Triple filter??? What is a "Triple filter???

 


  Hello and happy, happy, Friday! We are sitting at 47 degrees this morning with a bit of wind and gloomy, hazy skies....I think this is supposed to be the warmest we will be the entire day, our afternoon high is set for 40 degrees with snow moving in to our area...hey wait...my leaves have not even fallen from my trees as of yet!!! OH MYLANTA, I am not ready for this!!!!
     In prayer this morning it seemed no matter how I tried to find my peaceful, quiet zone it was not to, my dog was panting, my cat wanting attention, this and that! I began to get very frustrated and was thinking I will just hurry through it and be done, but then I began to think...WHAT???, I am going to let a little noise and chaos deter me from lifting prayer for those who are in such need! How weak am I? I then steadfastly blocked all of the distractions out and felt such a beautiful reward for having had patience and determination. I said my usual prayers asking God for mercy and grace for each of you this day, I prayed over all of the requests that were sent in over the course of the night and as I was coming to the close of my prayer I felt a very strong sense of calm come over me, not  a physical calm, but more of a spiritual calm...I felt loved, I felt as if I am on the right track and I felt good! I pray that you receive validation today that you are on the right track, that you are doing what you know is right and that you are following in the footsteps of Christ even if it is more difficult to follow than to stray off course! Don't play in to anyones drama today, don't allow others to steal your joy, don't allow nay sayers to rain on your parade and most of all don't doubt! If life seems harder today than yesterday...pray harder, love stronger, dig your feet in and let God be your strength! DON'T EVER GIVE UP, DON'T EVER GIVE IN...WITH GOD IN YOUR HEART...YOU WILL WIN!!!
     I came across this little tidbit this morning and found it something that I swear by! If you practice this you will never have to walk around with "egg on your face" don't play into other people's misery, it is very easy to say STOP!

THE TRIPLE FILTER!!!

In ancient Greece, (469 - 399 BC), Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem.

One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said, “Do you know what I just heard about your friend?”

“Hold on a minute,” Socrates replied. “Before telling me anything, I’d like you to pass a little test. It’s called the Triple Filter Test.”

“Triple filter?”

“That’s right,” Socrates continued. “Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you’re going to say. That’s why I call it the triple filter test.”

“The first filter is TRUTH. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?”

“No,” the man said, “actually I just heard about it and...”

“All right,” said Socrates. “So you don’t really know if it’s true or not. Now let’s try the second filter, the filter of GOODNESS. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?”

“No, on the contrary...”

“So,” Socrates continued, “you want to tell me something bad about him, but you’re not certain it’s true. You may still pass the test though, because there’s one filter left: the filter of USEFULNESS. Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?”

“No, not really.”

“Well,” concluded Socrates, “if what you want to tell me is neither true nor good nor even useful, why tell it to me at all?”

This is why Socrates was a great philosopher & held in such high esteem. We should all use this triple filter each time we hear loose talk about any of our friends, family and other associates

  

YOU are needed, come and pray with us please!!!!

 

As another day comes fast to a close, I am thanking God for this beautiful day! I love life, I love his presence in my world and I love the fact that no matter how intense, how stressful, how dramatic, how down right pathetic the day could be....having him to help avert things is all I need to overcome what could be misery:) I pray that your day has been a good one and that you joined in with me today in seeing with your soul and hearing with your heart, did you cross paths with anyone who was in need of a "real" smile or a gentle touch? I did and it felt so good to recognize it, lay my hand on her arm and say "unspoken" that there is someone who cares! It felt so good to be able to say God bless you and then to say a prayer for her! It changed her mood and she actually smiled a "real" smile! I put "real" in quotations because in my day to day doing I very rarely see a "real" smile, I see many mechanical smiles but there is no joy in the eyes, I see half smiles with no spark in the eyes, when I see someone have a glisten in their eyes and they smile from ear to ear and sometimes even give a big belly laugh, that is when I know I have made a mark! And boy do I love the feeling of making a mark!
    Tonight I ask you to join me in prayer for all those who are void of spark, for all of those who have forgotten what happiness is, for those who have become robots in emotion and in feeling! I ask God to touch them in a way that they know there is life out there, that there is a purpose and a reason for where they are and for what they are doing, I ask him to thin the veil and let them have a peace filled moment of memory of the joy there was in the spirit world and in the joy there will be when they return! I sometimes fall into the pity pot and have to ask him to show me and he never fails to impress upon me from where I came and to where I will return, he never lets me down in the knowledge that this is but a flash in time and we must never give in or give up! I ask that you pray with me for those who are suffering illness, who continue to struggle with rehabilitation, for those who fight depression each day and for those who have lost their way and are lacking in faith and belief! I pray for those saddened at the loss of loved ones, I pray that they feel the comfort and peace that God gives so freely and openly. I ask that you continue to pray for my baby who is with child, that she and baby both continue to be strong and healthy, for all of the mommies and unborn babies, for the new babies just entering the world that they be blessed with unconditional love the same as God give us, that they be introduced to Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father at a very early age. Join me if you will in praying for our country that we might continue to have the freedom to speak of religion and to worship God freely and without fear, pray for our soldiers both on foreign and home soil that they feel the admiration and love we hold for them for all they do to keep us safe! Pray with me for these mercies in the name of Jesus Christ, amen!
     May your evening be filled with comfort and peace and may you take time before you seek sleep to have a nice chat with God, I always find that after prayer I sleep my best! God bless you and yours and never forget that you are loved and so very appreciated!

Lisa Beamer on Good Morning America

 

If you remember, she's the wife of Todd Beamer who said "Let's Roll!" and helped take down the plane that was heading for Washington, D.C. She said it's the little things that she misses most about Todd, such as hearing the garage door open as he came home, and her children running to meet him.  She is now the mom of a beautiful little girl, Mary.

 

Lisa recalled this story:

 

I had a very special teacher in high school many years ago whose husband died suddently of a heart attack. About a week after his death, she shared some of her insight with a classroom of students. As the late afternoon sunlight came streaming in through the classroom windows and the class was nearly over, she moved a few things aside on the edge of her desk and sat down there. With a gentle look of reflection on her face, she paused and said, "Class is over. I would like to share with all of you a thought that is unrelated to class, but which I feel is very important."

 

"Each of us is put here on earth to learn, share, love, appreciate and give of ourselves. None of us knows when this fantastic experience will end. It can be taken away at any moment. Perhaps this is the power's way of telling us that we must make the most out of every single day."

 

Her eyes beginning to water, she went on. "So, I would like you all to make me a promise. From now on, on your way to school or on your way home, find something beautiful to notice. It doesn't have to be something you see. It could be a scent, perhaps of freshly baked bread wafting out of someone's house, or it could be the sound of the breeze slightly rustling the leaves in the trees, or the way the morning light catches one autumn leaf as it falls gently to the ground. Please look for these things, and cherish them, for although it may sound trite to some, these things are the 'stuff' of life."

 

"The little things were put here on earth to enjoy, and these are the things we often take for granted. We must make it important to notice them, for any anytime it can all be taken away."

 

The class was completely quiet. We all picked up our books and filed out of the room silently. That afternoon, I noticed more things on my way home from school than I had that whole semester.

 

Every once in a while, I think of that teacher and remember what an impression she made on all of us, and I try to appreciate all of those things that sometimes we all overlook.

 

Take notice of something special you see on your lunch hour today. Go barefoot, or walk on the beach at sunset. Stop off on the way home tonight to get a double dip ice cream cone. For as we get older, it is not the things we did that we often regret, but the things we didn't do.

 

~Lisa Beamer, from an interview on Good Morning America