Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Four Boyfriends

You all may have heard this before but I think it is a good reminder for aligning our priorities.  I hope this touches you.

Four Boyfriends

Once upon a time there was this girl who had four boyfriends. She loved the 4th boyfriend the most and adored him with rich robes and treated him to the finest of delicacies. She gave him nothing but the best.  

She also loved the 3rd boyfriend very much and was always showing him off to neighboring kingdoms.  However, she feared that one day he would leave her for another.

She also loved her 2nd boyfriend. He was her confidant and was always kind, considerate and patient with her.  Whenever this girl faced a problem, she could confide in him, and he would help her get through the difficult times.

The girls 1st boyfriend was a very loyal partner and had made great contributions in maintaining her health and kingdom. However, she did not love the first boyfriend. Although he loved her deeply, she hardly took notice of him.

One day, the girl fell ill and she knew her time was short. She thought of her luxurious life and wondered, I now have four boyfriends with me, but when I die, I'll be all alone.  Thus, she asked the 4th boyfriend, "I loved you the most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?'

'No way!', replied the 4th boyfriend, and he walked away without another word.  His answer cut like a sharp knife right into her heart.

The sad girl then asked the 3rd boyfriend, 'I loved you all my life.  Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?'

'No!', replied the 3rd boyfriend. 'Life is too good!  When you die, I'm going to marry someone else!'  Her heart sank and turned cold.

She then asked the 2nd boyfriend, 'I have always turned to you for help and you've always been there for me.  When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?'

'I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time!', replied the 2nd boyfriend.  'At the very most, I can only walk with you to your grave.'  His answer struck her like a bolt of lightning, and the girl was devastated.

Then a voice called out: 'I'll go with you. I'll follow you no matter where you go.'  The girl looked up, and there was her first boyfriend. He was very skinny as he suffered from malnutrition and neglect.  Greatly grieved, the girl said, 'I should have taken much better care of you when I had the chance!'

In truth, you have 4 boyfriends in your lives:

Your 4th boyfriend is your body. No matter how much time and effort you lavish in making it look good, it will leave you when you die.

Your 3rd boyfriend is your possessions, status and wealth. When you die, it will all go to others.
Your 2nd boyfriend is your family and friends. No matter how much they have been there for you, the furthest they can stay by you is up to the grave.

And your 1st boyfriend is your Soul. Often neglected in pursuit of wealth, power and pleasures of the world.  However, your Soul is the only thing that will follow you where ever you go.  Cultivate, strengthen and cherish it now, for it is the only part of you that will follow you to the throne of God and continue with you throughout Eternity.



Now on to our next sharing.  I had to wait to show this one to you, since it was a present for my husband for Valentine's Day.  He is a faithful reader (Thank you HUBBY!) So he would have seen it. 
  • I took a 4x6 piece of salvaged wood and sanded it smooth on both sides. 
  • I chose to paint my block of wood turquoise.  I would not recommend using acrylic paint here.  I used spray paint. Later we will need to run the block under water and acrylic paint will wash off.
  • Next, decide on a quote you would like to use on the block.  Print it out in reverse. 
  • You will need some Matte Medium, available at Michael's (you'd think they would pay me for advertising for them so much!)
  • Here is what we have so far:
  • Now apply the matte medium to the block of painted wood.  Trim your quote to just around the lettering.  Place it printed side down on the block.  Like this: 
  • Allow the Matte Medium to dry completely.  This took my piece about 4 hours.  Once it is dry, run it under water to remove the paper.  Be very careful not to scrub too hard or your lettering will remove too.
  • Allow this to dry completely.  I decided to rough my piece up a bit.  So once it was dry I used coarse sandpaper and removed some of the paint around the edges.  I then went over it with a brown wash. 
  • After that was completed, I sealed it with a spray varnish.  Here is the final piece:
I think the h-man liked it.  I asked him to display it in the bathroom, so every morning he could be reminded before he went out to conquer the world! 

I hope you all have an extra measure of blessings today! 

1 comment:

  1. This is a very moving story and full of wisdom for us to live by.

    ReplyDelete

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