re-connecting with nature alleviated my depression and placed me on a path toward fulfillment. My career has soared. I have a stronger drive for achievement and activity and I am truly grateful and happy. As a result, I've been fortunate to help many others welcome energy, drive and the feelings of joy and gratitude back into their lives. That is my true path.

1. Feng Shui Your Space: A Feng Shui consultation may be the first step in getting "unstuck." A Feng Shui consultant can recommend ways to shift the energy of a person and space, creating amazing transformations.

When I perform a Feng Shui consultation for a client who is feeling stuck or depressed, I pay close attention to the entrance of the space. The entrance should not be blocked, which prevents energy or chi from entering the area.

I'll also take a look at the work environment, specifically under a person's desk. That part of the office should be clean, clear and permit plenty of leg room.

I often introduce life energy into a space. You can do this in your home or office by adding living plants, fresh flowers, raw fruit or moving water.

There are also specific Feng Shui cures and remedies you can employ. For instance, you can use Feng Shui Wind Chimes To Help With Depression.

2. Reconnect With Nature: It's easy to lose your connection with nature and, for many people, this leads to depression.

Don't you feel rejuvenated after spending a day at the beach or a few hours hiking in the mountains? Try to make nature a small part of your life every day. Spend more time outdoors walking, hiking, cycling or simply sitting in the park appreciating the environment.

3. Diet & Nutrition: Chronic fatigue is an indication that the body's "batteries" have run down. Resistance drops and illness or disease may strike.

Often, fatigue is caused by a critical deficiency of active enzymes in the diet and an overabundance of "dead" foods: processed, preserved and over-cooked foods, eaten in incompatible combinations.

Many fad diets literally starve cells of nutrition and energy and permit toxic wastes to accumulate in the tissues. This prevents the body from generating and directing energy for work or play, since all available energy must be used to keep the body alive.

According to The Tao of Health, Sex and Longevity, denatured, processed, preserved, canned and cooked foods should compose less than 50 percent of the daily diet. Eat fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains to give your body the energy it needs and combat chronic fatigue.
Sun Ssu-mo, the Tang Dynasty Taoist physician who correctly diagnosed and cured the nutritional-deficiency disease beriberi 1,300 years ago, a full millennium before European doctors did in 1642, wrote in Precious Recipes: "A truly good physician first finds out the cause of illness, and having found that, he first tries to cure it by food. Only when food fails does he prescribe medication."

4. Proper Exercise:

"The Tao of nurturing life requires that one keep oneself as fluid and flexible as possible. One should not stay still for too long, nor should one exhaust oneself by trying to perform impossible tasks. One should learn how to exercise from nature by observing the fact that flower water never stagnates and a busy door with active hinges never rusts or rots. Why? Because they exercise themselves perpetually and are almost always moving."

(Sun Ssu-mo - Precious Recipes)

In this passage, Sun Ssu-mo succinctly distills the essence of Taoist exercise principles. If we observe nature, we see that rhythmic movement is the foundation for cultivating essence and energy.

Balance and moderation are also key factors. How many times have you started a difficult or time-consuming exercise regime only to abandon it after a few weeks-or a few days? Start slowly so your early success will spark your drive to continue. In addition to structured exercise, look for ways to introduce more physical activity into your everyday life.

The Spring and Autumn Annals tells us: Essence and energy, body and breath, are indivisible: when the body does not move, essence cannot flow; when essence cannot flow, energy becomes stagnant.

Keep your essence moving like a mountain stream by practicing controlled deep breathing balanced with rhythmic physical movement. Body and breath will harmonize and vital energy will circulate to every organ and tissue in the body.

5. Meditation: Meditation purifies the mind and restores the spirit's primal powers by withdrawing all distracting thoughts and disturbing emotions from the mind. Meditation is to spirit what diet and nutrition are to essence - an indispensable tool for cultivating and conserving that treasure.

Emotions are regarded as major causes of disease in Chinese medicine. When unbridled by firm intent, they can cloud our minds and vandalize our precious reserves of essence and energy. To restore conscious awareness, one must empty the mind of all thoughts and pacify all emotions in the solitary silence and peaceful serenity of meditation.

In an article entitled "Mental Muscle" (Omni magazine, June 1992), Kathy Keeton writes:

"When the psychologists Charles Alexander of the Maharishi International University in Fairland, Iowa, and Ellen Langer of Harvard University, taught transcendental meditation (TM) to a group of octogenarians in eight Boston-area nursing homes, 100 percent of those who practiced meditation 20 minutes a day were still alive three years later, while 38 percent of their peers who did not meditate had passed on. This is reminiscent of legends of Himalayan yogis using similar techniques to live more than a hundred years...

Alexander is one of a growing body of scientists who believe that we can muster the power of our brains to stay healthy, to heal ourselves when we're sick, and, quite possibly, to extend our life expectancy."

Combining Feng Shui with proper nutrition, exercise, meditation and time to reconnect with nature will put you on the path to health, happiness, longevity, peace of mind, greater drive and ultimate success.

Ken Lauher, a gifted Black Sect Feng Shui consultant and speaker, empowers individuals and their environments to transform their quality of life naturally.

His inspiring and transformational work with well known actors, actresses, TV Hosts, singers, songwriters, CEO's, businesses, and corporations has made him a sought-after speaker on feng shui and life enhancement.

http://www.KenLauher.com

Slow Market Home Pricing Advice

Homes are going to be sold in good markets and bad. When times are good, people often forget that bad times will be coming eventually. During good times, people often get caught up in the hype of the real estate boom. During tough times, houses will be sold eventually, or taken off the market and sold later. If you need to sell the home as soon as possible, for financial or other reasons, you will have to adjust your price with the current market and don't get greedy.

This is the hardest thing for most people to do, lower the price of their home in order to sell it in a slow real estate market. Don't get caught up in the value of your home, six months or even a year ago. Last year's prices are not going to be this year's prices and you need to get that through your thick skull. If the average homes in your neighborhood are selling for $250,000 and you have a swimming pool or done some upgrades, maybe a room addition. Your home is going to be worth more than the average selling price.

Most real estate professionals will price your home according to the length of time you have to sell it. If you're in a hurry to sell, they don't have time to test the market. The price of your home would need to be competitive or lower than homes selling in the area. Whether homes are selling fast in a good market for selling slow in a bad market, if you have time, you can ask a little bit more for your home. If the market hasn't reached the bottom, waiting could actually hurt you, because the prices of the homes in the area would still be dropping.

Listen to your real estate professionals advice when pricing your home. That's what you're hiring them for, they are in the real estate business. Your neighbors, relatives, friends and people you work with, will probably be guessing if you asked for their opinion on pricing your house.

Your house is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. Finding that person is the key to selling your home, finding that person as soon as possible could give you the illusion that you sold your home to cheap. Don't worry about it, your final objective is to sell the house.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a home buyers guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.

If you really think your home is safe, check out these pictures about home water damage.

Personal Development

Win Your Lover Back Through Positive Thinking

Even if you have come to the point where a break-up is inevitable, you can still win your lover back. Just look around - people make up every day and there are plenty of couples, who had survived rough times and lived happily ever after.

The key is not to lose your positive attitude and ability to see things in an optimistic light. Now, this might sound as rubbish to you, if you are overwhelmed by pain, confusion and despair. But if in the range of emotions you feel right now there is also determination to win your lover back, you have to get hold of yourself. You will not save your relationship by grieving for it.

A very common mistake after a break-up is to concentrate on negative thoughts and play the blame game. Revising the past and understanding all the wrong moves you had done can be helpful in terms of learning on your mistakes. At the same time, focus on future and think what can be done to avoid the same mistakes and win your lover back.

Think about the whole break-up positively. Take it as a lesson, an experience that will eventually help you change yourself to the better. And remember - you made this relationship work in the past and you can do it again in future! Rather than on outer factors - the situation depends on you!

You should also keep in mind that it is you whom he/she considered special and chose from the crowd. So, you have all the chances to win your lover back! Seeing your positive attitude your ex will feel even more attracted to you. If there is no bitterness between you two, it will be easier to keep in touch and, eventually, start dating again.

Eliminate anything that made him/her leave you. Let your ex partner see you are a changed person now, the one he/she always dreamt to be with. Even with a slow progress, do not lose hope; do not lose your positive attitude. Be gentle and do not push your ex towards accepting you again. Let you both enjoy starting everything all over again and re-living that wonderful phase, when you become closer to each other day by day.

And, of course, there is no harm in learning some proven universal tricks and techniques of making up in order to win your lover back.

Find out how to say the right words and do the right things using my step-by-step "How to Get Back Ex" Easy System that has gotten 6000 couples back together after their break-ups!

Developing Wealth Building Habits

If you want to be successful, you need mentors or in other words find people that have succeeded. These people can include the ultra rich like Bill Gates or Warren Buffett, but don't forget about the people around you that have created good wealth building habits.

Some of the people have great advice and will need to be listened to very intently, while others need to be put on a list and never spoken to again. If you're going to be developing wealth building habits, you're going to need some advice from wealthy people. Let me make myself clear, when I'm talking about developing wealth building habits, I'm not talking about spiritual, knowledge, Biblical or religious wealth. I'm talking about making money, as much money as you desire or feel you need.

Wealth building habits start with you. Ask yourself this question "how bad do I want or desire wealth?" Really, really, really bad or are you the kind of person that would like to be rich, but that's as far as it goes. Developing any of these habits does not include sleeping in until 11 o'clock in the morning and then complaining the rest of the day about your finances.

Bill Gates used to work 16 hours a day. How many days a week did he do that? These are the questions you're going to find the answers to. If you're interested in making $50 million, you need to find someone who can teach you, how to make $50 million.

It won't be necessary to contact Warren Buffett but I would advise you to gather as much information about him as possible. Wealth building habits start with learning about wealthy people. If they get up at four o'clock in the morning and read the newspaper until six o'clock, then exercise for 30 minutes and start working at seven o'clock, you need to start doing this also. Developing good wealth building habits over time are what most successful businessman and women have been doing for years. Study their habits and start changing yours.

If you do something every day, it will usually become a habit within 30 days.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

Greg is currently working on a self help video library filled with great movies on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion.

Effects Of False Prophets

Motivation Can Combat Bankruptcy

Personal financial management skills have never been so important in the history of mankind as they are now. The liberal terms and superfluous marketing techniques employed by credit card providers has made bankruptcy a term so popular that even grandmothers can tell you its meaning and even quote some sections of the ACT regulating bankruptcy.

Found in this article are the hidden potentials of motivation to help shield you from bankruptcy. Motivation is the working force of every strong desire. Without motivation, you will agree that all your desires to get out of debt and possibly avoid filling in for bankruptcy will all be in vain. Below are some tips that when backed up with motivation will help you get out of that debt that may lead to bankruptcy fast.

Self-control/Self denial and Discipline: Any human being on earth who does not have self-control, self-denial and discipline will find it very difficult if not impossible to make it in life. Credit/debit cards are like loaded gun given to a drunk. A person who lack self control and is not able to discipline him/her self is likened to a drunk handling a gun that is well loaded in the gathering of people. Self control and its associates will help you forgo certain things that are not essential (i.e luxuries). This self-control cannot be found outside motivation. A depressed, stressed and frustrated individual can never be disciplined or have self control.

To get yourself motivated, simply remind yourself that you love yourself so much that you cannot afford to risk losing all the benefits that is associated with clean financial records. Keep an eye on maintaining a clean financial record ( i.e making it your goal) i bet you will always be motivated to have self-control.

Financial Literacy: If you really want to manage your credit and avoid bankruptcy, or even get out of a near bankrupt situation, financial education is one thing that you must seriously consider. I am not saying that you take up a course in finance or accounting. No, what i mean is to always use other peoples' expertise (OPE). You can find quality financial planner online or offline. Discuss whatever venture/purchase you want to make with him/her. Ask for their opinion. In fact, ask them to tell you the financial implications of what you are about doing. Though there is nothing wrong with you being a little friendly with "figures" but you can still get away with it.

Developing a thick skin to compelling adverts: Advertisers and marketers are always researching ways to make people spend even when they don't want to spend. This is their job and they are obliged to it. And it is your sole duty to learn to say no to certain fantastic offers.

Record keeping: This will help you in the area of being disciplined. By keeping records of all your financial transactions, you can effectively and efficiently manage the possible temptation posed by advertisers

Applying common sense and being focused: Make a rational judgment as to what and what you need to buy and what not to buy.

Okwuduche Chinweike is an accountant who found joy in helping people come out of the shackles of financial illiteracy. This he does at http://motivationmotive.com/personalfinance

You can also meet him at http://www.accountantnextdoor.com for some healthy financial tips.

Finding Homes Using the Internet - Home Shopping

You can simply type the words real estate or homebuying into any search engine on the World Wide Web and you will come up with hundreds, maybe even thousands of websites that are extremely helpful and full of great information. Like the one you're on right now.

Finding homes with the internet, combined with a skilled real estate salesperson, provides you with the most effective technology available today. Most websites start out, having you select a state you would like to search in and then, select a city, with your price range.

By answering their questions, this narrows the search down to all of the homes available in the area. The internet has made home shopping very simple. Considering what you had to go through in the 1970s. You found a realtor or by looking in the yellow pages, sometimes you found a good realtor and if you are lucky, maybe you would find you a good home.

Most of the time, the first homes you would look at, were owned by the real estate professional you were working with.

There are however a couple of problems with using the internet to find your dream home. Some of the verbage used and photographs taken can create a wonderful illusion of a tropical paradise but the reality, it's a regular home in a decent neighborhood.

Some of these photos are taken by skilled photographers who take advantage of every angle and tend to give an illusion of grander. When you actually start driving around and looking at these homes, only then will you get a reality check, of what the home actually looks like. You'll get used to it.

After you've looked at a few of your future dream homes, you will get a better idea of what I'm talking about with these wonderful pictures and the extraordinary home descriptions like "Beautiful Three Bedroom House with an Ocean View." When reality it's a two-bedroom house with an extra closet for the third bedroom and the ocean is 45 miles away, but you can see it on a clear day if you actually climb to the top of the largest tree on the property.

Take your time when searching for your dream home and don't let any one push you into making a decision if you're not ready. If you find your real estate professional a little too aggressive or pushy, get out of your contract, if you've signed one and find another, more helpful real estate salesperson to help you with your home purchase.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a home buyers guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.

Find other real estate tips and great advice, from another one of the Internet's best website creators.

Religion Articles

Why Aren't You Using the Secrets of Self Help to Be Happy?

Now that you are reading this article, chances are, you are looking for tips and self help to be happy in your life. In today's hectic world, there are many people who are stressed out so this is not unusual. The real object of human existence is after all to be happy. In fact, this is why we want more money, more quality time, more comfort and so on. As the Dalai Lama said "The purpose of life is to BE HAPPY".

Because the sad part is that there are many people who do have more money, more quality time and more comfort but still feel unhappy.

One of the biggest information searches is for free self help ebooks and personal development articles to help people to be happy.

There is many a free self help ebook online. The key is to find something that feels right for you at the time of your search. There are self help books that were written many years ago by authors of a different era, some were written about a decade ago and some, only a few years ago. The self help books of long ago may be interesting, but these are cumbersome in the fact that the English used is more complex than what we are used to now.

Getting the self help to be happier in life should be simple and straight forward. Like C. Kingsley said "We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us really HAPPY is something to be ENTHUSIASTIC about."

I have found a self help website created by Helene Malmsio that has around 200 free self help books in many subjects to suit the various areas of your life that needs some self improvement. It is unusual, as this site doesn't need you to register or pay membership fees, or even to subscribe to a newsletter, to be able to download as many self help ebooks as you want. Some sites actually require you to be a registered member in order for you to use its online self help features which you can access through the links on the site, or through an interface.

The following is an excerpt from the site to help you better manage your emotions:
You might look at the following strategy and think "Oh No! Not more of this simplistic - quick fix - nonsense". Please don't discard this powerful concept just because it is so SIMPLE. Simple doesn't always mean EASY. You have to apply yourself - consistently - with a genuine desire to improve your emotional wellbeing, THEN you will get powerful results.

Go on - Try this straightforward self help exercise - answer the questions and notice how you feel when you think about the answers......

"What am I most enjoying in my life right now?" (as Tony Robbins says, don't say "Nothing!" Instead ask yourself "If I could be enjoying something in my life right now, what would that be?")

Then ask yourself: "What about that do I enjoy?"

Then ask yourself: "How does that make me feel?"

Then next ask yourself: "What am I most happy about in my life right now?"

Then ask yourself: "What about that makes me feel happy?"

Notice how your emotions react to the experience of dwelling or thinking about the good and sweet things in your life. If you like the feeling and want more of it, just keep asking yourself the right questions.
When you start each day asking yourself questions that generate a feeling of pleasure, excitement, enthusiasm, just by the act of answering them, your day gets off on the right path.

Try designing self help questions that suit your life or interests, maybe straightforward ones like

* What am I excited about in my life now?
* What am I grateful about in my life now?
* What am I most looking forward to in my life today?

You don't have to be a rocket scientist to apply this self help strategy, do you? All you need is the DESIRE to improve your day and then make the commitment to actually APPLY it every morning for at least 30 days. It will work.

Any self help tool, no matter how powerful, only works when you work it.
So what is stopping you from using the secrets of self help to be happy? To quote Abraham Lincoln "Most people are about as happy as they make up their mind to be."

Again, the key is to look for places that give you plenty of online free resources and tips on self help to be happy. Then remember, you need the commitment to becoming happier by implementing the tools and technology that you learn from them.

If you would like to get some of those free self help ebook downloads I mentioned in the article , just go to the site below where you can also get hundreds of self help articles on how to be happy and love your life here: http://www.personal-enterprise-self-help-resources.com/HAPPINESS-EMOTIONS.html

Inerrancy of the Bible - Are There Mistakes in the Bible

What does the word inerrancy main? Inerrancy would refer to text that is accurate and totally free of any errors or without any mistakes. Does this sound like any book that you have ever read or have knowledge of. Maybe there is a one sentence book that could fall into this category.

Most books however and even this article has mistakes. If I made a decision to base my life, my entire life and that of my children and grandchildren, I would want to make sure that it was accurate as possible.

Is the Bible, 100%, 90%, or even 50% accurate. Are these stories that were written by people many years ago and the lessons have been helpful but now need to be rewritten.

Does the Bible actually contain the will of God? Some scholars believe that certain sections of the Bible meet this criteria while others do not. How can these people judge if they are not God and how can we believe in this stuff is not true.

If the Bible was inspired by God but written by men, this could actually mean that God had complete control over writing the Bible or does this mean that the man wrote the Bible with gods inspiration. I'm inspired by God daily and often write about it, but don't seem to have enough followers to make it into the biblical Hall of Fame. I'm writing with inspired beliefs right now.

If there are errors in the Bible, how extensive or how many errors are there actually. There are actual stories that can be documented as historical facts. This doesn't mean the rest of the Bible is factual, nor does it mean it is historically inaccurate.

The Bible has some errors in it and some facts that we can prove but leaves us with the question, is this a book from the Creator of the universe or a book written by men, to make us believe, it was written by God and if so why are we still believe being in it. Why do some people read this book and other religious text daily? What motivates them to read holy Scripture regularly but doesn't seem to allow them enough time to find out if they are reading accurate information.

The biggest problem I have with the inerrancy of the Bible is the fact that most people tend to ignore certain truths and cling to their childhood beliefs about religion. If this is not the way or the truth, I would want to start looking for it, instead of following someone else's dreams or religious doctrine.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

Greg is currently working on a video library filled with great movies on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion. Religious Education And Fear

What Happens To Nonbelieving

One Self Help Technique That You Need to Know

If you wish to get along with others better so that you can improve your marriage, career, relationships or achieve your goals and dreams, then you are not alone. One of the biggest reasons folks fail is that they cannot hold their tongue and spout off their opinions and demand that others see their point of view. Unfortunately, this also prevents them from learning anything new and surprise, surprise they never change their personal point of view.

Okay, so here is something for you, it's a self-help technique one, which you can use. I am going to give you a clue. Rather than, turning away from those who see things differently, ask them about their views, experiences, observations and then continue to engage them in this line of questioning. Then perhaps, give them an alternative hypothesis or explain your observations and thoughts, now you have engaged your counterpart in a friendly discourse and dialogue and not a drop dead, "I am right, you are wrong" debate.

Does, this technique work all the time, no, not always, as occasionally you meet someone like yourself, so opinionated that they fail to see the real world for what it is. You will learn a lot about yourself and a lot about the world and your place in it. After using this technique myself for some 32-years, I am often amazed at how much I know and how easy it is to engage just about anyone in conversation and get into deep and interesting dialogues in minutes. Indeed, it helps me write cool articles too, like this one.

"Lance Winslow" - Lance Winslow's Bio. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/.

Stair Lighting Problems

Walking up and down the stairs in the dark could become a safety issue. If the stairs in the house are not that old, there should be a light switch at the top and a light switch at the bottom of the stairway. This is a three way switch and is designed to allow you to turn the stair lighting on as you walk up the stairs and then turn the stair lighting off, once you've safely reached the top of the stairway. And vice versa as she walked down the stairs.

If you don't have a light switch, there are motion sensor lights that are battery operated and can be installed easily in the stairway. These lights can provide you with peace of mind, while protecting your family from accidents.

Stairway accidents are nothing to joke about, I lived in a two-story house with four other people and was the last one to fall down the stairway. None of us got seriously injured and the stairway was built to meet local building codes and was inspected by a building and safety inspector. The stairs were built correctly and the stair lighting was no problem, but people still fell down the stairway and it always happens in the evening.

During the day time there were two windows that let plenty of light into the stairway and in the evening the stairway became quite dark, rarely was the stair lightning ever turned on. This could have been outright laziness but nevertheless, it was rarely used and eventually became a safety issue.

Lighting your stairway might not end all of your problems but it can and some of your problems. There are plenty of stair lighting systems available on the market today and some of the battery operated stair lighting systems can be installed by most homeowners.

Think safety always and do your best to solve your stair lighting problems as soon as possible to prevent injuries or accidents.

Greg Vanden Berge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a Home Buyers Guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.

If your looking for some more building stairs or home building ideas.

Nothing Will Be Impossible

Non Physical Conscious Awareness

Human Consciousness can be measured with an Electro-Encephalograph (EEG) machine. What we do not see is the non-physical aspects in the Aura of the person - the electromagnetic field of energy that surrounds the Human Body.

The Human Aura is multi-dimensional; it is not just a shell-like field of energy which is like an egg around the body. It has different layers, which correspond to the different layers of the physical body: the Whole Body, Organs, Cells, Molecules, Atoms, Finer Particles, Light Body and Core Being or Vacuum.

As well as these layers we have the Energy Centres - Chakras - coming out like cones. As the colours of these cones merge with each other we see different colours of light being formed to give us a point in the Aura of each shade and hue.

You can watch the Aura having different shades of points of light, acting like radio tuners receiving similar frequencies from our environment; the Human Body can tune into all frequencies at the same time and we can interpret these with our emotions and feelings.

When we smile we can feel the energy in our cheeks extending out from our body like angel's wings or like a magnetic field; this is created within the body, as would happen in a bar magnet. The field of energy which our physical body creates extends out into the non-physical Aura and beyond, like the force field surrounding a magnet.

Our body is sensing the astrological influences from the planets, as we exist in the Earth's Magnetic Field. All these different electromagnetic levels of energy and force have an influence on our consciousness and our thoughts, feelings, and emotions.

We notice how we feel happier on a bright, sunny day than we do when dark storm clouds are over us.

We live in an invisible field of Electromagnetic Energy which covers the full spectrum: Gamma Rays, X-Rays, Ultraviolet, Visible Light, Infra-red, Radio Frequencies, etc. We are connected as One with this field of Energy and it is part of our Conscious Awareness.

As well as this natural electromagnetic field from our solar system, we are also influenced by the electromagnetic smog of mobile phones, TV and radio and all the other methods of man-made communication using this underlying field of energy in which we live.

Human consciousness can use the underlying electromagnetic field to send messages telepathically, and to get premonitions and dj-vu insights.

The Universe uses this field of Power and Force in an effortless way, to bring about synchronicities in our life; our vibration draws to us the things which are patterned in our being; something magical seeks us out and happens in our life.

As more humans become aware of this non-physical electromagnetic field of energy, it grows stronger and the synchronicities happen more often. The accident rate is declining as everything acts as part of the whole and moves in a frictionless flow of life in Conscious Awareness.

By George E. Lockett SSHA, IIHHT -- HealerGeorge(C) Copyright 2007, All Rights Reserved. Tel: +44 (0)1286 882701 Visit HealerGeorges web site to experience the power of Distant Healing or listen to HealerGeorge Radio giving Questions and Answer advice mixed with Spiritual Music. You can also enjoy many free benefits on HealerGeorge, like listening to Free Guided Meditations. Why not order HealerGeorges Latest book entitled A Journey into The Self The Multi-dimensional Nature of Being Human By George E Lockett. It is all available off the web site. HealerGeorge Web Site and New Book Description: What is this book going to do for YOU? For those who are seeking a complete energetic makeover, as you read it you will feel a stirring and awakening in the depths of your heart. For those who have questions about Shifts in Consciousness, Energy Balancing, and Healing within the body, you will find clear answers.

Surviving As A Contractor In California

So you want to make big money making a living as a contractor in the state of California. Well now I bet you have seen contractors on TV or maybe you know someone who is a contractor. You see these men and women playing the part as Mr. or Mrs. Money bags. If you have the slightest thought that becoming a contractor will provide you with a life of riches think again.

Most contractors that I know and have worked with over the years don't think of there jobs as easy. They have to work everyday and a lot into the night doing estimates or meeting with potential clients because they are to busy during the day. The life of most contractors in the beginning will be difficult to say the least. But if successful you will make a great living for yourself and your family.

Now that we got the false illusion of the contractor answering his cell phone all day at some nice golf course having lunch talking about the money that he just made selling his oil stocks. We can start on reality. If being a contractor was that easy everyone would be a contractor. Right..... Well maybe not everyone.

I have been a contractor for over 22 years and in construction for 30 year. I have seen a lot of changes over the years. I remember when a few contractors that I worked for made a lot of money during the late 1970's. These guys had Ferraris and money to burn with one exception they had no idea how to save any of it. These guys went on vacations and bought extravagant toys for them selves. Out of most of the big framing contractors I worked for about 10 percent are still in business or actually saved their money during the good times so that they could make it through the bad times.

These contractors never thought it was going to end. Life on easy street that is. But it did and most went by the way side. I guess that is the nature of business. Especially the current economic business cycles that we seem to go through over the years. If you don't have the money to advertise or carry a payroll. Your business is going to suffer during the bad times. Sure there is credit and bank loans but you still have to pay that money back. IF you can't save your money stash some away for advertising.

Some of the best advice I can give a contractor anywhere especially in the state of California is " Don't Think The Great Times Of Easy Money Will Last Forever". Save some of the money you make just in case you need to get through the bad times. You will thank me for this latter, Some time down the road. Take this advice and put it into action starting right now.

Greg Vanden Berge has over 30 years of experience in residential home building and remodeling. This provides you with the comfort of knowing that you have a professional with the knowledge and skills to complete your construction projects in a timely manner.

Our low overhead along with our new online estimating system will provide you with the most competitive construction pricing in the area. We continue to educate ourselves about the new home improvement books and building systems in the construction industry. If we have any doubt that something might not work we don't use it. We have found some of these products to be the root of some major home building problems.

Click on the Home Remodeling Ideas to get more information and a possible online estimate for your home improvement project.

Effects Of False Prophets

Positive Attitude: Your Choice Of Friends Matters

You heard from many people and read from many books that having a positive attitude is very important as it is a foundation towards success and it will makes your life easier. But the reality is that in your life, you will sometime face some problems and difficulties. Your surrounding will not help because you will face with a lot of people who has negative attitude and the media is always full of negative things. So what kind of people that you always associated with play a part on whether you will have a positive attitude or not and decided on whether you will reach your goal or not.

Friends are very important as there is a saying that no man is a island. If you want to have a positive attitude and always have a positive thinking, then the choice of your friends will be very important to you. As you will always be interacting with your friend, you will subconsciously be influenced by your friend.

For example, you are with a group of friends who have a negative attitude towards life. What they will always tell you will be the negative things. If you want to do something and you ask for their opinions, they will just tell you that it is impossible. If you do not have your thinking, you will just feel that it is impossible too. This will not be good for you because you will never dare to do anything different from your friends.

What kind of thinking that you have in your mind is actually a kind of energy. When you are always surrounded by negative energy, you will be affected by it. So what is the best solution to this problem. It is simple and it is to mix around with more people who have a positive attitude towards everything. You will soon be influenced by them and you will have a positive attitude.

The interesting thing is that you will never see successful people with negative attitude but you will always see successful people with positive attitude. Successful people always mix around with positive thinking friends. That is the reason why they are so successful. So be selective of who your friends are and have the kind of positive thinking that you richly deserved.

Zack Lim is the owner of http://self-improvement.atspace.com providing information on positive attitude. To get Free 7 Days to Positive Thinking course, go to http://self-improvement.atspace.com This article is free for republishing by visitors provided the resource link is retained

Inerrancy of the Bible - Are There Mistakes in the Bible

What does the word inerrancy main? Inerrancy would refer to text that is accurate and totally free of any errors or without any mistakes. Does this sound like any book that you have ever read or have knowledge of. Maybe there is a one sentence book that could fall into this category.

Most books however and even this article has mistakes. If I made a decision to base my life, my entire life and that of my children and grandchildren, I would want to make sure that it was accurate as possible.

Is the Bible, 100%, 90%, or even 50% accurate. Are these stories that were written by people many years ago and the lessons have been helpful but now need to be rewritten.

Does the Bible actually contain the will of God? Some scholars believe that certain sections of the Bible meet this criteria while others do not. How can these people judge if they are not God and how can we believe in this stuff is not true.

If the Bible was inspired by God but written by men, this could actually mean that God had complete control over writing the Bible or does this mean that the man wrote the Bible with gods inspiration. I'm inspired by God daily and often write about it, but don't seem to have enough followers to make it into the biblical Hall of Fame. I'm writing with inspired beliefs right now.

If there are errors in the Bible, how extensive or how many errors are there actually. There are actual stories that can be documented as historical facts. This doesn't mean the rest of the Bible is factual, nor does it mean it is historically inaccurate.

The Bible has some errors in it and some facts that we can prove but leaves us with the question, is this a book from the Creator of the universe or a book written by men, to make us believe, it was written by God and if so why are we still believe being in it. Why do some people read this book and other religious text daily? What motivates them to read holy Scripture regularly but doesn't seem to allow them enough time to find out if they are reading accurate information.

The biggest problem I have with the inerrancy of the Bible is the fact that most people tend to ignore certain truths and cling to their childhood beliefs about religion. If this is not the way or the truth, I would want to start looking for it, instead of following someone else's dreams or religious doctrine.

Greg Vanden Berge is a published author, internet marketing expert, motivational inspiration to millions of people all over the world and is sharing some of his wisdom with experts in the fields of writing,marketing, and personal development.

Greg is currently working on a video library filled with great movies on a wide array of topics, like religion, self help and spiritual changes in the world. His views on religious freedom are slowly changing the way people think about institutional religion. Religious Education And Fear

Does God Make Mistakes